BOOK II

The painter is occupied in a perpetual struggle to produce an illusion. He does not directly aim for this, but except in the very highest art where ideals are realized, the better the picture he paints, the greater the illusion. The natural test of the value of his work is its correspondence with nature, and the nearer it so corresponds, the more complete the illusion. But the whole picture is never an illusion (we leave out of consideration those instances where artificial devices are used to conceal the surroundings of the actual painted surface), for the frame and other material evidence inform us of the art. The illusion, when it exists, is forced upon our minds from moment to moment as our eyes travel over the work. It occurs to us perhaps that a face "lives," that the drapery is true to life, that the tones are real, and so on, and obviously these circumstances cannot impress us in this way unless we are momentarily deceived. And it is a sign of good quality in the work when we are so struck. This does not meanthat the closer the imitation, the better the picture: on the contrary it is rare to find a good work of art produced by an exact imitator. The duty of the artist is to generalize everything that can be generalized without departing from the character of the thing represented. True there are degrees of generalization which depend on the nature of the design, the size of the work, the accessories, and other matters, but if a just balance of generalization be secured throughout, then the imitation is better than a closely detailed reproduction, because a work is always involuntarily judged from general, and not from particular, experience. A portrait for instance is a much better work of art if we can say of it "This is a good portrait of a man," than if we are compelled to confine ourselves to "This is a good portrait of Mr. Jones," even if the lineaments of the particular countenance are better defined in the latter example than in the former. The illusion would be stronger, for we are more intimately acquainted with "a man" than with "Mr. Jones." And so with accessories. An exceptionally fine rose or cabbage is never so good in a painting as one of these articles which is of an average type, because with this the illusion is more certain, for it is not likely to be disturbed with a mental inquiry into the unusual article.

The painter may produce his illusions then without sacrificing anything in his art, and with the surety that good paintings necessarily result in momentary illusions except when form or expression above life experience are dealt with.

The first and most important illusion in the art isthat of relief, for without this no other illusion can be produced. It is a general condition applying to all work on a flat surface. The other illusions that may be provided are: (a) of opening distance in landscape; (b) of motion in natural actions, as in flowing water; (c) of human and animal actions; (d) of suspension and motion in the air. The two first are dealt with under "Landscape"; the others are now considered.

The greatest value in the illusion of relief lies in its assistance to recognition, for with the forms rounded by shading and separated with the appearance of relief which they have in nature, details of the work are less likely to complicate the design to the eye, than if the flat surface of the canvas be emphasized by the avoidance of relief. For the eye has to be considered before the mind, and it is of immense importance that the brain should have the least possible work to do in assisting the eye to interpret a thing of art. It would appear then that the minimum extent to which relief should be given in a painting is that point below which the things painted do not seem to have their three dimensions indicated. Beyond this the painter is at liberty to proceed as he pleases. Some great artists, notably Lionardo, were inclined to think that it is impossible to give too much relief to a figure, and this may be so theoretically, but practically there is a line to be drawn because life is limited, and after a certain point is reached, the work of shading for relief is so tedious an operation, that half a lifetime would be required to execute a picture of three or four figuresif the artist wished to produce the strongest illusion in his power to give. A Russian artist of high merit who essayed the task, spent an average time of five years in ceaseless toil on each figure he completed, and even then frequently remarked that he had not given to his figures the full relief he desired to exhibit. It is well known that Lionardo gave long and close attention to this matter in his pictures, and he produced some extraordinary examples of relief, of which the finest is, perhaps, the Litta Madonna,[a]but one cannot help regretting that he did not rest satisfied with a lower point of excellence in respect of the illusion, so that he could spend more time in general design.

PLATE 21PLATE 21The Litta Madonna, by Lionardo da Vinci(Hermitage)(Seepage 240)

(Seepage 240)

Apart from the relief given by shading in painting, there is an important mechanical method of improving the illusion, though this can only be occasionally adopted. The figures in any well painted picture will appear to stand out in high relief if we lose sight of the frame and other surroundings which distinctly inform us that the work is a flat surface. This is why a painting invariably seems to improve if seen through a tube of such diameter that the frame is excluded from the vision. Advantage of this fact has been many times taken in the exhibition of single pictures, when, by the exclusion of the frame, the concealment of the edges of the work by curtain arrangements, and the concentration of all the available light upon the canvas, such perfect relief has been obtained that observers have been sometimes unable to distinguish the art from the life. It wasthe effect of the surroundings of a picture upon the sight, that led to a practice in design resulting in the exclusion of these surroundings to some extent when the eye is directed towards the centre of the work where the principal figure is commonly stationed. This practice is to avoid accessories as far as possible near the figure, and to provide considerable open space above it, and also at the sides when the composition allows, so that the observing eye has not of necessity to range close to the frame of the picture. In a good design of this kind the central figure or figures come out in strong relief, the attraction of the work being consequently much enhanced. Obviously the painted figures should be of life size, or nearly so, for the illusion of relief to be strikingly marked, and the conditions necessarily prevent the adoption of the scheme in a design of many figures. It is most successful with a single figure, and has been carried out with two figures, but never with more than two except in a few pictures of great size.

