The Art Spirit Robert Henri

85th anniversary edition Art ROBERT HENRI (1865-1929) was an American artist, teacher, and an outspoken advocate of modernism in painting He is best known for his leadership of the group of realist painters known as “The Eight,” later termed the Ashcan School Henri was a devotee of realism and the usage of everyday city life as subject matter He taught at the Art Students League in New York from 1915-1928, and had a profound influence upon early 20th century painters such as Stuart Davis, Rockwell Kent, and Edward Hopper Art Spirit “I would give anything to have come by this book years ago It is in my opinion comparable only to the notes of Leonardo and Sir Joshua…One of the finest voices which express the philosophy of —George Bellows modern men in painting.” Art Spirit the T h e A r t S p i r i t represents the best of the collected words, teachings, and letters of inspired artist and teacher Robert Henri Filled with valuable technical advice as well as wisdom about the place of art and the artist in American society, this classic work continues to be a must-read for all aspiring artists and lovers of art henri “Paint what you feel Paint what you see Paint what is real to you.” the 4/c process PMS 877 Metallic Cover design by Nicole Caputo Cover illustration: Robert Henri, Rosaline, 1927 private collection US $19.95 / $24.00 CAN ISBN-13: 978-0-465-00263-4 ISBN-10: 0-465-00263-3 A Member of the Perseus Books Group www.basicbooks.com robert henri 0465002633-text 12/18/06 4:10 PM Page i THE ART SPIRIT 0465002633-text 1/4/07 4:57 PM Page ii Robert Henri (1865–1929) 0465002633-text 12/18/06 4:10 PM Page iii THE ART SPIRIT Robert Henri ` Notes, Articles, Fragments of Letters and Talks to Students, Bearing on the Concept and Technique of Picture Making, the Study of Art Generally, and on Appreciation A Member of the Perseus Books Group 0465002633-text 12/18/06 4:10 PM Page iv Copyright 1923 by J B Lippincott Company Copyright renewed 1951 by Violet Organ Introduction copyright 1930 by J B Lippincott Company Copyright renewed 1958 by Forbes Watson All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews For information, address Basic Books, 387 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10016–8810 Books published by Basic Books are available at special discounts for bulk purchases in the United States by corporations, institutions, and other organizations For more information, please contact the Special Markets Department at the Perseus Books Group, 11 Cambridge Center, Cambridge MA 02142, or call (617) 252-5298 or (800) 255-1514, or e-mail special.markets@perseusbooks.com Designed by Jeff Williams Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Henri, Robert, 1865-1929 The art spirit : notes, articles, fragments of letters and talks to students, bearing on the concept and technique of picture making, the study of art generally, and on appreciation / Robert Henri ; compiled by Margery Ryerson ; introduction by Forbes Watson p cm Originally published: Philadelphia : J.B Lippincott, 1923 Includes index ISBN 0-465-00263-3 (pb : alk paper) Art Art—Technique Art appreciation I Ryerson, Margery II Title N7445.2.H46 2007 700'.18—dc22 2006038851 First edition published 1923 Icon paperback edition 1984 Basic Books edition 2007 10 0465002633-text 12/18/06 4:10 PM Page ROBERT HENRI Introduction by Forbes Watson ` No other American painter drew unto himself such a large, ardently personal group of followers as Robert Henri, whose death, July 12th, 1929, brought to an end a life of uncontaminated devotion to art Henri was an inspired teacher with an extraordinary gift for verbal communication, with the personality and prophetic fire that transformed pupils into idolators Not only so but he ardently believed in the close relationship of Art to Life—believed that Art is a matter in which not only professionals and students, but everyone is vitally concerned; and his contention is supported by the immense benefit that has accrued to France through its devotion to art and its production The list of men now eminent who developed under Henri’s precepts is a long one He sought, above all things, to cultivate spontaneity He always attempted to bring out the native gift He gave his followers complete respect for an American outlook He showed them the Frenchmen but he 0465002633-text ` 12/18/06 4:10 PM Page introduction did not encourage them to imitate the Frenchmen Without jingo Henri taught them artistic self-respect It was not a crime to look at American