Trafalgar School - Echoes Yearbook (Montreal, Quebec Canada)

Page 29 text:

THE DUTCH SCHOOL OF PAINTING. On Mav 3rd. Professor Ramsav Traquair oi McCJill Uni crs!t ' , Cfave us an extremely interesting illiistraled lectnre on Tlie Dutch School ot Painting. Professor Traqnair stated that up to the fourteenth centur -, the only kind of paintings known in Holland were religious jxinels and illustrations for books. In the beginning of the fifteenth century, however. Hubert and Jan an Evck distinguished themselves as portrait painters and ])ainters of still life. They made the important discovery that a mixture of linseed oil could be used with excellent results on canvass. The pictures of these two men are remarkable for their clear, br ght, vivid colour, jan Van Eyck ' s best known portrait is called ' The Man with the Pink. The character portrayed in the man ' s face is extrat)rdinary. The sixteenth century |)roduced few artists owing to the fact that Holland was engaged in wars with Spain and all her energies were devoted to foreign aflfairs. In the seventeenth centur ' there were many great artists and several lesser ones. Of the tirst Franz Hals deserves mention. His Banquet of Officers at St. George, Cavalier. The Man with a Sword, are all fom- ous. Hals ' Gypsy Girl is a charming portrait full of that virility which is so characteristic of all his pictures. The greatest of all Dutch painters, however, was Rembrandt. He was. said Professor Traquair. not only a painter but an artist. He then proceeded to explain the difference between the two. A man ma ■ lay the colotir on the canvas ])erfectlv, his techniqtie may be faultless, et if his picture lacks sotil, if it is devoid of that elusive something best defined as inspiration, he is only a painter, he cannot be called an artist. Rembrandt ' s picture had that power of expression, the imagination which ranks him as a true artist. His ]MCtures are remarkable for their light and shade eft ' ects. It is interesting to note that Rembrandt was the first artist of the Dutch school who attached mitch importance to shadow. Rembrandt contributed to art the greatest picture of group por- traiture ever painted. He called it The Xight Watch, and it represents a company of militia guarding the gates of a city. This masterpiece, how- ever, was not hailed with delight by those who posed for it. They thought their features should have been more celarlv defined, and they resented the fact that some were standing- in a more prominent position than others. Rem- brandt painted a vast number of portraits, perhaps the most famous of which are The Burgomaster and The Shipbuilder and His Wife . These portraits show character and virility in every line. The colours .are laid on simply, but with the simplicity of a master hand. Great as Rembrandt ' s paintings are, however, they were not popular in his lifetime. The burgomaster and prosperous merchants whom he painted wished to be represented as famous, rich, and powerful. They liked their rich attire and costly ornaments to be painted with precision. Rembrandt was, however, absolutely insensible to p ' ublic opinion. He painted because he loved it, and he did not cheat his art by allowing the petty vanities of people to influence his work. 15

Page 28 text:

WISHES. I He upon the mossy bank Under the old oak tree, And watch the fleecy clouds float past So high and light and free I wish I were a fleecy cloud Drifting in the sky, For oh ! it must be lovely To go floating up so high. I stand upon the jag-ged cliffs, Watching the white sea-spray And I see the boundless ocean Go stretching far away. I wish I were an ocean wave Tipped with sparkling foam ; For oh ! it must be lovely O ' er the great wide sea to roam. I stand in a peaceful valley, And looking up I see On the mountain tops above me A lofty old pine tree. I wish I were a lofty pine Upon a mountain crest ; Of all the things Fd like to be I would like that the best. — M. D. IILa. OH! IT ' S A LOVELY LIFE. Tune — Oh ! It ' s a lovely war Oh, oh, oh it ' s a lovely life Who wouldn ' t be a schoolgirl, eh ! Oh, we ' d much rather work than play! As soon ar we enter the hall We feel just as glad as can be For we know we ' ll have fun Now school has begun And do we complain ? Not we ! Oh. oh. oh. it ' s a lovely life Why do we want to stay in bed When we can go to school instead? Translate Latin and do a sum What shall we do when the holidays come? Oh ! Oh ! oh, it ' s a lovely life. M. B-J. VI. 14

Page 30 text:

It is sad to reflect that this great artist, ' whose paintings are con- sidered to-day the finest that adoiu the Louvre, died in poverty, neglected by the country to which, through his art, he brought glory. It was not till after Rembrandt ' s death that artists began to paint landscape.. It came graduall}-, starting with paintings of cattle, and flowers from the wealthy merchants ' gardens. Finally, the figures in the picture diminished in importance, while the whole of the artists ' skill was devoted to the landscape. It is almost incredible to think, that in seventy years, Holland pro- duced three to four hundred painters of ability, and two at least— Rembrandt and Hals — of genius. H. T., Form VI. LIFE. This life ' s a hollow bubble, Don ' t you know ! A painted piece of trouble, Don ' t you know ! We come to earth and here we stay Doing something different every day. First, there ' s school through which we sail, Exams to pass — we often fail Don ' t you know ! Next comes society — that ' s dress, Don ' t you know ! And a source of much distress Don ' t you know ! To determine what to wear When to go, and likewise where? — And the way to part your hair Don ' t you know ! Thus we worr) ' through each day Don ' t you know ! In a sort of kind of way Don ' t you know ! So there ' s nothing really in it For we live just for the minute We grow older — then we die — Sort of exit Don ' t you know ! M.S. VI. 16