Art in America; a critical and historical sketch . is active days, as represented by Peale and Trumbull,but when, crowned with glory and honor in the majesty of a serene oldage, he was approaching the sunset of life. The character of Stuart was one of marked peculiarities, and offerspoints of interest scarcely equalled by that of any other American canny shrewdness and penetrating perception of the Scotchman wasmellowed almost to the point of inconsistency by the warm and suppletraits of his Welsh ancestry. An admirable story-teller himself, he in turngave rise, by his oddities, to
Art in America; a critical and historical sketch . is active days, as represented by Peale and Trumbull,but when, crowned with glory and honor in the majesty of a serene oldage, he was approaching the sunset of life. The character of Stuart was one of marked peculiarities, and offerspoints of interest scarcely equalled by that of any other American canny shrewdness and penetrating perception of the Scotchman wasmellowed almost to the point of inconsistency by the warm and suppletraits of his Welsh ancestry. An admirable story-teller himself, he in turngave rise, by his oddities, to many racy anecdotes, some of which havebeen treasured up and well told by Dunlap, who, although inferior as apainter, deserves to be cordially remembered for his discursive but valua-ble book on early American painting. EARLY AMERICAN ART. 20 As regards the art of Stuart, it can be safely affirmed that Americahas produced no painter who has been more unmistakably entitled to rankamong men of genius as distinguished from those of talent. We assume. GENERAL KNOX. [GILBERT STUART.] that the difference between the two is not one of degree, but of kind. Inthe intellectual progress of the world the first leads, the other may have great talents, and yet really not enrich the world with asingle new idea. He simply assents to the accepted, and lends it the aidof his powers. But genius, not content with things as they are. eithergives us new truths or old truths in a new form. The greatest minds—Csesar, Shakspeare, Goethe, Franklin—present us with a just combinationof genius and talent: they both create and organize. Now, one may have 26 ART IN AMERICA. great or little genius, but so far as he tells us something: worth knowing? inhis own way, it is genius as distinguished from talent.: And this is why we say that Stuart had genius. He followed nobeaten track, he gave in his allegiance to no canons of the schools. Hiseagle eye pierced the secrets of nature according to no
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