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Art Review A Survey of British Art In All Its Branches 1937   1937    Page: 5
 
 The Art World in 1937
Profiles: click on name to see profile
 
Nicholls, Bertram [1883-1974. UK. Painter]
Zinkeisen, Anna Katrina [1901-1976. UK. Painter/Graphic Designer/Illustrator/Muralist]
Footnotes:
Snow in the Park Oil painting by Anna K. Zinkeisen, R.O.I. Exhibited at the Royal Institute of Oil Painters

Quai Spinola, Bruges Oil painting by Bertram Nicholls, P.R.B.A., R.O.I. Exhibited at the Royal Society of British Artists
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The Art World in 1937

THE year 1937, so far as concerns a review of the fine arts, has been singularly devoid of momentous or sensational happenings. True, Epstein’s Rima has again been besmeared with paint, but such an event has become almost habitual, and in any case constitutes the crudest form of art criticism. But when the Sickerts cease from troubling and the Spencers are at rest, and when only a minor squabble in the London Group has disturbed the placid waters, one can but record a peaceful year. It is true that there was a mild upset over Germany. Our friends across the Rhine, bemused by new political theories, made the faux pas of inviting British artists to exhibit while specifically excluding certain men on political or racial grounds. They were very justly rebuffed. Expression by art is the most international and unpolitical thing that could be conceived. Rightly
Art Review A Survey of British Art In All Its Branches 1937   1937    Page: 6
 
 The Art World in 1937
Profiles: click on name to see profile
 
Nevinson, Christopher Richard Wynne (C.R.W.) [1889-1946. UK. Painter/Poster Designer]
Olver, Kate Elizabeth [1881-1960. UK. Painter/Illustrator/Sculptor/Ceramist]
Footnotes:
From a Window: ' The Ship/ Greenwich Oil painting by C. R. W. Nevinson, R.B.A., R.O.I., N.E.A.C. Exhibited at the New English Art Club (Copyright, W. J. Stacey, London, W.C. 1)

Musicians Oil painting by Kate E. Olver Exhibited at the Royal Society of Portrait Painters
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assessed, the fine arts are utterly disinterested, and cannot subserve the ends of propaganda without risk to their integrity. Rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief, Christian, Jew, Aryan or non-Aryan, it matters not a whit, so long as the work be good.

So far as the general trends and tendencies in British art are concerned, three paramount influences have been observable during the year. One is the influence of that wayward and erratic genius, Christopher Wood. Just what was the essence of Wood it is not easy to say. Perhaps a clear, childlike joy in the shapes and colours of things, expressed with a naïve charm that disarms formal criticism. In whatever quality his talent consisted, it has obviously made its strong mark on the art of our time. But Wood is one of those artists who ought not to have followers, for the attractiveness of his style resides in an odd quirk of personality which is really incommunicable. The consequence is that the various young men who try to ape it only succeed in producing self-conscious imitations—and there are few spectacles more pathetic than a sophisticated theorist trying to appear naïve.

The second powerful current observable is the water-colour technique of Wilson Steer. It is a grand technique, of course, but again well-nigh inimitable because of its very skill; yet every collective water-colour show presents several pseudo-Steers, lagging well behind the master but too obviously and painfully inspired by him. Vital and personal art is not produced by these means. The old saying about aiming at the stars and hitting the tops of the trees is hardly applicable to painting. In this art it is wiser to work out a style from small beginnings, allowing personal predilections to sway one’s practice. To fix on a technician of Steer’s calibre and try to paint as he does is a mistaken policy, for it usually leads the onlooker to comparisons that are odious.

Of another kind than these two personal influences is the abundantly documented and highly self-conscious Surrealist movement, which has won a number of converts. A good deal of the pseudoscientific background of this movement is false. How, for example, can one consciously allow the subconscious to take control of one’s painting? The thing is a contradiction in terms. The whole point of the Freudian philosophy is that it is only when wishes are repressed by the subliminal self that they produce the weird phenomena we experience in dreams. Once the dream is explained, once the matter is brought up to the plane of consciousness, the repression is banished and the mind works in a normal, healthy way. The productions of Surrealism, it is pretty safe to say, have nothing much to do with subconscious urges. They are made more difficult to discuss at all by the lack of cohesion between the ideas of the different members of the cult. Is it not a very general label that serves to distinguish a highly-varied collection of eccentrics?
Art Review A Survey of British Art In All Its Branches 1937   1937    Page: 7
 