The number of artists who have taken advantage of this mechanical device is not large, but it includes some of the first masters. The plan may be used in both exterior and interior scenes. In the former the figures must be thrown against the sky, and it is a distinct advantage if there be no trees or other objects on either side of the figures, which also stand out above the horizon, though this is immaterial if the figure be set in a confined space, as an arch, or between the columns of a loggia, and the foliage is not seen through this space.

The most famous pictures where the scheme isused in exterior work are amongst the finest portraits known to us, namely, Lionardo's Mona Lisa, and Raphael's Maddalena Doni and Angelo Doni.[b]In 1504 or thereabouts, Lionardo painted a portrait of Mona Lisa sitting in a loggia, the wall of which reached to a third of the height of the canvas.[c]On the wall at each side of the design is a column divided down the centre by the edge of the canvas. There is a landscape setting, in which the middle distance is hidden by rising ground, and only part of the head appears above the horizon. In 1505 Raphael made a study from this picture in which he retained the columns, but raised the wall, and threw the whole head of the figure against the sky. He used this study for the portrait of Maddalena Doni, but in this he still further improved the design by removing the columns, and extending to the shoulders that part of the figure above the horizon, the line of which divides the picture in equal halves, instead of being drawn at two thirds of the height as in the first Mona Lisa. When Lionardo executed the Louvre portrait of this lady, he removed the columns, but slightly reduced the portion of the head seen against the sky. Raphael's plan, which was also used in the portrait of Angelo Doni, is obviously far superior to that in the Mona Lisa design, for the relief is necessarily better marked. The scheme was not new to Raphael at the time, except in portraiture,for it is exhibited in three of his very early sacred works.[d]

One of the best examples in existence of this method of securing relief is Tintoretto's Presentation of the Virgin.[e]On the right of the picture is a wide flight of stairs, curving round as they ascend. The Virgin is moving up these steps in advance of some attendants, and the curved stairway enables all the figures to stand out in fine relief against the sky. If well managed some considerable space above the figures is sufficient for the illusion even if the sides are partly closed, as in Albertinelli's beautiful Salutation.[f]Where only a small portion of the figure can be shown above the horizon, the use of a faint far distance helps in the scheme of relief. Thus, in Marco Basaiti's Christ on the Mount of Olives,[g]where Christ stands on the top of a rock which hides the middle distance, His head only is above the horizon, but the rest of the figure is thrown against a faint far distance, the relief being excellent. A modification of this plan is observable in Lionardo's Virgin and Child with St. Anne.[h]

So far as the writer has been able to ascertain, the first known painting where a crucifix is thrown against the sky is by Antonella da Messina.[i]The Cross is fixed in the foreground and extends to the top of the picture, being cut half-way up and justbelow the feet of Christ by the line of the horizon. The relief is very fine. This scheme was imitated with more or less success but never quite so perfectly, till Titian produced his magnificent Cross. Here the Crucifix is cast against a sombre evening sky, with the Virgin and two imploring Saints at the foot.[j]Rubens improved upon this design with several variations. In one he hid the foot of the Cross, though the tops of buildings are seen in the middle distance[k]; and in another, which is still finer, the time of the scene is late evening, and dark vague outlines suggest a landscape. But all these examples are cast into the shade by Van Dyck's Antwerp picture, than which there is certainly no more impressive painted Crucifixion in existence. In this the foot of the Cross is not shown, nor is there any ground to be seen, and the figure stands out against a dark forbidding sky, awful, but sublimely real, as if set in boundless space for all eternity.[l]

There are many variations of the above designs, particularly among the Works of Venetian artists, but those quoted may be regarded as typical. How easy it is to hinder the illusion is seen in Sodoma's Sacrifice of Abraham,[m]where both figures are set against the sky, but trees behind them and at the side destroy the relief, though the foliage is by no means thick. In Girolami da Libri's Madonna and Child with St. Anne, a pomegranate tree interposes[n]; and a curtain falls at the back of a group by Bernadinoda Conti,[o]the illusion in both cases being consequently robbed of its effect.

