Book-bot.com - read famous books online for free

Watts (1817-1904) by William Loftus Hare
page 25 of 43 (58%)
in the north of England. If we compare this painting with other Biblical
subjects executed at a later date, we see how much Watts' work has
gained since then. The almost smooth texture and the dark shadows of the
Manchester picture have given way to ruggedness and transparency. Still,
"The Good Samaritan" is simple and excellent in purpose and composition.

A little known painting entitled "Cruel Vengeance," seems to be a
forecast of "Mammon"; a creature with human form and vulture's head
presses under his hand a figure like the maiden whose head rests on
Mammon's knee. In "Greed and Labour" the seer's eye pierces through the
relations between the worker and his master; Labour is a fine strong
figure loaded with the implements of his toil, with no feeling of
subjection in his manly face; on the other hand, the miser creeping
behind him, clutching the money bags, represents that Greed who, as
Mammon, is seen sitting on his throne of death. "Mammon" is, however,
the greatest of the three, containing in itself the ideas and forms of
the other two. It is a terrible picture of the god to whom many bow the
knee--"dedicated to his worshippers." His leaden face shows a
consciousness of power, but not happiness arising from power; his dull
eyes see nothing, though his mind's eye sees one thing clearly--the
money bags on his lap. The two frail creatures of youth and maiden,
"types of humanity" as Watts said, are crushed by his heavy limbs, while
behind a fire burns continuously, perhaps also within his massive
breast.

_Portraits_.--In portraiture, as in other forms of art, Watts had
distinct and peculiar views. He gradually came to the opinion, which he
adopted as his first rule in portraiture, that it was his duty, not
merely to copy the external features of the sitter, but to give what
might be called an intellectual copy. He declared it to be possible and
DigitalOcean Referral Badge