FINE ARTS. Illustrations of the Graphic Art; EXEMPLIFIED BY SKETCHES FROM THE NATIONAL MUSEUM AT PARIS. A DEAD CHRIST. THE first observation which strikes an amateur in examining the historical works of Van Dyk is, that they are done from a different pallet with his portraits; in colouring, in particular, they are much inferior. As a portrait painter, Van Dyk is original; but in history, he is merely a copyist; he wished first to resemble Rubens, his master; then Titian; then Paul Veronese; but in portrait, he has only attempted to be himself. The sentiment, the arrangement, the composition of this picture are good; but we cannot say so of its expression: the body of Christ, indeed, cannot be said to have any defect in the drawing; but then the head is not divine, nor even noble; the Virgin is accurate, but her grief is common, too studied; it is merely the grief of a mother; it is prose, where we expect poetry; it is a Stabat, but not a Pergolese. The air of the Magdalen too, is too young, too worldly; she kisses the hand as if the band was still alive. As for the St. John, the only expression is that of attention; he is even more prosaic than the others; there is nothing apostolic, but he is merely a handsome young man present at an affecting scene, in which he himself is concerned. The angel has too much importance in the composition; he is dressed too in the Dutch, and not in the Italian style. One may find many of his brothers in Rubens' pictures. Van Dyk was more correct in his drawings than Rubens; but then he was anxious to obtain the mode of colouring of his master, sought for it, and lost his own. The legs of the Christ are inky; and that through his never-ceasing principle of sacrificing all the inferior light; having no black draperies, he seems thus to have sought a substitute for them. adhered to, the effect of the engraving is even more vigorous than that of the painting itself. CARDINAL BENTIVOGLIO was both a churchman and statesman;` and the character of the head, its attitude, physiognomy, and expression, are all in concert. There were two Cardinals of the name of Bentivoglio, Louis and Francis. This man is quite the minister; his head is political; there is diplomacy in his very look; the light strikes on the full front, and descends by gradation over the whole figure; his hands are those of the prelacy; the Ronan purple is beautiful and brilliant, and flesh must be strongly coloured to preserve the proper contrast with it. The folds of the drapery are perhaps rather studied; towards the bottom they seem as if suddenly thrust in by the hand, the picturesque intention of which, no doubt, has been to throw back and withdraw from the light, the retiring front; but when these tricks are adopted, they ought to be of a nature not to be easily found out. However, after all, this portrait is one of the finest in the collection; it possesses all the firmness, all the assurance of a master; the linen, and the laces of the ecclesiastical rocket, are not inky and sacrificed; they have great freedom of colouring, and the flesh is not less beautiful. There have been two engravings done from this portrait; oue by Pichianti, a Florentine artist, of which the style of engraving is agree able, but without vigour and without effect, although correct in its designing; a circumstance which often happens where artists do not engrave after the picture itself, and content themselves with copying from a mere design which never can inspire the spirit of the original. The other engraving is better; and bears a greater resemblance. The flesh is done in the mezzotinto style, the hair, the beard, and the dress are performed by the graver. This picture was brought to Paris, from the principal altar of the Beguin's church at Ant-plate of MONCADE was sustituted for that N. B. Owing to a mistake of the Press, the of CHARLES I. which will be corrected in the ensuing Number, werp; it has been engraved by Paul Pontius, and the design and sentiment being strictly |