The Juggling Girl
THE JUGGLING GIRL (1874)
A Condottiere
A CONDOTTIERE (1872)By permission of the Corporation of Birmingham
Another picture this year was theMoorish Garden—a dream of Granada, a delightful little canvas, almost square. In the foreground is a young girl carrying copper vessels, and followed by two peacocks; the background is obviously taken from the study of a garden at Generalife (reproduced at p.28); theAntique Juggling GirlandOld Damascus: the Jews' Quarter, were also in the Academy of 1874.
To 1875 belongs theEgyptian Slinger, a picture which, as we shall see later, provoked severe censure from Mr. Ruskin. As exhibited it differed much from its present state. Not only was the sky of deeper violet, but almost in silhouette against the moon, on another raised platform, stood a draped female figure, afterwards painted out entirely. Other works shown this year wereLittle Fatima, a small half-length figure of a little girl in Eastern costume, seen against a dark background; and aPortion of the Interior of the Grand Mosque at Damascus(reproduced at p.28). As the building it depicts has since been burnt down, the fine transcript has an added interest. We are come now to a year which, even beyond other years of activity, displayed the artist's characteristicenergy: 1876. In the Academy of that year, with theDaphnephoria, Leighton once more chose a great classic theme, for a painting which, by its composition, reminded the critics and lovers of art of the artist's early triumph with theCimabue's Madonna, and of his other great processional picture, theSyracusan Bride.
Of all his works in this class, there is no doubt that theDaphnephoriais the most technically complete. The procession is seen defiling along a terrace backed by trees through which the clear southern sky gleams. A youth carrying the symbolic olive bough, called the Kopo, adorned with its curious emblems, leads the procession. He is clad in purple robes and crowned with leaves. The youthful priest, known as the Daphnephoros (the laurel-bearer) follows, clothed in white raiment. He is similarly crowned, and carries a slim laurel stem. Then come three boys, in scanty red and green draperies, which serve only to emphasize the beauty of their almost naked forms, the middle and tallest one bearing aloft a draped trophy of golden armour. These are seen to be pausing while the leader of the chorus, a tall, finely modelled man, whose back is turned, is giving directions to the chorus with uplifted right hand; in his left hand is a lyre, and the left arm from the elbow is characteristically draped. The first row of the chorus is composed of five children, clothed in purple, crowned with flowers; two rows of maidens, in blue and white, come next; and these in turn are succeeded by some boys with cymbals. The interest of the passing procession is very much enhanced by the effect produced on two lovely bystanders,—a girl and child in blue, beautifully designed, who are drawing water in the left foreground. In the valley below is seen the town of Thebes.
The Daphnephoria
THE DAPHNEPHORIA (1876)By permission of The Fine Art Society.
Study for 'The Daphnephoria'
STUDY FOR "THE DAPHNEPHORIA"
With the painter's reading of theDaphnephoriait maybe interesting to compare another account of this splendid religious function. At this festival in honour of Apollo, celebrated every ninth year by the Bœotians, it was usual, says pleasant Lempriere, "to adorn an olive bough with garlands of laurel and other flowers, and place on the top a brazen globe, from which were suspended smaller ones. In the middle was placed a number of crowns, and a globe of inferior size, and the bottom was adorned with a saffron-coloured garment. The globe on the top represented the Sun, or Apollo; that in the middle was an emblem of the moon, and the others of the stars. The crowns, which were 365 in number, represented the sun's annual revolution. This bough was carried in solemn procession by a beautiful youth of an illustrious family, whose parents were both living. He was dressed in rich garments which reached to the ground, his hair hung loose and dishevelled, his head was covered with a golden crown, and he wore on his feet shoes calledIphricatidæ, from Iphricates, an Athenian who first invented them. He was calledΔαφνηφόρος, 'laurel-bearer,' and at that time he executed the office of priest of Apollo. He was preceded by one of his nearest relations, bearing a rod adorned with garlands, and behind him followed a train of virgins with branches in their hands. In this order the procession advanced as far as the temple of Apollo, surnamed Ismenius, where supplicatory hymns were sung to the god."[5]
In the 1876 Academy hung also the striking portrait,Captain Richard Burton, H.M.'s Consul at Trieste; and two very characteristic single figures,TeresinaandPaolo. The portrait of Captain Burton has been fairly described as masterly. "There is no attempt," said one critic, "atposing or picturesqueness in the portrait. It is the head of a man who is lean and rugged and brown, but the face is full of character, and every line tells. It is painted in the same strong and bold, and yet careful, way that distinguishes the head of Signor Costa, painted three years later."
