William Shakespeare - "The Life of Timon of Athens"

Arthur Christopher Benson - "The Upton Letters"

Booth Tarkington - "The Two Vanrevels"

Lieutenant Maturin Murray - "The Circassian Slave; or, The Sultan's Favorite: A Story of"

The Sculpture and Mural Decorations of the Exposition

S >> Stella G. S. Perry >> The Sculpture and Mural Decorations of the Exposition






The Arts of Peace
Netherlands Pavilion



The Pavilion of The Netherlands is inevitably reminiscent of the Peace
Palace of The Hague, by natural association of ideas and because of the
spirit of its central mural painting, "The Arts of Peace." It is
therefore an interesting fact that Hermann Rosse, the artist who painted
this imposing work, and, indeed, designed the entire interior decoration
of the pavilion, was also muralist and decorator of the Palace of Peace.
The pavilion walls and hangings - steel blue, olive green and silver
grey, relieved by quaint conventional stencils of orange trees and
tulips and severe shields of the four divisions of the kingdom - has a
broad, cool puritanism that lends itself well to the rich depth of the
painting. Holland holds high the image of Peace, surrounded by the
peace-nurtured arts and industries on whose support all human welfare
rests. Among them stand not only representatives of trades and crafts,
with their symbols and implements, but also the Art of Motherhood and
the Art of Play shown by a happy child. Ships of all ages in side-panels
and background tell of the maritime history of Holland which so largely
and peacefully colonized the world. Beneath the painting is a comforting
and inspiring legend.



Penn's Treaty with the Indians
Pennsylvania Building



The Pennsylvania Building was designed with the patriotic purpose of
enshrining the Liberty Bell. The Bell stands in a loggia between two
wings, the architectural motif following that of Independence Hall. On
the walls of the loggia are two mural lunettes of distinction by Edward
Trumbull of Pittsburg. Their deep glowing color and massive grouping
mark Mr. Trumbull a worthy pupil of his master, Frank Brangwyn. "Penn's
Treaty with the Indians," here given, shows William Penn and the
foremost of his shipmates on "The Welcome" making with Chief Tamanend
and his braves the Treaty of Shackamaxon in 1683, the treaty that never
was broken. The plainness of the kindly Friends, the barbaric splendor
of the Indians, the deep green of the overarching Treaty Elm and the
lovely typical Pennsylvania landscape have enduring attraction. The
panel is in contrast with Mr. Trumbull's vigorous and burning modern
picture, "The Steel Workers," on the opposite wall. In the reception
room of this building are seven delightful small panels by Charles J.
Taylor, showing the early life of Pennsylvania villages. They are
painted in the quaint style of old colonial decorations and have charm,
humor, naivete and beauty too pleasing to be overlooked.



Return from the Crusade
Court, Italian Pavilion



The courts and palaces of Italy, with their appearance of age and their
remote, sheltered calm, present an education in artistic reserve and
decorative uses of space that all who linger may learn. They represent
four centuries of architecture, of three historic types. The lovely
piazzetta with its antique well is the center of beauty. On one of its
walls is what appears to be an ancient mural, soft, flat, with that
faded, velvety coloring associated with age. It was recently painted by
Mathilde Festa-Piacentini, in the ancient manner to harmonize with the
court. It represents "The Return from the Crusade" of one noble
Pandolfo, and bears date and description in Latin. Quaint old-time
stiffness and weather-worn coloring combine with modern correctness and
fluency. The young artist is the wife of the architect of the pavilion
and has won a silver medal in the Italian section of Fine Arts. Below
this lunette stands a bronze copy of an antique David with the marble
head of Goliath. Other interesting murals appear in Italy's pavilion, by
Pierretto Banco and Bruno Ferrari, son of the sculptor, Ettore Ferrari.



The Riches of California
Tea Room, California Building



The tea-room of the Auxiliary to the Woman's Board, in the California
Building, was decorated by Florence Lundborg, a Californian whose work
has won consideration in this country and in France. In her large mural,
"The Riches of California," one of the most extensive ever painted by a
woman, and in the supplementary medallions she has expressed the
generous abundance of California's fruitage. Feeling a similarity
between copious California and Sicily, where she has lived and painted,
the artist chose for her text a line from Theocritus describing that
country: All breathes the scent of the opulent summer, the season of
fruits. This inscription, in old Spanish lettering, surrounds the great
canvas. Across a restful, soft-toned landscape, bright but tempered, the
peaceful, happy harvesters bear homeward the plenteous fruit. A mood of
quiet gladness is over all. The window arches, throughout the soft gray
walls of the room, are marked by brilliant medallions of fruit and
flowers, sumptuously composed upon a gold background.



Here ends The Sculpture and Mural Decorations of the Exposition, with an
introduction by A. Stirling Calder. The Descriptive titles have been
written by Stella G. S. Perry. Edited by Paul Elder. Published by Paul
Elder and Company and seen through their Tomoye Press under the
typographical direction of H. A. Funke, in the city of San Francisco
during the month of October, Nineteen Hundred and Fifteen

Copyright (c) 2007. topbookz.net. All rights reserved.