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Title: Stories Pictures Tell Book 5
Author: Carpenter, Flora L. (Flora Leona)
Language: English
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STORIES PICTURES TELL
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Decoration
STORIES
PICTURES TELL
BOOK FIVE
By
FLORA L. CARPENTER
Instructor in drawing at Waite High School, Toledo, Ohio
Formerly supervisor of drawing, Bloomington, Illinois
Illustrated with Half Tones from
RAND McNALLY & COMPANY
CHICAGO NEW YORK
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Copyright, 1918
BY RAND MCNALLY & CO.
[Illustration]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
THE CONTENTS
SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER
PAGE
“The Gleaners” _Millet_ 1
“The Mill” _Ruysdael_ 13
NOVEMBER, DECEMBER, AND JANUARY
“Pilgrims Going to Church” _Boughton_ 25
“The Child Handel” _Margaret 33
Dicksee_
FEBRUARY AND MARCH
“The Horse Fair” _Rosa Bonheur_ 43
“Mona Lisa” _Da Vinci_ 57
APRIL, MAY, AND JUNE
“Oxen Going to Work” _Troyon_ 68
Review of Pictures and Artists
Studied
_The Suggestions to Teachers_ 77
------------------------------------------------------------------------
THE PREFACE
Art supervisors in the public schools assign picture-study work in each
grade, recommending the study of certain pictures by well-known masters.
As Supervisor of Drawing I found that the children enjoyed this work but
that the teachers felt incompetent to conduct the lessons as they lacked
time to look up the subject and to gather adequate material. Recourse to
a great many books was necessary and often while much information could
usually be found about the artist, very little was available about his
pictures.
Hence I began collecting information about the pictures and preparing
the lessons for the teachers just as I would give them myself to pupils
of their grade.
My plan does not include many pictures during the year, as this is to be
only a part of the art work and is not intended to take the place of
drawing.
The lessons in this grade may be used for the usual drawing period of
from twenty to thirty minutes, and have been successfully given in that
time. However, the most satisfactory way of using the books is as
supplementary readers, thus permitting each child to study the pictures
and read the stories himself.
FLORA L. CARPENTER
------------------------------------------------------------------------
STORIES
PICTURES TELL
[Illustration:
By Permission of Braun & Co., Paris and New York
]
THE GLEANERS
=Questions to arouse interest.= Of what is this a picture? What are the
three women doing in the field? What have they in their hands? Of what
use are their aprons? Why do you think their work is hard? Why do you
think they are used to it? How are they dressed? What story is told in
the background? What do you suppose the man on horseback is doing? What
can you see beyond the people? What time of the year is it? Is it a dark
or a sunshiny day? Why do you think so? What time of day do you think it
is? What country? Why do you think so? What do you like best about this
picture?
=Original Picture=: The Louvre (lōō′vr’), Paris.
=Artist=: Jean François Millet (mē′lē′)
=Birthplace=: Gruchy, France.
=Dates=: Born, 1814; died, 1875.
=The story of the picture.= In this picture Millet takes us out into the
country, to the wheat fields. The reapers have passed over the field,
cutting down the wheat with a small sickle. Although we cannot see them
in the act of cutting, we know they used a sickle in those days by other
pictures Millet has painted. There is one called “The Reaper” which
represents a man grasping the tall stalks of wheat with one hand and
cutting them close to the ground with a small sickle.
Years later reapers used a “cradle,” which is a frame of wood with a
long, sharp blade or knife fastened to a handle similar to a scythe
handle. This frame caught the stalks of wheat as they were cut. Then by
a swing of the arm they were laid in an even row. Then the rows were
raked into bundles and the wheat tied into sheaves. All this was done by
hand. Now we do it easily with a machine called a reaper, which cuts the
wheat, binds it in a sheaf, and then throws off the bundles.
The man you see on horseback, in the distance at the right, is the
overseer of this field. His sharp eyes have discovered that many stalks
of wheat have been left on the ground, and so he has sent the women to
gather them that there may be no waste.
In the background of the picture we see other women at the same task,
and men busily piling the wheat from the wagon into high stacks. Farther
back, and partly hidden behind the wheat stacks, we see several cottages
which may be the homes of the peasants or barns in which to store the
grain.
We should judge by the shadows that it is late in the afternoon and all
are hurrying to finish their task. Our attention is held by the three
stooping figures of the women gleaning or gathering the wheat. They have
caught up the corners of their aprons and tied them in a tight knot at
the back, making a sort of bag in which to place the broken heads of
wheat, while their hands are filled with the stalks. The three women
seem absorbed in their task. How very tiresome it would be to stoop in
such a fashion for any length of time! No wonder the woman at the right
straightens up for a moment to rest her back. The other two are stooping
to pick up the grain. One of them holds her left hand behind her back.
If you take this position yourself, you will understand how natural it
is to balance yourself with the left arm as she does. The women’s caps
are drawn so far down that we can see but little of their faces in the
shadow. But the coarse clothes, bent backs, and hands roughened with
toil represent the typical French peasant women of the artist’s time.
Millet tells us in a letter to a friend: “I want the people I represent
to look as if they belonged to their station, and as if their
imaginations could not conceive of their ever being anything else.” How
truly he has accomplished this in our picture! The women seem to be
working cheerfully without complaint or regret. They do not ask for
sympathy but attend strictly to their work.
With so many other laborers in the field, and considering their task, we
scarcely dare think of the miserably small pay they must receive for
their labor. We wonder how they can live. And yet they have a certain
wholesome, thrifty appearance—their clothes, although coarse, are not
ragged; they look well and strong, and they work with an energy which
would imply a certain satisfaction in their task well done.
There are no lingering looks toward the sun—their clock—or toward the
distant homes, or even toward the other laborers whose tasks seem nearer
completion. They are resigned. But even at best their life must be hard,
and whether they ask it or not, they stir our sympathies even as they
did those of the people of France when the picture was finally placed on
exhibition in Paris.
The peasants of France were especially wretched after the French
Revolution, and this picture appeared just at a time when people needed
to be reminded of this condition of affairs. But many preferred not to
be reminded, and they so resented Millet’s efforts to better the life of
the French peasant that they were bitter against him for many years.
Millet was the son of a French peasant and worked out in the fields
himself, so he knew all about the hardships, poverty, and wretchedness,
and painted the truth as he saw it.
In the original painting there is a suggestion of red and blue in the
dresses of the women, a blue-gray sky, and over it all the sun shining
dimly. The coarse dresses of the women were no doubt woven by them
during the winter days when there was no farm work to do.
Millet tells us that one of his earliest remembrances is of being
wakened early in the morning by the hum of the spinning wheel and the
voices of his mother and aunts as they spun the thread of flax ready to
weave into cloth.
Notice the arrangement of the three women in the picture. They are not
in a straight row, or one right behind the other, or even scattered
about in the picture. Two are near each other, while the third is just a
little to one side; in this way the center of interest is made more
pleasing to the eye. If we make an outline sketch of these three figures
we will be surprised at the number of curved lines it requires.
The sky line is very high in this picture, so the earth space is large
enough to contain the figures of the three women. In this way they seem
to be bound closer to the earth. We feel their lowliness, and the burden
of the life they lead in their narrow surroundings.
Yet, although we feel all these things when looking at this picture of
work, it is a picture of work done simply and good-naturedly and as if
it were only a part of the daily task, a sort of habit of life.
=Questions to help the pupil understand the picture.= How was wheat cut
in Millet’s day? How is it cut now? Of what use is a reaper? What are
the three women in the picture doing? Who sent them? Why? Where do they
put the broken heads of wheat? the stalks? Why do you think this must be
hard work? Which one is resting her back? Why does one of the others
hold her left hand behind her? How are these three women dressed? How do
peasants usually get material for their clothes? Whom can you see in the
background? What are they doing? What can you see behind them? What time
of day do you think it is? How can you tell by the length of the
shadows? To what part of the picture is our attention drawn? What makes
you think these women are working cheerfully? that they are thrifty?
What reasons have they to be discontented? to be contented? Why do you
feel sorry for them? How did the people of France feel when this picture
was exhibited? What had made the French peasants very wretched at this
time? Why did the people resent Millet’s calling their attention to
this? How did Millet happen to know so much about the peasants and their
life? What colors did he use in this picture? What can you say about the
arrangement of the three women in this picture? Why is this a good
arrangement? How are we made to feel the lowliness of these peasants?
Why is this picture called “The Gleaners”?
=To the Teacher:=
SUBJECTS FOR COMPOSITIONS
The Story Told in This Picture.
The Lives of the French Peasants.
Comparison of Labor in Those Days and at the Present Time.
Millet’s Paintings—Subjects and Purpose.
Reasons Why I Would Consider This Picture a Masterpiece.
Life of the Artist.
=The story of the artist.= In the little country village of Gruchy,
France, dwelt a family of peasants who tilled the land and lived by the
sweat of their brows. There were the grandmother, father, mother, and
eight children. The eldest son was Jean François Millet, the artist who
painted this picture. His mother worked out in the fields with the
father, even as the women in this picture are working, so little Jean
François was brought up by his grandmother, who was also his godmother.