Some of the Dutch artists of the seventeenth century used a clear sky for the purpose of enhancing the relief of their figures, but as these are usually of a comparatively small size, the result is only partially effective. Albert Cuyp and Philip Wouverman painted many pictures with men and animals silhouetted above the horizon, and Paul Potter executed a few of the kind, but of all Dutch painters, Jan Steen secured the best relief with his Terrace Scene.[p]In more recent times the scheme has seldom been adopted for the purpose of relief, but a few Scottish painters practised it in the early nineteenth century. Simson followed Cuyp's plan,[q]and Dyce in a sacred piece equalled the best of the old masters in his manner of producing the illusion.[r]Grant also painted a fine example.[s]Some portrait painters of the English school of the eighteenth century used the scheme in a partial way, but they commonly placed clouds behind the figures thrown against the sky, thus disturbing the illusion.

There is only one method of using this device for assisting in the production of relief in interiors. This is to throw the figure against a high wall which is undecorated or nearly so. The figure must besome little distance in front of the wall, and it is observable that the best effect is obtained when the light throughout the room is equal, but in any case the wall should not have less light than the figure. Inasmuch as the figure has to be of life size or nearly so, to produce the desired result, a very large picture would be necessary for the representation of a standing adult; hence the plan is not attempted with a life-size figure, except with a sitting adult or a standing child. Before this scheme was used for the human figure, that master of relief, M. A. Caravaggio, adopted it for a simple still-life work.[t]A basket of fruit on a plain table, with a high bare wall at the back—the canvas now sombre and darkened, like the soul of the artist, but still remarkable for the relief: this was the first application to interiors of a plan which had been used in exteriors by some of the greatest masters for more than a century.

So far as can be gathered from existing works, thirty or forty years elapsed after the picture of Caravaggio was painted before the scheme was brought into use for the human figure in interiors. In 1630, or thereabouts, Velasquez produced his Christ at the Column.[u]Here the wall is not actually high, but Christ is shown seated on the floor, and hence there is ample wall space over which the eye may rove. It is possible that the adoption of the plan in this instance was the result of accident, but the very unusual pose of Christ hardly warrants the suggestion. Velasquez painted no more pictures of the kind till a quarter of a century later, when heproduced Las Meninas. In this the relief is excellent, but it would have been still better without the picture on the wall, and the open door in the background, though the figure seen on the steps through the doorway lends assistance to the illusion.

Towards the middle of the seventeenth century, some followers of the Neapolitan school used the plan occasionally, but the best existing Italian works of the time where it is seen are from the hand of Evaristo Baschenis, a Bergamese monk. He was an excellent painter of still-life, and produced several pictures, each with a boy or a woman seated in the middle of a room near a plain table on which rests a dish of fruit or a gathering of various articles, while at the back there is a high bare wall. In all of these works a fine relief is exhibited, though they are now considerably marred by darkened shadows. A few years later the plan was adopted by some Dutch artists, and later still in France and Germany. Chardin, who in more ways than one seems to have been a French Baschenis, used it in several pictures. In recent times since the study of Velasquez has become a vogue, many artists have successfully followed the plan, and one of the finest examples of it in existence—Lydia Emmet's Patricia[v]—dates as late as 1915.

There are several minor mechanical ways of enhancing relief, most of them providing a setting which acts as a kind of inner frame to the design, the object being to reduce the effect of the actual frame indisturbing the illusion. Portrait painters of the Dutch, Flemish, and English schools, have often placed half length figures in painted ovals on canvas rectangles, and in the case of Hals he sometimes further improved the illusion by extending a hand of the subject over the oval. Hanneman used this oval in a most exceptional way. On a large canvas he painted the bust portraits of Constantine Huygens and his six children, each in a separate oval, the father being in the centre.[w]The scheme is strangely effective, for the attention of the observer is involuntarily confined to one portrait at a time. In genre pictures a doorway may act as the inner frame, but this is only of material value if the picture be of considerable size. The Dutch painters, notably Gerard Dow, loved to paint figures leaning over window-sills, this method usually enhancing the relief, because the eye is apt to be confined for a time to the window-frame. Perhaps the best use of a window for the purpose of relief is Rembrandt's Samson Menacing His Father-in-law, where the old man's head and hands, of life size, are seen protruding from a small window.[x]

