A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S T U V W X Z

An Art Lovers guide to the Exposition

S >> Shelden Cheney >> An Art Lovers guide to the Exposition




Both murals under the Arch of the Setting Sun are by Frank Vincent
Dumond.

The Side Courts

The two small connecting courts, or aisles, at the east and west of the
Court of the Universe are known as the Florentine Court and the Venetian
Court respectively. Both are in Italian Renaissance architecture, and
both are remarkably rich in color. The patterns on the shafts of the
columns, while doubtless adding to the feeling of richness, are a little
too pronounced, tending to destroy that restfulness which is felt in the
other Italian courts, the Court of Flowers and the Court of Palms. In
both the Florentine Court and the Venetian Court the planting schemes
harmonize unusually well with the architecture.

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Size of the Court of the Universe

For the sake of those who find added interest in knowing on what scale a
work of art is built, the following facts are added:

The area of the Court of the Universe is about seven acres. On its east
and west axis, from arch to arch, it is six hundred and fifty feet; on
its north and south axis, from the Tower of Jewels to the Column of
Progress, it is nearly twelve hundred feet.

The Arches of the Rising Sun and the Setting Sun have a total height, to
the top of the surmounting sculpture, of two hundred and three feet.

The Tower of Jewels is 433 feet in height, while the main archway
beneath is 110 feet high.



Court of the Four Seasons



The Court of the Four Seasons, unlike the other main courts, does not
immediately call forth one's exclamations of surprise and delight. It is
not so compellingly beautiful as either of the others. Nevertheless it
has a distinctive charm of its own-a reposeful atmosphere and a
simplicity of form that become more and more appealing with riper
acquaintance. It is a good place to come to when one is satiated with
the beauties of the other courts, for restfulness is the keynote. The
simple massive style of the architecture and the simple planting scheme
combine to produce a spirit of calm. The ideas of energy, achievement,
progress, effort-so insistently emphasized elsewhere-are left
behind, and everything breathes a sense of peace and orderliness, of
things happening all in good season.

The primary idea underlying the decorative features of the court is
sufficiently indicated in the name, "The Four Seasons;" and this idea is
symbolically expressed in the sculpture and mural paintings in the four
corners of the colonnade. But a study of the other decorations shows
that the idea of abundance, or fruitfulness, was equally in the minds of
architect and sculptors. The purely architectural ornaments, such as the
capitals and the running borders, employ the symbols of agriculture and
fruitfulness, while no less than five of the main sculptural groups or
figures deal directly with harvest themes.

Architecture

The style of architecture is in general Roman. The half-dome and the
colonnades are almost severely classic. The column capitals are Ionic.
But in the freedom of some of the architectural forms, particularly in
the archways at east and west, there is a suggestion of Renaissance
influence. The plan with its four cut-corners with fountains, and its
half-dome facing down the long colonnade to the bay, is ingenious. The
half-dome itself, dominating feature of the court, is exceptionally
dignified and impressive. To obtain the best view of it as a single
unit, one should stand between two columns of the colonnade near either
the Fountain of Summer or the Fountain of Autumn-as from these points
the eye is not carried through the doorway at the back of the dome, to
the detriment of a unified impression.

Henry Bacon is the architect who designed the Court of the Four Seasons.

Sculpture

Bulls on pylons. The finest sculpture here is to be found in the groups
capping the pylons at the entrance to the minor north court. Though
called by the artist "The Feast of Sacrifice," these are commonly known
as "The Bulls." The group, which is duplicated, shows a bull being led
to sacrifice by a youth and a maid, and is reminiscent of the
harvest-time celebrations of ancient peoples. But it is just as well to
forget the subject, and to admire purely for the sensuous charm-for
the beauty of outline, the fine modeling, and the remarkable sense of
spirited action. Note the three figures individually: the nobly animated
bull, the magnificently set-up youth, and the strong yet graceful
maiden; then note how the sacrificial garland holds the whole group
together and makes it richer. Note, too, how the forward-moving lines of
the bull are accentuated on one side by the similar lines of the youth's
body, and on the other by the contrasting lines of the girl's. Putting
aside any question of meaning, there is not in any of the courts a
nobler bit of decorative work than this. Albert Jaegers was the
sculptor.

