8 



THE POPULAR EDUCATOE. 



the oak and willow, for example is hard and rough, while in the 

 beech and birch it is smooth. The straight parts of the branches 

 of some trees are short, from their slow growth, while others that 

 increase more rapidly shoot forth their stems in one direction to 

 a greater extent. The smaller twigs and shoots of some, like 

 the birch, are very slender, numerous, and drooping ; the horse- 

 chestnut has fewer shoots, but they are thicker, and grow 

 upwards. Much more might be added to our consideration of 

 this important subject, but we think enough has been said to 

 point out the way, trusting our pupils will perfectly comprehend 

 our intention by these remarks, and be prepared to accompany 

 us in the consideration of foliage. 



In our last lesson we mentioned that, in drawing foliage, the 

 mode of treatment must in a very great measure be influenced 

 by the light and shade. We propose now to proceed with this 

 interesting part 

 of our subject, 



, and show what 



\ is meant by the 

 term " massing 

 in the foliage." 

 There are some 

 who think that 

 it is necessary to 

 have for each 

 kind of tree some 

 distinct and es- 

 pecial <owc7i,clas- 

 sifying them as 

 ' ' the oak touch, ' ' 

 " the elm touch," 

 "the beech 

 touch," and nu- 

 merous others, 

 regardless of the 

 [act that as the 

 sun casts its 

 light upon a tree 

 it brings out the 

 shape and indi- 

 vidual character 

 of its branches 

 so definitely that 

 even at a con- 

 siderable dis- 

 tance, when it 

 would be impos- 

 sible to recognise 

 the leaves, we 

 can pronounce 

 the tree to be an 

 oak, or elm, or 

 whatever else it 

 may be, simply 

 from the manner 

 in which, as an 

 artist would say, 

 "the sun lights 

 it up." The 

 most important 

 consideration in 

 drawing a tree is 



to devote much attention to the light, and the parts that are made 

 out in light. There are two reasons why the lights are considered 

 to have such special importance (this principle belongs not to 

 trees only, but to every other object that claims the attention of 

 the painter) : the first is, because the details are more recognisable 

 in the light than in the shade, and require particular care to 

 represent them faithfully, for without the details in light there 

 would be very little to show for our pains, as the shadows to a 

 great extent absorb or obscure not only the colour but also the 

 form ; the other reason is, that the eye naturally rests upon the 

 lights and all the brighter parts first afterwards, when we make 

 a further and closer examination, we see the parts in shadow. 

 Nor must we enter into laborious and painful detail, as in the 

 practice of mere leaf -painting. As we have said before, we do 

 not look at leaves singly, but at foliage collectively; therefore 

 those branches of a tree, let its kind be what it may, which are 



Fie. 100. 



in the light, will have their own especial forms in mass to 

 characterise them, and it is those forms in masses which we 

 must copy. But- lest our pupil should suppose from these 

 remarks upon generalising foliage that we intend him to stop 

 here, and to represent nothing more than the breadth of light and 

 shade, we must remind him of what has been said above respect, 

 ing the details in light ; we must remember also that, however 

 broadly and definitely the light may fall upon a tree, since it is 

 not a flat surface like a wall, there will be hundreds of minor 

 shadows and semi-tones scattered all over the extent of light, and 

 there is as much individuality amongst these as in the whole 

 mass, and their characteristics in detail are not less striking and 

 significant because they are small : in short, they are reduced 

 repetitions of the general masses of light, and must be treated 

 with the same feeling if we wish to make a faithful represen- 

 tation. Here 

 again is the 

 point of differ- 

 ence between a 

 first-rate and an 

 inferior artist, 

 mentioned in, 

 a former les- 

 son namely,, 

 the ability he- 

 possesses to re- 

 present the mi- 

 nor shades and 

 Bemi-tones, both, 

 in regard to their 

 number and ex- 

 pression, and his 

 capability for 

 doing this will 

 determine his- 

 rank as an artist. 

 Sir Joshua Rey- 

 nolds mentions 

 a landscape 

 painter who was 

 remarkable for 

 his patience in 

 what he consi- 

 dered " high 

 finish," and 

 thought that the 

 greatest excel- 

 lence to be at- 

 tained consisted 

 in the represen- 

 \ tation of every 



leaf on a tree. 

 "This picture," 

 says Sir Joshuav 

 "I never saw; 

 but I am very 

 sure that an ar- 

 tist who regards 

 only the general 

 character of the 

 species,the order 

 of the branches, 



and the masses of the foliage, will in a few minutes produce a 

 more true resemblance of trees than this painter in as many 

 months." Wo must dwell for a few moments upon the prin 

 ciples here inculcated, and explain by what means a painter 

 obtains the enviable power of making a faithful resemblance 

 with comparatively slight labour : it is because he adopts the 

 excellent practice of making separate studies of details, such as 

 branches, trunks, stems, weeds, and foregrounds in short, 

 everything that may be deemed worthy of note. It is this 

 method of copying parts of objects with close accuracy that 

 gives him the power of representing them generally and yet 

 faithfully, with the natural effect which they bear to one another 

 as a whole. An eminent English landscape painter, whose 

 manner was as remarkable for its freedom of execution as it 

 was for the truthfulness of its results, once remarked to us : 

 " The secret of my success ib in having bestowed much tim 