FOOTNOTES:[a]At the Hermitage. See Plate 21.[b]The first at the Louvre, and the others at the Pitti Palace, Florence.[c]This painting, or one corresponding to it, is in the Boston Museum, U. S. A. See Note 56.[d]Saint Sebastian, at Bergamo; The Redeemer at Brescia; and The Prophets and Sybils at Perugia.[e]Madonna del Orto, Venice.[f]Uffizi Gallery, Florence.[g]Venice Academy.[h]The Louvre.[i]National Gallery, London.[j]Ancona Gallery.[k]Antwerp Museum.[l]This work was repeated several times with variations. See Plate 22.[m]Pisa Cathedral.[n]National Gallery, London.[o]Poldo Pezzoli Museum, Milan.[p]National Gallery, London.[q]National Gallery, Edinburgh.[r]St. John Leading the Virgin from the Tomb, National Gallery of British Art, London.[s]The Countess of Chesterfield and Mrs. Anson, Gilmour Collection, Scotland.[t]Ambrogia Museum, Milan.[u]The Prado, Madrid.[v]Exhibition of the National (American) Association of Portrait Painters, N. Y., 1915. See Plate 23.[w]Hague Gallery.[x]Berlin Gallery.

FOOTNOTES:

[a]At the Hermitage. See Plate 21.

[b]The first at the Louvre, and the others at the Pitti Palace, Florence.

[c]This painting, or one corresponding to it, is in the Boston Museum, U. S. A. See Note 56.

[d]Saint Sebastian, at Bergamo; The Redeemer at Brescia; and The Prophets and Sybils at Perugia.

[e]Madonna del Orto, Venice.

[f]Uffizi Gallery, Florence.

[g]Venice Academy.

[h]The Louvre.

[i]National Gallery, London.

[j]Ancona Gallery.

[k]Antwerp Museum.

[l]This work was repeated several times with variations. See Plate 22.

[m]Pisa Cathedral.

[n]National Gallery, London.

[o]Poldo Pezzoli Museum, Milan.

[p]National Gallery, London.

[q]National Gallery, Edinburgh.

[r]St. John Leading the Virgin from the Tomb, National Gallery of British Art, London.

[s]The Countess of Chesterfield and Mrs. Anson, Gilmour Collection, Scotland.

[t]Ambrogia Museum, Milan.

[u]The Prado, Madrid.

[v]Exhibition of the National (American) Association of Portrait Painters, N. Y., 1915. See Plate 23.

[w]Hague Gallery.

[x]Berlin Gallery.

With human figures—With animals.

From the earliest times great sculptors, in producing a single figure in action, have chosen for the representation a moment of rest between two steps in the action, so that the character of these steps is instantly recognized by the observer, whose imagination unconsciously carries through the action. If every part of the figure is built up conformably with the action, with due regard to the position from which the statue is to be seen, an illusion of motion will follow, though this is necessarily so rapid that the effect upon the observer is indirect: he translates the impression into appreciation of the lifelike attitude of the figure. Nearly all the ancient Greek sculptured figures known to us, commencing with those of Myron, are characterized by this excellence in design, and so with the best work of the Italian Renaissance. Modern sculptors of repute have also endeavoured to provide the illusion, Rodin in particular holding that it should be the aim of every sculptor.69

The painter is in a different position from the sculptor because the latter may design his figurewith special reference to the position it is to occupy, and so he can in a measure compel the observer to see it in a particular way. Thus, the base of the statue may be some height above the ground, in which case the observer must necessarily run his eyes up the figure from the feet; or it may be seen first in a three-quarter view so that the position of the limbs will apparently change as the observer moves to the front. Such accidental circumstances may be considered by the sculptor in his plan. The painter has no such advantage, for his figure is the same from whichever point it is to be seen, within reasonable limits; but he has compensation in the use of tones and accessories of which the sculptor is deprived. That the painter may provide an excellent illusion with a single figure in action is evidenced by Raphael's superb St. Margaret, where the Saint is seen stepping over the dragon.[a]Every part of her body, and every fold of drapery is used in the expression of movement, the effect being so perfect that we cannot disassociate the figure from the action.70

The painters of the first century of the Renaissance never properly represented a figure in the act of walking, and there are few pictures even of the fifteenth century where a serious attempt is made to choose the best moment in which to exhibit such a figure. The first successful essay in the task seems to have been in The Tribute Money of Masaccio,[b]who indeed was fifty years ahead of his fellows in the faithful representation of action. There was ajump of two decades or so after Masaccio to the next good figure, which was that of an attendant in Filipo Lippi's complex tondo at Florence.[c]This figure must have caused considerable surprise at the time, for it was copied into several works by subsequent artists, notably Domenico Ghirlandaio,[d]and probably suggested the fine figure carrying a jar of water on her head in Raphael's Fire at the Borgo.[e]But Raphael, who mastered every problem in composition, solved this one so completely that he left nothing for his successors to learn respecting it. Not only are the limbs of his moving figures so perfectly arranged that we see only action, but folds of the drapery used on the figures are sufficient to indicate preceding movements,[f]and this is so even when the figures are stationary, but the head, arms, or upper part of the body have moved.[g]This extraordinary feature of Raphael's work will ever form a subject of astonishment and admiration.

