which he cannot possibly overcome. So long as painters turn out
thousands of pictures, we can expect only the results which are much in
evidence in all modern exhibitions. The fault is entirely with the
artist, who is forever painting easel pictures, and neglecting the great
field of decorative painting. On investigation of our exhibition we
shall find that the good picture - that is, the picture of a certain
respectful attitude toward its function, which is largely decorative -
is far less injured by unavoidable neighbors than the loud-mouthed
canvas of the "Look! Here I am!" variety, which is afraid of being
overlooked. Art exhibitions of the generally adopted modern type are
logically intolerable, and the only solution of the problem of the
correct presentation of pictures is to display fewer of them, within
certain individual rooms, designed by artists, where a few pictures will
take their place with their surroundings in a unity of artistic
expression.

It is certainly no small task to enjoy a large exhibit like ours and to
preserve one's peace of mind. The purpose of these pages is to assist in
guiding the uninitiated, in his visit and in retrospect, without
depriving him of the pleasure of personal observation and investigation.
It is not to be expected that all pictures exhibited should be of a
superior kind. If so, we should never be able to learn to recognize the
good among the bad. So many pictures are only experiments. Only by
having the opportunity for comparison can we learn to discriminate. The
predominant characteristic of our art exhibition is its instructive
value in teaching the development of painting by successive periods,
sometimes represented and some times only indicated. The person who
never had the opportunity to visit the larger historical collections of
paintings abroad, could here obtain an idea of the many changes in
subjects, as well as in technique, which have taken place in the