LES30NS IN DRAWING. 



cation of the vine-loaf, the oak, and the ivy. In fact, M Mr. 

 Redgrave has said, " He that would bo a great designer must 

 be in the hedgerows and fluids at all times, sketching with 

 I.:i! irut diligence the form and curvature* of leaves, fruits, and 

 flowers, their grouping** and foreshortening* ; studying them as 

 a whole, and in their minutest details, together with thoir 

 growth and structure. Not to repeat as a mere imitator, but 

 to display them as ornament ; to dispose them geometrically, 

 to arrange them to suit the various fabrics or manufactures for 

 which they may be called on to design, and to give them life 

 and words, as it were, by using them as emblems of some living 

 thought or poetical allusion." 



It is the application of the graceful forms of the vegetable 

 kingdom that constitutes the most important part of the study 

 of the designer and decorator: the power of drawing, important 

 as it is, is only the means ; the adaptation is the end sought for. 

 Here it is, we can say with truth, that it requires the mind of 

 an artist to accomplish it, to be imbued with an originality of 

 thought, that can make the simplest object do duty for worthy 

 purposes. 

 It very f re- 

 quen t ly 

 occurs, in 

 art univer- 

 sally, that 

 by contrast 

 or applica- 

 tion we dis- 

 cover excel- 

 lences not 

 before ob- 

 served: re- 

 specting 

 the use of 

 this idea, 

 how many 

 times, may 

 we ask, 

 have we 

 trod on the 

 decaying 

 leaf in our 

 pathway, 

 without 

 having had 

 the atten- 

 tion in the 

 least di- 

 rected to it 

 as capable 

 of suggest- 

 ing either 

 an original 

 form or a 

 fresh ar- 

 rangement of colour? However insignificant and valueless an 

 object the fallen leaf may seem to be, it is capable of teaching 

 us a lesson of great practical utility. It has been supposed 

 by some that the shape of the vase owes its origin to a leaf ; 

 it may be so or not, but it is sufficient for us to know its 

 capability of suggesting it, and it leads us to where the designer 

 may apply if any new form is required. Such resources, when 

 regulated by a disciplined and scientific taste, must produce 

 something as beautiful as it is original. In search for hints for 

 decorative purposes it is not absolutely necessary to confine our 

 choice to the floral varieties of a conservatory or greenhouse, 

 however valuable they may be for the purpose ; the green lanes 

 and hedgerows can boast of gems of form amongst nettles and 

 wild flowers, from which articles of ornament and utility may 

 borrow their simple elegance either to decorate a palace or 

 perform some humble service in a cottager's dwelling. Nature 

 everywhere offers hints that are useful as well as beautiful, and 

 the designer need never sigh for a model. As an illustration of 

 the way in which plants may be adapted to ornament and 

 design, we have introduced one for a candlestick in Fig. Ill, 

 the socket of which is a lily; the extinguisher inserted in 

 the side is a dead blossom of the same plant, emblematic of 

 its use. 



We now take np another portion of oar subject relating to 

 landscape the principles of the reflection of object* in water, a* 

 by reflection only can water be represented. 



It has been frequently said that a landscape is incomplete 

 without water; it is certainly an element which contributes 

 much additional beauty and effect to any SOBM, be it erer so 

 simple ; yet wo cannot go so far as to say that it most neces- 

 sarily bo introduced in all cases. Independently of iteelf, there 

 are associations connected with water that cannot be pa*ed over 

 without notice, and which bear an important part in the whole 

 composition, whenever it forms a portion of the picture, snch a* 

 whipping, barges, boats, fishermen, and picturesque bridges. Why 

 is it that, in our choice of a walk, we generally prefer a *troU 

 near some stream ? We attribute it to the variety of scenery 

 afforded by the winding river, and the numberless point* of inte- 

 rest that catch the eye as we ramble along its banks. The life 

 and motion connected with water have no limit ; and bosldes, we- 

 cannot forget, when it is clear and calm, its capability of reflecting 

 every object near it in full perfection, and increasing oar admira- 

 tion by the 

 fidelity 

 with which 

 it reverse* 

 form, and 

 r efl ect 

 colour, 

 light and 

 shade, thus 

 making a 

 d o n b 1 e 

 picture. 

 There are 

 s e ve ral 



Fig. 111. 



resulting 

 from the ap- 

 pearances 

 of refl ec- 

 tions upon 

 the surface 

 of water 

 which un- 

 doubtedly 

 require 

 more at- 

 tention 

 than is 

 generally 

 devoted to 

 such sub- 

 jects by 

 many who 

 aim at re- 

 presenting 

 them. A 



course of study is necessary which some would suppose to be 

 beyond the limits pursued by artists generally, but which we 

 contend is indispensable ; for every one who undertakes or 

 hopes to paint Nature as she is, must go deeply into her mys- 

 teries, and endeavour as far as possible to understand them, and 

 not abide by a mere superficial following of outward appearances. 

 Why is it that the sculptor and the historical painter seek the 

 advantages to be gained in the dissecting-room ? Because they 

 feel that a knowledge of anatomy is of the utmost importance to 

 them when engaged upon the human form. Similarly the land- 

 scape painter wisely looks about for aid when difficulties arise, 

 which have their remedy often beyond the limits of his own legiti- 

 mate art ; and he will meet with an abundant source of difficulty 

 with regard to reflections. There are incidents so puzzling con- 

 nected with these, that unless he possesses a little geometric*! 

 knowledge, he cannot avoid falling into endless mistakes. We 

 must again have recourse to geometrical perspective, which 

 will not only assist us in our explanations, but will set at rest 

 many doubts which might arise in the minds of our pupils with 

 regard to facts that seem to be impossibilitirs. unless we employed 

 this conclusive help in rendering them intelligible. Sir Joshua 

 Reynolds said, " The rules of art are not fetters to genius ; they 

 are fetters only to men of no genius," 