It was she who named him Jean for his father and François after the good
Saint Francis. She was a deeply religious woman, and almost the only
pictures Millet saw in his boyhood were those in the Bible, which he
copied again and again, drawing them upon the stone walls with white
chalk. This pleased the grandmother, and she encouraged him all she
could.
When Millet was six years old he was sent to school. At twelve he began
to study Latin with a priest in the village who was very fond of him and
taught him for the pleasure of it. From this time on his studies were
frequently interrupted by his work on the farm, for as eldest son he was
the one the father relied upon most.
The elder Millet had a keen appreciation of the beauty in nature and
often, as they worked, he would call his son’s attention to the beauties
around them. He would say, “Look at that tree—how large and beautiful!
It is as beautiful as a flower,” or “See, that house half buried by the
field is good; it seems to me that it ought to be drawn that way.” Then
sometimes he would try to model a figure from a piece of clay or cut an
animal or plant from wood. So it was not much wonder that the son, too,
tried to draw animals, the barn, the garden, and various objects around
him.
When he was eighteen years old he drew his first great picture. As he
was coming home from church he met an old man whose back was bent over a
cane as he walked slowly along. Something about the bent figure appealed
to Millet so strongly that he had a great desire to draw a portrait of
him. So, taking some charcoal from his pocket, he drew on a stone wall a
picture of the old man. People passing by recognized the old man in
Millet’s picture and were much pleased.
His father, too, was delighted, for he had once wished to be an artist
himself. He now resolved that his son should have a chance. A family
council was held and all agreed that Millet must be sent to some good
artist to study. So the father took him to an artist (Mouchel) in
Cherbourg to whom he showed some of Millet’s drawings. At first the
artist would not believe the boy had drawn them, but, finally convinced,
he was very glad to have this talented boy for his pupil.
Millet had studied with him only two months when his father died, and he
was obliged to return home to take his father’s place on the farm as
best he could. But the people of the village, who were much interested
in his paintings, resolved to help him. So they raised money to send him
back to Cherbourg to study, and finally to the great city of Paris.
There he studied under Delaroche, a fashionable painter of that day. The
other students could not understand Millet, for, peasant that he was, he
rarely spoke, allowing others to make all the advances and answering
scarcely a word. However, if they went too far he could use his fists to
such good advantage that they soon left him quite alone. He was always
known among them as “the man of the woods.”
They soon found out that he could draw and paint, too, and his work
received much praise. Still his pictures did not sell, and Millet’s life
in Paris was a continuous struggle with poverty.
One of the reasons that his pictures did not sell was because he chose
his models from the lower classes and represented them in their humble
daily tasks. His critics urged him to paint, instead, some beautiful
girl or fine-looking man from the village or city. To this he replied:
“Beauty does not dwell in the face; it radiates forth from the whole
figure and appears in the suitableness of the action to the subject.
Your pretty peasants would be ill suited for picking up wood, for
gleaning in the fields of August, for drawing water from a well. Beauty
is expression.”
In spite of the fact that he could barely earn a living in Paris, Millet
remained there many years. He was married and his children were born
there. Finally he left Paris with his wife and children and settled at
Barbizon, a small village in France, where he spent the rest of his
life. Many descriptions have been written and many pictures painted of
the modest white stone cottage in which Millet’s last years were spent.
It was not until these last few years of his life that Millet ceased to
be wretchedly poor, for then his pictures were at last appreciated and
he received the profit and honor that were his due.
He died at Barbizon, January 20, 1875.
The world of to-day has forgotten most of the popular artists of that
time, and their pretty models, but Millet’s peasants live on. Once
little valued, now the great truths which they represent have made them
almost priceless.
=Questions about the artist.= What is the artist’s full name? Tell about
his home life. Who took care of Millet when he was a child? What did his
mother do? Who named him, and why? What pictures did he study? When was
he sent to school? What did he study with the priest? Why were his
studies interrupted so often? How did his father help him with his
drawing? Tell about the old man with the cane. Who recognized his
portrait? What happened because of his success? Why did the artist think
Millet could not have painted the pictures? Why did Millet remain so
short a time with this artist? What did the people in the village do for
him? Why was it the students in Paris could not understand Millet? What
name did the students give him? Why did his pictures not sell? What did
the critics say about them? What else did Millet paint? Where did he
finally make his home? When did he receive recognition?
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration]
THE MILL
=Questions to arouse interest.= What does this picture represent? In
what country would you expect to find such a scene? What do the clouds
suggest to you? Notice the water and the sails of the boat. Does the
water appear smooth or rough? Why do you think the little sailboat you
see is not the only one in the harbor? Why do you think the arms of the
mill are not moving very rapidly? How is the land protected from the
water? Whom can you see on the land? Where do they seem to be going?
What can you see beyond the clump of bushes? Notice the man who is
standing near the railing of the mill. What does he seem to be watching?
Where does the light come from? What is the center of interest in this
picture?
=Original Picture=: Buckingham Palace, London, England.
=Artist=: Jacob Van Ruysdael (rois′däl).
=Birthplace=: Haarlem, Holland.
=Dates=: Born, 1628; died, 1682.
=The story of the picture.= We know at once that the scene of this
picture must be in Holland. We could tell by the picturesque windmill
for which that country has become famous, even if we did not know that
the artist, Ruysdael, lived there all his life.
When we look at this picture, representing a scene at the mouth of a
Dutch river, it is hard for us to realize that all of this little
country is lower than the ocean, and would be flooded if it were not for
the great dikes. These dikes are thick walls of stone and earth built
near the shore, so high that the water of the North Sea cannot wash over
them, and so wide across the top that they make excellent carriage
roads. It is wonderful to think how men, by their skill and
perseverance, have been able to preserve this country from the sea.
We are told that when Caesar first reached this part of Europe he found
the few inhabitants living in wretched little huts built upon hills of
sand which had been left after a flood. They lived upon fish, which they
caught in nets made from grasses or rushes, and were miserably poor. So
much of the land was under water that it was hard to tell whether it was
land or sea.
These few natives, however, began to fill in the spaces between the sand
hills with earth and stone, building rude dikes or embankments to keep
out the water. Very often the sea broke through, flooding the land
again, but the people only built stronger dikes each time, until now at
last they have the present mighty safeguards.
The longest dike is in North Holland, and is called “The Great Dike.” It
is six miles long and from twelve to fifteen feet thick. The sea beats
against it with great force, but the sturdy Hollander watches its angry
foam in safety. The dike is carefully guarded everywhere, for if the
water should find a weak or unprotected spot in it, terrible indeed
would be the result.
The North Sea is Holland’s greatest foe, yet it has sometimes proved a
friend, for when sorely pressed in battle the Dutch have flooded their
land, thus forcing their enemies to flee for safety. They have done this
by removing small sections from the dikes, though it meant the loss of
their homes and cultivated fields. It is said that windmills, too, may
be used in flooding certain low portions of land in case an enemy
attempts to take possession.
The windmill has played an important part in building up this country,
for it has been used not only for grinding corn, crushing linseed,
sawing timber, and cutting tobacco, but to drain the land and make it
habitable.
Sometimes great lakes have been drained by water pumps set in motion by
these windmills, and what is to-day some of the most fertile land in the
country has been secured in this way. To be sure, it takes several years
to accomplish such an undertaking as this, but the patience and
perseverance of the Hollander are equal to far greater tasks than that.
It is interesting to know how the people build houses in this land. They
cannot build them as we do, because the earth is so soft and yielding
that the houses would sink in it. First, they dig out two or three feet
of earth, and, as they expect, this opening immediately fills with
water. Then they drive piles or stakes deep into the ground with a
powerful steam hammer. These are placed close together in lines to
support the walls of the house. Heavy oak boards are nailed upon them
and the brick foundation is then started just as we build ours. The back
and front of the house are not completed until after the roof is
finished, for it is necessary to allow a free circulation of air through
the house to dry it. Even then Dutch houses seem very damp to those who
are not natives. The kitchen is usually built in the front part of the
house instead of the back. The buildings we see in this picture, even
the windmill itself, must have been built in just this way.
The calm and peace of this landscape are more impressive when we think
of the great ocean outside the dike, pounding away in its ceaseless
effort to claim its own. The picture seems to tell us something of the
great effort, constant guard, and persistent struggle we must make if we
would secure peace and contentment in our lives.
But in all lives must come some stormy days. In our picture we can see
the clouds gathering, feel the warning stillness in the air, and know
that the storm will break soon. The strange calm keeps the water still
and lifeless, the sails of the boat hang flat and unruffled, the trees
are without motion, and the great arms of the windmill wait to catch the
first faint breeze.
The three women on their way to church or home must hasten, for these
storms come quickly, as the man who stands guard at the railing of the
mill well knows. There is a feeling of expectancy in this picture. As we
watch the great clouds and the strange light in the sky, we are
conscious of a great stillness all around, and we expect at any moment
to feel the rush and roar of the oncoming winds. There is something
alarming in the suspense.
We begin to feel the vastness of sky and water around us and how very
little and unimportant we are in the midst of it all. We wonder that we
have ventured so much.