Figures surmounting columns. On the two columns before the half-dome are
Albert Jaegers' figures of "Rain" and "Sunshine." At the right, as one
faces the dome, Rain is typified by a woman shielding her head with her
mantle and holding out a shell to catch the water. At the left Sunshine
is represented by a woman shielding her head from the sun's rays with a
palm-branch. Both figures are characterized by a sense of richness, of
fullness, that is perfectly in keeping with the spirit of the court. In
commenting on these statues, in one of his lectures on the art of the
Exposition, Eugen Neuhaus, the well-known California painter, suggested
very appropriately that the court should have been named for them "The
Court of the Two Seasons" since in California the only noticeable
seasonal change is from a sunny period to a rainy period.

Group surmounting half-dome. This shows a conventional seated figure of
Harvest, with an overflowing cornucopia. At one side a child-figure bows
under a load of fruit. This group also is by Albert Jaegers. Here, as in
"Rain" and "Sunshine," there is a sense of fruitfulness, of profuseness,
a maternal suggestion that helps to carry out the symbolism of the
court. In all three of these statues, too, there is something of the
nobility and massiveness that distinguish the same artist's "bull"
groups across the court. All are eminently suited to the massive Roman
architecture; nowhere else have sculptor and architect worked together
more successfully.

Fountains of the Seasons. In the niches formed at the corners of the
court by the diagonal colonnades are novel fountains, surmounted by
groups representing the four seasons. It is well to go first to the
southwest corner, to the "Fountain of Spring"; then to the northwest
corner, for "Summer"; and so on around the court. If one is ever puzzled
to understand from the figures which season is represented, a glance at
the labeled murals up above in the corridor will give the proper title
for statue and murals of each season are grouped together.

Spring. A young woman draws a floral garland over her head, while at her
right a love-lorn youth turns a pleading face to her, and at her left a
girl brings armfuls of flowers.

Summer. To a man a woman holds up a babe, symbol of the summer of human
life, while at one side a crouching figure holds a sheaf of full-headed
grain.

Autumn. The central figure is a woman of generous build with a jar on
her shoulder-quite the usual personification of Autumn or
fruitfulness. At one side a young woman holds a garland of grapes, and
at the other is a girl with a babe. This last figure is perhaps the most
graceful in all the four groups, though the same sort of loveliness
distinguishes to a certain extent the two flower-girls of "Spring."
Altogether, this "Autumn" fountain is probably the finest of the four.

Winter. The central figure is Nature, in the nakedness of winter,
resting after the harvests of autumn and waiting for the birth of
spring. At one side a man with a spade rests, while on the other a man
with a seed-bag is already beginning to sow. Although all the figures of
"The Fountains of the Seasons" are nude, there is about this group a
sense of cold nakedness that well accords with the season it portrays.

These four groups are very properly alike in composition and
feeling-suggesting perhaps that the differences between the seasons in
California are but slight. There is throughout a conventional touch, and
all are in pastoral mood. The groups are by Furio Piccirilli.

The Fountain of Ceres is in the north extension of the court, between
the Palace of Food Products and the Palace of Agriculture. The
surmounting figure is of Ceres, Greek goddess of the fields and
especially of corn. The bas-relief frieze represents a group of dancers,
suggestive of the seasonal festivals of the Greeks. The main figure has
been much criticized, but an unbiased critic may find much in the
fountain to praise. The pedestal and the crowning figure are well
thought out, and the proportions of the whole are good; and there is a
feeling of classic simplicity throughout. The frieze of dancing girls,
too, is exceptionally graceful. If, then, one discovers that Ceres is
more mature than a goddess ever ought to be, or that her face suggests
that of an exasperated school-teacher, or if one finds the cornstalk in
her hand a realistic thing incompatible with any poetic conception, it
is well to step back until one gets only the general effect. For there
is much to admire in the poise of the figure, in the decorative outline,
and in the sculptor's lightness of touch. The fountain was designed by
Evelyn Beatrice Longman.

Minor Sculptures. On the archways at east and west of the court a
high-relief figure by August Jaegers is repeated eight times, and the
spandrels over the arches are by the same artist. In both cases the idea
of abundance or fruitfulness again supplies the motive. The boxes at the
bases of the columns on which "Rain" and "Sunshine" stand are decorated
with agricultural scenes in low relief. The capitals at the tops of
these columns are enriched with groups of agricultural figures. Within
the archways at east and west the ceilings are decorated with delicate
bas-relief designs, patterned after the famous ones at Villa Maderna,
Rome.

