Page 27 - Studio International - December 1967
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we were showing. Some workmen were  difficult to understand and could not always  three carvings and a number of drawings
            digging in a hole in the ground near by,  tell whether he was friendly or hostile, but  was successful in spite of a very mixed
            and one of them, approaching Sickert, said:  often he was a delightful companion. He  press. It was greatly helped by the offer of
            'I bet you wouldn't like to own a picture like  seemed suspicious and did not like my  Jacob Epstein to write a note on his work for
            that, sir, would you ?"Oh, I would,' said  association with other artists with whom he  the catalogue.
            Sickert, 'seeing that I painted it."Here,  had quarrelled. He used to call at the side   The prices at this first exhibition seemed
            Bill', the workman said, 'the gentleman says  or private entrance and ask for me. His first  very moderate and there were quite a lot of
            he painted this picture.' Bill put his head  enquiry would be: 'Who is in the Galleries?  sales. Many of his small carvings were
            up from the excavation and said, 'h yes, I  None of my "old chums" I Hope.' When I  priced as low as 15 gns and the highest-a
            don't think!' And Sickert, telling me of this  assured him that the coast was clear, he  large reclining figure-£200. Drawings were
            incident-'It's typical of a cockney-never  would venture in, but if there was anything   priced 8-10 gns. Amongst the buyers of his
            believes anything he's told.'            of a crowd, he would persuade me to go out  latest work were Epstein himself, E. C.
             There were famous passers-by also who  for a drink.                              Gregory (a distinguished collector who was
            took notice of the pictures in our window. I   In this first exhibition of 1921, beside the  also a Director of the Institute of Contem-
            used to see A. J. Balfour and very often  satirical pictures of Tyros  and the drawings  porary Arts), Robert Sainsbury (a lively
            Bernard Shaw. These two otherwise dis-   from nature, there were several portraits  young collector with considerable taste),
            similar men were both alike in that they  such as those of Ezra Pound and Sache-  William Rothenstein and Eric Gill.
           appeared to be talking to themselves when   verell Sitwell. There was also a portrait in   Items in the press-cutting album referring
           they were looking at something which had   oils of Miss Iris Tree lying in a deck chair,  to Moore's exhibition make extraordinary
           their attention-a habit perhaps of the  a formalized and rather cubist work, all  reading today. There is no doubt of the sen-
            public speaker.                          acute angles; it emphasized the sharp  sation created by this early work, but most
                                                     knees, elbows, and features in the same  of the notices consisted of childish or vulgar
           A letter from Pound                       manner as the chair in which she was  abuse. The  Morning Post  was the worst
           During the Gaudier-Brzeska exhibition a  reclining.                                offender but there was a serious and thought-
           collector wished to buy a carving belonging   While we were arranging the exhibition, in  ful article by Herbert Read in The Listener,
           to [Ezra Pound] and I went off to see him in   walked Max Beerbohm. Lewis, I knew, was  and an approving notice by Francis Watson
           Kensington about this proposal. Pound was  anxious to keep everyone out during the  in the Yorkshire Post  and a notable eulogy
           a poor man but was very reluctant to part  hanging. I said to him, 'Would you like to  in the  Jewish Chronicle.  The Yorkshire
           with his carving and paced up and down  show Iris Tree's portrait to her uncle?' I  papers were particularly vociferous but
           his little room many times before he  knew Max would dislike the picture but I  most of them seemed to be mainly excited
           accepted.                                 introduced them. Max looked at it solemnly  by the fact that a man born in Castleford
            Later, when Pound was in either Paris or  for some moments before Wyndham Lewis  should so suddenly have acquired such fame
           the United States he used to write me  asked him what he thought of it. Max said:  in London!
           sarcastic letters or postcards. Here is one:   'It has its points.'                 At that time Henry Moore's ideas of money
                                                     When Max had one of his exhibitions of  were very simple. His great desire was to
                        57 Rue des Saintes Peres, Paris VI
                                                    cartoons and caricatures shortly after wards  give up teaching in London and concentrate
           Dear Brown,
            The slumber of all men passeth understanding. This   I showed Lewis round and asked him what  on sculpture in the country.