The painter has a comparatively easy task in presenting an illusion with several figures presumed to be moving, for he has only to comply with two simple conditions. The first is that the particular step represented in the act of progression of any individual should vary from the steps of the persons immediately behind or in front of him; and secondlythat the actions of the different persons be connected with each other so far as possible. With these conditions reasonably fulfilled, illusion of motion necessarily follows. Naturally in such a mechanical matter, the character of the invention depends upon the scale of the design. When the moving figures are presumed to be comparatively near at hand, the position of the limbs must be entirely presented, or the progression will appear broken. The effective illusion presented in Burne-Jones's Golden Staircase is due to his ingenuity in so arranging the numerous figures descending the winding stairs, that all their feet are visible. In the case of a crowd of figures of whom some are supposed to be moving and others standing still, the visibility of the limbs is of less importance than the connection of the various actions. In Menzel's Market in Verona,[h]the illusion, which is remarkable, is entirely produced by the skill in which innumerable instances of action are made dependent upon others. An illusion is created in the same way though in a lesser degree by Gustave Doré in several works.[i]When the motion arises from the actions of the arms of a number of persons, it suffices if the arms are in various positions, as in Menzel's Iron Mill, and Cavalori's Woolworkers[j]where many men are using long tools; but if the limbs are working together, an illusion is impossible. The beauty of Guardi's great picture, Regatta on the Grand Canal, is much diminished by the attitude of the gondoliers, who all hold their poles in the same position.

PLATE 22PLATE 22Christ on the Cross, by Van Dyck(Antwerp Museum)(Seepage 244)

(Seepage 244)

Where many persons are moving together in the same direction, great care has to be exercised in presenting the actions conformably with the rate at which the movement is proceeding, for upon this of course depends the angles of the bended knees, and the extent to which some of the feet may be carried from the ground. In slow natural movements, as where a number of men are dragging a heavy burden, it is rare to find an artist wrong in his representation[k]; but in the case of numerous figures walking irregularly, a true nearground design is uncommon, the painter usually giving insufficient action, with the result that his figures present a stagy appearance.[l]But a defect of this kind is not so serious as where several men, not being in marching order, are moving in the same direction with their feet in similar positions, and each with a foot off the ground,[m]for this is only an aggravation of a case where the picture shows but a single figure walking with one foot in the air.

An illusion of motion may be given to a line of figures in the middle distance of a landscape by simply winding the road along which they pass[n]; but the angles of the turns must be large, for whenthey are small, or when there is a distinct zigzag, the illusion is destroyed through the lengthy operation of the eye in comprehending the whole scene.

When many figures are moving close together, even if they be marching to the same step, an illusion of movement may be given by the representation of a flying figure proceeding in the same direction. This scheme has been adopted in sculpture with high success, as in the Shaw Memorial at Boston,[o]and the Marseillaise of Rude.[p]In painting, several horizontal figures may be used, but they must be placed irregularly to avoid the appearance of formality. Some modern French artists are responsible for effective designs indicating the arrival of spring by an overhead figure flying above young people moving through flowery fields.[q]

A suggestion of motion may be obtained by exhibiting a number of persons engaged in similar actions, but shown in a consecutive series of stages thereof. This plan is admirably worked out by Watteau in his Embarkation for Cythera.[r]A line of couples commences at the right of the picture, proceeds towards the left, and then descends a slope to the place of embarkation. The first couple are sitting and conversing, the next are in the act of rising, and the third have just risen and are about to follow the other couples already walking, the whole device being most effective. A similar kind of illusion is caused by Rubens in his Diana and Nymphs pursuedby Satyrs.[s]On the extreme right of the picture some of the figures are stationary; then come a few who are struggling, and finally some running nymphs and satyrs, a perfect progression of events being suggested.