material with American eyes Yet, for all the impulsion which he gave toward what might be called a native school, Henri was the first artist to spread in any broad way the news of the great French painters who made the nineteenth century such a glorious epoch It is hard for us to realize that only a short generation ago changes in French art were not registered in New York with anything like the present rate of speed New York had not then become the great financial centre of the world French paintings were not then bought at such dazzling prices or in anything like the same quantity as now, nor had the collecting of Parisian art, popular as it was more than ten years ago, become the social mania in America that it is today Curiously, although William Chase and other prominent American painters and painting teachers, who belonged to the period immediately preceding Henri’s reign, might have brought back from Europe for their future pupils the fresh news of Manet, Degas and the others, it remained for Henri, the great protagonist of a new American school, to be the first prophet to bring to students in any great numbers, both a sense of the importance of the last half of the nineteenth century in French painting and a knowledge of the revived interest in such old masters as Frans Hals, Goya and El Greco To be sure Chase talked to his students about El Greco before Henri started teaching, and other painters of Chase’s generation knew these things But Henri was a far more dynamic teacher than Chase It required his extraordinary per- 0465002633-text 12/18/06 4:10 PM Page introduction ` sonal magnetism, his fervor, his passion for the verbal communication of his ideas to place before a vast succession of eager youth the new world of vision and to make general, knowledge which before had been too special to be effective No one who has not felt the magnetic power of Henri, when he had before him an audience of ambitious students hungry for the master’s moving words, can appreciate the emotional devotion to art which he could inspire as could no other teacher One had to know those students to realize how it could have been possible at that late date for a young painter to combine genuine painting eagerness with a sublime ignorance of the whole world of art that had its being outside of the Henri class This ignorance in many of his students Henri set himself to overcome by opening their eyes to the fundamental meaning of art But he did not hold up to them the art of the past or the great contemporary art of France as an ideal to imitate One can hardly believe now, were the facts not so easy to establish, that many of the young men and women who studied under him, although so passionately interested in painting, first heard the names of Daumier, Manet, Degas, Goya and a host of others from the lips of Robert Henri One wonders how some of them ever came to painting at all after exhibiting such surprising ability to dodge knowledge Henri was not on the lookout for cultivation Native talent, in whatever crude disguise it might appear, was what he sought Let the untrained student be as naïve, as profoundly illiterate, as filled with aesthetic misconceptions as possible, Henri disregarded the outward dress and pointed lack of polish He looked to the man’s potentialities, which he attempted to develop without regard to himself in time and 0465002633-text ` 12/18/06 4:10 PM Page introduction energy He demanded from his students a first hand emotion received not from art but from life When Henri’s classes were at fever heat, impressionism was already being taught in the Pennsylvania Academy Twachtman, who died in 1902, had inculcated impressionist theories of light in his students at The Art Students League But Twachtman was an unwilling, comparatively inarticulate teacher, capable of communicating only to the few some sense of his rare and subtle spirit Henri, on the other hand was, as I have said, an inspired teacher, with an extraordinary gift for verbal communication Henri never showed the slightest interest in the more scientific side of impressionism The blond beauties of sunlit landscapes had no special appeal for him What he did take from the impressionists and what, after all, was perhaps the most valuable contribution made by the group, the only contribution which they all made in common, was the idea of looking at contemporary life and contemporary scenes with a fresh, unprejudiced, unacademic eye His students followed Henri without complaint even when they suffered thereby great material