378 REPORTS ON THE STATE OF SCIENCE, ETC. 
The Function of School Pictures. 
The use oi charts and pictures for the purpose of illustrating lessons in the class-room 
has been growing steadily for some time, but the subjects chosen, and the execution 
of the pictures, have not been suitable for decorative effect. The presence of artistically 
executed pictures upon the too often bare walls of the class-room would go far to 
improve and brighten the surroundings of the school and to enliven and inspire the 
daily routine of the child. Early in its proceedings, the Committee instituted a 
search for pictures which, while primarily educational in value, were accurate repre- 
sentations of the subjects, and would also stimulate the imagination of the pupil, 
inculeate the spirit of inquiry, and foster the appreciation of artistic merit. The man 
of science can represent facts rigidly, the draughtsman can produce strictly accurate 
representations of scientific phenomena and engineering feats, but it is the artist 
alone who can visualize Nature and combine these requirements in a picture which 
is neither coldly magnificent nor purely scientific, and at the same time replete with 
artistic representation and warm with the moving and human element. 
Pictures of this type are not common, and the Committee earnestly invites the 
consideration of publishers as to whether the provision of such pictures should not be 
attempted. The Committee is of opinion that pictures of this nature would be a 
most welcome item for school requisitions, and, certainly, a collection of striking 
pictures of decorative nature would appeal to all types of children and be likely to 
interest teachers and pupils generally, and, though not necessarily intended for 
instruction on specific points, would be of great educational value. 
Examples of Pictures of the Required Type. 
A collection of drawings meeting excellently the requirements of the Committee 
as indicated above is afforded in Joseph Pennell’s ‘ Pictures of War Work in England.’ 
These are reproductions in black and white of a series of drawings and lithographs 
made by him, with the permission and authority of the British Government, of the 
munition works. They are published in book form by W. Heinemann, price 6s. 
The lithographs are also published in large size by Messrs. Colnaghi and Obach, New 
Bond Street, London, price 3/. 3s. each. An American series by the same artist— 
‘War Work in America ’—is published by the J. B. Lippincott Co., London and 
Philadelphia, price 9s., and a corresponding series of enlarged lithographs by F, Keppel 
& Co., New York. The originals of the English series are in the Print Room of the 
British Museum, and the American drawings in the Print Division of the Library of 
Congress, Washington. These pictures, showing the remarkable scientific feats and 
inventions which accompanied the war, are realistic in effect and full of life. The 
suggestion arises immediately : Why should not an artist produce similar pictures 
depicting the work of the early alchemists, of spinning and weaving, of prehistoric 
Nature, and innumerable other subjects ? 
Other drawings by Mr. Pennell of a similar type and excellence are :— 
“The Panama Canal.’ W. Heinemann, London. Now out of print. 
‘ Pictures in the Land of Temples,’ Ditto. Price 5s, net. 
“The Wonder of Work.’ Ditto. Now out of print. 
The decorative effect is being enthusiastically worked out in the American Museum 
of Natural History under the direction of Professor H. F. Osborn. A series of eight 
large mural paintings illustrating the life of the African and American continents 
during the final period of maximum glaciation, and representing the four seasons of 
the year in mid-Glacial time, have been executed in accordance with the general 
theory of exhibition which prevails throughout the American Museum—namely, to 
present animals, extinct as well as living, in their environment. A list of pictures 
published by the American Museum may be seen in Natural History, American 
Museum, Vol. XX., May-June 1920, No. 3, and an article by Professor Osborn dealing 
with some of them will be found in Nature of April 21, 1921. (See also pages 379 
and 387.) 
Another example of the successful combination of human interest with scientific 
fact is the fresco depicting John Dalton collecting Marsh Gas (Assembly Room, Town 
Hall, Manchester), painted by Ford Madox Brown. (Cf. page 383.) 
No doubt there are other drawings and paintings equally appropriate in various 
picture galleries and public buildings about the country, but the Committee in the 
limited time at its disposal ean only cite the above. ; 
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