Illusion of motion is more easily obtained with animals than with human figures, providing they are fairly large, because of the greater number of their feet and the consequent wider variation between the apparent and the real movements. It is exceedingly difficult to produce a suggestion of motion with a single animal represented in a natural attitude, but the painter is only concerned with what appears to be natural or probable, and not with what is actually so. We have only a general idea of the action of a horse in nature from what we see, and consequently in design this action must be generalized irrespective of natural possibilities. Some artists combine parts of different actions as exhibited in a series of photographs in order to represent a moment of action as it is generalized to the eye, but this is only serviceable where the presumed action of the animal is one of a series of similar events, as in walking or trotting. It would not answer in the case of an isolated action, as jumping or rearing, because such actions vary with the circumstances surrounding them, as the height of the jump or the cause of the rearing. In these events therefore the artist may exaggerate to a great extent without appearing to present impossible movements. In fact nearly all good pictures of one or two horses in action are strongexaggerations of nature, but this hardly affects their æsthetic worth because the action is not recognized as abnormal or impossible. The finest painting of horses in action known to us, is Regnault's Automedon with the Horses of Achilles,[t]where the animals exhibit spirit and movement far above experience, but even if we did not know that they are presumed to be immortal, we should only regard the action as exceptional, for it does not appear to be impossible.

There is ample scope for the presentation of an illusion with a number of moving animals. All that is necessary is that they should be kept fairly well together with their legs in various moving attitudes. This illusion is perfectly managed by many of the French painters of battle scenes in the nineteenth century, notably Horace Vernet,[u]Gros,[v]Chartier,[w]Morot,[x]and Meissonier.[y]The action in the cavalry charges of Morot and Chartier is amazingly true to life. Even three or four animals will suffice for an illusion,[z]but this cannot be provided with the smaller animals, as sheep or goats, because although a series of progressive actions may be given to those outside animals in a flock whose legs are visible to the spectator of the picture, the scale to which they are painted is necessarily so small that the eye has an entirely insufficient range for operating the illusion. Where several horses are represented as moving at considerable speed, it is necessary that some of theirfeet should touch the ground, otherwise the illusion is destroyed, or else the animal may appear to be racing through the air.[aa]The effect is not so disturbing when all the feet of the moving animals are on the ground,[ab]or where they are hidden by herbage,[ac]or where all the animals are on their hind legs,[ad]though in these instances an illusion is almost impossible.

In cases where horses and men are crowded together, and are struggling in confusion, it is only necessary in order to provide an illusion, that no action should be entirely separated from the others. There was a fine example of this work in a lost drawing or painting of Titian, of Pharaoh's Host Overwhelmed in the Red Sea[ae]; and many artists of the Renaissance produced like illusions in pictures of the rape of the Sabines. Where the movement is spread over a large area, and the scale to which the animals are drawn is comparatively small, the various groups engaged must obviously be connected together in a series. Franz Adam arranges a scheme of this kind in a battle scene, using running soldiers or hauled guns as links in the chain.[af]

An illusion of motion is sometimes assisted by the title of the picture. A remarkable example of this is Robert's The Israelites Depart. Althoughindividual action cannot be distinguished owing to the scale of the design, yet when one is acquainted with the title, the imagination is instinctively set to work, and the enormous crowds packing the wide streets seem to be streaming in one direction. Obviously for the title to have this effect, the number of signs must be overwhelming, and there must be no possibility of interpreting the picture in two ways; that is to say, accessory signs must be used to indicate the direction in which the crowd is moving.71

FOOTNOTES:[a]At the Louvre. See Plate 27.[b]Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence.[c]Madonna and Child with other scenes from her life, Uffizi, Florence.[d]Birth of St. John Baptist, Santa Maria Novello, Florence.[e]Fresco at the Vatican.[f]See Deliverance of St. Peter, Flight of Lot and his Family, Moses Striking the Rock, and others at the Vatican.[g]The Transfiguration, Vatican.[h]Dresden Gallery.[i]See Samson Slaying the Philistines.[j]Palazzo Vecchio, Florence.[k]For good examples see Benoit's Morning of July 14, 1789, Poynter's Building the Treasure City, and Colton's Royal Artillery Memorial (sculptured relief).[l]Dehodencq's Bohemians Returning from a Fête, Chaumont Museum.[m]As in Breton's Cry of Alarm.[n]Diaz's Descent of the Bohemians.[o]By A. Saint-Gaudens.[p]Arc de Triomphe, Paris.[q]See Aman-Jean's decorative panels at the Sorbonne.[r]In the Louvre, and repeated with variations at Berlin.[s]The Prado, Madrid. See Plate 27.[t]Boston Museum, U. S. A. See Plate 28.[u]La Smalah at Versailles.[v]The Combat of Nazareth.[w]Jena, 1806, and Hanau, 1813.[x]Reichsoffen.[y]1814.[z]Rosa Bonheur's Ploughing in Nivernois.[aa]Fromentin's Couriers des Ooled Nayls, Luxembourg; Schreyer's The Attack, N. Y. Public Library; and Gericault's Epsom, Louvre.[ab]A. Brown's The Drove.[ac]Uhde's Cavalry Soldiers Going into Action, Muffel Collection.[ad]Snyder's Hunt, Munich Gallery.[ae]An engraving on wood by A. Andreani is in existence.[af]A Bavarian Regiment before Orleans, Munich.

