Part 3

French art during the second half of the 1800s is noted for its innovation and its diversity. Yet, although the paintings produced during this period differ in their visual effects, the artists of these works were all largely concerned with the same problem: how to treat nature and how to define reality. Thus, in reaction to the neoclassicists, who stressed line and color, and the romantics, who favored lush hues, exotic or unusual subject matter, and emotionalism, the realists sought to paint only what was before them, free from embellishment. Other artists such as Monet and Renoir concentrated upon recording the fleeting and subtle color impressions created by changes in sunlight. Because their technique was rapid and sketchy, these latter artists gave less attention to studiously modeled form, and their paintings, although “realistic” in their rendition of light and space, do not have the solid, tangible qualities so evident in Academic painting. (The Gallery’s collections are particularly comprehensive in the works of Manet, Renoir, and Degas. Included also is Mary Cassatt, the only American who exhibited with the impressionists.) Still other artists rejected impressionism’s concern with transitory moments in order to express either their intuitive reactions to the natural world or their personalized interpretation of the physical laws that order appearances. Reality was redefined by these artists, such as Gauguin, van Gogh, Toulouse-Lautrec, and Cézanne, who were known as post-impressionists. It was their work which prepared the way for twentieth-century expressionism and abstraction.

Amid the controversies of nineteenth-century French art criticism, Corot was a transitional figure. Popular with conservative patrons, he was also a champion of the younger, radical painters. This scene in a forest near Paris is composed of traditional elements: the overlapping planes of light and dark foliage and a deep perspective established by the path of light and space running through the painting’s center. Corot’s treatment of light, studied directly from nature, is quite modern, however, as he exactly captures the harsh glare and heavy shadow caused by strong sun.

Overlooking Paris’ Saint-Lazare railroad yards, this sun-drenched scene is the first major picture Manet executed out-of-doors. Though influenced by his friends, the impressionists Monet and Renoir, Manet’s disciplined temperament rejected impressionism’s less structured effects. The rigid lines of the iron fence, for example, act as a foil for the figures’ curves. The little girl, whose interest lies on the rail yards behind, forms a subtle tension with the woman who gazes out at the viewer. The color scheme, with its reversal of colors, serves both to unify the pattern and to underscore the separation of the two figures: the full womanly figure is dressed in blue accented with white, whereas the childish figure is in white accented with blue.

Wanting to capture the dazzling colors found in strong sunlight, the impressionist painter Renoir intensified the natural hues of reality to a greater vibrancy on canvas. The green of the grass depicted here is more intense in hue than that which one might expect to find in nature, and the gravel path sparkles like gems. In calculating the juxtaposition of color, the artist placed pale blue-green shadows on the child’s face to heighten her rosy complexion. In addition, the blurred impressionist brushstrokes create the effect of shimmering sunlight dissolving form and detail. Once in response to criticism about his work, Renoir said, “There are enough things to bore us in life without our making more of them.”

Monet, a founder of impressionism, became obsessed with the variations with natural light. From 1892 to 1895, he recorded in a series of paintings a medieval French cathedral as it appeared at different times of day or under different weather conditions. In over thirty canvases of Rouen Cathedral, Monet’s analyses of light on the cathedral’s surfaces resulted in iridescent colors and thick paint textures that are visually sensational yet highly naturalistic. Here, in early morning, the church shimmers lavender and violet, the stone of the upper portions glowing in the rich red-orange of the rising sun. Another from the Rouen series, showing the church in the yellow-white heat of the afternoon, is also in this room.

One of Degas’ own favorite works, this, his last major oil painting, has a chalky texture reminiscent of the pastels he frequently used. Studying the strong patterns in Japanese prints as well as the snapshot effects of photography, this superb draftsman often designed his paintings with an angled point of view or created an off-center balance, cutting off figures by the frame edge. With the increasing abstraction of his late style, Degas here used a black outline which not only separates the gestures of the dancers but also accents their red apparel, intensifying the theatrical effect.

Most evident in this painting is the tension between what is, on the one hand, a rendition of nature and, on the other, Cézanne’s deliberate organization of the shapes into a rhythm of forms. The swirls and eddies of the blue drapery are reflected in the curves of the apples, peppermint bottle, white linen, and carafe. At the same time, horizontal or vertical lines dominate along the edge of the table, the molding of the back wall, and the neck of the bottle, creating a linear grid that offsets and balances the curving lines. The blue-green tonality, in addition to the geometric patterning, further demonstrates the artist’s intent to visually organize and unify. Indeed, for the sake of unity, Cézanne has even distorted the carafe by swelling it out on one side, pulling it deeper into the folds of the fabric.