The next year saw Leighton's first appearance as a sculptor. It was at the Academy of 1877 that he exhibited the well-known, vigorously designed and wroughtAthlete Struggling with a Python.[6]This adventure of the R.A. into a new field proved so successful, that theAthletetook rank as the most striking piece of sculpture of that year. "In this work," said a friendly critic, "Mr. Leighton has attempted to succeed in a truly antique way. We are bound to admit that he has done wisely, bravely, and successfully." The statue was bought, we may add, for £2,000, as the first purchase made by the trustees of the Chantrey Fund, and is now in the Tate Gallery at Millbank. It was afterwards repeated in marble, by the artist's own hand, for the Danish Museum at Copenhagen.
Still more popular was hisMusic Lesson, another work in the same exhibition. To realize the full charm of this picture, one must see the original; for much depends upon the beauty of its colouring. Imagine a classical marble hall, marble floor, marble walls, in black and white, and red—deep red—marble pillars; and sitting there, sumptuously attired, but bare-footed, two fair-haired girls, who serve for pupil and music-mistress. The elder is showing the younger how to finger a lyre, of exquisite design and finish; and the expression on their faces is charmingly true, while the colours that they contributeto the composition,—the pale blue of the child's dress, the pale flesh tints, the pale yellow hair, and the white and gold of the elder girl's loose robe, and the rich auburn of her hair,—are most harmonious. A bit of scarlet pomegranate blossom, lying on the marble ground, gives the last high note of colour to the picture. Two other pictures of 1877 must not be omitted.Studyshows us a little girl (the present Lady Orkney), in Eastern garb, diligently reading a sheet of music which lies before her on a little desk. There is great charm in the simple grace of the picture and in the softly brilliant colouring of the child's costume. Very delightful, too, is the portrait ofMiss Mabel Mills(now the Hon. Mrs. Grenfell), habited in black velvet, and a large dark hat with coloured feathers, set against a grey background, a picture here reproduced.A Study,An Italian Girl, and aPortrait of H. E. Gordon, were all three shown at the Grosvenor Gallery the same year.
Portrait of Mabel Mills
PORTRAIT OF THE HON. MABEL MILLS (1877)
Portrait of Richard Burton
PORTRAIT OF CAPTAIN RICHARD BURTON (1876)
Another picture, in which a simple theme is treated in a classic fashion—not dissimilar to that employed for theMusic Lesson—isWinding the Skein, a lovely painting exhibited at the Academy in 1878. In this we see two Greek maidens as naturally employed as we often see English girls in other surroundings. This idealization of a familiar occupation—so that it is lifted out of a local and casual sphere, into the permanent sphere of classic art, is characteristic of the whole of Leighton's work. He, like Sir L. Alma-Tadema and Albert Moore, contrived also to preserve a certain modern contemporary feeling in the classic presentment of his themes. He was never archaic; so that the classic scenarium of his subjects, in his hands, appears as little antiquarian as a mediæval environment, shall we say, in the hands of Browning.Nausicaa, a full-length girlish figure, in green and whitedraperies, standing in a doorway, andSerafina, another single figure, andA Study, were also shown the same year. At the Grosvenor Gallery were aPortrait of Miss Ruth Stewart Hodgson, a demure little damsel in outdoor attire, and aStudy of a Girl's Head, full face.
