Queensland Art Gallery Presscuttings Book 1 : Presscuttings, 1959-1962

APRIL 19, 1953 "MAIL" Brisbane. Old. A Man -in -the -Street Went .10 Set? the French Paiiiiinffs in Brisbane His Verdict: "I Agree with Norman Lindsay?? IF ultra -modern painting has National Art Gallery director Robert Haines stumped, what chance have the rest of us? He seemed stumped the exhibition of the He attributed public by a couple of X-ray neon Lives of minims to tell us in discussing last week contemporary French confusion and misittider- that. here we have Spring? in The Sunday Mail paintings. standing over modern Hal Missingham. director painting to the fact coLitileirey.NtSZ UN,ational Art "that there are SO many this loan exhibirinonpergal approaches to the main Australians were Reel's- tiined to Victorian paint - problem, slid, in fact. togs-the worst period in much doubt as to what the art. Perhaps so. But even the the main problem is." inost despised of the Vic - About two-thirds of the torions could pass the paintings in the current Lindsay test. exhibition certainly de- They could draw and monstrnte how many are they could paint. the approaches of the artists to the undisclosed main problem. and their own hopeless confusion as to what is art. In all art there surely must be form, discipline. and control. It should be obvious that these ultra -modern French Altna-Tridemu. painters i some actually A ham Londseer doubt - are Spaniards), are fune- less was, and the world Honing at a time when the to-day can still find in old art or painting has be- Inns and forgotten rooms come de -controlled. reproductions of his High - The egotism of the land cattle. artists themselves has But they were rattle driven them into reckless - with hide, hair, hoofs, ness, fantasy, exhibition- and horns In the right ism, childishness, or down - places, and with correct right. obscurantism, bone structure. They did not look II the components in an in- laid table. as In Prassinos' CAREFULLY studying most of this work The Herd." brought to mind the curt The women of Burne- Jones tnay have been over - dismissal of such nonsense long in the throat and by Norman Lindsay. slightly goitrous, but they Said Lindsay: "This is the art of persons who were women, and, to cer- lain tastes. beautiful cannot draw and cannot women. paint!" Consider on the other But what is the "main hand the very modern problem" of which Mr. Senor Pablo Picasso. Hs foes speaks, and why This gen,a' gentleman's should there be doubts con- idea of painting a woman's earning it? face is to split it into two Peasiteles and Michel- self-contained segments angelo had no such eon- and re -arrange it so that fusion or doubt. the left eye is some inches The only "main problem" higher than the right. they knew was to achieve as near perfection as tins- Repulsive Bible for the form and sub- stance of their art. 60. by all means, and Allowing for all legiti- feast your eyes on mate exploitation of limy Plca.sso's two exhibits, fields open to the artist "The Orange Bodice" and since, classic or medieval times, is not that still the "main problem" of the artist-whether sculptor or Explaulintilion 31 e I b (mem. artist Charles itush explains points of decor in painting at the French art exhibition at the National thillert to some of the students from 15 Lillie Theatre group., throughout Q11 sensla nd 11111 SUP In Itrishane for a week's drama school. Mr. Bush Itioi been ler - Wring the students on deem% Silly scrawls Grave doubt is a matter of the gravest doubt as to whether Picasso or Sal- vador Dali could draw and paint youth with the sure- ness of line and tonal tktelity of colour of All 'The Omen Bodice." Don't bother shout the bodices. I'm certain no woman will. painter? If you have ever !Well Are we to have paintings anything more repulsive of horses in which gee-nand inexpertly drawn and metrical exactitude in ctr- pointed than these two cues, curves, and setni-cir- Picassos don be down- cles render any likeness to hearted, a horse impossible? You mat' even find worse Or silly scrawls and a few yards away along daubs intended to portray the walls of this astonish - a bull -fight, which, as to ing exhibition. verisimilitude, would be It may be asked whither far outclassed by the primitive art. of our wt neolithic ancestors? Or a gross parts green di coloured woman attended III "COURIER MAIL," Brisbane, Qld. 00 Say adieu to French art WORKMEN will begin packing the £100,000 - worth of French paintings to-day after a record four weeks' exhibition of the Queens- land National Art Gallery. Packing will he corn - 'Acted in four days, and the paintings will then be moved to Melbourne. The exhibition closed last night with a last day atten- dance of about 900. Attendance figures since the exhibition opened on April 11, totalled about 00,000. Gallery director (Mr. Robert Haines) said lust night that 9000 catalogues had been sold during the shibition, before stocks gave out three days earlier. Mr. Haines said he be- lieved lone a great deal to stimu- ate interest in the gallery and in said. was absent here, Mr. Haines the exhibition had Colour use "I think that a number of iconic even those who did tot understand abstract painting, have appreciated the use of colour, which is often absent from Australian Pointing," Mr. Haines said. "Abstract painting is corn- paanlVvelY new to Queens - Mr. Haines said a lot of people went to see the paint- ings out of curiosity. But they had learnt something, by going. The nubile had behaved very well throughout the exhibition. There were no demonstrations. Last visitors In Sydney there which noisy element A number of last-minute visitors to the exhibition said yesterday they found the paintings "educational and enlightening." Strer. N. Kurth, of et, Bardon, said heRosalie had enjoyed seeing the paintings, but there were only five he would buy if he had the money. "Many of the objects were a joke," he said. Mr. George Baronoff, of Brisbane Street, Annerley. said he had visited the ex- hibition the day It opened. "Something new" It had been an education for him, and there should be more like it, he said. Mrs. IC. Hunter, of Laurel Avenue, Chelmer. said the fshlblhon was "soethinhavg new, and I would nomt e missed it for anything." "There are very few paint- ings which have conveyed much to me without a pro- gramme," she said. "There is a limit to Im- pressions-and I think many of the paintings have over- stepped tile mark, haveritoon,I tutd1;Ink you should understand it" painting t French paintings? Anybody can produce one of them! All you want is a skerrick of paint on your brush and the strength to rub the brush on the canvas, with your eyes shut. That, anyway, is what baby Jan, the daughter of a prom- inent Brisbane artist, thinks about French paintings. She told us so during an exclusive demonstration the other day. Above picture shows Jon just after she had h'oished her illustrated lecture. She's turning on that "What-dopyotothink?" look. Top picture at the left shot's her as she gives the viewers of her effort 11 shrewd look to make sure they know what she's talking about: and the other picture shows Jan thinks her French painting is "on the nnie." Min1,41M. 4E1. ..4140. 4En. M..... 44.