The great simplicity of this landscape is also typical of the people of
Holland. The early Hollanders were remarkable for their simplicity, but
as they prospered there was a tendency toward extravagance and display
which caused much remonstrance from the clergy and more thoughtful
citizens.
The story is told of an old Dutch merchant who, having made a fortune in
trade, decided to spend the rest of his life in his country home some
distance away. Before leaving his friends he invited them all to dine
with him. Upon arriving, the guests were amazed to find themselves
seated at a large table covered with a blue cloth, and set with wooden
plates, spoons, and tumblers. Two old seamen served them with herring,
fresh, salted, or dried. The second course was salt beef and greens.
The guests, of course, were much disappointed and scarcely tasted this
poor fare. They supposed the meal was ended when the blue cloth was
removed, but no, it was replaced by one of the finest linen, the old
sailors disappeared, and a number of servants in fine liveries appeared,
serving a banquet which excelled even their highest expectations.
Then the host spoke to them: “Such, gentlemen, has been the progress of
our Republic. We began with short frugality, by means of which we became
wealthy; and we end with luxury, which will beget poverty. We should,
therefore, be satisfied with our beef and greens, that we may not have
to return to our herrings.”
Unlike many pictures which seem to be made up of a majority of either
curved or straight lines, this picture contains a great variety of
lines. We find the straight line in the masts and sails of the boats,
the walls and spires of the church, the main walls of the windmill, the
posts of the breakwater, and the three little figures in white; the
horizontal lines in the horizon, roofs, hull of the boat, and in the
breakwater. The rolling clouds, round masses of the tree tops, and the
balcony railing give us the curved lines, while we cannot fail to notice
the oblique lines of the arms of the mill and the grasses near the river
bank.
=Questions to help the pupil understand the picture.= What does this
picture represent? How is Holland protected from the ocean? What are
dikes? How are they used? What kind of a place was Holland when Caesar
first entered it? What did the people do? How did they happen to build
the first dike? What is the longest dike called? What would happen if
the dike should give way? From what sea does it protect the people? How
has the sea proved their friend? at what expense to them? Of what use
are the windmills? How do they build houses in Holland? Why are the
cellars full of water? Why are the houses damp? Which room is usually in
the front of the house? How is the windmill in this picture built? What
makes you think a storm is approaching? How does the water look? the
sails? the trees? the windmill? What feeling does this picture give
you—one of peace, expectancy, suspense, anxiety, or pleasure? Why is it
typical of the people of Holland? Tell about the early Hollanders; the
Dutch merchant and the banquet. What advice did the merchant give the
Hollanders? What can you say about the composition of this picture? Of
what kinds of lines is it made up? Where do you find the different kinds
of lines?
=The story of the artist.= Jacob Van Ruysdael was born at Haarlem,
Holland, in 1628. Although he was one of the greatest of the Dutch
landscape painters, very little is known of his life. When he was only
twelve years old he painted a picture in which he showed so much talent
that his father consented to his giving up the study of medicine, for
which he had been preparing. Ruysdael’s elder brother was probably his
first teacher in painting. Later he went to Amsterdam to study, but his
great desire was to be out in the country, where he could be alone with
nature. His pictures are usually of landscapes, including a glimpse of
the sea and land, with vast sky spaces overhead. In color, a rich, warm
green predominates. It was always very difficult for him to draw people,
so he usually had some other artist paint his figures for him.
Although his paintings are extremely valuable now, he could not sell
them then, and he was so poor he was obliged at last to go to the
almshouse, where he died in 1682.
People at that time were not interested in an ordinary landscape such as
they saw every day. They thought Ruysdael was wasting his time painting
such common things. Other artists painted pictures of people and of
interesting events, real or imaginary, in brilliant colors and style.
Ruysdael painted pictures in which the landscape and not the people was
the center of interest. He was one of the very first artists with enough
appreciation for the beauty of nature to use it as the subject for his
paintings.
From what we read of Ruysdael’s life, it must have been a rather lonely
one. Of a dreamy, thoughtful nature, he spent much of his time wandering
alone by the seashore, among the sand dunes, and through the open
country. These are the scenes he painted again and again. He loved to
study the same scene in different lights, with different cloud effects,
at different times and seasons; and so we find twenty pictures of a
certain scene called “View of Haarlem from the Hill of Overveen.”
Few men have shown a more thorough knowledge of trees, the trunks, their
branches, and the character of their leaves. In his earlier work this
knowledge caused him to put too many details into his pictures, making
them somewhat stiff. But he soon overcame this difficulty and began to
put into his landscapes a peace and tranquility that rests the eye. But
since his paintings still remained unpopular he tried a change of
subjects, painting pictures of mountain scenery and rocky waterfalls.
It is generally believed that the artist Hobbema was Ruysdael’s friend
and pupil. If this is true, the two must have spent many happy days
together painting the quiet landscapes they loved so well. Neither of
them ever traveled out of Holland.
So much alike was the work of these two artists that at one time long
after their death, Hobbema’s name was removed from his paintings and
that of Ruysdael placed in its stead in order to sell them. Later every
effort was made to correct these errors. Some critics declared that
every rocky landscape must be by Ruysdael, and every peaceful scene of
cottages, high trees, and waterfalls must be by Hobbema, and so
doubtless many mistakes were made. But it was not until after Ruysdael’s
death that people awoke to his greatness and genius. Fabulous sums have
been paid for many of his pictures and they hang in the best galleries
of Europe.
Famous paintings by Ruysdael are: “Landscape with Waterfall,” “The
Tempest,” “The Swamp in the Wood,” “The Jewish Cemetery,” “Landscape
with Ruins,” “Shore at Scheveningen,” “Oak Wood,” and “Agitated Sea.”
=Questions about the artist.= Who painted this picture? Where did he
live? How did he rank? Tell what you can of his life. What subjects did
he usually choose for his paintings? What color usually predominates?
What did he find difficult to draw? Where did he pass the last days of
his life? Why could he not sell his pictures? How did they differ from
those of other artists? What artist studied with him? Of what value are
Ruysdael’s paintings to-day?
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration]
PILGRIMS GOING TO CHURCH
=Questions to arouse interest.= Who are these people? What country does
this represent? Why were they called Pilgrims, and why did they leave
England? Where are they going in this picture? Why do the men carry
guns? Where might foes be lurking? What time of the year is it? what
time of day?
=Original Picture=: Lenox Gallery, New York.
=Artist=: George Henry Boughton (bô´tȯn).
=Birthplace=: Norwich, England.
=Dates=: Born, 1834; died, 1905.
=The story of the picture.= We have read many stories about the lives of
our forefathers in America, but perhaps we realize more clearly just
what that life must have been when we look at this picture, “Pilgrims
Going to Church.” It makes us realize why the Pilgrims came to this
country and willingly endured such terrible hardships,—that they might
go to their own church and worship according to their own conscience.
It was a brave and sturdy people who, although loyal in all else, defied
the king when he would take away their freedom of worship. Little wonder
there was much excitement when people of all ranks and conditions in
England began to sell their homes and possessions, preparing to leave
for a land almost unknown and full of danger.
The king tried to prevent their leaving, even putting some of them in
prison. But our forefathers were not of the kind who are easily
discouraged or defeated; and one day the little band which had collected
on the shores of the great ocean said good-by to their sorrowing friends
and were rowed to the little ship, the _Mayflower_, which was to carry
them safely to the new land. We have read much of the perils of that
journey, and how, in spite of accidents on shipboard and equinoctial
storms, they finally arrived off Cape Cod one cold and wintry morning in
December. They sent out parties to search the shores for a favorable
place to build their homes, and on Monday, December 21, 1620,
disembarked on the sandy beach, landing a few at a time on that greenish
granite rock called Plymouth Rock. This famous rock is still to be seen,
an object of veneration.
Arrived on this dreary, frozen land, the Pilgrims began to work with a
will, cutting down the pine trees, building their rude houses, and
trying in all ways to establish here a permanent home. Their religion
was not forgotten. In fact, it is said that the party sent out to find
this location landed there on the Sabbath day, and as they would not
labor on that day, they did not cut wood for a fire, but walked back and
forth all day and night to keep from freezing to death.
In our picture we see them in this dreary land in the midst of winter.
Their rude, snow-covered homes were so roughly built that the cold winds
whistled through them, and their provisions were so scant that they were
often thankful for a meal of fish and a cup of water.
To-day is Sunday. They are on their way to church. They have realized
their ideal—freedom of worship. Even the fact that they must go armed,
keeping a careful watch for their treacherous foe, the Indian, cannot
take away the comfort of that thought.
When they first landed, they found all the shore deserted except for a
few empty wigwams which seemed not to have been inhabited for a long
time. Later the Pilgrims were told that there had been a dreadful plague
among the Indians at this very place, and all the survivors had fled.
At first the few Indians whom they saw were friendly, but later they
began to resent the presence of these white people, whose number was
constantly increasing and who seized upon their lands and fields as if
they were the rightful owners. They began to plunder and burn the homes
of the settlers, and all sense of security was gone.
But the common danger held the brave band closer together, making their
religious freedom seem more precious. In this picture, guards are
stationed at the front, center, and end of each group of people. The
minister, the women, and the children are thus surrounded and protected.