Nausicaa
NAUSICAA (1878)
Study for 'Elijah and the Angel'
STUDY FOR "ELIJAH AND THE ANGEL"
OnNovember 13th, 1878, Frederic Leighton was elected President of the Royal Academy, in succession to Sir Francis Grant, and immediately received the honour of knighthood.
In 1879 Leighton sent eight contributions to the Academy, not one of which, with the possible exception of theElijah, perhaps, has been counted among his masterpieces. Four of them belong to that group of ideal figure paintings which almost constitute agenrein themselves:Biondina,Catarina,Amarilla, andNeruccia, a girl with a red flower in her hair, in white dress, against a dark background. The finely austereElijah in the Wildernesswas an addition to the notable group of Scriptural paintings. In this picture the nude figure of the prophet is seen reclining on a rock, with head and arms thrown back, while beside him stands an angel holding bread and water. The striking and powerfulPortrait of Professor Costa, thePortrait of the Countess Brownlow, and a portrait study, completed the list of the year's contributions, the largest number ever sent in by Leighton, before his election or afterward. This year ten of his landscape-studies in oil were exhibited at the Grosvenor Gallery.
It may be thought by the outsider that the coveted office of the President of the Royal Academy of Arts is,in a way, an ornamental one,—some such golden sinecure as that of the old High Chamberlains. Nothing could be more mistaken. "Not everybody," wrote the late Mr. Underhill, who for some time, as private secretary to Sir Frederic Leighton, had special opportunities of knowing, "is aware of the tax upon a man's time and energy that is involved in the acceptance of the office in question. The post is a peculiar one, and requires a combination of talents not frequently to be found, inasmuch as it demands an established standing as a painter, together with great urbanity and considerable social position. The inroads which the occupancy of the office makes upon an artist's time are very considerable. There is, on the average, at least one Council meeting for every three weeks throughout the whole of the year. There are from time to time general assemblies for the election of new members and for other purposes, over which the President is bound, of course, to preside. For ten days or a fortnight in every April he has to be in attendance with the Council daily at Burlington House, for the purpose of selecting the pictures which are to be hung in the Spring Exhibition. He has to preside over the banquet which yearly precedes the opening of the Academy, and he has to act as host at the annual conversazione. Finally, it is his duty every other year to deliver a long, elaborate, and carefully prepared 'Discourse' upon matters connected with art, to the students who are for that purpose assembled. It is a post of much honour and small profit."
Sister's Kiss
SISTER'S KISS (1880)By permission of the Fine Art Society
Portrait of Signor Costa
PORTRAIT OF SIGNOR COSTA (1879)
In filling this post, and neglecting no one of its smallest offices and endless small courtesies, an artist had needs be without the characteristic artist's defects of hesitation and delay; and in fact, Lord Leighton mastered, as much as any statesman of our time, the indispensable secret of despatch. We quote from Mr.Underhill again: "To administer the affairs of the Academy, to fulfil a round of social semi-public and public engagements, and to paint pictures which invariably reach a high level of excellence, would of course be impossible—even to Sir Frederic Leighton—were it not for the fact that he makes the very most of the time at his disposal. 'That's the secret,' remarked a distinguished member of the Academy to the present writer some little time before the President's death; 'Sir Frederic knows exactly how long it will take to do a certain thing, and he apportions his time accordingly.' This being the case, no one will be surprised to learn that he attached the greatest importance to punctuality. He himself never failed to keep an appointment at the exact moment fixed upon, and he expected, of course, similar punctuality on the part of others. The stroke of eight from the Academy clock was the signal for Sir Frederic to enter the Council Room at Burlington House, and to open the deliberations of the body over which he presided. 'They will never again get a man to devote so much time and energy to the business of the Academy,' said Sir Frederic Leighton's most distinguished colleague shortly before his death; 'never again.'" And since that time the same tribute has been paid ungrudgingly in public and private often enough.
