The Royal Guide to Wax Flower Modelling Part 8

"Hoping the best--ready the worst to brook, Yet seeking friendly hearts--go forth, my little book."

"As life is then so short, we should so live and labour that we may have pleasing remembrances to console and cheer us at its close; let us work earnestly and diligently, not only for our own good, but for that of our fellow creatures:--

"Oh! let us live so, that flower by flower, Shutting in turn, may leave A lingerer still, for the sunset hour, A charm for the shaded eve!"

HEMANS.

EXHIBITION OF WAX FRUITS AND FLOWERS, BY MRS. PEACHEY, ARTISTE TO HER MAJESTY.

The following eloquent awards of the press are placed as nearly as possible in the order of their respective dates, but the dates are necessarily omitted.

Mrs. Peachey, artiste to her Majesty, has now on private view at her rooms, 35, Rathbone Place, a superb collection of works intended for the Great Exhibition. They consist princ.i.p.ally of an enormous bouquet of flowers and a colossal vase of fruit, both of which have been executed upon a scale never previously attempted in this country. The flowers are so arranged, that they appear to stand in a basket suspended over the surface of a pool of limpid water, in which the _Victoria Regia_ and other similar plants are already floating. Nothing can be more exquisite or artistic in effect than the manner in which the various flowers are grouped. The bouquet comprises specimens of almost every flower known to the botanist, from the simple honeysuckle of the cottage garden, to the rarest and most valuable exotics of the East.

Some idea of the dimensions of the two princ.i.p.al works may be gathered from the fact, that the shades are nearly six feet high, the largest ever blown in England, and the flowers occupied nearly a year in modelling. It was the intention of Mrs. Peachey to forward these beautiful specimens of her skill to the Great Exhibition, where a prominent place on the ground-floor was a.s.signed to them; but it appears, that, owing to subsequent arrangements, another s.p.a.ce, in one of the galleries, was allotted to her, and not at all adapted to such costly and fragile productions. The heat of the sun, in such an exposed situation, would have damaged the flowers irreparably; and even if this objection did not exist, it would be impossible to have the enormous shades, with their delicate contents, raised by any machinery at command into the desired position. The exhibition is one of so novel and beautiful a character, that it will well repay a visit.--_Morning Post._

The art of making flowers in wax has been brought to a very high degree of perfection by Mrs. Peachey, Her Majesty's artiste. There is not a floral production that she cannot truthfully and delicately reproduce with her kindly material, and she has lately executed a work which we believe defies compet.i.tion in the department to which it belongs. This is an enormous bouquet, containing flowers of the most intricate structure, and supported by a rock, which peers from a lake of the brightest looking gla.s.s, decorated in its turn with waxen aquatic plants. All the flowers were modelled in the first instance from white wax, and the beautiful colours are all produced by painting. The whole group is enclosed by a shade, composed of four gla.s.s plates, so curved as to meet at the top.

The work in question is to be seen in Rathbone Place, but it was the intention of Mrs. Peachey that it should be seen at the Crystal Palace. According to her statement, she was led to believe that she would be allowed a ground-floor situation, but was only allowed a place in the gallery, so exposed to the sun, that the first hot day would have performed a work precisely the reverse of her own labours. Under these circ.u.mstances she has deemed it better that her flowers should blush unseen, than that they should melt away in a halo of visibility.

Into the Crystal controversy it is not our desire to enter, but we would testify to the excellence of Mrs. Peachey's work as being perfect of its kind.--_The Times._

We yesterday inspected a beautiful collection of wax flowers by Mrs.

Peachey, artiste to Her Majesty, now on private view at 35, Rathbone Place. We have seen many specimens of the elegant art of modelling in wax, but without exaggeration we may declare that more magnificent and truthful imitations of nature it has never been our lot to witness. The centre-piece is an immense bouquet of several hundred flowers, of almost every description, and every hue, from the gorgeous scarlet cactus to the virgin-tinted snowdrop, modelled with the closest fidelity, and arranged with exquisite taste. At the foot are models of the glorious water-lily of Guyana, the recently discovered Victoria Regia, in several stages of its development, from the close shut bud with its p.r.i.c.kly calyx to the expanded flower. Some idea of the dimensions of this giant bouquet may be formed from the fact that it stands nearly six feet in height, and that the bent plate-gla.s.s shade with which it is covered alone cost 200.

Next to this in beauty as well as size is a vast group of fruit, fifty inches in height, the shade to which is itself a curiosity, being we believe, the largest for superficial dimensions ever yet blown in England. Besides, there are a number of smaller groups of flowers and fruit, all of singular beauty. We understand that Mrs.

