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SCHOOL OF PAINTING AT THE BRITISH INSTITUTION.

(From a Correspondent.)

The present school of painting commenced on the 17th of September, and the students, as usual, have made numerous attempts to copy the inimitable examples of art which have been selected for their improvement.  The selections consist of specimens from the Italian, Flemish, Dutch, and English schools, and afford ample variety, in style and subject, for the different tastes of the students.  We are sorry to state, however, that only a very few copies can be selected as possessing a fair resemblance to the superb originals.  We proceed to notice those who deserve the most praise:—­

Gainsborough’s Milk Girl is a most happy production of the pencil:  the figure possesses great infantile beauty; and the landscape is rural, and in perfect harmony with the subject.  This work has been cleverly copied by Messrs. Sargeant and Lilley in oil, and by Miss Fanny Corbaux in water-colour.

An Advocate in his Study—­Ostade:  an exquisitely finished cabinet picture.  The expression in the advocate’s face is excellent, and the various objects in his study are in proper keeping with his calling.  The copy by Mr. Novice is excellent; and those of Messrs. Robson and Higham display great ability, though they are not sufficiently finished.

A Sea-shore, attributed to Backhuysen, has been studied by Mr. Dujardin.

Landscape—­Gaspar Poussin. This great master admirably delineated the grandeur of Italian scenery, and invariably chose to represent it when the clouds forboded a storm, or when other accidental effects of nature added to the sublimity of the occasion.  We generally experience a kind of awe while contemplating his works; and this feeling is excited by the chef d’oeuvre before us.  Several students have attempted it in oil; and Messrs. Musgrave, Burbank, and Taylor have copied it in water-colour.

Messrs. Marks, Sargeant, and Foster deserve notice for their studies from a Landscape with Figures, by Waterloo; and a charming picture by Albert Cuyp, representing a wide champaign country, with some well-executed figures in the foreground, has engaged the talents of Messrs. Hilder, Child, and Stanley.

Guido’s Magdalen has been beautifully copied, on a small scale, by Mr. Emmerson; and St. Martin dividing his Garments, by Rubens, has met with successful imitators in the pencils of Messrs. Middleton and Buss.  These gentlemen’s copies, however, are considerably smaller than the original, which is of the dimensions of life.

The Water Mill, a brilliant little picture by Ruysdael, has employed the pencils of several students;—­among the most successful of whom are Messrs. Stark, Lee, and Hilder.

View on the Grand Canal, Venice, by Canaletti:  this is, perhaps, the ne plus ultra of the master, and is the property of that distinguished patron of the fine arts—­Lord Farnborough.  Miss Dujardin has produced the best copy:  she has painted the buildings, boats, &c., with considerable accuracy, and has succeeded in imitating the transparency of the water.  Miss Cook and Mr. Fowler have also copied this work.