In 1880, we are tempted by five canvases; of which theSister's KissandPsamathe, are perhaps the most important. The former turns a garden wall to delightful account, in its picture of a child, who is seated upon it, and of her charmingly drawn elder sister, who gives the kiss. The composition of this picture may be seen in our reproduction, but the colour of the bronze green robe—of singular beauty—is of course not even suggested. More classic, perhaps, and not less picturesque,is the Greek maiden, Psamathe, who was, if we remember aright, one of the Nereides. The artist has painted her sitting by the seashore, gazing over the Ægean, with her back turned to the spectator. Filmy garments, which have slipped from her shoulders on to the sand; arms folded about her knees; every detail of the picture carries out the effect of dreamy loveliness that pervades Psamathe and her surroundings.Iostephaneis a three-quarter length figure, less than life size, of a girl in light yellow drapery, with violets in her fair hair, who stands facing the spectator and arranging her draperies over her right arm; there are marble columns and a fountain in the background.The Light of the Haremis a version of one of the groups in the fresco ofThe Industrial Arts of Peaceat South Kensington. The picture now known as theNymph of the Darglewas also exhibited this year under the title ofCrenaia. It represents a small full-length figure facing the spectator; the river Dargle flows through Powerscourt, and forms the waterfall here represented in the background, hence its name.Rubinella, a girl with red gold hair was shown at the Summer Exhibition and a large number of sketches and studies at the Winter Exhibition of the Grosvenor Gallery this year.
In 1881, the portrait of the Painter, painted by invitation in 1880 for the collection of autograph portraits of artists in the Uffizi Gallery, Florence, deserves particular mention. Not even Mr. Watts' best portrait of Leighton is quite so like as this, which shows the striking head of the artist to great effect, assisted by the decorative President's robe and insignia. TheIdyll, shown the same year, has been compared by some critics with theCymon and Iphigenia, the scene and circumstance of both being to a certain degree similar, while there aresimilar effects in both of colour and of composition. In theIdyll, we have a lovely female figure, lying at full length, attended by a second nymph, and by a piping man, all grouped beneath an arm of a beech tree, that extends overhead and shadows the upland ridge on which they have come to rest, while they gaze on a river winding among sunlit meads. The water reflects the blue and white of sky and clouds; the land is dashed by shadows. The nymphs' robes are red, blue, and pale yellow.
Phryne at Eleusis
PHRYNE AT ELEUSIS (1882)
Day Dreams
DAY DREAMS (1882)By permission of the Fine Art Society
We ought not to overlook another idyllic picture in the same exhibition,Whispers, an illustration of Horace's well-known line, "Lenesque sub noctem susurri." In this charming work, amid masses of crimson flowers and green leaves, two lovers are seen seated upon a marble bench, while he whispers tenderly in her ear, and she listens with dreamy eyes and maidenly mien. The noble picture ofElisha and the Shunamite's Son(reproduced at p.114) was also shown this year, as well asBianca, a fair-haired girl in a white dress, standing with folded arms,Viola, and two portraits,Mrs. Augustus Ralli, exhibited at the Royal Academy, andMrs. Algernon Sartoris, at the Grosvenor Gallery.
In the 1882 Academy appeared two of the most popular of Sir Frederic's pictures,WeddedandDay Dreams. In the latter, a fair Sybarite is pressing her cheek against her hands, as she stands near a tapestry, with eyes gazing far away, the images of love-dreams in them; her purple mantle, embroidered with silver, produces a charming effect of colour. Still more famous isWedded,—"one of the happiest of Sir Frederic's designs," said a critic at the time, "and as a composition of lines, difficult, subtle, and original, may be called one of the most remarkable productions of this decade."Other pictures shown this year wereAntigoneand the much-debatedPhryne at Eleusis—a notable study of the famous hetaira, who is seen standing, and holding out with one hand the mass of her deep auburn hair. Her skin is of a ruddy golden hue, as if seen under a glow of sunlight. Red tissue, which falls from her shoulders and extended arms, and an olive-coloured mantle that has fallen at the foot of the marble columns behind her, backed by a sky, very characteristic of the painter, in which snowlike masses of cloud float in a southern azure, produce a total effect of a certain super-womanly order of beauty. ADesign for a portion of a Proposed Decoration in St. Paul's, a picture entitledMelittion, and aPortrait of Mrs. Mocatta, were also hung at the Academy in 1882;Zeyra, a little Eastern child in plum coloured headdress, a rich bit of colour elaborately painted, was shown at the Grosvenor Gallery.