FOOTNOTES:

[a]At the Louvre. See Plate 27.

[b]Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence.

[c]Madonna and Child with other scenes from her life, Uffizi, Florence.

[d]Birth of St. John Baptist, Santa Maria Novello, Florence.

[e]Fresco at the Vatican.

[f]See Deliverance of St. Peter, Flight of Lot and his Family, Moses Striking the Rock, and others at the Vatican.

[g]The Transfiguration, Vatican.

[h]Dresden Gallery.

[i]See Samson Slaying the Philistines.

[j]Palazzo Vecchio, Florence.

[k]For good examples see Benoit's Morning of July 14, 1789, Poynter's Building the Treasure City, and Colton's Royal Artillery Memorial (sculptured relief).

[l]Dehodencq's Bohemians Returning from a Fête, Chaumont Museum.

[m]As in Breton's Cry of Alarm.

[n]Diaz's Descent of the Bohemians.

[o]By A. Saint-Gaudens.

[p]Arc de Triomphe, Paris.

[q]See Aman-Jean's decorative panels at the Sorbonne.

[r]In the Louvre, and repeated with variations at Berlin.

[s]The Prado, Madrid. See Plate 27.

[t]Boston Museum, U. S. A. See Plate 28.

[u]La Smalah at Versailles.

[v]The Combat of Nazareth.

[w]Jena, 1806, and Hanau, 1813.

[x]Reichsoffen.

[y]1814.

[z]Rosa Bonheur's Ploughing in Nivernois.

[aa]Fromentin's Couriers des Ooled Nayls, Luxembourg; Schreyer's The Attack, N. Y. Public Library; and Gericault's Epsom, Louvre.

[ab]A. Brown's The Drove.

[ac]Uhde's Cavalry Soldiers Going into Action, Muffel Collection.

[ad]Snyder's Hunt, Munich Gallery.

[ae]An engraving on wood by A. Andreani is in existence.

[af]A Bavarian Regiment before Orleans, Munich.

With the assistance of drapery—Of clouds—Of winged figures—Miscellaneous devices.

The representation of figures suspended in the air, or moving through it, has never offered much trouble to painters, though necessarily involving an apparent miracle. The very slightest pretended physical assistance suffices for the illusion, and this help is usually rendered in the shape of flying drapery, winged figures, clouds, or artificial devices based upon the contact of two or more figures. The only difficulty met with is in respect of an upward vertical movement. Here, wings or clouds can scarcely be made to differentiate between a rising and a falling movement, and flying drapery is of little service inasmuch as a rush through the air would, if the feat were actually performed, cause the drapery to cling to the figure. The surest remedy for the disabilty is to support the figure directly by winged figures placed at a considerable angle from the vertical, but this plan is only rarely adopted by great masters because of the consequent complications in the design of the group. Since flying drapery is commonly added to the figure presumed to be ascending, and seeing that artistsalmost invariably insist upon giving their ascending figures upright attitudes, it is seldom that the movement is correctly expressed. Usually the figure appears to be held immovably in suspension, but occasionally, owing to the drapery arrangement, a descending movement is indicated.[a]Without the assistance of winged figures, the illusion of ascension can only be given when the figure is shown directed upwards at an angle of at least fifteen or twenty degrees from the vertical. As a rule the larger the angle, the more easy is the production of an illusion. With a fairly large angle, and an appropriate arrangement of limbs and drapery, heavy figures can be made to appear naturally ascending, as in Rubens's Boreas and Orithyia, both voluptuous forms.[b]