20th-Century Art (Gallery 76 and West Stair Hall)

Flattened shapes, strong outlines, unmodulated hues, and pronounced pigment textures have been among the central devices of many twentieth-century painters. Artists have often abandoned the direct imitation of reality, preferring instead to work through complex problems of pictorial design to express human feelings. A tremendous diversity of artistic styles has resulted, emerging in tempo with the rapid changes of modern society and technology. The National Gallery’s present collection of modern art concentrates on the French school prior to World War I, the period when Paris was the cultural center of Europe.

With the opening of the East Building, the National Gallery will have increased space for the display of contemporary art.

Obsessed in 1905 with the theme of the circus, Picasso sought the company of performers not only as potential subjects for his paintings but also as companions. Their agility and grace delighted him; their gypsy lives intrigued him, as did their professional pursuit of the fine art of illusion. The circus family in this painting is assembled in a lonely landscape devoid of any living thing. Their static poses suggest that each member, caught up in reverie, is unaware of the others. A sense of equilibrium is maintained, however, in the compact shape of the five figures at the left balanced against the single figure in the right foreground. The pastel tints of red, violet, and blue, moreover, create an aura of elegiac melancholy. Although Picasso has abandoned the predominantly blue palette of his earlier, more pensive work, the _Family of Saltimbanques_ still exudes a feeling of pathos and isolation. (The thirteen paintings by Picasso in the National Gallery represent the major phases within the first half of Picasso’s career.)

Although common, everyday items, the objects in this painting are not shown in an everyday arrangement. Rather, through a precise, rational manipulation of shapes, the artist has so structured the objects as to arrive at a fresh understanding of their reality. The pitcher and the wineglass, for example, are each shown as an overview of the rim (presenting one angle of vision) and a profile view of the object’s body (presenting a second angle of vision); these and other aspects of the objects are combined to reveal a new, but nonetheless accurate, perception of the object. And, as Braque intended, it is this flattened perception that, throughout the composition, constantly reminds us of the two-dimensional surface of the canvas. Braque’s geometric compositions—which to outraged critics were nothing more than “cubes”—were one aspect of a style known as cubism which developed shortly after the turn of the century.

Known neither for his Christian themes nor for simplicity of organization, Dali has in this painting moved away from the surrealism that preoccupied him during his earlier years. The composition of the _Last Supper_ is clearly defined in two main planes: foreground action and background scenery. The placement of the figures is symmetrical with a mirror-image repetition of the same figures from one side of the painting to the other. The men, their faces hidden, are more the idealized participants in a timeless Eucharist than specific men of a specific time and place. The strange translucent enclosure—a geometrical dodecahedron—is meant to be understood as part earthly, part celestial. The enigma of this intellectual and complex painting centers finally in the all-embracing arms—symbolic of the heavens and of the creator, who is seen as youthful rather than patriarchal but whose face is hidden.

Decorative Arts

As objects for daily use, the decorative arts allow a close insight into cultures of the past. Among its holdings, the National Gallery has an extensive collection of European furniture, tapestries, and ceramics from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries as well as medieval church vessels and Renaissance jewelry. In addition, there is a fine selection of eighteenth-century French furniture—including many pieces signed by cabinetmakers to Louis XV and Louis XVI and, of historic interest, the writing table used by Queen Marie Antoinette while she was imprisoned three years during the French Revolution (gallery 55). The Gallery also contains a large collection of Chinese porcelains, including porcelains from the Ch’ing Dynasty of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

Until the East Building is completed, only a few selected works can be placed on exhibition in the galleries.

Prints and Drawings

The collection of prints and drawings at the National Gallery contains about fifty thousand examples from the fifteenth century to the present time. Included are drawings by Dürer, Rembrandt, Rubens, and Blake, as well as a wide range of prints by the major graphic artists of the Western World. The National Gallery’s collection incorporates an extremely fine selection of early Northern woodcuts and engravings and one of the most important groups of eighteenth-century French prints, drawings, and book illustrations outside of France. There is also an excellent group of early manuscript illuminations.

Visitors may examine prints and drawings not on exhibition by appointment with a curator in the Department of Graphic Arts.

Index of American Design

The Index of American Design is a collection of watercolor renderings of objects of popular art in the United States from before 1700 until about 1900. The renderings represent American ceramics, furniture, woodcarving, glassware, metalwork, tools and utensils, textiles, costumes, and other types of American craftsmanship. There are some seventeen thousand renderings and about five hundred photographs. These are available for study, by appointment. The works themselves may be loaned to organizations for exhibition outside the Gallery.

GENERAL INFORMATION

The National Gallery is open to the public every day in the year except Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. Admission is free at all times.

HOURS

_Regular:_ Weekdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, 12 noon to 9 p.m.

_Summer:_ During the summer months the regular hours are extended to 9 p.m. Dates for the beginning and termination of evening hours are announced on Gallery information boards and in the Gallery’s monthly _Calendar of Events_.