In 1883,Memories, though not one of the most typical of Leighton's pictures, decidedly pleased the general public. It shows the half-length figure of a blonde, in a black and gold dress. More interesting artistically was a decorative frieze,The Dance, for a drawing-room, the design for which we reproduce, and which may, in so far, answer for itself. Other pictures of 1883 areKittens, a full-length figure of a fair-haired child in purple and embroidered drapery, seated on a bench covered with a leopard skin, holding a rose in hand and looking down at a kitten sitting beside her; and theVestal, a bust of a girl with her head and shoulders swathed with white gold-embroidered draperies. To this year also belongs aPortrait of Miss Nina Joachim, a child in a blue frock with crimson sash.
Cymon and Iphigenia
Cymon and Iphigenia.By permission of the Fine Art Society
Study for Frieze
Study for Frieze
STUDIES FOR TWO FRIEZES "MUSIC" AND "THE DANCE"
The next year, 1884, broughtLetty, that most delightful of English maidens,A Nap,Sun Gleams, andthe imaginative and admirably romanticCymon and Iphigenia.Lettywas one of Leighton's pictures which particularly excited Mr. Ruskin's admiration. It shows a simply pretty child, with soft brown hair under a black hat, a saffron kerchief about her neck. TheLettyand theCymon and Iphigenia, with a few other notable pictures, did much to leave a pleasant recollection of the exceptional Academy of 1884. "A more original effect of light and colour, used in the broad, true, and ideal treatment of lovely forms," said a French critic, "we do not remember to have seen at the Academy, than that produced by theCymon and Iphigenia." Engravings and other reproductions of the picture have made its design, at any rate, almost as familiar now as Boccaccio's tale itself. There are some divergences, however, in the two versions. Boccaccio's tale is a tale of spring; Sir Frederic, the better to carry out his conception of the drowsy desuetude of sleep, and of that sense of pleasant but absolute weariness which one associates with the season of hot days and short nights, has changed the spring into that riper summer-time which is on the verge of autumn; and that hour of late sunset which is on the verge of night. Under its rich glow lies the sleeping Iphigenia, draped in folds upon folds of white, and her attendants; while Cymon, who is as unlike the boor of tradition as Spenser's Colin Clout is unlike an ordinary Cumbrian herdsman, stands hard-by, wondering, pensively wrapt in so exquisite a vision. Altogether, a great presentment of an immortal idyll; so treated, indeed, that it becomes much more than a mere reading of Boccaccio, and gives an ideal picture of Sleep itself,—that Sleep which so many artists and poets have tried at one time or another to render.
In 1885, among the five contributions of the Presidentto the Academy, appeared the vivacious portrait of Lord Rosebery's little daughter,The Lady Sybil Primrose, who appears in white with a blue sash, carrying a doll.A Portrait of Mrs. A. HichensandPhœbewere the only other pictures this year. A frieze,Music, was shown, and at the Grosvenor GalleryA Studyof a fair-haired girl, in green velvet dress. 1886 was chiefly notable for the statue in bronze ofThe Sluggard, in which Leighton again furnished us with a plastic characterization of Sleep, which he designed by way of contrast to his statue of the struggling Athlete. It was suggested, Mr. Spielmann says, by accidental circumstances. The model who had been sitting to him fell a-yawning in his interval of rest, and charmed the artist, not only with his exceptional beauty of line and play of muscle, but also with the artistic contrast of energy and languor. But that he might not lay himself open to the charge that the work was a glorification of indolence, the sculptor made concession to what after all was an artistic suggestion, and placed under the yawner's foot
"The glorious wreath of laurel leavesHeel trodden and despised."
