36 The Hon. John Collier [Feb. 7, 



WEEKLY EVENING MEETING, 

 Friday, February 7, 1896. 



Basil Woodd Smith, Esq. F.E.A.S. F.S.A. Vice-President, 

 in the Chair. 



The Hon. John Collier. 



Portrait Painting in its Historical Aspects. 



(Abstract.) 



The lecturer began with the consideration of portraiture in classical 

 times. 



Although no direct evidence was obtainable until the late and 

 altogether debased portraits found in the Fayoum, yet from indirect 

 evidence we might gather that portraiture amongst the Greeks and 

 Eomans was a very dignified and charming art, probably a little 

 tame and lacking in character, but at its best more full of beauty 

 than it has ever been since. 



The likenesses of the dead found in the Grasco-Eoman cemetery 

 of the Fayoum were then discussed. It was pointed out how 

 strangely tJaey resembled the art of another very debased period — the 

 early Victorian. 



Portraiture was then shown to have sunk under the burden of an 

 increasing formalism, until in the early middle ages it had practically 

 ceased to exist. 



It first reappeared when Italian painting was brought back to life 

 by the genius of Giotto. Eeference was made to his great fresco of 

 Paradise, in the lower portion of which is a likeness of Dante 

 walking in procession with his fellow citizens. 



The next decided advance was ascribed to Masaccio, the forerunner 

 of the great fifteenth century masters, who were all in the habit of 

 introducing portraits of their friends into their subject pictures. 



But the modern practice of having separate portraits of individuals, 

 was shown to have sprung up with the great painters of the Eenais- 

 sance — who also were the first to utilise the full resources of light 

 and shade, by which the vigour of portraiture was so much enhanced. 

 It also owed a great deal to the introduction of oil painting and the 

 consequent spread of easel pictures. 



After alluding to the art of Leonardo and of Eaphael, the lecturer 

 referred to Titian as the great portrait painter of the Eenaissance. 

 He considered that Titian was, on the whole, the greatest painter who 

 had ever lived, but not quite the greatest portrait painter. Both 

 Eembrandt and Velasquez gave more vitality to their likenesses, but 