Mural Paintings

All the murals in the Court of the Four Seasons are by H. Milton
Bancroft. In general they are less interesting than those of any other
court.

The Seasons. In the four corners of the colonnade there are eight
panels, grouped by twos as follows: Spring and Seed Time; Summer and
Fruition; Autumn and Harvest; and Winter and Festivity. There is little
to hold the attention either in richness of color or in unusual grace of
composition. Moreover, the artist has left nothing to the imagination in
the symbolism by which he expresses the several ideas. The devices are
so hackneyed, and the meaning so obvious, that any sort of
interpretation would be entirely superfluous.

Panels under half-dome. On the east wall under the dome is the panel Art
Crowned by Time. Father Time crowns Art, while on one side stand figures
representing Weaving, Jewelry, and Glasswork, and on the other Printing,
Pottery, and Smithery. On the opposite wall is the panel Man Receiving
Instruction in Nature's Laws. A woman holds before a babe a tablet
inscribed "Laws of Nature," while on one side are figures of Fire, Earth
and Water, and on the other figures of Death, Love, and Life. These two
larger panels are more pleasing than the eight representing the Seasons,
both in coloring and in figure composition; and they make pleasing spots
of bright color in the dome. But again the artist is tediously careful
to make his meanings plain. Not only does each figure hold its obvious
symbol prominently in view, but there are labels naming the figures. To
the art student the painter's stipple-and-line method, producing
vibration of light and a certain freshness of atmosphere, will be of
interest, as being out of the usual run of mural technique.

Before leaving the Court of the Four Seasons one should stand under the
central arch of the triple portal at the east, and look first to the
east through the Arch of the Setting Sun to the group "Nations of the
East;" and then to the west along the vista that ends with the kneeling
figure before the Fine Arts temple. The arrangement of architectural and
sculptural units in both vistas is worthy of study.



The Court of Palms and the Court of Flowers



In these two courts, which pierce the walled city on the south, opposite
the Palace of Horticulture and opposite Festival Hall, is to be found
the purest expression of that spirit of the Italian Renaissance which
hovers over so much of the Exposition architecture. Here, too, one finds
Jules Guerin's color scheme at its richest. Both courts necessarily lack
the cloistral charm of the Court of Abundance, since they have the
fourth sides open. But what they lack in the sense of enclosure they
make up in sunniness and joyous color. They are restful and warm and
quiet-and artistically they are among the most perfect and most
harmonious units on the grounds.

The Court of Palms

The Court of Palms is directly opposite the Palace of Horticulture,
between the Education and Liberal Arts Palaces, and adjoins the Court of
the Four Seasons. The charming sunken garden and simple pool reflect the
colored colonnade, arches and towers with a sense of rest that is a
relief and stimulant after walking miles of exhibit halls. Although
really nearly two acres in area, the court seems small and intimate. The
proportions are good, and the planting particularly fortunate.

The architecture is Renaissance, and is suggestive of the interior
courts of the palaces of the Italian nobles. The colonnade columns are
Ionic. The high attic story or frieze above the colonnade is remarkably
rich, with its orange brown panels garlanded with green and red fruits,
and decorated with Caryatid pilasters. It is worthy of study for the way
in which architect, sculptor and color director have co-operated. The
Italian Towers, terminating the colonnades, are among the finest bits of
architectural design in the whole building group. Though only a fraction
of the height of the Tower of Jewels, they convey much better the
impression of reaching high into the heavens, of aspiration and uplift.
They are more satisfying, too, in their combination of architectural
forms, and they carry out notably well the delicate but luxuriant color
scheme of the court. The unusual repeated pattern which fills the large
wall panels of the towers is worthy of attention.

The architect of the court was George W. Kelham.

Sculpture. The only really important statue in the court is that which
stands at the opening on the Avenue of Palms-called The End of the
Trail. An Indian, bowed at last under the storm, sits astride a dejected
horse utter weariness, discouragement, lost hope, expressed in every
line of man and animal. Some see in the statue only the abject despair
of a horse and rider when the consciousness finally comes that the trail
is definitely lost in the wilderness; and it is notable enough as an
expression of this tragic theme. But others, remembering the history of
the Indian, see here an eloquent and pathetic reminder of a race that
has seemingly come to the end of its trail. As a portrayal of this
racial tragedy the group is even more remarkable than as an expression
of the hopelessness of a lost man and horse.

