Hoyal Academy. 1 4 1 



tempts pure character, he stands unrivalled. Design and style 

 were the bases of the plans of these- painters; but the principle 

 t>f the Vetietian was very different — colouring. Titian, its master, 

 copied nature at first in a juvenile manner, till he learned breadth 

 of form and colour from Giorge. The Professor gave the cha- 

 racter of Titian with great energy and acuteness, summing up ' 

 bv the observation, that he was the father of portrait-painting, 

 -and as yet in that branch has stood unrivalled ; he was the first 

 that united character and resemblance with dignity. — A national 

 character pervaded the brightest aera of the Venetian school. 



The soft transitions from convex to concave, and the coalition 

 of light and darkness by imperceptible blendings are the elements 

 of Correggio's style. This inspires his figures with grace, and 

 to these their grace is subordinate : his was an incomparable hue 

 of colour, and suavity of form. Correggio was emulated by Par- 

 migiano, thougli not always with equal consistency and propriety. 

 While Michael Angelo was doomed to live and brood over the 

 perversion of his style by the Venetian painters, death prevented 

 Raphael from witnessing the gradual decay of his, — The com- 

 pact style of Polydoro, formed upon the antiijue, wa* the prin- 

 cipal meteor of merit, before the appearance of the Carracci, 

 who founded at Bologna that electric school, which, by selecting 

 the beauties, correcting the faults, supplying the defects, and 

 avoiding the extremes of the different styles, attempted to form 

 a perfect system. Among the various schools of the Carracci, 

 called the school of Bologna, the art gradually declined from me- 

 diocrity to evanescence, from evanescence to oblivion. 



Thursday, 80th Feb. Mr. Fuseli delivered his second Lecture 

 in continuation. It was observed, that the superior claim which 

 fhe effects of design have upon our attention, would seem to be 

 powerfully implied by their duration; — words become obsolete, 

 sounds expire, colours fade ; in forms alone, can idea be rendered 

 permanent. 



Mr. Fuseli said, that in the language of the art, the words 

 copy andimitation were generally confounded, though essentially 

 different in their meaning ; precision of eve and obedience of 

 hand being, in truth, the requisities of the former : while choice, 

 disected by judgement and taste, constitutes the essence of the 

 latter. It had been said within the Academy, by the highest 

 authority, that colour should be used as soon as possible by the 

 student ; the Professor wished it particularly to be understood, 

 that this was by no means intended to encourage incorrectness 

 of drawing; it mattered little with what materials correctness of 

 drawing was attained ; the accomplishment of it was indispensa- 

 bly necessary. It had been said by the same authority, that if 

 we mean to attain excellence of form, we must scrutinize the 



principles 



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