           merely to say that Brancusi is the supreme sculptor of   he thought of the drawings. He expressed   As a result of his first show he wrote to me:
           Europe and that there has never been a show of his   the greatest admiration of them. 'Beautiful!   I am quite pleased with the result considering the
           work in London. Difference between him and Gaudier:   Such taste I But what a pity he writes-poor   bad times. I am going to risk doing only one day's
           that between a young genius at the beginning of his   stuff, his books.'           teaching each week this next year, leaving six for my
           run and a master with thirty years more of experience.                             own work, which prospect makes me very happy.
           Brancusi's stuff going steadily to Quinn, Kahn,  Moore's first major show
           Arensburgh in New York.                  Henry Moore's first important show of fifty-
            It's your business to know these things not mine to
           tell you.
                                 Best wishes,
           3rd Sept. 1921.  	                       Correspondence                            is to fall over with delight at every paint pot hurled, or
                                     Ezra Pound
                                                                                              a group of organized sycophants of artists, and their
            He asked me to call on him one afternoon   Appallingly uncritical                 own liberality. The disadvantage of such a situation is
           early in 1920 and rather apologetically                                           that while critics rightly refuse to condemn novelty,
           showed me a collection of erotic drawings   Dear Sir,                             they are too afraid to see the banal, or academic.
                                                                                              I will not pretend that what I say now is more than the
           by Wyndham Lewis which I have never seen   Studio  reports on current British and American art
                                                    are, beyond question, uniquely thorough in art   slightest of personal opinions. What worries me above
           since. They were cubist drawings and as
                                                    journalism. But have developed too distinct a style—a   all is that, despite critical posturing, the old situation
           far as I know have never been reproduced.   habit, appallingly uncritical, of regarding the current   flourishes as seldom before. In the welter of fashion
           'Cigar boxes copulating' was the descrip-  as of its nature  avant garde  or new. The British   innumerable modish academics are acclaimed with a
           tion I heard from an ironic acquaintance   exhilaration at having escaped the old stigmas of   frantic seriousness that cheapens the assessment,
           who had apparently seen them too. They   academicism and playing second or even third   however it be equally vociferous, of really important
           were of course then impossible to exhibit.   fiddle to Europe and exultation at being more swing-  young artists. I do not know whether Caulfield's 'cool
           Before I left him Ezra Pound gave me a book   ing or zany than almost any one else, are strong   updating' of Delacroix's  Greece expiring . . .  was
           of 'facsimile' drawings by Lewis inspired by   forces in your writing. Sometimes there is a more   done to lament the coup, or if it was rendered fortui-
                                                    circumspect feeling that, in certain respects, per-  tously appropriate by events; but I feel that it helps to
           Timon of Athens. 'Leave it about on a table   haps, we have too long been hanging on Dada's boot-  confirm a suspicion that his work is deeply and
           and then on another table and you will get   straps; but why worry, Duchamp has hangers-on the   unadventurously traditional. Like Walls and Sutton, he
           to like it,' he said. (I still have  Timon of   world over.                       combines the moderate mastery of drawing in the
           Athens.)  Pound remained a strong admirer   This is insufficiently critical; an attitude born of the   nice sense with an addiction to the fag ends of the
           of Lewis, and in later years, I did my best to   dissidence of Whistler and Ruskin, of the discomfort-  Fauvist movement. Kidner and other hard edgers,
           make a success of Lewis's work; our first   ing of conservative criticism. The effect is that art   Tilson on your October cover, all stir memories of
           one-man show was held in April 1921....   writers have become (at least at their more journal-  some movement or another; and not of a movement
            At times, I confess, I found him [Lewis]   istic) a stall of voluntary aunt sallies whose function   developed, but worked to an academic death. Prizes
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