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Painting Popularly Explained

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Painting Popularly Explained /V2> " 1/35- THE D ELPHIC SIBYL, FROMHE T CEILING OF THE SISTINE CHAPEL, PAINTEDY B MICHAEL ANOELO. PAINTING POPULARLY E XPLAINED; INCLUDING Fresco, O il, Mosaic, Water-Colour, Water-Glass, T empera, Encaustic, Miniature, nPainting o Ivory, Vellum, Pottery, Porcelain, Enamel, Glass, &c. historical S luices of ijje |hogrcss of tlje 3Ltt. THOMAS J OHN GULLICK ASSISTEDY B "~ JOHN T IMBS, P.S.A. SECOND E DITION REVISED AND ENLARGED LONDON: L OCKWOOl) & CO., STATIONERS'-HALL COUKT. MDCCCLXIV. [ The right of tranrlatloti is reserved.] LONDOS nilNTED B Y SPOTTIfiWOODE AND CO. NEW-STREET RQUAttE A-22-33 PKEFACE. Numerous e loquent and also some ' dry-as-dust ' books have been written on the theory of painting. Modern German writers, more especially, have speculated very ingeniously, as well as very vaguely, upon the nature of those high faculties in man through which he derives pleasurable perceptions and refining emotions from the beautiful in the material world ; and these speculations have been, under the name of assthetics, elevated to the dignity of a science. The his tory of Art has afforded more tangible subjects for a large class of authors ; while practical treatises for the exclusive guidance of art-students already exist of, perhaps, adequate authority and in sufficient number. We are, however, ac quainted with very few books containing precisely those explanations of the processes and materials employed in painting which we believe can be given, and would greatly assist, not only the student, but the general public to under stand and appreciate pictures, and to estimate how far ma terial and technical relations have had historical influence on painting— books which in fact contain the particular in formation which an artist might be presumed best capable of communicating. To s upply (from practical acquaintance with painting) such information is the chief aim of the present volume. In working out such a design, the opportunity will not - always be afforded for even attempting to increase the ( IV P REFACE. attractiveness o f the subj ect by literary embellishment : but our desire is to be useful, and we are content to rough-hew the corner-stone, if we may not foliate the capital. Never theless, as the better part, beyond all comparison, of paint ing consists of those mental and imaginative elements which entitle it to rank with the sister-art of poetry, we shall take all occasions which may appear fitting to press the superior importance of these higher qualities upon the reader's con sideration. We would not, from professional prejudice, and still less disingenuously, seek to obtain the reception of an over-estimate of the value of technical and professional knowledge. Without such, knowledge, truth, beauty, and sentiment in pictures may undoubtedly be enjoyed. But we submit that even this enjoyment may sometimes be heightened in degree, other gratification assuredly derived, and the power of appreciating the relative merits and com parative value of paintings certainly gained, through the knowledge to which we have alluded. All who have prac tised painting will likewise, we think, allow, that experience gained with the pencil has removed many misconceptions respecting at least surface appearances in pictures. Artists will, we feel assured, candidly admit that some portion of the art consists of definite operations and definable modes of manipulation, and may therefore be compared to a deli cate description of workmanship, requiring a regular ap prenticeship and long practice. To carry out the comparison, then, to its legitimate issue, we beg the good-natured reader who would listen to the man who could make only an in different watch, if he had anything to say about its me chanism, to kindly lend his attention to what we have to say about the mechanism of a picture. As a ll men cannot be painters or watchmakers — cannot all learn ' how to do it,' or even see it done — surely the next best thing must be to get a trustworthy description of how it is done. This will at all events save them from making some awkward mistakes. If Pliny, for example, could have anticipated the numerous sneers with which his shade has been insulted, he would not have attempted to write about PREFACE. V painting w hile ignorant of some of its simplest operations. This consideration may touch self-respect, but another must reach self-interest. We allude to the fact that a knowledge of the nature of the materials employed for painting will also almost necessarily include acquaintance with the pre cautions indispensable for the possessor of pictures to take in order to secure the preservation of his art-treasures, and to display them to the best advantage. But — a nd this is of great general importance — the reader who accompanies us through this volume will hardly deny the