Our chief attention is for the central figures—the minister, his wife,
and the child. It is interesting to study the expressions on the faces
of this stanch little band. We observe the light on the heads and faces
of the Pilgrims and on the sides of the trees, and the absence of
shadows on the snow. This tells us that the sun must be high in the sky.
This group of Pilgrims is only a part of those who will assemble in the
little church just over the hill. We catch a glimpse of the first man in
the next group.
Notice the quaint hats and collars which the men and women wear. The
artist was very particular to show us the Pilgrims’ peculiar style of
dress.
=Questions to help the pupil understand the picture.= Who were our
forefathers in America? Why were they so called? Why did they come to
America? What kind of people were they? What did they know of America
before they came? Who tried to prevent their coming? Upon what boat did
they sail? Tell about the journey. Why was it so dangerous? When did
they reach America? Upon what did they land? What has become of this
rock? What did the Pilgrims do as soon as they arrived? Tell about the
party sent out to find a permanent location. Why could they not build a
fire? What time of year is represented in this picture? Where are the
people going? How many churches did they have? Why do they carry guns?
Who occupied this land before the Pilgrims came? Why did the Indians
leave? Why did they dislike the Pilgrims? What effect did this danger
have upon the Pilgrims? To which members of the group in the picture is
our attention directed? How is this accomplished? What makes you think
the sun is shining? What time of day is it? What makes you think there
are more people coming? How are these Pilgrims dressed?
=To the Teacher=: Let the pupils illustrate the various scenes in the
story with charcoal on manila paper.
=The story of the artist.= George Henry Boughton was born in a little
village near Norwich, England. His father was a farmer. But the farm he
possessed was so small that he found it difficult to provide for his
large family. So he decided to sail to America where there were better
opportunities for farming. The long voyage was taken the year following
George’s birth.
The family settled near Albany, New York, and there George Boughton was
raised and educated. It was decided that he should be trained for a
business career and so he was sent to a commercial school. But the young
artist had other plans in his head. At school he began to show great
skill in drawing, gained, as he said afterwards, “by drawing every
mortal thing that came under my notice.” While he was still in school,
Boughton’s father and mother died and he was left to the care of his
older brothers and sisters. They regarded his efforts in art with little
favor and offered him no encouragement.
But George Boughton would not be discouraged. Drawing and painting had
more attraction for him than even the sports that are dear to every
boy’s heart. He has himself told the story of how he once went into a
store to buy hooks and a line to use on a fishing trip to a neighboring
creek, and how he came out with a set of oil colors and paint brushes
instead. The picture he painted at that time was the beginning of his
success. When he was nineteen years old he sold enough of his sketches
to pay his way to London. He spent a few months in London and then went
on a long trip through England, Scotland, and Ireland, making sketches
of the scenes that appealed to him.
With these he returned to New York, where they were quickly sold. A few
years later, with the help of a millionaire patron who bought the
artist’s pictures in advance, Boughton went to Paris. After a year in
Paris he went to London again, finally making his home there. Then, of
course, his studio in New York City was given up, but, though he lived
in England, his art remained distinctly American.
He was especially interested in the history and literature of our
country and has been called “the interpreter of New England life in the
seventeenth century.”
Besides painting, Mr. Boughton wrote stories for magazines, illustrating
his own stories.
In 1879 Mr. Boughton was elected Associate of the Royal Academy in
London, and in 1896 he became a member of the Academy with all the
honors and privileges of that position.
Among his most noted pictures are the “Return of the Mayflower,”
“Pilgrim Exiles,” and “The Scarlet Letter.”
=Questions about the artist.= Who painted this picture? Where was he
born? What was it decided that he should become? Tell the story of the
fishing tackle. What did he do with the money he received for his first
pictures? What did he do in England? Who helped him to go to Paris?
Where did he settle down? What part of the United States interested him
most? What kind of pictures did he paint? What has he been called? What
is meant by that? Why might he be considered an American artist? What
could he do besides paint?
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration]
THE CHILD HANDEL
=Questions to arouse interest.= Where are these people? At whom are they
looking? Why do you think it is night? Upon what has the boy been
playing? What does the man carry in his hand? Why do they look so
surprised? Does the boy look frightened, anxious, or pleased? How is he
dressed? How is the man dressed? the woman? What can you see hanging
from her belt? Who is behind her? Where do you think they have come
from? Why do you suppose they dressed so fully? What can you see
scattered upon the floor? What do you like best about this picture?
=Artist=: Margaret Isabel Dicksee.
=Birthplace=: London, England.
=Dates=: Born, 1858; died, 1903.
=The story of the picture.= It is midnight; the small boy Handel has
forgotten everything in the world as he plays upon the old harpsichord
hidden in the dark old garret. He feels safe, for he has taken all
precautions—first, by going to bed at the regular time; then, by
feigning sleep until all the household was wrapped in slumber. Ah! how
long the time seemed, and how impatiently he went over and over again in
his mind the beautiful melody he had been composing all day as he worked
or played.
But no one must know. He had not even dared hum, lest he should be
suspected, for his father had forbidden him the use of the harpsichord,
the only musical instrument the family possessed. Humming a tune was
something to be frowned at because this small boy loved music so dearly
that, if permitted, he would neglect all else to sing or play upon the
old harpsichord.
The father had long ago planned that his son should become a lawyer, and
he wished to educate him for that profession. But the boy did not apply
himself to his lessons, and was at the foot of the class. After much
discussion, it was decided that the harpsichord must be banished to the
garret and the boy forbidden to touch it until he had mastered his other
studies.
Then it was that Handel began to pay those nightly visits to the garret
where, with closed windows and doors, he played half the night or until
the first hint of dawn told him he must hurry back to his bed. No wonder
his mother found it hard to get him up in the morning, and that he began
to look pale and delicate.
On this one night he had so completely lost himself in his music that he
used the swell at its greatest volume, fairly flooding the garret room
with his happy music. Faint sounds had crept down through the garret
floor; now they grew loud, now soft and weird, as if the house were
haunted. Finally the whole family was awakened, but no one could explain
the source of those mysterious sounds. It could not be the wind, for all
was still and quiet outside; but whatever it was, they could not sleep
until it stopped.
Now all were up and dressed, but no one thought of the boy as the father
lighted the great lantern and led the way in search of the ghost or
spirit which had so disturbed them. Still the sounds continued, growing
fainter, then stronger again, but always seeming to come from the top of
the house. So they climbed up the steep and narrow stairs to the
garret,—first the father, carrying the lantern, then the mother, who had
hurriedly caught up her bag and bunch of keys; the elder brother, and
the grandmother and grandfather came last of all. Even when they reached
the garret door they did not suspect the boy, for they thought him safe
in bed; only a ghost would play in a dark garret at that time of night.
Handel did not need a light, for he knew his keys by heart; his very
finger tips were full of the music which had been singing in his head
all day long.
Can you not imagine the father swinging the door open and quickly
flashing the lantern about until the light rested upon the frail,
ghostlike little figure at the harpsichord? They must have been
startled, indeed, but not half so much as poor Handel, who felt his last
chance of happiness slipping from him.
How very real to us the artist has made it! We seem to be in the big
garret ourselves, looking first toward the small boy at the quaint old
instrument and then at those who have discovered him. The harpsichord
looks something like our grand piano, and was used for many years before
the piano was invented. There sits Handel in his night clothes and cap,
looking pathetically first at his father, then at his mother, while his
sensitive face twitches with anxiety. He had been so intent on his
playing that he had not heard their approach, had had no warning, and
now it was too late.
And will they punish him? We do not know whether they did in any way
except to keep the garret door locked, but that was punishment enough
for poor Handel. We do know it was not until he was nine years old that
his father reluctantly consented to Handel’s studying music, and then it
came about by accident.
One of the great days in Handel’s life was the day his father went to
visit his older son (Handel’s half-brother), who held a position under
the Duke of Weissenfels. Handel was then only seven years old and had
been refused permission to go, but when, many miles from home, the
father discovered the tired but determined boy following on foot, he was
finally taken. One Sunday, at the close of the service in the court
chapel, the boy was permitted to try the great organ. The duke, who had
remained in the chapel, heard the playing and immediately inquired who
the musician was. “Little Handel from Halle” was the reply.
Becoming interested, the duke soon had the story of the boy’s secret
playing, and it was through his talk with the father that Handel was at
last placed under a skilled instructor and given every chance to
cultivate his great talent.
Soon he was without a rival on the organ and the harpsichord. From the
first he wrote his own music, and before long was composing great
oratorios such as the famous “Messiah.”
In the picture the artist has centered our interest and attention upon
the small boy in several ways: by his position, the light, the
inclination of the other figures toward him. At whatever part of the
picture we glance, our eyes are almost immediately drawn back to the boy
musician. The childish figure, sensitive face, and startled, appealing
glance arouse our sympathy and interest.
=Questions to help the pupil understand the picture.= Where is this boy?
What is his name? Why is he in the attic? Why did he not play the
harpsichord during the day? What precautions did he take before coming
to the garret? Why was he discovered? What warning did he have? Who
found him? Why was Handel so anxious? How was he punished? Why was it
not good for him to spend his nights or days in this way? When was he
permitted to study music? How did this happen? What had his father
wanted him to study? How did Handel succeed with his music? Upon what is
our attention centered in this picture? By what means is this
accomplished? What appeal does this picture make to you? Does it arouse
your sympathy and admiration, or does it give you a feeling of
disappointment?