The graceful statuette of a little girl who is alarmed by a toad on the edge of a pool or stream of water, calledNeedless Alarms, appeared at the same time; and was so much admired by the President's colleague, Sir John Everett Millais, that he wished to purchase it, whereupon Sir Frederic presented it to him, and received, in return, the charming picture ofShelling Peas, which Sir John painted specially for this pleasant exchange. In 1886 also appeared theDecoration in Painting for a Music Room, destined for New York, which is illustrated[7]by the completed work, and its preliminary studies from life for it.Gulnihal, a single figure, is the only other painting exhibited at the Academy in this year.
The Last Watch of Hero
THE LAST WATCH OF HERO (1887)By permission of the Manchester Corporation
Portrait of Sybil Primrose
PORTRAIT OF THE LADY SYBIL PRIMROSE (1885)
In 1887 appeared a picture which seems scarcely to have received its due appreciation,The Jealousy of Simætha the Sorceress. This is a seated figure in yellow and white drapery, with a purple mantle wrapped around her shoulders; a well-wrought, finely-rendered work.The Last Watch of Hero, also first seen this year, is now in the Manchester Corporation Gallery. It is in two compartments; in the upper, and larger, Hero, clad in pink drapery, is seen drawing aside a curtain and gazing out over the sea. Below, in the smaller panel, is the body of the dead Leander, on a rock washed by the waves. A quotation from Sir Edwin Arnold's translation of Musæus was appended to its title:
"With aching heart she scanned the sea-face dim.****Lo! at the turret's foot his body lay,Rolled on the stones and washed with breaking spray."
A picture of a little girl with yellow hair and pale blue eyes, entitled with a verse by Robert Browning:
"Yellow and pale as ripened cornWhich Autumn's kiss frees,—grain from sheath,—Such was her hair, while her eyes beneathShowed Spring's faint violets freshly born,"
was in the same exhibition, and also a design for the reverse of the Jubilee medallion, executed for her Majesty's Government.
In 1888 appeared another large work, which, although not absolutely a procession, has much in common with theCimabue, theSyracusan Bride, andThe Daphnephoria.It was entitledCaptive Andromache, and accompanied by a fragment of the "Iliad," translated by E. B. Browning:
... "Some standing byMarking thy tears fall, shall say, 'This is she,The wife of that same Hector that fought bestOf all the Trojans when all fought for Troy.'"
This, and aPortrait of Amy, Lady Coleridge, were the artist's only contributions to the Royal Academy of 1888. ThePortraits of the Misses Stewart Hodgsonis also of this year, which saw four landscape studies exhibited at the Royal Society of Painters in Water Colours, and five at the Royal Society of British Artists, Suffolk Street.
TheSibyl, exhibited in 1889, is a full-length figure swathed in lilac drapery, seated with her legs crossed, on a chair, her chin supported by her left hand, and gazing out of the picture. Beside her are scrolls, and a sombre sky is behind the figure.Invocation, a girl in white robes with arms raised above her head, and aPortrait of Mrs. F. Lucas, were also shown; butGreek Girls playing at Ballis not only the most important, but is also a picture that shows the mannerism of Lord Leighton's treatment of drapery at its finest. Elsewhere the undulating snaky coils may be somewhat distressing, here they float in the air and help the suggestion of movement. The landscape at the back is also both typical and beautiful. AnElegywas the fifth of the artist's contributions to the Academy of 1889.
In 1890The Bath of Psycheappeared at the Academy. This at once established its position as a popular favourite, and has probably been more widely reproduced than any other. It was purchased under the terms of the Chantrey Bequest, and is now in the Tate Gallery. It was suggested, so Mr. M. H. Spielmann tells us, by the"paper-knife" picture, as Lord Leighton called it, which he had painted for Sir L. Alma-Tadema's wall screen.Solitudewas also shown this year, and theTragic Poetess, a full-length figure, clad in blue and purple drapery, on a terrace, with the sea beyond. The fourth picture at the Academy was a very faithfully painted transcript ofThe Arab Hall, at No. 2, Holland Park Road.