hardships They did not make the slightest compromise with the ideals which Henri held before them I can still remember sitting on a bench in Union Square listening to some Henri students in a heated discussion of what Henri had said that evening to his Night School students The discussion was so ardent that no one hearing it could have believed that these young men, who had worked all day at manual labor, and painted for hours at the Henri School, were about to sleep on a bench in a park because they could not afford to hire a room for the night 0465002633-text 12/18/06 4:10 PM Page introduction ` It is difficult for us to realize today how infinitely more arduous exhibition conditions were then for the young painter Art had not then become news to anything like the degree it has since become news Dealers were not then chasing each other over the face of the earth to discover the unknown genius The great official exhibitions were controlled by the prize-winning repeaters Men who today cannot give their pictures away prospered greatly and were powerful influences on our public and on some of our private collections As long as these tame specialists controlled the situation the young independent American artist had no opportunity to sell or even to show his work Henri was hated by the officials because from the first they realized that his attack on them was disinterested He was not fighting for a theory of painting or for his own individual advancement He merely demanded from the reactionaries in power a fair and free opportunity for the young independent American artist The first American Independent Exhibition which Henri and his friends and pupils inaugurated, the ancestor of the present Independent Society, contained paintings of real power, some of which are now the proudest possessions of collectors and museums, but which then could find no public exhibiting space outside the walls of the Independent No one will ever be able to estimate how much Henri contributed to the free and open conditions of today All over the United States ex-Henri students are to be found The men and women who were taught by Henri to respect freedom of expression never have forgotten or can forget this invaluable lesson To Henri the man and the teacher, the debt that America owes is inestimable He came at a time when the officials 0465002633-text 12/18/06 4:11 PM Page 270 0465002633-text 12/18/06 4:11 PM Page 271 INDEX ` Ability, 164 Academie Julian, 77, 103, 233 Action drawing muscular activity, 107–108 See also Motion Age, beauty and, 121–122 Airplanes, 225 America, art and, 130, 133, 187, 224 American Independent Exhibition, American Indians, 126, 186–187 Anatomy, 199–200, 261 Ancient Greeks, 159–160, 166, 242 Angle of light, 253, 255 Archaic work, 266 Arms, 46, 199 Art as a means of living life, 156, 197, 215 America and, 130, 133, 187, 224 as an outsider, 226 beauty and, 86, 150–151, 166 Brotherhood of, 15–16 buying, 139, 213, 215 coming into the presence of, 263 community and, 213, 214–215 as composition, 154 conception, motive, and construction, 182–184 cruelly received, 226 as documents of life, 217–218 as gesture, 89 Henri’s belief in, high and low, 262 importance of, 176 inevitability of, 65 is in everything, 132 joy and, 174 life force and, 91–92 making things “beautiful,” 203 money and, 156, 161 new movements, 151 order and, 142–143 progress of the human spirit and, 64, 65 the province of everyone, 11 revealing internal life, 166 revelation and, 28–29 science and, 51, 157 seeing and, 166–167 simplicity and, 48, 203 state of being and, 157–159, 224, 225 struggle and, 268, 269 study of, 23 the subconscious and, 116–117 time and, 269 value of, 11–12 Art appreciation as a personal response, 191 children and, 210–211 general discussion on, 215–216 the individual and, 64, 124, 215 271 0465002633-text 272 12/18/06 ` 4:11 PM Page 272 index Art appreciation (continued) as motive for activity, 194–195 new developments in art and, 215 requires effort, 101 Art collectors, 130, 214 Art committees, 137–139 Art critics, 130, 190–191 Art galleries, 131, 188–189 Artist life, 219 Artists acting on a suggestion, 241 activity and creating a stir in the world, 102–105 are important, 175–176 are made manifest by works, 13 the artist life and, 219 attitude toward one’s subject and, 233–237 being freed from preconceived ideas of one’s self, 193–194 “carrying work further,” 194 the community and, 115–116 concentration and, 80, 100 construction and, 183–184, 219, 225, 243, 264 contemplation and, 13 documenting