=The story of the artist.= Margaret Isabel Dicksee was the daughter of a
noted English artist, Thomas Francis Dicksee. Her parents lived in a
section of London where many successful artists and art students had
their quarters. Thus Margaret Dicksee’s very earliest memories were
associated with pictures and painters, and she had doubtless absorbed
all the rudiments of drawing and color long before she began her A B
C’s.
Her brother Frank, five years older than Margaret, was already well
started on the road to fame in art when the little Margaret first began
to trace the queer figures that children draw. No doubt it was he who
first guided her hand, scarce strong enough yet to hold the crayon
firmly. But Margaret made rapid progress, for the desire to draw and
paint the things she saw about her was part of her nature. Soon brother
and sister were students together at the same art classes.
The children’s uncle, too, was an artist, as well as their cousin,
Herbert Dicksee. In after years Herbert became a noted etcher and made
engravings of his cousins’ pictures.
What a happy life these three children must have lived. Conditions for
them were as favorable as they had been unfavorable for their father and
uncle. Margaret’s father had often told her how he and his brother John,
Margaret’s uncle, had got out of bed at the first gray streak of dawn so
that they could have time to draw and paint before school. Their parents
would not allow them to set aside school tasks for such things as
drawing, which they considered of far less importance. How glad Margaret
and Frank must have been that their father was an artist and did not
interfere with their efforts at drawing and painting, but encouraged
them as much as he could.
The young artists were successful in their work from the very first.
Their pictures were admired and praised by every one who saw them. Very
often pictures by both sister and brother were to be seen at the same
exhibition. Later Frank became a member of the Royal Academy.
Miss Dicksee chose as subjects for her paintings scenes from history,
biography, and fiction. She also painted a number of fine portraits. The
pictures she has left to us give evidence of a very lovable and
sympathetic nature. Among her most noted and attractive works besides
“The Child Handel Discovered Playing in the Garret” are “The Children of
Charles I” and “A Sacrifice of Vanity,” the latter a scene taken from
Oliver Goldsmith’s _Vicar of Wakefield_.
=Questions about the artist.= In what part of London was the artist
born? What was her father’s name and profession? Tell about Margaret
Dicksee as a little girl. Who helped her in her first attempts at
drawing? Tell about the childhood experiences of her father and uncle.
What was the name of Margaret’s and Frank’s cousin? What did he become?
What subjects did Miss Dicksee choose for her paintings?
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration:
By Permission of Braun & Co., Paris and New York
]
THE HORSE FAIR
=Questions to arouse interest.= How many of you have ever attended a
horse fair? Where is this horse fair, and what kind of horses are they?
How are they controlled? What is the object of having a horse fair? How
many horses are represented in this picture? How many are in the same
position? Which are under the best control? Which have their ears back?
What does that indicate? Which horse is trying to throw his rider? Which
horse looks vicious? How is he controlled? What colors do you think they
are? What can you see in the background? Upon what part of the horses
does the light fall? What does this tell us of the position of the sun?
the time of day? Which horse has a blanket on his back? Why do you think
he is not entered for the prize? Which horse is the most lifelike? To
which one would you give the blue ribbon?
=Original Picture=: Metropolitan Museum, New York City.
=Artist=: Rosa Bonheur (bō nûr´).
=Birthplace=: Bordeaux, France.
=Dates=: Born, 1822; died, 1899.
=The story of the picture.= In this day of the automobile we do not hear
much about horse fairs. Of course, we still have our county fairs, but
there the horse is only a small part of the attraction. In many places
also horse markets are held where all kinds of horses are brought to be
sold, but these could hardly be compared to a horse fair, where only the
finest specimens are entered. In some of our large cities we have what
we call horse shows, which in a measure seem to have taken the place of
the old-fashioned horse fair. So we have the International Horse Show in
Madison Square Garden, New York City, one almost as large at Chicago,
Illinois, another at Olympia, Washington, one in Montreal, Canada, the
famous Horse Show in London, and others. But how unlike the scene
represented in this picture they are!
Imagine yourself in that largest of all show buildings, the Madison
Square Garden, New York City. Tier above tier the seats are arranged
around the central ring or drive, which in size and appearance is
similar to the usual outdoor race track. The seats extend around the
track except for a small space left for the entrance and exit, and are
arranged very much like the seats in a theater, having the box and
reserved seats nearest the stage or track. Each box is numbered and
catalogued so that you may know just which wealthy man or woman is
occupying that particular box.
Before the performance, or during the intermission, you may go about,
catalogue in hand, and see for yourself what these people, whom you have
read so much about, look like. In other words, this horse show has
become a society event, appealing to all classes of people, but more
especially to the rich.
All is carefully planned. A flourish of trumpets, and the man with the
megaphone announces the first number—perhaps a tallyho contest. More
trumpets, and in come the dashing six horses drawing the picturesque
tallyho. They have been driven a mile through Central Park before
entering the building, and it is to the horses found to be in the best
condition after this drive that the prize is to be given.
But scarcely have we looked at them when there is another flourish of
trumpets, and another tallyho arrives, sounding its bugle call. The
footmen descend and stand at the heads of the spirited horses while the
passengers alight. We have a fleeting glimpse of their fashionable
clothes; they have a moment’s rest, and then, when the judges have
examined the horses, up they climb to their high seats and at the signal
are driven slowly around the ring. Then others arrive, and soon all are
driving in a gay procession around the ring. The spectators applaud
enthusiastically while the spirited horses proudly arch their necks.
Then come the tandems, and horses and carriages of all kinds in order.
Then horses are exhibited in every form of activity—leaping, running,
pacing, and hurdling. After the show is over, perhaps we go to see the
horses in their stalls, but then we find ourselves in the minority, for
few spectators remain after the last horse leaves the track.
Would it not be pleasant now to go with Rosa Bonheur out into the great
field near that avenue of trees, and watch the men riding or leading
those powerful French dray horses before the judges? Horses like these
have been imported to our country, so we see them on our own streets
drawing heavy loads, and we know how strong and powerful they are.
There are more than twenty horses in this picture that we can count,
each in action, and yet no two are alike. The artist has made us feel
the perfect control man has over them. All the possibilities of a horse
of this kind are represented. Here we see the well-trained, perfectly
controlled horse going on cheerfully and steadily; there are some with
their ears back, showing annoyance and watchfulness; here a rearing
horse is trying to rid himself of his troublesome driver. That one at
the left of the picture is angry, perhaps vicious. His driver is unable
to manage him alone and it requires two men to control him. But they do
control him, and in every case man, through his intellect, is the
master.
Notice the colors of the horses: even a print of the picture tells us
that they are white, dappled, and black. When they return, surely many
of them will be wearing the blue ribbon.
At the right of the picture are several spectators who have gathered to
see the splendid horses.
Rosa Bonheur wished to draw these horses two thirds life size, and when
you consider the amount of space devoted to sky and ground, you will
realize that it required a very large canvas. We are told that she stood
upon a stepladder to paint parts of it.
She chose a part of Paris that would be easily recognized, showing the
dome of a well-known church and an avenue of trees just as we might see
them to-day. But we can scarcely realize the amount of time and patient
study it required before she could paint even one of these horses. She
went about with a sketchbook and made drawings of horses in all possible
positions, and persevered in this study for a year and a half before she
began this picture.
Her friends in Paris helped her all they could by lending her their fine
horses. But this was not enough,—she must visit horse fairs and markets
as often as possible. Sometimes the grooms made fun of her, and it was
hard for her to work, but she would not give up.
In the picture she has centered the interest upon the horses nearest to
us by painting them more in detail, showing even the muscles of their
strong, powerful bodies, and also by means of the light upon them, and
by their size. The light is high, falling upon the rounded backs and
upraised heads. The short shadows help us guess the time of day, which
must be about noon. The horse with the blanket on his back suggests to
us that the groom beside him intends to ride him when he returns after
leaving his noble charge.
There is a feeling of open air and space about this picture which adds
much to its charm. This is all the more remarkable, too, in a picture
containing so many horses, since it might easily have appeared crowded.
The “Horse Fair” was bought for fifty-two thousand dollars by Cornelius
Vanderbilt, who presented it to the Metropolitan Museum, New York City.
Most American critics consider this Rosa Bonheur’s masterpiece, although
the French claim that honor for “Plowing in Nivernais,” the original of
which is hung in the Luxembourg Gallery in Paris.
=Questions to help the pupil understand the picture.= Where do we go to
see fine horses? What has taken the place of horses and horse fairs?
Where are our largest horse shows? How do they differ from the horse
fair in this picture? Tell about the horse show at Madison Square
Gardens, New York. Compare it with the “Horse Fair.” Where is each held?
What kind of people attend? Why did Rosa Bonheur choose this particular
location for her painting? What preparation did she make before
beginning this picture? For what purpose are these French horses used in
the United States? How many horses are represented in this painting? Why
does it not seem crowded? How near life size did Rosa Bonheur paint
these horses? What did she stand on while painting? why? What can you
tell of the dispositions of these horses? In what way is man always the
master? Upon which horses has the artist centered the interest? How has
she done this? What time of day is it? Why do you think so? Where may we
see this painting?