Greek Girls Playing at Ball
GREEK GIRLS PLAYING AT BALL (1889)By permission of the Berlin Photographic Co.
The Bath of Psyche
THE BATH OF PSYCHE (1890)By permission of the Berlin Photographic Co.
In 1891 appearedPerseus and Andromeda, a very original version of a theme which it seems the destiny of every painter and sculptor of classical subjects to attempt at some time. In this Andromeda is bound to a rock, the monster stands over her with outstretched wings, while from the clouds above, Perseus, on his winged steed, is discharging arrows. The clay models for Perseus are reproduced elsewhere (at p.68). TheReturn of Persephonewas another important work shown this year. It represents Persephone, supported by Hermes, being brought back to the upper world, where she is awaited with outstretched arms by Demeter. APortrait of A. B. Mitford, Esq., and a marble version of theAthlete Struggling with a Python, were also shown in the same exhibition.
In 1892 a version of a panel of the proposed decoration for the dome of St. Paul's appeared with the title,And the Sea gave up the Dead which were in it; this, purchased by Mr. Henry Tate, is now among the pictures he gave to the Gallery at Millbank. The most important of Leighton's later works,The Garden of the Hesperides, in many respects the most sumptuous piece of decoration he ever achieved, was shown this year. It is a large circular picture, the centre occupied by a tree bearing golden apples; under its branches recline the three Hesperides, caressing the dragon who assists them to guard the treasure. A superbly brilliant sea is in the distance. The charm of this picture is mainly in its colour, but asan example of elaborately artificial composition it is hardly less noteworthy. Unfortunately, despite every effort of Lord Leighton, most kindly exerted on behalf of the editor of this volume, the owners of the copyright refused under any condition to allow it to be illustrated herein.A Bacchante, andAt the Fountain, a girl in fawn-coloured and violet draperies, with a bunch of lemons overhanging the marble wall behind her, were shown this year; and also aClytie, which must not be confused with another known by the same title, the last picture on which the artist was at work before his death. The 1892 version, shown in the retrospective exhibition, is thus described in its catalogue: "A small figure of Clytie is seen on the right, kneeling on a stone building with arms outstretched towards the sun, which is setting behind a range of moorland hills."
In 1893Hit,The Frigidarium,Farewell,Corinna of Tanagra, andRizpahwere exhibited at the Academy. Of these the most important is the last named. It illustrates the story of the two sons of Rizpah, by Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth, who were slain by the Gideonites. Rizpah, robed in dark blue, is seen in the act of fetching away their bodies, which are shrouded by dull lilac and blue draperies. Vultures circle above, and two leopards approach stealthily.Farewellis a single figure in olive green and plum-coloured peplis under a portico above the sea, where she pauses to take a last look at an outward-bound ship.
Atalantadepicts the bust only of a dark-haired girl in purple and white drapery, with a snake-like ornament twisted round her arm, which is bare to the shoulder.Corinna of Tanagrais a half-length figure crowned with leaves, in coloured drapery, resting her clasped hands upon her lyre.The Frigidariumis an upright figure insemi-transparent red drapery, which with the background of gold is reflected in the water beneath her feet.
Farewell
FAREWELL (1893)By permission of Messrs. Arthur Tooth and Sons
'And the Sea Gave Up the Dead
"AND THE SEA GAVE UP THE DEAD WHICH WERE IN IT."—Rev.XX. 13 (1892)
The Frigidarium
THE FRIGIDARIUM (1893)By permission of Messrs. H. Graves and Co.
In 1894 were shownThe Spirit of the Summit, a white-robed figure with upturned face, sitting on a snowy peak, with starlit sky beyond;The Bracelet;Fatidica, a figure in green-white robes;At the Window, a dark-haired boy in blue, looking over the ledge of a window; andSummer Slumber. This last is a somewhat elaborate composition; a girl in salmon colour draperies is lying asleep on the broad rim of a marble fountain, masses of flowers are in the mid distance, and a vista of sunny landscape through the open window beyond.
