Excerpt from Scribner's Magazine, Vol. 19: Published Monthly With Illustrations; January June, 1896 In the concert-room of the Mendelssohn Glee Club of New York has recently been set a decorative painting which is so adequate in its essentials, so intelligent in its grace, and, above all, so exquisitely in harmony with its surroundings, that eye and mind, resting upon it, enjoy it in pure unconsciousness of the fact that it is but a part of a general scheme which evidently must include a like composition on the opposite wall and the half-dome of the proscenium. The huge frieze, some 50 feet long by 12 feet high, is not forced into undue prominence by these as yet undecorated surfaces. It does not "make a hole," neither does it come forward; like a violin playing its part in a symphony, it is content to play its part in the ensemble; and it has, therefore, the first though rarest quality of a decoration - that of being so much a part of the architectural ensemble that one does not detach it from its environment. Daylight and the artificial light at evening playing about the large simple interior, built primarily for the delectation of the ear, suffuse it with a soft radiance that blends this painting of Mr. Robert Blum's with the architectural features, making of it the final and ennobling touch to spacious panels, to friezes and mouldings, with their fragile arabesques in relief. And while so high in key that it gives a creamy tone to white walls and ceilings, the sharp notes of the gilt candelabras, which here and there judiciously relieve the pale ensemble, are mellowed and brought into tender subjugation by its subtle color-scheme. Neither timorous nor vaporous, it possesses a definiteness which is the finer for being unassertive. It is like an intelligent person who in good company has the supreme art of saying the right thing in the right way and at the best time, and whose tact and regard for others emphasizes his own fine individuality. Dignified, nobly balanced, full at all points, it suggests as little as a Greek moulding the need of alteration. Given full credit to professional skill of a high order, united with a remarkable artistic temperament, we still have something to be accounted for in this homogeneous and masterly result. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.