important influence of materials and processes upon the painter's fidelity of imitation ; and even upon his modes of conception, and the higher manifestations of painting as a form of poetical utterance. The reader will, in succession, see what gave value to the encaustic picture, in the eyes of rich Roman collectors, and that the too exclusive employ ment of the more mechanical process of mosaic hastened the decline and degradation of art. He will see how the sepa rate introduction of gold into the mediaeval tempera picture led to hard outlines, a patchwork character, absence of ' tone,' * and an unnatural scale of colour ; while the material limitations of fresco seem, on the contrary, only to have compelled greater attention to the higher and more essential qualities of art. He will see how ' depth,' the greatest re commendation of oil painting, is simply a property of the ' vehicle ' t employed ; and how chiaroscuro, J or light and shade of pictures, has been influenced by the painter's habi tual use of a light or dark ground, or his custom of painting in full daylight or a darkened studio. Lastly, the reader will see that the early Flemish painters followed a definite series of processes, which would alone secure the purity of colour, the transparency and accuracy of detail so noticeable in their works : a system which presents a marked contrast to what has been the too prevalent practice in modern painting, both in oil and water colours — in which, from the * S ee p. 15, note. t See pp. 4 note, and 197. In A Italian word, compounded of 'chiaro' and 'oscuro,' signify ing literally light-dark. VI P REFACE. facilityf o making alterations, meaningless licence has been allowed to the play of the hrush, and effects have been re peated in proportion as they are easily gained. The c hronological arrangement adopted in this work is explained in the Introduction. Early Christian and Medi aeval Art having rapidly grown in public estimation, and pos sessing besides a kind of geological, novel interest, we have, we trust, worked out this rich vein with satisfactory indus try. Great importance has also been attached to historical inquiries into the origin of methods and materials; because we believe such inquiries are in the highest degree instruc tive ; but where individual painters have rendered eminent service to art, they are noticed in a more biographic spirit. At the same time we have endeavoured to render the book in every respect as complete as possible : it has, in fact, been attempted not only to give a description of every kind of painting, but also some account of the art in every age, to gether with sketches of the principal painters of the different schools. We r epeat, that our great ambition has been to be useful ; and no inconsiderable result will have been achieved if we only succeed in directing attention to the best source of in formation on every subject, and especially to the stores of material accumulated in such works as those by Sir Charles Eastlake and Mrs. Merrifield. To the former as an author, and the latter as an editor of valuable ancient MSS., we shall have frequently to acknowledge our obligations ; but, in the words of Quintilian, ' if we can say what is right we shall be delighted, though it may not be of our own invention.' The e xplanation of every kind of technicality has been one of the objects of this work ; in every instance, therefore, where a technical term first occurs, it is explained either in the text itself or in a note ; so that the reader who follows the order of the book need anticipate no difficulty in this particular. Should, however, the clue to the exact meaning PREFACE. V U of a ny artistic word or phrase be lost, a copious index has been added, the references of which, instead of affording the dry definitions a mere glossary would supply, will, it is hoped, be found at once to define the word and illustrate its application. In c onclusion, we would still further conciliate the reader's confidence by assuring him that — as we have already inti mated — nearly all the technical explanations in this book are derived from a more than usually varied practical ac quaintance with painting. The writer whose name occurs first on the title-page has not merely contributed largely to the press for some years past on the subject of Art, but he is (though the reader may be unaware of the fact) also a painter by profession. It may perhaps be asked, with a smile, how it happens that he did not prefer — like, and in the words of, Annibale Carracci — ' only to speak by works,' meaning, of course, pictures. The answer to this is that his natural tendencies have inclined equally to literary and to artistic pursuits; and the observation may be ventured, though at the risk of provoking unfavourable comparisons, that— whatever may be his own fate — many painters have been better known by the productions of their pen than by those of their pencil.
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