life, 217–218 dull, 101–102 economy and, 160 emotion and practicality in, 118 the energy of work and, 114 essential beauty and, 150–151 every man as, 223–225 finishing works of art and, 16, 98, 100–101, 170–171, 180, 243, 244 freedom and, 175 fundamental principle and, 93–94 growth and, 92 holding to vital moments, 23–29 humanity and, 94–95 idea and, 262 imagination and, 77–78, 81–82 individuality and, 82–86, 120–121 inventing technique, 87–88, 123–124 joy and, 262 keeping old work and failures, 107, 177 knowing the personalities of, 210 making a living, 156, 160–161, 176 making art from simple life, 218 meaning and, 81 nature and, 233–237 originality and, 167–168 the painting of good and terrible pictures, 127–128 as philosophers and inventors, 178 as pioneers, 260 provincial and national, 127 qualities and significance of, 11 rejections and, 14 the romance of Bohemia and, 121 seeing and, 86–88, 166–167, 195–196 self-development and self-education, 124, 214 simplicity and, 48 the sketch hunter, 13–14 sociability and, 114 soul and intelligence of, 49–51 the spirit of life and, 223–226 success and failure, 152–153 will and, 238 working to reveal the spirit, 263 working valiantly, 92 the world as the enemy of, 160 worries over the cost of paint, 71 writing about, 126 See also Masters; Old masters; Young artists Art juries, 137–139, 213 Art life, 226 Art museums, 11 Art schools on the character and value of, 104 criticisms of, 155–156 financial precariousness of, 27 memory study and, 27 0465002633-text 12/18/06 4:11 PM Page 273 index purposes of, 222–223 the student’s approach to, 118, 119–120 Art spirit, 11, 129–130, 187 Art students activity and, 103–104 advice to, 105, 154–156, 164–165, 237–238 being a master, 12 color and, 53–54 culturing personal sensations, 78 discovering one’s natural impressions, 85 experience and, 92 growth and, 154 having courage and stamina, 12, 92 imagination and, 77–78 individuality and, 82–86 knowing the old masters, 12 other areas of study necessary to, 154 as pioneers, 47 reading and conversation, 82 school and, 118, 119–120, 222–223 self-education and, 119–120, 174, 211–212 social groups and societies, 82–83, 104 study and, 231–232 value of living among, 57 Art Students League comments to, 89–91 1915 letter to, 16–30, 207–210 1916 letter to, 30–35 teaching of impressionism at, Art teachers See Teachers Babies, 136 Background(s) advice on painting, 201 as air, 38, 41, 131 the brush stroke and, 68, 72 color and, 55 dark, 54 ` 273 general discussion on, 35–42, 250–252 the head and, 36, 38, 39, 41, 163 problems with, 49 Balance, 96–98 See also Order Balloons, 179 Balzac, Honoré de, 106 Bashkirtseff, Marie, 83 Beards, 246, 247 Beauty age and, 121–122 essential, 150–151 expression through art, 86 external, 166 is in the subject, 136 order and, 142 Rembrandt and, 136, 183 selective perception and, 40–41 thoughts on, 78, 81 Beethoven, Ludwig van, 150, 154 Being See State of being Belts, 254 Black, 58, 258 Black and white modeling, 59–61 Black and white value, making a form turn, 45 Black frames, 259 Black hair, 247 Blouses, 162 Blue, 251–252 Body See Human body Bohemia, 121, 139 Bouguereau, Adolphe-William, 180, 224 Boys, 53 Brilliancy, 54, 62–63, 258 “Broken color,” 54 Brotherhood, 15–16 Brushes, 72, 73–74, 208 Brush strokes the artist’s state of being and, 13, 54, 69, 71 character of, 66–67 0465002633-text 274 12/18/06 ` 4:11 PM Page 274 index Brush strokes (continued) general discussion on, 66–75 kinds of, 66, 68–69, 70, 72–73, 75 with more than one color, 71–72 shine and, 67–68, 72 using the whole body to make, 73 worries over the cost of paint and, 71 Bulk, 161 Burne-Jones, Sir Edward, 83 Casts, drawing from, 79 Cathedrals, 154 Cézanne, Paul, 94, 95, 110, 225, 266 Chains See Necklaces Chairs, 250, 251 Change, 202, 203–204 Characterization, 94 Chardin, Jean-Baptiste-Siméon, 81 Chase, William, Cheekbone, 248 Childhood, freedom and, 149 Children, 256 appreciation of things, 210–211 dignity and, 268 painting, 243–244, 254 remaining receptive to, 235–236 Chin, 249, 256 Chinese art people in, 217 solidity and, 52, 162–163 Cloth, painting with, 74 Clothing of children, 254 drawing the body through, 200 painting, 46, 252–254 in portraiture, 22 See also specific articles of Coats, 253 Collars, 46, 253 Collectors, 130, 214 “Colorist” pictures, 258 Color modeling, 59–61 Color(s) black, 58, 258 blue, 251–252 books on, 57, 58 brilliancy and, 54, 62–63, 258 “broken,” 54 change and, 202 “colorist” pictures, 258 Corot and, 266 employing well, 45 expression and, 128, 