ART INFORMATION DESKS

There are two art information desks: one at the Constitution Avenue entrance on the Ground Floor; and the other at the Mall entrance near the Rotunda on the Main Floor.

CHECKROOMS

Free checking service is provided near the entrances. All parcels, briefcases, and umbrellas must be checked.

PUBLICATIONS SERVICE

Reproductions and catalogues of the collections are sold in the publications salesroom on the Ground Floor near the Constitution Avenue entrance. Books and catalogues, postcards, color reproductions, framed reproductions, original color slides, recordings, portfolios, sculpture reproductions (including jewelry), note folders, and other publications are available.

TOURS

Gallery talks and free tours of the collection are given by the Education Department.

An _Introductory Tour_, lasting about 50 minutes, covers the Gallery’s highlights. It is offered at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., Monday through Saturday, and at 5 p.m. on Sunday.

The _Tour of the Week_, lasting about 50 minutes, concentrates on a specific topic or on a special exhibition. It is given at 1 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday, and at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday.

The _Painting of the Week_, a 15-minute gallery talk on a single picture in the collection, is scheduled at noon and 2 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday, and at 3:30 and 6 p.m. on Sunday.

_Special appointments_ for groups of 15 or more people can be arranged by applying to the Education Department at least two weeks in advance.

_Recorded tours_, one offering a selection of the Director’s choice of paintings and another discussing works in various galleries, may be rented for nominal fees.

LECTURES

Lectures by visiting art authorities, and occasionally by members of the Gallery staff, are given at 4 p.m. on Sunday afternoons in the Auditorium.

The subjects are often grouped to form a series treating a single aspect of art history. Admission is free and no reservations are required. The A. W. Mellon Lectures in the Fine Arts, a special series commissioned by the National Gallery, which are subsequently published in book form, take place during the spring.

FILMS

Free films on art are presented on a varying schedule. For further information on tours, lectures, and films, consult the Gallery’s _Calendar of Events_.

CONCERTS

Free concerts are given in the East Garden Court every Sunday evening at 7 p.m. (with the exception of the summer period from late June to late September). Concerts are given either by guest artists or by the National Gallery of Art Orchestra under the direction of Richard Bales. The programs, with intermission talks or interviews by the Gallery staff, are broadcast live over WGMS-AM (570) and FM (103.5). Seats, which are not reserved, are available after 6 p.m.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

The monthly _Calendar of Events_ listing special exhibitions, lectures, concerts, and films at the National Gallery of Art will be sent to you regularly, free of charge, if you fill out an application at either information desk.

EXTENSION SERVICE

A variety of educational materials suitable for schools, colleges, and libraries can be borrowed from the Gallery. Color slide programs, with accompanying audio cassettes, texts, and study prints, cover a wide range of subjects. A number of films, including “Art in the Western World” and “The American Vision,” are available. All material is lent free of charge except for return postage. For information, apply to the office of the Extension Service.

SLIDE LENDING SERVICE

Slides of the Gallery’s collection are available as loans to organizations, schools, and colleges without charge. For information, apply to the slide library in the Education Department.

PHOTOGRAPHY OF WORKS OF ART

Photography for personal purposes, with or without flash, but not with a tripod, is permitted throughout the Gallery unless signs in a particular area indicate to the contrary. Application for permission to use a tripod should be made to the Photographic Services Office, Monday through Friday, exclusive of legal holidays.

PERMITS TO COPY WORKS OF ART

Easels and stools are provided without charge for those individuals who have secured permission to copy works of art in the Gallery. Application for permits should be made at the Registrar’s Office. Letters of reference and examples of work are required before permission to copy may be granted. No special permission is required for sketching without easels if only nonliquid materials, such as pencil, ballpoint pen, or crayon, are used.

CAFÉ/BUFFET

The café/buffet is open every day of the year except Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. It is located at the Concourse level and may be reached from the Main Floor via the East Garden Court and East Lobby or from the 4th Street Plaza.

_Regular hours:_ 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays and Saturdays, and 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. Sundays.

_Summer hours:_ During the period when the Gallery is open until 9 p.m., the café/buffet remains open until 7:30 p.m. on weekdays and Saturdays. Sunday hours are 1 p.m. to 7 p.m.

SMOKING ROOMS

Two lounges are provided for smoking: the smoking room on the Ground Floor and the Founder’s Room on the Main Floor near the Rotunda. Smoking is also permitted in the café/buffet but is strictly prohibited in all halls and exhibition galleries.

RESTROOMS

Restrooms are located on the Ground Floor, at the top of each staircase near the Rotunda on the Main Floor, and at the Concourse level.

