PAINTERS AND ENGRAVERS.
owing to the very urgent persuasions of these
two friends that he eventually relinquished his
occupation, entered at Mr. Fred Brown's Studio
at Westminster, and finally decided to give his
attention to Illustration. At the age of nineteen
he accepted the tremendous task of illustrating
the 'Morte d' Arthur,' and after considerable labour
carried it through. When still quite a lad he had
attracted the attention of Sir E. Burne-Jones and
also of Puvis de Chavannes, and it said much for
his genius that it should have received encourage-
ment from two men so different in their aims and
practice as were these two. His special qualities
were thus described by Hamerton in his eulogy
of the artist: "Extreme economy of means, the
perfection of discipline, of self-control and of
thoughtful deliberation, at the very moment of
invention." In 1893 appeared the famous article
on Beardsley in the pages of the ' Studio,' and
from that moment the lad was famous. His success
was the most unfortunate thing which happened
to him, as he became involved with the " latest
charlatanisms cf the hour," and was claimed by
the artists of the decadent movement as one of
themselves. His illustrations to the three vols, of
'Bons Mots,' and to 'Salome,' 'The Rape of the
Lock,' and ' The Savo}-,' are works of remarkable
genius, also many of his single illustrations in the
' Yellow B. ok,' while others did not add to his fame,
and in some cases were distinguished by a vicious
and ignoble qualitj-, together with a peculiar
disposition to represent types without intellect and
without morals, which later on he regretted with
all his heart. His latest works were the ' Book of
Fifty Drawings,' the illustrations to ' Mademoiselle
de Maupin,' and to ' Volpone,' all executed when
he was seriously ill with that illness from which
he never recovered. He was, however, neither
depraved nor immoral, but was unable to withstand
the desire to do dcver, mischievous things, and
to shock persons of narrow opinions. His work
in the ' Savoy ' and the ' Yellow Book ' were mis-
understood, and were thought to be the work of
a man of evil disposition, but it was not so. He
would have been better had he restrained his
mischievous disposition, and had he lived he would
have restrained (t left it behind him, but in any
case the existence (f this curious quality, much as
the artist afterwards regretted it, must not be put
down to actual vice. Beardsley was always a
man of religious temperament, of deep and serious
aims and of earnest feelings. In the last few
years of his life he became a Catholic, and in that
faith he died at Mentone in March, 1898. His
dra^vings were fu^l of imagination and of delicate
fancy. There were often the faults of eccentric
proportions and tricks and mannerisms of stjle,
but with all there was a marvellous knowledge
of the quality of line, an exquisite portrayal of
texture, a vigour, inventiveness and daintiness
which are almost unapproachable in the work of
any other man. His sense of beauty was a very
real and powerful one, and there is an earnestness
about his work and a desire not alone to be quaint
and fanciful, but also to realize the hidden depths
of beauty which deserves fuller recognition than
it has received. The horror and evil of many of
the faces, the cunning and malice depicted in
some of them, have been too much considered, to
the detriment of the greater qualities which
Beardsley undoubtedly possessed. His technique
was masterly; there was, as has been well said, "a
serene surety in his drawing and a superb sense
cf style." No artist so rapidly reached so universal
or contested a fame, few have had so wide an
influence, few have been so much misunderstood,
and few have been so profoundly original. There
is an excellent sketch of his life, written by his
friend Arthur Symons, and articles on his work
by Aymer Vallance and Margaret Armour are to
be found in the ' Magazine of Art,' and by Pennell
and others in the 'Studio' and 'Artist.' From these
and from personal knowledge the above notice
has been written. G. C. W.
BEATRICIDS. See above. Master of the Die.
BEATRIZET, Nicolas, (Beautrizet, or BeaTRICETTO,) a French engraver, was bom at Lune- ville in or before 1520. From his style it has been conjectured that he was a scholar of Ghisi, and of Agostino Veneziano de Musis. From 1540 to 1560 he engraved under the direction of Michelangelo. He died at Rome after 1560. His works are more indebted, for the estimation in which they are held, to the subjects he has selected, than to the merit of their execution. He usually marked his plates with the letters 3^. B. L. F. Their number is con- siderable, but most of them are comprised in the following list :
PORTRAITS. Bust of Pius ni. Pope Paul III., an oval. Pope Paul IV. ; dated 1558. Henry II,, King of France ; X. B. F. Lot f. 1558. Another Portrait of Henry II. ; dated 1556, Hippolita Gonzaga, Juan Valverdus, Spaniard, Antoine Salamanca, engraver and dealer in prints, Don Juan of Austria, an oval, on a monument ; inscribed Genirale delta Legha.
The Genealogy of the first twelve Emperors and Em- presses, with their Portraits, from medals ; two sheets. The Kings of Poland, in medallions ; inscribed Regea Poionia:.
SnBJECTS OF SACRED HISTORY.
Cain killing Abel ; inscribed Fratricida Aielis, A. S- ex. 1540, Joseph explaining the Dream ; afler Raphael ; marked A* B. F.^ and his name ; one of his best plates. The Nativity of the Virgin ; after Baceio Bandinelli ; inscribed Nicolaus Beatricius restituit et formis suis eze. The Annunciation ; with the names of Michelangelo and Bcatrici. The Adoration of the Magi; (7//er Parmigiano,y.B.Z.F. The Holy Family, with St. John ; Jeroin. Mulian,pinx., Nicolaus Beatricius Lotaringus, ineidit, &c. The Good Samaritan ; Michelangelo^ inv, Christ on the Mount of Olives; after Titian; marked y. B. F. The Crucifixion, with the Virgin, Magdalene, and St. Jolm ; with the Sun and Moon on each side ; Mud' anus Brixiamts^ inv.^ Xicolaus Beatricius, ^r. exc. The Mater Dolorosa ; after Michelangelo ; A'. B. Roma. 1547, The taking down from the Cross; after Cirdgnani ; marked B. Roma. Christ delivering the Souls from Purgatory; with the names of Raphael and Beatrici. The Ascension ; after Raphael, with his cipher, 1541, The Conversion of St. Paul ; Michelangelo, pinx., ^e. ; marked y. B. St. Michael overcoming the Evil Spirit; after Raphael; marked y. B. L. The Virgin seated on a Throne, distributing Rosaries ; inscribed yicolaus Beatricius, Src. exc, oval. The Cross worshipped all over the world ; arched plate, marked y. B. P., and inscribed Crux illustris, t;e. MDLTII.
The prophet Jeremiah ; after Michelangelo.
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