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176
THE LONDON SALON
an added charm, but of which it is an integral
part ; he will feel that the picture holds
together as a unity in the way that a good
sonata holds, in a way that nothing else does
in this exhibition ; also he will feel a certain
dissatisfaction which may cause him to inquire
whether Mr. Lewis has altogether succeeded
in expressing himself. We believe that he
has not. There is a laboriousness about this
work which seems to represent the artist's
unsuccessful struggle to realize in paint his
mental conception ; and it is for this reason
that we admire it rather as a promise of
something great than as an achievement.
The other striking thing in the arena is
Mr. Epstein's statue. Approached from be-
hind, as the present writer approached it,
this has very much the air of an important
work of art and ; that it well may be.
Closer examination, however, raises some
doubts. Is it, perhaps, only the imitation of
one ? Mr. is Epstein a baffling
artist. His
skill and scholarship are amazing, and he
seems to have convictions but what are
;
they ? Has he merely a brilliant gift for
description, helped out and sophisticated by a
subtle taste ? Or has he a queer entangled
sense of the significance of form. Is he a
plastic artist or an extraordinarily gifted
statuary ? Even if this work be an imitation,