. Benjamin West, his life and work; a monograph . hich divides,but cannot divorce them, can wash out of the conscious-ness of either nation (England and America), the feelingthat we hold our intellectual property in common, thatwe owe allegiance to the same moral and literary tradi-tions and that the fame of those who have shed lustreon our race, as it is an undivided inheritance, so it im-poses an equal debt of gratitude, an equal responsibilityon the two great branches of it.—LOWELL. ON his way back from Italy, West went toEngland with no other intention than tovisit Americas old home. But c
. Benjamin West, his life and work; a monograph . hich divides,but cannot divorce them, can wash out of the conscious-ness of either nation (England and America), the feelingthat we hold our intellectual property in common, thatwe owe allegiance to the same moral and literary tradi-tions and that the fame of those who have shed lustreon our race, as it is an undivided inheritance, so it im-poses an equal debt of gratitude, an equal responsibilityon the two great branches of it.—LOWELL. ON his way back from Italy, West went toEngland with no other intention than tovisit Americas old home. But circumstan-ces, over which he had no control and whichplayed so large a part in Wests life, once againbecame potent and changed his whole futurehistory. England now became his life did not see America again. The factorswhich thus changed his life plan were two. Onewas the low condition of public taste on mattersof art. England had partly written her book ofdeeds. She had written less of the book of her o XH m> r; z o Hm n 7^ H m Hm m. Wesl Settles hi England 51 words. The book of her art she had hardly-begun . Artists stood, says Gait, lower inthe scale of society than actors, for Garrick hadredeemed the profession of the latter from deg-radation. Reynolds at this time was only aportrait painter, for the public taste encouragedno more. Garrick, one day, told West a storyof the Artist Hogarth, which too sadly illus-trated the condition of fine arts in Hogarth had published the plates of hisElection Procession, he tried to sell thepaintings. His plan was to do it by a raffle oftwo hundred chances, at two guineas the day was fixed when the subscribers shouldassemble at the artists house to throw for theirchances. From about one hundred subscribers,Garrick was the only one who came to takehis chance. The artist was pained and irri-tated, but insisted that Garrick should gothrough the form of throwing the dice. Gar-rick reluctantly consented, but ref
Size: 1292px × 1935px
Photo credit: © Reading Room 2020 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, bookidbenjaminwest, bookyear1900