135, 259 general discussion on, 53–64, 156, 175, 258–259 hatching of, 45 in Japanese prints, 178 juxtaposing pure and neutral, 258 light and, 57–58 H G Maratta and, 56 mixing, 55–56 modeling form and, 59–61, 259 motive and, 229 music and, 156 neutralizers, 58 perception of immensity and, 55 pure, 61–63 purple, 251–252, 258, 261 recommended regular stock, 34 red, 251–252 rhythmic effect and, 240 set palettes, 30–35 super, 55 texture and, 258, 259 the well-kept palette, 53–54 white, 58–59 wise students and, 53–54 yellow, 58, 258 Color value, 45 See also Value “Comic” artists, 216 Committees, judging young artists and, 137–139 Community art and, 213, 214–215 artists and, 115–116 0465002633-text 12/18/06 4:11 PM Page 275 index the Little Theatre movement and, 188 public art galleries and, 188–189 Composition(s) big masses of color, 192–193 El Greco and, 264 general discussion on, 172–173, 179, 264–266 good art as, 154 necessity of making, 192 organization and, 96–98 in portrait painting, 18–19 Titian and, 184, 267 Concentration, 80, 96, 100 Concept-and-Carry method, 27 Conception, 182–183 Construction, 183–184, 219, 225, 243, 264 See also Composition(s) Contemplation, 13, 159 Continuity, 206 Conversation, 82 Copying, 105 Corot, Jean-Baptiste-Camille, 83, 198–199, 266 Courbet, Jean, 14 Creative power, 218–219 Critical judgment, 190–191 Criticism, receiving, 165, 244 Cuffs, 253 Curves, 241 Dancers, 46–47, 52 Dances, Indian, 195–196 Dancing, 250 Darwin, Charles, 102 Daumier, Honoré, 181, 267 Decoration, 266 Degas, Edgar, 83 Dignity, 142, 268 Digression, 80 Dimensions, 51–52, 111 Disorder, 143 Drapery, 46, 206 See also Clothing ` 275 Drawing(s) the artist’s judging of, 101 from casts, 79 dangers of disregarding proportions, 88 Daumier and, 267 drudgery of learning, 79 flatness and, 49, 51 general discussion on, 238–240 on good work in, 192 importance of expressing sensations, 79 as invention, 123 as it should be developed in art schools, 222–223 keeping old work, 107 line and, 108, 239–240 from models, 79–80 motive and, 22, 105 painting and, 240 of Rembrandt, 48–49, 63–64, 108–109, 263–264 solidity and, 162–163 Dresses, 205–206, 252, 253, 263 Duncan, Isadora, 52, 196, 242 Dwarfs, 235 Eakins, Thomas, 89–91, 126 Ear, 69 Earrings, 253 Economy, 150, 160, 202, 203 Edge, 255 Education answering the questions of children, 168 thoughts on, 89 El Greco, 68, 184, 264 Emotion artists and, 118 cherishing, 12 landscapes and, 256, 263 Environment the background as, 38 effects of, 234–235 0465002633-text 276 12/18/06 ` 4:11 PM Page 276 index Evening, 44, 257 Exhibitions official, the public and, 101–102 rotary, 188 thoughts and comments on, 129, 178 Expression color and, 128, 135, 259 idea and, 227 technique and, 227–229 thoughts on, 238 through form, color, and gesture, 22–23 Eyebrows, 20–21, 69, 246, 248 Eyelashes, 21 Eyelids, 72, 248 Eyes critical comments on, 199 the dominant one, 106 the head and, 245, 246 highlights, 69 painting, 21, 229–230 studying, 106 thoughts on, 248 Velasquez and, 268 Face the background and, 251 general discussion on painting, 19–22, 247–248 hair and, 246–247 shadow and, 254 Failure, 152–153 Fans, 250 Fear, 144, 258 Feelings, 110 Fifth Avenue, 129 Figure painting See Portrait and figure painting Fingers, 261 painting with, 74 Finish/Finishing, 16, 98, 100–101, 170–171, 180, 243, 244 Flatness, 49, 51 Flesh, 71 Flowers, 246, 262 Flying machines, 225 Foregrounds, 163 Forehead, 246, 248, 268 Form(s) change and, 202 color and, 59–61, 259 Corot and, 266 expression and, 22–23 general discussion on, 155, 156, 173, 254 line and, 112 methods of modeling, 59–61 motive and, 229 order and balance in compositions, 96–98 Fourth dimension, 51, 111 Frames, 259–260 Freedom the expression of greatness and, 144–145 individuality and, 133–135, 143–144 living a life and, 196–197 order and, 175, 208 thoughts on, 148–149, 168 Gamblers, 47 Garments See Clothing Genius, 144–145, 218–219 Geometry, 155, 255 Gesture Isadora Duncan and, 52 importance of, 89 as language, 187 music and, 165 pictures and, 250 portrait painting and, 22–23 Giotto, 170 Giving, 256 Glackens, William, 217–218 Gold frames, 259 0465002633-text 12/18/06 4:11 PM Page 277 index “Good Samaritan,” 217 Governments, 225 Goya y Lucientes, Francisco José de, 94, 205, 266 Grave colors, 62 Gray, 258 Gray hair, 247 Great men essential quality of, 92 the freedom for greatness and, 144–145 as “universals,” 144 Greatness and art in America, 187 thoughts on, 146–148 Greco, El See El Greco Greek art and sculpture, 52, 166, 242 Greeks, ancient, 