=To the Teacher=:
SUBJECTS FOR COMPOSITIONS
A Description of a Horse Fair.
A Visit to Rosa Bonheur’s Horse Fair.
A Day with the Artist.
=The story of the artist.= Perhaps the reason Rosa Bonheur loved animals
so dearly was because she spent the first ten years of her life in a
little village, where her parents and their neighbors kept horses,
chickens, and pigs, and where Rosa learned to know all about them. Rosa
and her two brothers had lambs, rabbits, squirrels, and pigeons for
pets. They spent many happy hours out in the fields and woods, yet when
their father, who was an artist, decided to move to the great city of
Paris the children were delighted. This wonderful Paris they had heard
so much about seemed to them the most desirable place in the world to
be, and their only sorrow was in parting from their grandparents and
from their many pets. Rosa was allowed to take a parrot with her, and
the two boys had a dog.
The first place in which they lived was up several flights of stairs and
across the street from a butcher’s shop. This shop had a queer sign cut
from wood and representing a wild boar, which looked so much like Rosa’s
little pig at home that she used to stop to pet it every time she
passed.
A man who lived in the same house with the Bonheurs kept a small school
for boys. Rosa’s two brothers went to this school, and later the teacher
said Rosa might come, too. She was the only girl in the school, but she
did not mind that at all, and the boys were glad to have her, for she
knew more games than they, and played just like one of them.
The father had hoped to sell more of his pictures in the city, but he
did not do as well as he had expected and it cost so much more to live
that he had to move his family to a cheaper house and up on the sixth
floor.
Rosa’s mother was a musician and gave music lessons to help keep up the
home, but she worked too hard and finally became very ill. She died just
as the father secured a position in a private school and things began to
look more prosperous for the Bonheur family.
For a time the father tried to keep his little family together by
leaving them in a sort of day nursery, but this was not satisfactory, so
he had to send them away. Juliette, the baby sister born after they
moved to Paris, was sent to her grandmother, the two boys to school, and
Rosa to an aunt.
This aunt sent Rosa to school. To reach the schoolhouse she had to walk
some distance through the woods, and often she would stop on the way,
smooth the dust in the road with her hand, and then draw pictures in it
with a stick, her favorite pictures being of animals. Often she became
so absorbed in her drawing she forgot to go to school, or was so late
that her teachers complained to the aunt, saying she was getting behind
in her school work. Every time her father came to see her Rosa begged
him to take her home, and when at last he could provide for his children
they were all very happy to be together again in Paris.
Wherever they lived they must have pets. A great many stories have been
told about the pets they kept in their house. Every morning Rosa’s
brother Isidore would carry a little lamb on his shoulders down six
flights of stairs, that it might nibble the green grass and be out in
the fresh air, and in the evening he would carry it back upstairs. It
became a great pet, and all the children drew its picture in ever so
many different positions. Besides, they had the parrot, a monkey, two
dogs, rabbits, and birds. Their father let them keep these in a room
especially fitted up for the purpose.
He was teaching in a private school at this time and was away from home
all day, but when evening came he gathered his children about him and
taught them how to draw. They put their easels in different parts of the
room and worked away, drawing and painting, until bedtime. They would
all much rather do this than anything else in the world.
Then the father accepted another position in a school where he could
also send his four children. Here Rosa was continually in trouble, for
she did not study much and was always getting into mischief. One day she
planned a mock battle in the school yard between the girls. They used
sticks for swords. Very soon Rosa’s side drove their enemies toward a
bed of hollyhocks which was the pride of the school. Here they turned
and fled, but Rosa charged on. She cut off the heads of all those
stately hollyhocks because they seemed to stand guard like soldiers. For
this she was sent home in disgrace.
Very often, too, Rosa had these sham fights with her brothers at home,
when the easels and even the pictures were used. The palettes served as
shields, and the little Juliette, dressed in all the finery they could
find, sat in state, representing the lady of their choice for whom the
battle was fought.
Rosa tried to learn the dressmaking trade and to be a teacher, but it
was no use,—the only thing she cared to do was to draw. So her father
decided to give up trying to educate her in any other way. She was
willing to walk miles in any kind of weather, to sit hours in all sorts
of uncomfortable positions, and to go without food, in order to draw a
good picture of some animal.
Now that she had begun in earnest to study animals, she must go to all
the country horse fairs, to the slaughter houses, and everywhere she
could to study them. But as she grew older she found it more and more
difficult to go to these places, because of the attention she attracted
and because her long skirts were so in the way. Finally she obtained a
permit to wear men’s clothes. With her short hair, blue working blouse,
and dark trousers she looked so much like one of the workmen that now no
one noticed her, and she could go where she pleased.
People who did know her did not mind her dress and were ready to help
her all they could in her work. From all over the country she received
gifts of fine horses and other animals to paint, Buffalo Bill once
sending her two fine horses from Texas. She bought a farm, and had a
large barn built for her many pets.
Her pictures became famous the world over. How proud her father was of
her!
One day she was working very hard in her studio when a servant came to
tell her that the Empress Eugénie had come to see her. It was a great
event when this royal lady came to the artist’s studio, and there was
Rosa dressed in her old blue blouse, all spotted with paint. She did not
have time even to slip it off before the empress came in, but they had a
most delightful visit. As the Empress Eugénie bent over and kissed Rosa
Bonheur she pinned the Cross of the Legion of Honor on the artist’s blue
blouse. Rosa did not notice it until after the Empress had left. She
must have been very much pleased, for she was the first woman to receive
that honor.
=Questions to help the pupil understand the picture.= Tell about Rosa
Bonheur as a little girl. Where did she live the first ten years of her
life? What pets did she have? Why were the children glad to go to Paris?
why sorry? What pets did they take with them? Describe their first home
in Paris. Tell about the wild boar; the school for boys. Why did the
Bonheurs move? What did Rosa’s mother do to help? When she died, what
became of the children? To whom were they sent? Why was Rosa behind in
her studies at school? Why did she return to Paris? Tell about the
children’s pets, and how they were kept; about Isidore and the lamb.
What did the children do in the evening? Where did Rosa go to school?
Tell about the mock battle and the hollyhocks. How was Rosa punished?
Tell about the sham battles at home. What was Rosa willing to do in
order to draw? Where did she go to study animals? Why did she wear men’s
clothes? What were some of the presents she received? Tell about the
visit of the Empress Eugénie. What honor did Rosa Bonheur receive from
her, and how was it presented?
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration]
MONA LISA
=Questions to arouse interest.= What is this woman doing? Where do you
think she is sitting? How is she dressed? How has she arranged her hair?
What can you say of her hands? How many think she is smiling? that she
is sad? that she is vain and self-conscious, or dreamy and forgetful of
self? How many think she is looking at us? beyond us? What is there
mysterious about her expression? Why do you think no one is able to
understand it?
=Original Picture=: Louvre Gallery, Paris.
=Artist=: Leonardo da Vinci (lā´ō när´dō dä vēn´chē).
=Birthplace=: Vinci, Italy.
=Dates=: Born, 1452; died, 1519.
=The story of the picture.= When the artist, Leonardo da Vinci, was a
boy he liked nothing better than to model in clay. Although he modeled
many figures in action, his chief delight was to model heads of smiling
women and children. His boyhood was such a happy one, and he was so well
liked, that even people with the most severe features relaxed them in a
smile when he appeared. If they did not, he quickly made a sketch so
comical in expression that they could not fail to be amused.
After he grew to manhood he had a very dear friend named Francesco del
Gioconda, who asked him to paint a portrait of his wife, Mona Lisa, or
La Gioconda, as the picture is often called. Leonardo wished to make
this something more than a mere likeness. He wished it to show the
character and soul of the woman herself. It proved to be a most
difficult task, for after four years the portrait was put aside as
unfinished.
Many critics claim that he intended to paint a face that no one could
understand; others claim that the lady’s moods were so changeable and
her expressions so various that he tried to paint them all in one. The
picture remains a mystery which no one seems to understand, yet like all
mysteries it is fascinating and our interest in it grows stronger the
longer we study it.
Many do not care for it at first, especially those who see it without
its beautiful coloring, but few fail to find it interesting if they but
linger long enough.
But after all why should the fact that we do not understand the
expression of this face trouble us, or that nearly every time we look at
it we find a new expression, a different meaning? Is not the same thing
true at times even with our most intimate friends? We think we know just
what they will do and say, yet are we not often amazed at some sudden
change in opinion or action on their part? It but marks their
individuality, and we accept it as part of them. And that is one of the
reasons this portrait of Mona Lisa is considered the greatest ever
painted, because it represents so well the mystery of human personality.
If so great an artist as Leonardo da Vinci spent four years painting
this picture, and it is still considered by the great art critics the
most wonderful portrait ever painted, we must study it even more
carefully if we have not liked it at first.
Leonardo da Vinci had musicians playing or jesters with their funny
sayings to amuse Mona Lisa while he was painting her picture. He did not
wish her to think of herself or to grow weary and look tired.