 The Art World in 1937
Profiles: click on name to see profile
 
John, Augustus [1878-1961. UK. Painter]
Revel, John Daniel [1884-1967. UK. Painter]
Footnotes:
Louise Oil painting by Augustus John, R.A., R.P. Exhibited at the Rosenberg & Helft Gallery

Ben George Oil painting by John D. Revel, R.P. Exhibited at the Royal Society of Portrait Painter
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Our next article reviews the more important exhibitions, but it may be noted here that there have been two shows which presented famous artists to the London public for the first time in bulk—those of Seurat at Wildenstein’s and Jongkind at Tooth’s. The centenary of that great English artist, John Constable, has been marked by big exhibitions at the Tate Gallery and Wildenstein’s and a smaller show of drawings at the British Museum. Sir Joshua Reynolds, too, has been shown in extenso at Sir Philip Sassoon’s house in Park Lane; and among lesser lights Winterhalter has been seen at Knoedler’s and Tissot at the Leicester Galleries. There has been little if any change in the policy of prominent dealers in running collective exhibitions of works by French painters of the Impressionist and Post- Impressionist schools. Card after card has come in announcing that Messrs. So-and-So would hold an exhibition of works by . . . here followed a list of famous names. For the most part these shows provided no new experience for gallery-goers (though there were exceptions, like the assemblage at Rosenberg & Helft’s that contained a marvellous canvas of Rain by Van Gogh). The situation, in fact, is becoming just a little tedious. There is too much of a ' retrospective’ or ‘reminiscent’ air about the galleries nowadays, and not enough is being done for the contemporary artist. We cannot for ever go on living on the recent past without feeling stale.

Speaking of retrospective tendencies, we doubt the wisdom of the Royal Society of British Artists in giving this character to their Coronation Exhibition. Would it not have been better to use the available space for the hanging of as strong a collection as possible of work by living men?

Whatever views the artist may hold, as a private individual, on the constitutional crisis and subsequent events, any discussion of these matters is, of course, quite irrelevant to the pages of Art Review. What is relevant, however, is to ask what opportunities were created for the artist by these various changes and functions and what use was made of them. Soon after the accession of King Edward VIII the now famous issue of postage stamps, bearing a photographic representation of his head, was made. Opinions as to the merits of these stamps varied very greatly. The Artist took the view that, though they were an improvement on the George V designs, they were cold and empty and lacking in structure. In a leading article last November The Artist wrote:—

‘One can visualize something by one of the engravers—say Robert Austin, Stephen Gooden, Stanley Anderson, Eric Gill—or by a poster designer like Austin Cooper, that would have been
Art Review A Survey of British Art In All Its Branches 1937   1937    Page: 9
 
 The Art World in 1937
Profiles: click on name to see profile
 
Williams, Terrick [1860-1936. UK. Painter]
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Oil painting, size 24" x 18" By the late Terrick Williams, R.A.

ROSY SUNDOWN, HONFLEUR
Exhibited at the Fine Art Society's Galleries
Art Review A Survey of British Art In All Its Branches 1937   1937    Page: 10
 
 The Art World in 1937
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Bliss, Douglas Percy [1900-1984. UK. Painter/Woodcut Artist/Wood Engraver/Illustrator]
Burgess, Arthur James Wetherall [1879-1957. Australia/UK. Painter]
Footnotes:
Winter Sports, Arosa Pastel by Arthur J. W. Burgess, R.I., R.O.I., R.B.C. Exhibited at the Pastel Society

Inundation Oil painting by Douglas Percy Bliss Exhibited at the New English Art Club
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always to the fore in patronizing good British art, did get Harold Stabler to design a crown for its posters —and was almost alone in its selection of an artist of repute for a great occasion.

The Council for Art and Industry continues to explore energetically the possibilities of the improvement of industrial design and the closer relationship between artists, and industry. In a report on ' Design and the Designer in Industry,’ published early this year, the Council set out to discover why the general artistic standard of manufactured goods improves so little and so slowly, and why the artist is so often treated like a poor relation. Their conclusions may be broadly grouped under two heads—Sins of Industry and Sins of Art Education. On the industrial side, the Council believe, the tendency is to recruit design staff at too early an age and with insufficient training, and to allow buyers of doubtful taste to fix the standards which they believe the public require. The Council recommend also that there should be more posts for artists in industry with starting salaries of £350 to £500 and suitable prospects. So far as art education is concerned they feel that too many schools just ‘teach art’ in vacuo, as it were, without taking into account the paramount necessity of getting one’s bread; and that industrialists would take more kindly to the products of the schools if they felt that the schools were definitely aware of their requirements and desirous of catering for them.