104, 159–160, 166, 242 Groups, gesture and, 250 Growth art students and, 154 composition and, 264–265 Haarlem, 220 Hair the brush stroke and, 69 colors of, 247 general discussion on, 246 the nose and, 249 painting, 20, 44–45 Hals, Franz, 75, 189–190 Hambridge, Jay, 50 Hands approaches to modeling, 60 fingers and, 261 paint the gesture of, 253 as symbol, 60 in Whistler’s White Girl, 263 Happiness, 140, 170 “Happy Island” (Lee), 225 Hats, 253 Head as a solid structure, 261 ` 277 the background and, 36, 38, 39, 41, 163 drawing, 240 general discussion on, 129, 245–246, 255 hair and, 44, 247 Franz Hals and, 189 harmony of the body and, 245 laughing, 255–256 learning to comprehend the whole, 106 mass and, 19, 163 movement and, 46 the neck and, 249 painting in portraits, 19–22 solidity and, 49 Health, 149, 190 Heart, mind and, 118 Hedda Gabler (Ibsen), 185 Heels, 262 Henri, Robert as a teacher, 1–4 belief in Art, death of, exhibitions and, French art and, on his life and painting, 113–114 impressionism and, legacy of, 5–6 life as a student in Paris, 37–38 orderliness and, 131–132 study and, 231–232 Highlights in the eye, 69 painting the head and, 246 Hills, 128 Hindoo contemplation, 159 Hiroshigi, 69 Historical painting, 216–217 Hogarth, William, 267 Homer, Winslow, 117, 134, 267 Honesty, 92 Honors, 126 0465002633-text 278 12/18/06 ` 4:11 PM Page 278 index Hook, of a line, 191 Houses, 43, 128, 203, 257 Housetops, 128 Human body color of the atmosphere and, 55 drawing through clothes, 200 harmony of, 245 knowing the muscles, 199–200 necessity of knowing, 192 painting, 260–262 Humanity religion and, 148 thoughts on, 204 Ibsen, Henrik Johan, 116, 185 Idea(s) artists and, 262 expression and, 227 imagination and, 210 landscapes as a medium for, 117–118 painting as the expression of, 115 paintings are often composites of, 80 science and, 210 technique and, 178, 207, 231 Ignorance, 88 Imagination artists and, 81–82 ideas and, 210 importance of developing, 77–78 memory and, 29–30 Impressionism, Independent Society, India, 160 Indian Dance, 195–196 Indians See American Indians Individuality artists and, 82–86, 120–121 art schools and, 223 composition and, 265 freedom and, 133–135, 143–144 Industrial arts, 155 Infanta Margarita (portrait by Velasquez), 268 Ingres, Jean Auguste Dominique, 75 Institutionalism, 143 Intellect, 121 Intelligence, artists and, 49–51 Intention, 245 Inventors, 135 Japanese art, 178–179, 265, 267 Jewels, 253 Joy, 174, 262 Julian’s Academy See Academie Julian Juries See Art juries Lace, 122, 262 Landscapes as a medium for ideas, 117–118 of Cézanne, 110 emotion and, 256, 263 evening and night, 44 general discussion on, 256–257 noonday, 43 seeing and, 207 Language as expression, 146 gesture as, 187 technique as, 146 Laughing heads, 255–256 Laughter, 256 Laws, 149 “Leaves of Grass” (Whitman), 84 Lee, Jeanette, 225 Leech, John, 216 Legs, 206, 243 Leonardo da Vinci, 177 Letters from 1916, 129–130 to the Art Students League (see Art Students League) concerning prizes and medals, 213–215 from New Mexico, 186–187 in the Pleiades Club Yearbook, 223–226 0465002633-text 12/18/06 4:11 PM Page 279 index Letters of criticism, 95–101, 157–164, 170–177, 178–182, 182–184, 192–194, 198–201 to a friend, 219–222 on art and joy, 174 on art and the world, 175–176 on art as attainment of a state of being, 157–159 on artists and economy, 160 on backgrounds, 201 on being freed from preconceived ideas of one’s self, 193–194 on being individual, 198–199 on color, 175 on the commercial world, 175–176 on composition, 172–173, 179, 192–193 on conception, motive, and construction, 182–184 on drawing, 192 on eyes, 199 on finishing works, 100–101, 170–171, 180 on forms and things, 173 on “going on” with work, 170–171, 173 on Japanese prints, 178–179 on knowing the body, 200 on knowing the muscles, 199–200 on making a canvas from a sketch, 98–100 on making a living in art, 160–161 on masters, 176–177 on organization in compositions, 96–98 on originality, 174 on self-education, 174 on solidity, 161–163 on variation and variety, 171–172 Life documenting in art, 217–218 thoughts on, 139–141, 170, 204–205, 206–207, 238 Light angle of, 253, 255 ` 279 El Greco and, 264 expression and, 128 general discussion on, 195 landscapes and, 257 nudes and, 261 pigment and, 57–58, 156 Line(s) change and, 202 composition and, 265 created by nature, 108 curves, 241 general discussion on, 110, 111–113, 154, 155, 156, 239–240 hook of, 191 motive and, 110, 229 Rembrandt and, 108–109, 264 Lips, 248, 249 Little Theatre movement, 