FIRST AID

An emergency room, under the supervision of a trained nurse, is available for first-aid treatment in case of accident or sudden illness. It is located on the Ground Floor near the entrance to the Auditorium. The guards will direct visitors to this room on request.

WHEELCHAIRS • STROLLERS

Strollers for small children and wheelchairs are available from the guards at both entrances without charge. Attendants for pushing wheelchairs are not available.

TELEPHONES

Pay-station telephone booths are on the Ground Floor near the stairways, on the Main Floor near the Rotunda, and at the Concourse level.

GUARD REGULATIONS

The guards are under orders not to permit visitors to touch the paintings or sculpture under any circumstances. Fountain pens with fluid ink may not be used in the galleries. Smoking is forbidden in the exhibition areas.

PLANTS AND FLOWERS

Flowers and plants in the courts are grown in the National Gallery’s greenhouses and are changed frequently by the Gallery’s horticultural staff. There are special floral displays at Christmas and Easter in both the Garden Courts and the Rotunda.

Board of Trustees The Chief Justice of the United States, _Chairman_ The Secretary of State The Secretary of the Treasury The Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution Paul Mellon John Hay Whitney Franklin D. Murphy Carlisle H. Humelsine John R. Stevenson

Officers and Staff President: Paul Mellon Vice President: John Hay Whitney Director: J. Carter Brown Assistant To the Director for Music: Richard Bales Assistant To the Director for National Programs: W. Howard Adams Assistant To the Director for Public Information: Katherine Warwick Assistant To the Director for Special Events: Robert L. Pell Construction Manager: Hurley F. Offenbacher Planning Consultant: David Scott Assistant Director/Chief Curator: Charles Parkhurst Curators: American Painting: William P. Campbell Dutch and Flemish Painting: Arthur Wheelock French Painting: David E. Rust Graphic Arts: Andrew C. Robison Italian Painting, Northern and Later: Sheldon Grossman Italian Painting, Early: David Alan Brown Northern European Painting To 1700: John Hand Sculpture: Douglas Lewis, Jr. Spanish Painting: Anna M. Voris Twentieth-century Art: E. A. Carmean, Jr. Curator of Education: Margaret I. Bouton Head, Extension Program Development: Joseph J. Reis Head, Art Information Service: Elise V. H. Ferber Chief Librarian: J. M. Edelstein Editor: Theodore S. Amussen Head Conservator: Victor C. B. Covey Chief, Design and Installation: Gaillard F. Ravenel Chief, Exhibitions, Loans and Registration: Jack C. Spinx Registrar: Peter Davidock Head Photographer: William J. Sumits Treasurer: Lloyd D. Hayes Assistant Treasurer: James W. Woodard Administrator: Joseph G. English Assistant Administrator: George W. Riggs Personnel Officer: Jeremiah J. Barrett Secretary and General Counsel: Robert Amory, Jr.

Gifts and Bequests

The Board of Trustees has full power to accept gifts, bequests, or devises of works of art, money, or other personal or real property, and either absolutely or in trust. Gifts and donations to the National Gallery of Art are deductible for Federal income tax purposes within the limits provided by law, and are welcomed in amounts of any size.

★U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1976 O—207-802

Main Floor _Services_ _Men’s Room_ _Women’s Room_ _Checkroom_ _Information_ _Telephone_ _Elevator and Stairways_ _To: 1 Ground Floor_ _4th Street Entrance_ _To: Concourse_ _Café/Buffet_ _Mall Entrance_

Ground Floor _Services_ _Women’s Room_ _Men’s Room_ _Checkroom_ _Information_ _Telephone_ _First Aid_ _Facilities for the Handicapped_ _Sales Shop_ _Special Exhibitions_ _Constitution Avenue Entrance_ _4th Street Entrance_ _Auditorium_ _Elevator and Stairway_ _To: 2 Main Floor_ _To: Concourse_ _Café/Buffet_

Main Floor _Schools of Painting_ _Central Italian and Florentine Renaissance_ _North Italian and Venetian Renaissance_ _17th and 18th Century Italian_ _Spanish_ _Flemish and German_ _Dutch_ _17th and 18th Century French_ _19th Century French_ _British_ _American_ _Special Exhibitions_ _Sculpture_ _West Garden Court_ _Rotunda_ _East Garden Court_ _Mall Entrance_

Address: National Gallery of Art 6th Street and Constitution Avenue N.W. Washington, D.C. 20565 Telephone: (202) 737-4215 Cable Address: NATGAL _Pennsylvania Avenue_ _Constitution Avenue_ _7th Street_ _U. S. Capitol_

Transcriber’s Notes

—Silently corrected a few typos.

—Retained publication information from the printed edition: this eBook is public-domain in the country of publication.

—In the text versions only, text in italics is delimited by _underscores_.