In 1895, the last year of the artist's working life, he sent six pictures to the Academy, and completed the wall decoration at the Royal Exchange (here illustrated),Phœnicians Bartering with Britons. The paintings were entitled,Flaming June(a picture reproduced in colours for a Christmas number of the "Graphic"), in which the "broad" painting of the sea beyond was a notable exception to the artist's usual handling;Lachrymæ, a standing figure in robes of black and blue green, resting her arm upon a Doric column;'Twixt Hope and Fear, a seated figure of a black-haired Greek girl, robed in white and olive, with a sheep-skin thrown around her;The Maid with her Yellow Hair, a girlish figure in lemon-coloured drapery, reading from a red-backed book;Listener, a child seated with crossed legs on a fur rug; and aStudy of a Girl's Head, with auburn, wavy hair.
In the 1896 AcademyClytiewas the only picture. In Lord Leighton's studio in various stages of completion were aBacchante, a half-length figure of a fair-haired girl crowned with leaves, and a leopard skin over her shoulder;The Fair Persian, a bust of a girl with flowing dark hair, crowned by a jewelled circlet; andThe Vestal, a half-lengthfigure of a girl in white drapery, these were all exhibited at the Winter Exhibition of 1897.
ToClytie, his last picture, a small monograph has been devoted by the Fine Art Society. In this we read: "'Thank goodness my ailment has not interfered with my capacity for work, for I have never had a better appetite for it, nor I believe done better. I was idle for five months in the summer, but since my return I have been working hard and have produced the pictures you see.' Thus he spoke to the present writer [of the monograph in question] as he led the way across his studio.... Turning to theClytiehe continued: 'This I have been at work upon all the morning. Orchardson has been so good as to say I have never done anything finer than the sky. You know the story. I have shown the goddess in adoration before the setting sun, whose last rays are permeating her whole being. With upraised arms she is entreating her beloved one not to forsake her. A flood of golden light saturates the scene, and to carry out my intention, I have changed my model's hair from black to auburn. To the right is a small altar, upon which is an offering of fruit, and upon a pillar beyond I shall show the feet of a statue of Apollo.'
"But a few days after this occurrence the dead President lay in semi-state in his coffin, before the picture. A drawing in the 'Graphic' (January 26th, 1896) shows the interior of the studio, with the figure of Clytie, in her attitude of despair, stretching her arms above the body of her creator."
Here the record, year by year, is closed. A few pictures seem to have escaped the honours of exhibition. One,[8]A Noble Lady of Venice, in possession of Lord Armstrong,does not appear to have been exhibited. It is probably the picture which was sold at Christie's in 1875 for 950 guineas. ALady with Pomegranates, which sold for 765 guineas at the sale of Baron Grant's pictures in 1877, does not appear in our list of exhibited works; nor, it may be, are all the early pictures included therein. But the official catalogues of the Royal Academy May Exhibitions, and of the special Winter Exhibition devoted to the artist's works, have been freely drawn upon for description, and to the list of his life's work, as it appeared in the first edition of this work, many additions have been made.
Rizpah
RIZPAH (1893)
The Bracelet
THE BRACELET (1894)By permission of Messrs. T. Agnew and Sons
Fatidica
FATIDICA (1894)By permission of Messrs. T Agnew and Sons
Forparticulars of the wonderfully thorough "method," which Leighton used in preparing his pictures, we cannot do better than quote the following admirable account by Mr. M. H. Spielmann (published during the painter's life), which he has allowed us to reprint here.[9]
"I have said that the sense of line in composition, in figure and drapery, is one of the chief qualities of the artist; and the conviction that the method in which he places them upon canvas with such unerring success—for it may be said that the President rarely, if ever, produces an ugly form in a picture—would be both interesting and instructive, prompted me to learn in what manner his effects are produced. This I have done, having special regard to one of his Academy pictures,The Sibyl, which, being a single figure, simplifies greatly the explanation of the mode of procedure. This explanation holds good in every case, be the composition great or small, elaborate or simple; themodus operandiis always the same.