188 Manet, Édouard, 75, 83, 170, 180, 267 as a pioneer, 198–199, 205 Berthe Morisot and, 132 Map making, 206 Maratta, H G., 50, 56 Masters general discussion on, 176–177, 241 learning from experience, 232–233 preparation for work and, 208 See also Old masters Mathematics, 154, 155, 241 Maul sticks, 69, 70 May, Phil, 99 Meaning, artists and, 81 Measures, 51 Medals, 213 Memory holding to a vital moment, 24–29 imagination and, 29–30 painting from, 169, 260 visual, 123 Millet, Jean-François, 145, 198–199 Mind, heart and, 118 0465002633-text 280 12/18/06 ` 4:11 PM Page 280 index Modeling with color, 258 of form, 59–61 Models the background and, 35, 36 changes occur in, 48, 80 general discussion on, 109, 110, 155, 246 learning to draw from, 79–80 must be realized, 242–244 painting from, 151–152 painting nudes, 260–262 the pose and, 108 the purpose of studying from, 192 working from memory and, 24–28 Monet, Claude, 83 Money, 176 Monochrome, 59 Moore, George, 45 Morisot, Berthe, 132 Motion giving the sensation of, 261 See also Action Motive art appreciation and, 194–195 color and, 229 drawing and, 22, 105 line and, 110, 229 painting and, 133, 183, 184 technique and, 218, 229–230 Mountains, 256–257 Mouth, 249, 256 Muffs, 253 Muscles drawing action in, 107–108 painting the body and, 199–200, 261–262 Museums, 11 Music as a structure of measures, 51 bringing into the community, 188 color and, 156 gesture and, 165 music halls and, 116 Music halls, 116 “My People” (Henri), 141–151 Natural beauty, 40–41 Nature general discussion on, 185 orderly movement in, 47 remaining receptive to, 233–237 Neck, 45–46, 245, 249, 261 Necklaces, 253, 254 Neckties, 252 Néo-Impressionnisme (Signac), 58 New Mexico, 169, 186–187 Night, 44 Nobility, 142 Nose, 22, 249 Nostrils, 72, 249 Nudes, 44, 240, 260–262 Oil paint shine and, 67–68 working with pastels and, 197–198 Old masters big masses and, 267 general discussion on, 185–186 importance of students to know, 12 learning from, 183, 184 modeling form and, 59, 60 preparation for work and, 208 See also Masters Order art and, 142–143 beauty and, 142 in compositions, 96–98 freedom and, 175, 208 painting and, 184 self-expression and, 208 society and, 143 thoughts on, 131–132 Organization, in paintings, 25–26, 28 Originality, 76, 167–168, 174, 241 The Outline of History (Wells), 117 0465002633-text 12/18/06 4:11 PM Page 281 index Paint shine and, 67–68 worries over the cost of, 71 See also Oil paint Painting the artist’s stance, 73 as the attainment of a state of being, 157–159 capturing the spirit and greatness of humanity, 147–148 character interest and, 94 excluding the trivial, 184 the expression of ideas and, 115 fear of beginning new canvases, 258 general discussion on, 133, 151–152, 154–155, 230–231, 244, 254–255 of good and terrible pictures, 127–128 is drawing, 240 knowing and arranging tools and materials, 207–209 like a fiend, 164 from memory, 169, 260 from models, 24–28, 79–80 motive and, 133, 183, 184 as mystery, 114 order and, 184 to reveal the spirit, 263 seeing and, 237 set palettes, 30–35 signs and, 238 spiritual sight and, 237–238 See also Portrait and figure painting; Technique Paintings and Pictures are often composites of ideas, 80 the artist’s judging of, 101 bare space and, 179 buying, 139, 213, 215 critical judgments and, 190–191 flatness and, 49, 51 gesture and, 250 hanging well, 76 imperceptible notes in, 226–227 making like nature, 131 ` 281 the observer and, 242 organization and, 25–26, 28 as well-built structures, 47–48 Palettes keeping clean, 209 mixing colors, 55–56 pure and grave colors, 62 setting for portrait painting, 30–35 sloppy, 55 as tools, 208 well-kept, 53–54 white and, 58–59 Papoose, 254 Paris, 129 Parthenon, 251 Pastels, 197–198 Penmanship, 112, 169–170 Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 4, 91 People in Chinese paintings, 217 in Rembrandt’s drawings, 109 in Renoir’s paintings, 110–111 Perspective, the brush stroke and, 74 Petit Trianon, 259 Philanthropy, 136 Philip IV, 234 Picket fences, 136 Pigments dangers of, 74 light and, 57–58, 156 Plato, 185 Portrait and figure painting advice for making a study, 30–35 approaches to, 17–18 the background, 35–42, 250–252 capturing the spirit and greatness of humanity, 147–148 clothing, 22, 252–254 composition, 18–19 Eakins and, 90 expressing character and, 252 general discussion on, 16–17, 22–23, 151–152 0465002633-text 282 12/18/06 ` 4:11 PM Page 282 index Portrait and figure painting (continued) gesture and, 23 painting the face and head, 19–22 Rodin and, 106 set