The statue is hardly in key with its architectural surroundings; but its
comparatively isolated position prevents it from seeming an intrusive
element in the court. Considered alone it is more individual, more
expressive of independent and deep moving thought, than any other
sculpture in the grounds. There is far more of real earnestness here
than is usual in exposition sculpture. The thing is significant, too,
for the native note. It is worthy of serious study as indicating one of
the most important tendencies of American sculpture when not tied to the
purely decorative. The sculptor was James Earl Fraser.

The minor sculptures in this court consist of the Caryatides by John
Bateman and A. Stirling Calder; the spandrels, by Albert Weinert; "The
Fairy," by Carl Gruppe, which crowns the Italian Towers; and the classic
vases at the portals.

The mural paintings in this court are disappointing. Two are
surprisingly poor, considering the high reputation of the artists, and
the third is badly placed. The tympanum in the portal at the east side
of the court is filled by Charles W. Holloway's panel, The Pursuit of
Pleasure. This is a conventional treatment of the subject, in which a
number of youths and maidens turn lackadaisically to a winged figure of
Pleasure. There is a pleasing lightness of touch, and the bright reds
and blues are in keeping with the spirit of the court-but the thing
is, somehow, insipid. This panel is more pleasing under illumination. In
the opposite portal is Childe Hassam's painting, Fruits and Flowers.
This again is a conventional treatment, showing very obviously vegetable
and human fruits and flowers. The arrangement is tediously symmetric,
the coloring is rather weak, and there is a wooden stiffness about the
figures. The panel makes a pleasant spot of color, but is by no means up
to the standard of the canvases in Hassam's room in the Palace of Fine
Arts.

The panel over the main doorway, at the north end of the court, is by
Arthur F. Mathews, and is far superior to the other two, though
unfortunately placed in a dark spot. It is called by the artist A
Victorious Spirit. The central figure, gorgeously suggesting the Spirit
of Enlightment, protects Youth from the discordant elements of life from
materialism and brute force, as represented by the rearing horse and
militant rider. Youth is attended by the peace-bringing elements of
life, by Religion, Philosophy or Education, and the Arts. The symbolism
here is sound, the composition and drawing unusually good, and the
coloring quite wonderful-especially in the orange-yellow robe of the
Spirit. The full deep colors are in sharp contrast with those of most of
the Exposition murals.

No one should leave this court without first pausing to enjoy the vista
through the north doorway, showing Albert Jaeger's spirited Sacrificial
Bulls on the Agriculture and Food Products Palaces, the long colonnade
of the Court of the Four Seasons, and the bit of bay and hills beyond.

The Court of Flowers

The Court of Flowers is opposite to Festival Hall, between the Mines and
Varied Industries Palaces. The first impression, as one comes to it, is
that here is a replica of the colorful Court of Palms. But many
differences become evident after a few moments' study.

The architecture is Italian Renaissance, but of a more richly decorative
sort than in the Court of Palms. There is more overlaid ornament, and on
the whole, less simplicity and quietness and more varied interest. The
columns here are Corinthian, arranged in pairs. The gallery above the
colonnade adds to the suggestion of the sunny South. The Italian Towers,
while similar in feeling to those of the other court, are different in
the arrangement of elements, though equally successful. The color
decoration is again notable.

It is hardly necessary to add that George W. Kelham designed this court
too.

Sculpture. The center of the court is dominated by Edgar Walter's Beauty
and the Beast Fountain. The surmounting statue is a curious combination
of graceful lines and grotesque effects. The strange Beast is no less
fantastic than the young lady herself-she who has adorned her fair
body with nothing more than a Spring hat and a pair of sandals. It is
probably this near-nudeness, without pure nakedness, that creates the
jarring note of the group Certainly there is a bizarre touch that
somewhat offsets the sinuous charm of the figure. Under the upper basin
are four piping Pans, not notable individually, but adding to the
decorative effect. The wall around the lower pool carries a playful
frieze of animals in low relief.