In a nutshell, if closer contact could be made between art school and factory, if greater mutual trust could be established, and if artists could feel that talent, taste, and strenuous effort would be suitably rewarded by well-paid and responsible posts, we might see a big improvement in industrial design. This we firmly believe. Rubbish is bought for three main reasons: (a) because the consumer knows no better; (b) because nothing else is provided; (c) because it is cheap. There is no inevitability about any of these. It is all a matter of education and organization, and it is to be hoped that the sound advice of the Council for Art and Industry will be translated into action.

The year has seen the removal of a reproach—that the greatest seafaring nation the world has ever seen was without a maritime museum. On 27th April the King opened the National Maritime Museum, housed in a building at Greenwich designed by Inigo Jones. The assembling of so rich and fine a collection has been made possible above all by the great generosity of Sir James Caird, who purchased the Macpherson Collection for a sum believed to have been in the neighbourhood of £150,000, bought in the ‘Mercury ’
Art Review A Survey of British Art In All Its Branches 1937   1937    Page: 11
 
 The Art World in 1937
Profiles: click on name to see profile
 
Clarke, Bethia Mary [1867-1959. UK. Painter]
Spencer, Gilbert [1892-1979. UK. Painter]
Footnotes:
Upper Basildon Oil painting by Gilbert Spencer Exhibited at Arthur Tooth's Gallery

The Tea Party Pastel by Bethia Clarke Exhibited at the Pastel Society
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training ship collection of ship models for £30,000, made other munificent gifts towards the foundation of the Museum, and bore the expense of adapting the buildings to their present purpose. For the artist the great Macpherson Collection is of the highest interest. It is the most complete of its kind in the world, and comprises some 12,000 prints, paintings, drawings, books and atlases, most of them of very great artistic merit.

A question of some moment is raised by the policy of a newly formed body called the Artists’ International Association, and that is: ‘Should the artist, qua artist, engage in politics?’ The aims of the Association, as expressed in its literature, should encounter no opposition from any liberal-minded man, for they relate to the preservation of peace and freedom of expression. But it is hard to avoid the conclusion that this body is at least as much interested in pure politics as it is in the aesthetic and social aspects of the fine arts. Though the first British Artists’ Congress, convened by the Association last April, produced a body of constructive suggestions on various aspects of art organization, most of the speeches at the public session were mainly of a political colour. Now if freedom of expression were seriously menaced in this country it might be necessary to organize in its defence; but so far as the fine arts are concerned there are no restrictions of any moment. There is nothing, for example, comparable to the police censorship of literature or the Lord Chamberlain’s control of plays. Artists would be wise, perhaps, to beware of involving themselves in political controversies, which are, after all, irrelevant to their work in the world, which is the creation of beautiful things for the enrichment of life. The British artist should rejoice in living in a country where he may work in peace, without let or hindrance. It is as well to remember Mr. Belloc’s little girl who rang up the fire brigade so often on false alarms that when her house was really on fire they refused to budge.

There seems to be, in general, an increasing realization among artists that in the world as it is at present constituted they must organize to uphold their rights, preserve their status and sell their wares. A scheme for the formation of a Commercial Art Centre has come to fruition, and in spite of certain ineptitudes in the form of its constitution we hope good things from it. A Sculpture Centre is also in being, and it may have some effect in making the public more sculpture-conscious and in providing easy contact with architects and private purchasers.
It is a sad duty to record a heavy mortality among
Art Review A Survey of British Art In All Its Branches 1937   1937    Page: 12
 
 The Art World in 1937
Profiles: click on name to see profile
 
Dring, William [1904-1990. UK. Painter]
Rendle, John Morgan [1889-1952. UK. Painter]
Footnotes:
Taddiport Bridge Oil painting by Morgan Rendle, A.R.W.A. Exhibited at the Royal Institute of Oil Painters

Nursing Susie Oil painting by William Dring Exhibited at the New English Art Club
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artists and connoisseurs in 1937. Henry Tonks, that fine painter and great teacher, has gone from among us; Charles Shannon, Lord Conway of Allington, Henry Pegram, Harrington Mann, Alexander Jamieson, are among the notable figures who have passed on. And, at the comparatively early age of 61, died Frank Rutter, a critic who made his mark and for many years wielded considerable influence.