palette process, 30–35 working with speed, 23 See also Painting Portrait of the Artist’s Mother (Whistler), 122 Portraits as composition, 154 by Eakins, 90 harmony of the body and, 245 seeing and, 237 See also Portrait and figure painting Prints, Japanese, 178–179 Prizes, 138–139, 213 Proportions dangers of disregarding, 88 Winslow Homer and, 267 thoughts on, 51–52 the Public appreciation of art, 102 development of the art spirit and, 129–130 Public art galleries, 188–189 Punch (magazine), 216 Pupil (eye), 21, 69 Pure colors illusion of brilliancy and, 62–63 painting with, 61–62 Puritans, 145 Purple, 251–252, 258, 261 Quick Sketch, 27 Rag, 73 Rain, 179 Reading, 82 Reality, 239 Red, 251–252 Rejections, 14 Religion, 145, 148 Religious subjects, 216–217 Rembrandt van Rijn, 75 beauty and, 136, 183 drawings, 48–49, 63–64, 108–109, 263–264 line and, 108–109 religious subjects and, 216 seeing and, 86 selection and, 41 Renoir, Pierre-Auguste brush stroke and, 74 Cézanne and, 95 flow of color in, 170 interest in his subjects as people, 110–111, 183 popularity of, 94 portraits of children’s heads, 183 realization and, 95 Revelation, 28–29, 42–43 Rock, 257 Rodin, Auguste de, 106, 145, 267 Rogers, Mary, 42–43 Rooms, 203 Ross, Denman, 50, 57 Rossetti, Dante, 83 Rousseau, Jean-Jacques, 83 Rubens, Peter Paul, 84 Salons, 129 Samaritan, 217 School of Design for Women, address to the students of, 77–86 Schools See Art schools Science art and, 51, 157 ideas and, 210 Scientists, 228 Sculpture, 165–166 Sea, 81 Seascapes, 117 Seeing the artist and, 86–88, 166–167, 195–196 0465002633-text 12/18/06 4:11 PM Page 283 index painting and, 118, 207, 237 realizing the model and, 243 Self-acquaintance, 164 Self-development, 124, 185–186 Self-education, 119–120, 123, 124, 168, 174, 210, 211–212, 214, 244 Self-expression, 208, 244 Self-knowledge, 185–186 Self-regulation, 84 Set palette method, 30–35 Shadows, painting faces and, 254 Shakespeare, William, 84, 185 Shame, 177 Shape, background and, 35 Shawls, 254 Shine lessening with varnish, 72 paint and, 67–68 Shirts, 252 Signac, Paul, 58 Signatures, 260 Signs, 238 Silk, 74, 251 Simplicity, 203, 207, 265 Sketches a comparison, 125 advice on making a canvas from, 98–100 organization and, 96–98 returning to, 195 thoughts on, 95 the Sketch hunter, 13–14 Skirts, 206 Sleeves, 46 Sloan, John, 217 Snake Dance, 196 Sociology, 154 Solidity, 49–53, 161–163, 255 Soul, 50–51, 203 the Southwest, 147, 169 Space, as a complement to activity, 259 Sphinx, 52, 165 Spirit, 263 ` 283 Spirit line, 243 Spiritual experience See Revelation Spirituality, 195 State of being art as the attainment of, 157–159, 224, 225 the brush stroke and, 13, 54, 69, 71 captured in Rembrandt’s drawings, 48–49 Staves, 136 Sterno-clido, 46 Stevenson, Robert, 116 Still lifes, 81, 226, 256 Students true character of, 103 See also Art students Studies, advice for making, 30–35 Studios, 109 Study thoughts on, 194 ways of, 231–233 Style, 244 Subconscious, 116–117 Substructure, 154, 155 Success, 92, 152–153 Sung period art, 52, 162–163 Sunset, 55 Super color, 55 Symbols, 60 Symphonies, of Beethoven, 150, 154 Taine, Hippolyte, 84 Talent See Ability Teachers, 81, 152–153, 168 Henri as, 1–4 Teaching, thoughts on, 12 Technique the artist’s individuality and, 120–121 the artist’s sincerity in, 146 development of creative power and, 218–219 expression and, 227–229 general discussion on, 205, 210, 230 0465002633-text 284 12/18/06 ` 4:11 PM Page 284 index Technique (continued) idea and, 178, 207, 231 importance of studying, 133 inventing, 87–88, 92, 123–124 as language, 146 motive and, 218, 229–230 real study of, 231–233 self-education in, 123 Tenement houses, 128 Texture, color and, 258, 259 Ties, 252 Tintoretto, 191 Titian, 184, 190, 267 Tone, 35, 39 Tools knowing and arranging, 207–209 mechanical, 53 Tramps, 164 Trees, 53, 117–118, 128, 257 Truth, 165 Twachtman, John Henry, 4, 134 Unity, 243 Value, 35, 45, 255 Variety, 172, 265 Varnish, 72 Velasquez, Diego, 75, 163, 170, 234, 235, 268 Velvet, 74, 263 Visual memory, 123 Wagner, Richard, 64, 105, 145 Wagons, 128 Waist, 261 Walls, 43, 259–260 War, 143, 238 Waterfalls, 257 Wells, H G., 117 Whistler, James Abbott McNeill, 82, 83, 122, 263, 265 White, 58–59 White Girl (Whistler), 263 White hair, 247 Whitman, Walt appreciation of life, 140 individuality and, 133–134 on “Leaves of Grass,” 84 recognition and, 116, 197 thoughts on, 83–84 truth and, 145 Will, 238 Windows, 43, 203 Wright brothers, 116, 225 Yellow, 58, 258 Young artists concerns about judging, 137–139 helping, 139