Only a very few of the first artists have been able to give an illusion of movement in the air by use of drapery alone, the device adopted by Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel frescoes being perhaps the most effective. He throws behind the moving figure of the Deity a large fold of drapery, which assumes an oval or nearly round shape, the whole acting as a concave framework for the Deity and attending Angels.[c]The success of the plan arises of course from the apparent resistance to the air offered by a large and compact surface. This form with more or less marked modifications in the concavity was probably used by the ancient Greeks in their paintings, as a nearly similar arrangement is found in a sculptured figure which has come down to us, though in thiscase a running movement is indicated.[d]It is also seen in some Pompeian frescoes, where it is applied to figures moving through the air and on the ground.[e]Raphael adopted the device occasionally,[f]but generally varied it with excellent effect by flowing out from the waist a large scarf-like fold to take a circular form above the head and shoulders of the figure,[g]or by causing heavy drapery to flow out from the lower part of the body.[h]No doubt in the case of Raphael, the extraordinary grace of figure, and the perfect pose of the limbs, assist the illusion. Tintoretto and other artists of the Renaissance used an oval drapery in a similar way; while sometimes the figure is half hidden within it,[i]and Le Sueur wrapped part of the figure in folds before forming the oval.[j]There seems to be a simple virtue in any oval form connected with figures presumed to be suspended in the air. It was quite common in the early days of the Renaissance for the Deity or Virgin and Child to be placed in a regular oval framework, sometimes supported by Angels or cherubs, and the illusion was usually successful.[k]Rubens by way of experiment went a little further in one picture, for he placed the Virgin andChild in an oval picture frame supported by cherubs.[l]This however does not seem so novel as some of Perugino's ovals which are bordered with the heads of cherubs.[m]

Wings are seldom sufficient to suggest lightness in the air, because they can scarcely be designed of the size and strength which we judge to be proportionate to the presumed weight of the body, without making the form appear abnormal, though there are instances in which partial success has been achieved by using comparatively small figures and giving them unusually large wings.[n]The use of more than a single pair of wings is hardly permissible because of the apparent anomaly. Actually one pair is not less incomprehensible from an anatomical point of view than several pairs, but custom has driven from our minds any suggestion of incongruity in respect of the representation of the common type of Angel. Naturally when skilfully arranged, the more wings, the stronger the illusion of flight, and if a habit of giving four wings to an Angel were engendered, we should perhaps see nothing strange in them. Even six wings have been given to Angels without making them appear ungraceful.[o]

When there is no assistance, as clouds or flowing drapery, lent to Angels to promote the illusion of suspension, it is necessary to give them an attitude which is nearly horizontal. Properly managed, apair of comparatively small wings may in this way appear to support a heavy form.[p]Luini actually adds the weight of the body of St. Catherine to three Angels, flying horizontally, who carry her to the tomb[q]; an invention, strangely enough, followed by Kulmbach in Germany at about the same time.[r]In both cases the illusion is excellent. Some of the early Flemish and German masters, including Van Eyck[s]and Holbein,[t]employed Angels in scenes with the Virgin to hold suspended behind her seat, large falls of brocaded material, and it is curious to note that the Angels themselves seem to be supported by the drapery. In order to assist the suggestion of lightness, Perugino sometimes arched the lower limbs of the Angels, adding a narrow tape scroll[u]; an addition improved upon by Raphael who substituted for the scroll a loosened girdle flying out from the waist.[v]

The most frequently used form of support for figures in suspension are irregular masses of clouds, upon which the figures sit or stand, and occasionally are partly enfolded therein. Sometimes the cloud bank is more or less shaped for the purpose of relief, or for variety in design. Thus, Raphael makes part of the cloud a perfect footrest for the Virgin,[w]andPalma Giovane does a similar thing for a figure of Christ,[x]but in this case the illusion is hazarded as the seat is not directly indicated. Ingres produces an excellent illusion by making the footrest a small separate cloud,[y]which is a variation from the practice of many painters of the Renaissance, who used a separate cloud for each personage in the composition, or even with each foot as with Carlo Crivelli.[z]In a fresco of the Evangelists at Florence, each of them sits with his insignia on a foliated bank of clouds.[aa]Perugino in using a similar plan sometimes places the clouds at the bottom of the picture, no part of the earth being seen, so that the illusion is considerably enhanced.[ab]At other times he shows Angels apparently running through the air, with each front foot resting on a tiny cloud, giving the impression that it is fastened there.[ac]Durer extended this plan by directly attaching a small cloud to each foot, the effect being somewhat whimsical.[ad]Titian was unsuccessful in the use of an isolated cloud.[ae]In a Resurrection scene Christ stands on a small thin cloud, and holds a flag-pole, the lower end of which rests upon the cloud. Obviously with such a design no suggestion of ascent can enter the mind.

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