The Chantrey Trustees have this year cast a wide net for their purchases, and it is encouraging to find evidence that they have gone about their task with no other considerations in mind than what they believe to be real merit. This is proved by the success of Grace Golden, a student of the Regent Street Polytechnic, who must be feeling something like the Industrious Apprentice, for, we learn, she was only with difficulty persuaded to submit her water-colour, Summer Evening, Embankment Gardens, and so never dreamt of this good fortune. The Trustees bought a Tissot (the one we reproduce on page 23) from an exhibition at the Leicester Galleries; Glyn Philpot, R. G. Eves, Dod Procter and Maurice Lambert were among others favoured; and a very outstanding Old Horse, in wych elm, by William G. Simmonds, richly deserved success. It is a pleasure, too, to record that the purchases included R. O. Dunlop’s The Lifeboat, Walbers- wick, though we are pretty confident that in a productive year Dunlop has painted a round dozen more notable canvases than this.

Remembering the comparatively modest beginnings of the Tate Gallery, we can congratulate ourselves on its continued progress and expansion under wise and far-seeing administration, and above all on the rich munificence of various private individuals and associations of art-lovers, whose combined efforts have made the Tate one of the outstanding galleries of Europe. Sir Francis Chantrey, of course, comes high on the list, as do Mr. Samuel Courtauld, the Contemporary Art Society and the National Art-Collections Fund. This year’s great gift has come from Lord Duveen. To the Duveen family we already owe the gallery which houses the Turner Bequest, the Sargent Gallery and the Modern Foreign Gallery; and now, on 29th June, H.M. the King opened the new Sculpture Galleries, in which Lord Duveen has provided as fine a setting for sculpture as exists anywhere.

The Galleries are from the design of W. H. Romaine- Walker and Gilbert Jenkins, FF.R.I.B.A., and the American architect, the late J. Russell Pope. They begin at the old rotunda and extend right across the area of the building to a total length of 260 feet, with a rotunda, sixty feet in height, at the middle. On either side of the first long gallery there is a small gallery for the display of busts and other small pieces, which are seen to far better advantage here than they would be in the lofty central galleries.
Art Review A Survey of British Art In All Its Branches 1937   1937    Page: 13
 
 The Art World in 1937
Profiles: click on name to see profile
 
Leigh-Pemberton, John Loftus [1911-1997. UK. Painter/Illustrator]
Spurrier, Steven [1878-1961. UK. Painter/Illustrator/Poster Designer]
Footnotes:
People in a Box Oil painting by John Leigh-Pemberton, R.O.I. Exhibited at the National Society

The Little Salon Water-colour by Steven Spurrier, R.B.A., R.O.I. Exhibited at the Royal Society of British Artists
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In point of fact even the larger groups and statues are a little lost in the vast spaces. But an undertaking like this must obviously be planned with an eye to the future, and as the sculptural population increases the general effect will be improved.

Benefactions of one kind or another continue to enhance the value of public collections in London. This is, of course, a cause for rejoicing, but we ourselves should rejoice more wholeheartedly if we saw more signs that the provincial art-lover was being helped and catered for. In the provinces it is not so much galleries that are required, as stronger collections, representing sound art as it is now conceived, not as it was esteemed forty years ago. The curator of a gallery in a small town is often a man of taste and energy, but he is hampered by lack of funds, by a multiplicity of duties, and only too often by the fact that his committee has a very imperfect appreciation of art values. It would be a work of the utmost beneficence to make the small provincial gallery a real place of light and leading. The Contemporary Art Society and National Art- Collections Fund do much; the loan exhibitions from the Victoria & Albert Museum are valuable; and Frank Brangwyn has set a noble example by presenting collections of his etchings to galleries up and down the country. But all these things need reinforcing by sustained and enlightened effort. We hope that the wealthy connoisseur will, as time goes on, become more and more sensible of this need, and will go out of his way to meet it.


A great deal is made nowadays of the improved transport facilities brought about by modern engineering; and of course the leisured specialist can, it is true, run up to London from Liverpool in three and a half hours or from Birmingham in two. But it is not the leisured specialist about whose artistic sustenance we are concerned. We do not merely think; we know, that there are very large numbers of ordinary men and women in this country, working their eight hour days in shop, office and factory, who are keenly interested in the manifestations of modern art. Many of them are themselves executants of considerable ability, only lacking the stimulus of good examples to turn them into worth-while artists. But they have neither the cash nor the leisure to make frequent journeys to London. Good art must be brought to their doorsteps; municipal authorities should learn to take at least as much pride in their local collection as they do in their parks and drains. What is required is a deeper sense of the value of art, permeating the whole of our educational system. Teachers, curators, journalists and enlightened private individuals may all help. Thus will the country become fully art conscious, with salutary effects on its general mental health.