As you look at the picture can you not imagine you hear the music of
stringed instruments and the splash of that rushing, roaring little
stream in the background? Mona Lisa is listening, dreaming, thinking.
She looks at us, then on beyond without seeing us. She seems to know
everything, feel everything, yet her smile is reassuring.
Her hands are beautiful. In that all will agree. The few details of her
dress and scarf are exquisite, even in a print.
We cannot be quite sure about the chair she sits in; some say it is of
marble, others that it is a wooden chair. And where is she seated? Some
say it is on the roof of a building, others say on a balcony, but that
is even less mysterious than that strange, winding, dashing, little
mountain stream that comes and goes we know not whither.
Critics cannot even decide what time of day it is in the picture, the
light is so uncertain; some claim it is twilight; others, early morning.
If we could see the original, we would perhaps be astonished to find
that the lady wears a very thin veil over her face and hair. Her eyes
are a deep brown, her hair a beautiful auburn, and her dress a rich
green with a touch of yellow. We cannot accuse her of vanity, for she
wears no rings or ornaments of any kind.
Leonardo da Vinci loved problems. Even as a boy he would make up
problems in arithmetic that would puzzle as well as interest his
teachers. Here he has found a different kind of problem, which he has
solved in his own way.
It seems as if each part of the face had an expression of its own, so
that if the rest of the face were covered we could see that one alone.
The left side of her face is thoughtful, the right side is smiling; her
eyes are sad, the mouth is cheerful yet firm. There is hidden strength
behind this face—it is as if she had discovered the secret of the world,
but would allow no word of it to pass those lips so firmly closed. It is
interesting to know, too, that the real Mona Lisa was one of the famous
beauties in Florence.
The artist kept this portrait for several years, and then sold it to the
King of France. It is now in the gallery of the Louvre at Paris.
Great consternation was caused by the loss of this picture a few years
ago, when it was stolen from the Louvre. The whole country was aroused,
until at length the thief, a young Italian workman, was captured. He had
been employed in the Louvre, and found no difficulty in taking the
picture from its frame, concealing it under his blouse, and walking off
with it. He placed it face downward in the bottom of his tool box, and
carried it past the customs inspectors into Italy. The only hard part
was to dispose of the much-sought picture. He was in the same
predicament as the man Mark Twain told us about, who showed how very
easy it was to steal a white elephant, yet how difficult a matter it was
to get rid of the elephant. So, two years later, the Italian was
captured, having tried in vain to dispose of “Mona Lisa.”
He claimed he had stolen the picture to take revenge on France for the
pictures stolen by Napoleon from Italy. This does not seem very
convincing, for “Mona Lisa” was not stolen from Italy, but purchased
from the artist by Frances I for four thousand dollars. At present it is
valued at five million dollars.
The fact that the thief was not discovered sooner proved rather
humiliating to the Paris police, because they had missed an important
clew. It seems the Italian had left two distinct prints of his thumb on
the glass and frame of the picture, and by means of the Bertillon method
of detecting criminals by thumb prints he should have been discovered at
once. This same Italian had been arrested some years before for
stealing, and the thumb prints taken by the police at that time matched
perfectly those left on the picture frame. The police, however, much to
their chagrin, did not discover this until after his capture. But we do
not wonder so much when we are told that they had seven hundred and
fifty thousand thumb prints to compare.
Great excitement prevailed in Florence when the “Mona Lisa” was
discovered safe and uninjured except for two slight scratches it had
received in the tool box. The picture was exhibited at the Uffizi
Gallery in Florence, and great crowds came to see it. Then began its
triumphal journey home, until at last it reached the Louvre Museum at
Paris, where it may now be seen.
=Questions to help the pupil understand the picture.= Who was Mona Lisa?
of what nationality? How many years did it take the artist to paint this
picture? What did he wish to show us in this picture? What do some of
the critics say about it? In what way is the expression mysterious? What
means did the artist use to produce that expression? Where is Mona Lisa
seated? What does she wear over her face and hair? What is the color of
her hair? her eyes? her dress? What can you see in the background? How
does it differ from the backgrounds painted in modern portraits? What
happened to this portrait? How was it recovered? Why is this picture
valued so highly?
=The story of the artist.= Leonardo da Vinci was born in the little
village called Vinci, about twenty miles from Florence, Italy. His
father was a country lawyer of considerable wealth. Very little is known
of Leonardo’s boyhood, except that he grew up in his father’s palace and
at an early age displayed remarkable talents. He was good-looking,
strong, energetic, and an excellent student. He was also a very amiable
person, of winning charm in temper and manners.
He loved to wander out into the great forest near the palace, where he
tamed lizards, snakes, and many kinds of animals. Here he invented a
lute, upon which he played wonderful music of his own composing. Then,
too, he sang his own songs and recited his own poems.
He loved to draw and paint because he could both represent the things he
loved and use his inventive genius as well. He seemed to be gifted along
so many lines, and was of such an active and inquiring mind, that it was
difficult for him to work long enough at one thing to finish it. We read
of him as musician, poet, inventor, scientist, philosopher, and last but
most important to us because of this great picture—as artist.
When he was fifteen years old he made some sketches which were so very
clever that his father took them to a great artist, Verrocchio, who was
delighted with them and was glad to take Leonardo as his pupil. The
story is told that when Verrocchio was painting a large picture he asked
Leonardo to paint one of the angels in the background. The boy spent
much time and study on this work, and finally succeeded in painting an
angel which was so beautiful that the rest of the picture seemed
commonplace. It is said that when Verrocchio saw the work his pupil had
done and realized that a mere boy could surpass him in painting, he
declared that he would paint no more pictures, but would devote the rest
of his life to design and sculpture.
One day one of the servants of the castle brought Leonardo’s father a
round piece of wood, asking him to have his son paint something on it
that would make it suitable for a shield, like the real shields which
hung in the castle halls.
Leonardo wanted to surprise his father. So he made a collection of all
the lizards, snakes, bats, dragonflies, toads, and other creatures that
he could find. Then he studied them carefully and finally painted a
fearful dragon in which all the grotesque characteristics of these
various creatures were combined. It was a terrifying thing, breathing
out flame and just ready to spring from the shield. Coming suddenly upon
this shield on his son’s easel, the father was indeed startled. He found
it so lifelike and wonderfully painted that he declared it was far too
valuable a present for the servant; so another shield had to be painted
and the first was sold at a great price. No one knows what finally
became of it.
Leonardo spent seven years with Verrocchio; then he opened a studio of
his own in Florence, Italy.
Later Pope Leo X invited him to Rome to paint, but most of his work
there was left unfinished. The story is told that one day the pope found
him busily engaged in making a new kind of varnish with which to finish
his picture. “Alas,” said the pope, “this man will do nothing, for he
thinks of finishing his picture before he begins it.”
From Rome, Leonardo went to Milan, where, with the Duke of Milan as
patron, he painted his masterpiece, “The Last Supper.” He also made a
model for a great equestrian statue of the Duke’s illustrious father
which won the admiration of all who saw it and was regarded as equal to
anything the Greeks had ever done. The model, which was twenty-six feet
high, was to have been cast in bronze, but Leonardo was called away on
other important duties and the work was never completed.
Leonardo da Vinci proved to be a great addition to the duke’s court,—his
fine appearance and his many talents made him very popular. He invented
a beautiful harp, shaped something like a horse’s head, and charmed the
people with his music and songs. He also helped the duke found and
direct the Academy at Milan, giving lectures there on art and science.
So his time was divided, as usual, among his many interests.
After the duke was driven out of Milan by the new French king, Leonardo
spent several years in Florence, and there he painted the famous. “Mona
Lisa” and other portraits.
The last years of his life were spent in France, where the king, Francis
I, gave him a castle and a liberal pension. The king and his court often
visited Leonardo, who was regarded with great reverence and respect, and
beloved by all.
=Questions about the artist.= Where and when was the artist born? What
did he like to do when he was a boy? In what ways was he talented? Who
was his teacher? Tell about Leonardo’s painting of the angel; the
shield. Why did Leonardo not finish his paintings for the pope? What did
the pope say of him? In what ways was he an addition to the Duke of
Milan’s court? Where was he when he painted “Mona Lisa”? How did he
spend the last years of his life? How was he regarded by the people?
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Illustration]
OXEN GOING TO WORK
=Questions to arouse interest.= What do you find most interesting about
the oxen in this picture? In what direction are they going? How many
oxen are hitched to a plow? How are they harnessed? Have you ever seen
oxen yoked in this way? Why don’t we use oxen now? What time of the year
is it? time of day? How can you tell? What seems most important in the
picture? What can you see in the distance?
=Original Picture=: Louvre Gallery, Paris, France.
=Artist=: Constant Troyon (trwä yôn´).
=Birthplace=: Sèvres, France.
=Dates=: Born, 1810; died, 1865.
=The story of the picture.= Constant Troyon delights in showing groups
of animals coming toward us. No matter where we stand, they seem to be
coming to meet us. We can almost hear the heavy tread of these oxen as
they plod along over the uneven ground, their great heads held by the
yokes.
