Earth
Fruit Pickers, Court of Ages
In the corners of the ambulatory about the Court of Ages, crystallizing the color and design of its long, arched ceiling, are the opulent, warm, vibrant murals by Frank Brangwyn. They introduce to the general public of America this Belgian-English artist who has long been esteemed among the great of the world. He has presented here the Elements, two interpretations of each, in relation to their service to simple human life. The paintings are neither allegorical nor photographic, but highly interpretative of the luxuriant picturesqueness of nature and the everyday labors of man. The luminosity of color, dash and daring of contrast, fairly crackle with life and yet have rich depths of quietness. The two panels of Earth glow with the earth's abundance. The first, the "Fruit Pickers," here shown, in which harvesters gather fruits from high trees and the laden ground, is notable for its marvelous massing of composition and color. The second, "Dancing the Grapes," is remarkable for its shimmering contrasts of light and shade. In both you get the tang of the harvest season.
Fire
Industrial Fire, Court of Ages
The two Fire panels represent this element in its two phases of serviceability. The first shows its simplest use, that of giving warmth to man; the second, its more developed employment as an agent of manufacture. In the "Primitive Fire," a gray, woodsy plume of smoke rises to the autumn sky. A group of workers have made a fire at the edge of a grove; they surround it, some encouraging the growing blaze by blowing upon it, others leaning forward toward its warmth. The thin pillar of waving smoke is executed with such fidelity that it explains why this artist's admirers dwell upon his handling of fugitive surface tones, as smoke or clouds, as much as upon his more obvious excellences. In "Industrial Fire," here reproduced, the smoke rises not in fine line, but in heavy mass from a kiln. It is a rich cloud, colorful with iridescent metallic lustres. Workers feed the blaze, their warm flesh glowing in the mixed light. Whole vessels and broken bits of pottery are heaped and scattered upon the ground.
Water
Fountain Motive, Court of Ages
As the Earth panels are luxuriant, teeming with a sense of plentitude, and the Fire panels are moving with the grace of rising smoke, those that represent the phases of Water are moist and lush. In the one here shown, "The Fountain," people have come through the damp grasses, bearing their bright vessels to fill them with water that flows downward from a spring in a long, fine, curving bow. The beautiful grouping, the pose of the figures and the graceful lines of the vessels are unforgettable. The air is fluid; great white clouds stretch across the sky, which has the same liquid beauty as the water in the background. Water-birds and dewy flowers add life and color. The grateful use of water for man's thirst is beautifully told. In the other water panel, "The Net," hardy fishermen, standing in the water-reeds and blossoming flag-lilies, haul in the last catch of the brightly dying day. Others bear on their heads baskets heavy with the success of earlier castings. Heavy sea-clouds are tinted by the late afternoon sunshine.
Air
The Windmill, Court of Ages
The two panels of Air may well be thought of as the air that moves and the air that supports. In the first, "The Windmill," which is illustrated, the motion of the wind and of the world it blows is dazzling. The field of, golden grain, bright in the glow of the sun that has just broken through the rain clouds, is quivering with graceful undulations. The great wings of the windmill turn, with flapping sails. The little kites are blown tempestuously. The garments of the workers wave forward as they walk, braced against the wind that blows from behind them. A brilliant rainbow and wind-blown dark rain-clouds tell the end of a passing storm. In the second Air panel, which is called "The Hunters," the air supports the arrows just shot from the bows of hunters who hide behind the last trees at the edge of a wood. It bears also flocks of homing birds and light clouds blown across a ruddy sunset sky.
Half Dome
Court of the Four Seasons
The murals in the Court of the Four Seasons are the work of Milton Herbert Bancroft. They are smooth, flat, highly decorative to the wall surfaces into which they blend with rare discretion and harmony. They have a soft beauty of coloring and a classic definiteness of outline that accord well with the pure feeling of this court. Mr. Bancroft has kept two ideas consistently throughout these murals. One is the abundance of rewards and delights brought by the changing seasons; the other, the fruitful labors of man. In this second idea special honor is tendered to those who labor in the arts and artistic crafts. To these two ideals the sculptor has given the unifying title, "The Pleasures and Work of the Seasons." The panels of The Seasons appear in the walls of the fountain niches. In the place of honor is the beautiful Half Dome; beneath its colorful decorated roof are the great, panels, "Man Receiving Instruction in Nature's Laws" and "Art Crowned by Time." In the former, Nature holds her child, Man, in her arms. She has summoned for him all the forces of the Universe, who attend in a group of calm dignity. She teaches him that by obedience to her laws all these forces, Earth, Fire, Water, Life, and even Death, will serve and never harm. The other panel is described on the following page.