The Pioneer is the title of the equestrian statue at the south end of
the court, on the Avenue of Palms. The man is typically the Western
pioneer, as every resident of the Pacific Coast has known him-a
patriarchal figure who foreran civilization here in the West of America
as he has in all other new lands. Head up, axe and gun in hand, looking
straight forward, he is a fine visualization of the "Forty-niner." He
is, too, an interesting racial contrast to the Indian of "The End of the
Trail." One wonders, however, about the horse, with the elaborate
trappings that clearly belong to another era-to the days of Spanish
conquest, perhaps. Certainly horse and rider do not seem to be conceived
in the same spirit. The group lacks, too, that vital intensity of
feeling and that emotional strength which distinguish "The End of the
Trail," the companion-statue in the Court of Palms. The "Pioneer" is by
Solon Borglum.

The minor sculpture here consists of A. Stirling Calder's attractive
"Flower Girl," repeated in the niches along the loggia; dignified Lions,
by Albert Laessle, flanking the three portals; and again Carl Gruppe's
"The Fairy," atop the Italian Towers.



The Tower of Jewels, and the Fountain of Energy



It was planned that the Tower of Jewels should be the great dominating
feature of the architectural scheme of the Exposition; that this unit
more than any other should stand as a triumphal monument to celebrate
the opening of the Panama Canal. The mural paintings, the sculpture and
the inscriptions all carry out this idea, but the tower, in its
architectural aspect alone, fails to live up fully to its purpose. It
serves well to "center" the whole scheme, and to afford an imposing pile
at the main entrance. Nevertheless it falls short of the high
architectural standard of the courts and palaces.

Architecture

The architectural forms used in the design of the tower are in general
classic; but the architect has shown considerable originality in their
arrangement and massing.

The lower portion, embracing the imposing arch and flanking colonnades,
is very dignified and quite satisfying. Standing close to the structure,
on the south side, so that one is conscious chiefly of this lower
portion, there comes the proper sense of nobility-the feeling that one
obtains from a successful triumphal arch. The chief fault of the tower
above is that it lacks the long lifting lines that would give a sense of
aspiration. It seems just a little squat and fat-as if it were too
heavy on top and splayed out at the sides and bottom. It is also
somewhat "showy," with too much hung-on ornament; and the green columns
against red walls are not satisfying-this being one of the very few
failures of the color scheme in the entire group of buildings.

At night the tower takes on a new and unexpected beauty. The outline
softens under the illumination, and the feeling of over-decoration and
broken lines is lost. The whole structure becomes a huge finger of
light, reaching up into the dark heavens-with softer indirect lighting
below, and glowing brilliantly above. Even the hundred thousand pendent
jewels, which at best are but flashy in the day time, add to the
exquisite fairy like effect at night. The illumination here is such,
indeed, that it must be one of the most impressive and lasting memories
to be carried away by the visitor.

The Tower of Jewels was designed by Thomas Hastings, of the firm Carrere
and Hastings of New York.

Sculpture

The sculpture, like the mural paintings, deals in general with the
winning of the Americas and the achievement of the canal project.

Sculpture on the tower. As one stands in the South Gardens facing the
tower, one sees above the first cornice, reading from left to right,
four statues of The Adventurer, The Priest, The Philosopher, and The
Soldier. These finely realized figures, which are by John Flanagan,
represent four types of the early conquerors of America. On the next
story is a repeated equestrian statue of the Spanish Conqueror, called
The Armored Horseman, by F. M. L. Tonetti. These five statues are
repeated on the other three faces of the tower. There is much other
sculpture of a purely decorative sort, the motives used being those
usually found in triumphal monuments, such as eagles, wreaths, and the
beaks of ships with which the Romans ornamented the columns celebrating
their naval successes.

Equestrian statues at entrance. In front of the two side colonnades are
spirited equestrian statues. As one faces the tower, the figure at the
left is of Pizarro, who conquered the richest portion of South America
for Spain. This figure is heroically decorative, and is by Charles Carey
Rumsey. At the other side of the main arch is Charles Niehaus' vigorous
statue of Cortez, who won Mexico for Spain. This figure, carrying a flag
and pennon on a lance, and perfectly seated on the strong horse, has a
live sense of movement, and the whole group is informed with the spirit
of the lordly conqueror.

Fountains under the tower. Within the colonnades to east and west of the
main archway are respectively the Fountain of Youth and the Fountain of
El Dorado.

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