We see so few oxen now, it makes us wonder why they were used so much in
those days, but we know men did not then have the machinery for tilling
the ground and sowing and planting grain that we now have. It is true
they did have horses, but oxen are stronger, slower, and more steady and
patient. If the ground is rough, hilly, or full of stumps, a horse
becomes restless and is not easy to guide; but the oxen may be depended
upon to go on steadily, obeying the commands of the driver. Then, too,
oxen were much cheaper than horses, making it possible for more people
to own them.
It was with oxen that our own country was developed. They did all the
hauling of logs, and the heavy work that must be done in clearing up a
new, uncultivated region. They do not require harness other than the
yoke by which they pull their load, and are guided by the words “Gee,”
meaning turn to the right, and “Haw,” turn to the left. However, the
driver in our picture would not use these words, for he is French and
would speak in his own language. He guides his oxen with a goad or pole
which he shakes or uses as a prod to hurry them along. They accept their
fate with quiet resignation, even a sort of indifference, and are very
gentle. It is unusual for them to run away, unless frightened or angry.
In spite of the fact that these oxen are all coming toward us, no two
are in the same position. We are made to see them with all their
characteristic curves and angles.
It must be very early in the morning, for the sun is scarcely up above
the horizon, and we can see the morning mist rising from the earth. The
smoking field, with its deep furrows, gives us the feeling of a gradual
ascent. It is very interesting to notice the shape of the long shadows
cast in front of the oxen. Half close your eyes as you look, and you
will find that they form a pattern or design, and that the variety in
size and shape of both the shadows and the ground space has been
carefully studied.
Mr. Troyon has told us these oxen are on the way to their work. We are
left to decide what that work may be. No doubt they will soon reach the
field, where they will be harnessed to plows, and their day’s work will
begin. In the distance we can see fields, orchards, and, at the left,
another peasant starting out with his teams of oxen.
The picture gives a pleasant feeling of vast, roomy space all around us.
There is a feeling of energy and action, too, for the man and his oxen
are on the way to their work. Our interest is centered on the oxen first
of all, then on the man and the landscape. With the sun at their backs
so early in the morning, we readily determine that they are going west.
At the close of day they will again travel over this same road, perhaps
with even more energy, although tired, for they will be going home to be
fed and to rest. They probably take their noonday meal and rest near the
field where they labor.
Notice the knees of the oxen. We know at once they are walking, and as
we look at them we almost find ourselves stepping to one side that they
may pass.
Troyon has put into this picture the peace and contentment which come
only to those whose day starts out sturdily toward the accomplishment of
a share in the work of the world.
=Questions to help the pupil understand the picture.= How many oxen are
coming toward us? How many are in the same position? How are they
driven? Upon what kind of ground are they walking? What country is
represented? Why did the people use oxen so much in those days? When
were oxen used in our country? Why are they seldom used now? How are
oxen harnessed? Where are these oxen going? What kind of work will they
probably do? What makes you think it must be early in the morning? that
they are climbing a low hill? In what direction are they going? How can
we determine this? What can we tell by the position of their knees? Why
has the artist left so much sky and land space all around them? How is
one man able to control all these oxen?
=The story of the artist.= Constant Troyon’s father and grandfather were
porcelain decorators in the little village of Sèvres, France. They lived
near the porcelain factory at Sèvres, and so much of Constant Troyon’s
life was spent in this factory that it is said he practically grew up
within its walls.
When Troyon was only seven years old his father died, leaving his mother
with two small sons to bring up. It was necessary for her to do
something to support them. Living among painters and hearing so much of
design, color, and decorations, she naturally thought of doing something
along that line. After much experimenting she succeeded in making
designs for brooches, rings, bracelets, lockets, pins, and other
ornaments. These designs were unique, for they were made of birds’
feathers. They were exquisite in color and sold readily, especially to
visiting foreigners, English and American. Through the success of these
bird-feather designs, she was able to bring up and educate her two sons.
As soon as the boys were old enough they worked in the porcelain
factory. Here Troyon received his first training in art. His great
natural talent could not long content itself with merely decorating
china, and soon he began to cover large canvases with his wonderful
paintings from nature.
From this time on, he spent every spare moment out in the fields and
woods. All the inspiration, opportunity, and joy in work which so many
feel they must go so far from home to find, Troyon found here in his
home town and neighboring woods. He painted the first thing he came
across,—trees such as we see everywhere; paths, streams, and fields such
as we pass every day; but there is a charm in his paintings which makes
them very popular now as it did then. He did not need the columns,
monuments, heroes, gods, or nymphs of the past. He preferred to paint
truthful representations of the beauties of the present.
In personal appearance, Troyon has been described as being coarse and
rather rough. Yet his cheery good nature and kind heart won him friends
wherever he went. Painting, to him, was a diversion, a pleasure to be
indulged in only after work at the factory was finished. Since he did
not have to depend on his painting for a living, he did not need to
consider either the pleasure of others in his work or the money his
pictures might bring. So he painted just the things that appealed to
him, regardless of public favor. Indeed, he did not care to exhibit his
paintings at all and did so only to please a friend who persisted in
urging him. Troyon was quite overcome by the praise his pictures
received and the popularity they brought him.
Troyon remained in the porcelain factory until he was twenty-one years
old, then he began to travel the country as an artist. He painted
landscapes as long as he had money in his pocket, then he made friends
with the nearest china manufacturer and worked steadily at his trade
until he had money enough to go on.
In the factory Troyon continued working out the small detailed designs
suitable for china, but in the open field he paid little attention to
details, his chief interest centering in the composition as a whole. At
first he had found it difficult to paint large masses, and often the
general effect of his landscapes was lost in the confusing details of
parts of it. But one day as he was painting near the edge of a woods, a
well-known painter of that day, Camille Roqueplan, came and stood behind
his easel watching him. The older artist recognized at once the talent
of the young man and while praising him for the truthfulness of his
sketch, gave him valuable suggestions which Troyon never forgot.
Although the artist Roqueplan was eight years older than Troyon, the two
became close friends. Troyon studied under Roqueplan and it was through
his influence that he made his first visit to The Hague. It was after
this visit that Troyon began to paint animals and from that day dates
his best work. Later he visited his artist friend in Paris and at length
moved to Paris himself.
In 1849 Troyon was presented with the Cross of the Legion of Honor. His
pictures were very popular indeed and during his lifetime he became a
very rich man.
People usually speak of him as a painter of cattle, but he painted quite
as many pictures of sheep and dogs.
His early training as a designer is noticeable in this picture. He is
famous for his strong colorings, variety, and effects in light and
shade.
Some of his best known paintings are: “Great Oak,” “Forest Depths,”
“Horse Pond,” “Valley of the Toucque” or “Heights of Suresnes.”
=Questions about the artist.= Who painted this picture? What was his
trade? How old was he when his father died? What did his mother do to
earn a living? When did Troyon learn to decorate porcelain? How did his
trade help him when he began to paint pictures? Who taught him to paint
and draw? Where did he go to paint? What subjects did he usually choose?
Why was he so independent of popular favor? What was his success?
------------------------------------------------------------------------
THE SUGGESTIONS TO TEACHERS
=Studying the picture.= Several days before the lesson is to be taken
up, the picture to be studied should be placed where every pupil can see
it.
First of all, the children should find out for themselves what is in the
picture. The questions accompanying the story of each picture are
intended to help them to do this.
=Language work.= The pupils should be encouraged in class to talk freely
and naturally. In this way the lesson becomes a language exercise in
which the pupils will gain in freedom of expression and in the ability
to form clear mental images.
If a lesson does not occupy the entire drawing period, the children
should be asked to retell the story of the picture.
=Dramatization and drawing.= Most of the stories told by the pictures
lend themselves readily to dramatization and, whenever practicable, such
stories should be acted out. The stories also offer numerous interesting
situations that may be used as subjects for drawing lessons.
=The review lesson.= The review lesson should cover all pictures and
artists studied throughout the year. At this time other pictures
available by the same artists should be on exhibition.
The review work may be conducted as a contest in which the pictures are
held up, one at a time, while the class writes the name of the picture
and the artist on slips of paper which have been prepared and numbered
for that purpose. One teacher who used this device surprised her class
by presenting those whose lists were correct with their choice of any of
the large-sized Perry pictures studied.
Many teachers, however, will prefer to use this time for composition
work, although the description of pictures is often given as an English
lesson. Pupils may write a description of their favorite picture. In
fact, the lessons can be made to correlate with history, geography,
English, spelling, reading, or nature study.
In any event the real purpose of the work is that the pupils shall
become so familiar with the pictures that they will recognize them as
old friends whenever and wherever they may see them.
It is hoped that acquaintance with the picture and the interest awakened
by its story will grow into a fuller appreciation and understanding of
the artist’s work. Thus the children will have many happy hours and will
learn to love the good, the true, and the beautiful in everything about
them.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
● Transcriber’s Notes:
○ Missing or obscured punctuation was silently corrected.
○ Typographical errors were silently corrected.
○ Inconsistent spelling and hyphenation were made consistent only
when a predominant form was found in this book.
○ Text that was in italics is enclosed by underscores (_italics_);
text that was bold by “equal” signs (=bold=).
*** End of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "Stories Pictures Tell Book 5" ***
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