Peachey intended this collection for exhibition at the Crystal Palace; but, owing to some miscomprehension on the part of the commission, they have been reserved for private view. The place a.s.signed to Mrs. Peachey was, we are informed, in one of the galleries, so close to the roof as to render the solar heat too dangerous for the extremely susceptible material of which these articles are composed.--_Morning Advertiser._

Mrs. Peachey, the artiste to her Majesty, has on view at her residence, 35, Rathbone Place, some new examples of her extraordinary skill in wax painting, originally intended for the Exhibition, but not permitted to appear there in consequence of the _locale_ a.s.signed to them being at the top of the building, where, exposed to the action of the sun, they would be in peril of dissolution. The examples consist of two remarkable models--one an enormous and magnificent bouquet, consisting of hundreds of flowers of the most intricate structure and beautiful colouring, as well as the greatest diversity of character. The violet and the _Cactus grandiflora_, with the water-lily of Guiana, and the newly discovered _Victoria regia_, form part of this exquisite group.

All the flowers were modelled separately from white wax, and the colours afterwards superinduced. The bouquet stands six feet in height, and is covered with a bent gla.s.s shade. The other model is a group of fruitage, covered with a gla.s.s shade more than four feet high, and nearly three feet across, being the largest ever yet blown in England. It was manufactured from designs supplied by Mrs.

Peachey herself, and cost 200. Nothing can be more picturesque or artistic than these models: full of wonderful detail which it is impossible to pursue, and implying a marvellous amount of labour and ingenuity, they lead us to regret that any misunderstanding should have led to their absence from the Crystal Palace.--_Ill.u.s.trated London News._

Ever willing to extend our protecting aegis to the weak and unsupported, we feel ourselves called upon at the present juncture to step into the arena as the defenders of several meritorious individuals whom we conceive to have met with the most unworthy treatment in regard to the exhibition, or rather the non-exhibition of their productions of art in the Crystal Palace. We have received a number of communications from artists of first-rate talent, complaining of the exercise of undue influence in official quarters, but we have been more immediately led into an investigation of the circ.u.mstances connected therewith, by a communication from Mrs.

Peachey, of No. 35, Rathbone Place, Oxford Street, artiste in wax to Her Majesty. That lady's statement is nearly as follows:--that about twelve months ago, when the erection of the building in Hyde Park was spoken of, and the nature of its contents mentioned, she, feeling anxious to prove to the world that the very high and royal patronage she enjoyed was not unmerited, sent in her subscription of five guineas towards the construction of the building, and intimated her intention of sending in some specimens of her own works. She was immediately a.s.signed a most elegant site for her display on the ground floor, in the avenue near the fountain.

Nothing could be more consonant to her wishes, and she forthwith sent in her pedestals and minor portions of framework, etc. Some time since, however, on questioning this gentleman as to the certainty of her getting the desired position, she was astonished at being told she must send her articles to No. 29, _in the gallery_.

This she refused to do, and the consequence has been that the Exhibition has been deprived of some of its rarest specimens of art.

The reason Mrs. Peachey a.s.signs for not sending her works to the gallery is the impracticability of their being carried up stairs without being, from their extreme fragility, seriously injured, perhaps mutilated. Even were they to be slung up by tackle, she says they would be subject to the same risk, and her two princ.i.p.al works, viz.--an enormous bouquet of the most exquisitely modelled flowers, and a gigantic vase of fruit, she values at no less a sum than 1000.--_Sunday Times._

A visit to Rathbone-place, is a stepping from the ordinary exhibitions of mere art to a miniature garden, in which may be seen grouped together the beautiful flowers and fruits of every season and every clime. We shall not attempt to describe with too nice minuteness the wonderful creations of this gifted lady's hand, but freely give our impressions as they came on our inspection of these completions--these perfections of art.

To name all the blus.h.i.+ng subjects so fairly representing the rich and wide domain of Flora, would be far less easy of accomplishment, of enumeration, than to say that queen roses--the English rose--the delicate, the beautifully clothed lily--the crimson fuchsia--the acacia, and gorgeous tulip--the Victoria Regia, in all its stages of development, bud, blossom, flower,--were as the realities of stilly life, which seemed to say, in the expressive language of flowers--"put aside from us our gla.s.sy veils, remove our crystal shrines, that we may nod kisses to the wooing zephyrs."

Pomona, too, was there. Her thousand fruits cl.u.s.tered under transparent concaves. Grapes that might have moved Bacchus to press them with his rosy lips--peaches, melons, s.h.i.+ny currants, inviting strawberries, and crowning pineapples--all worthy the pencil of a Lance--glorious as the painting of nature, mockingly tempted us to seize the fairy prizes--reminding us of an anecdote of Swift. The facetious dean, with several friends, was invited to walk the rounds, and admire the delicious fruit bending the countless trees to the earth in the orchard of an "old acquaintance," who kindly pointed out to his most admiring guests the charming sweets by which they were surrounded; but, "sour grapes to them"--asked them not to make themselves "at home," nor offered pear nor apple. This was too much for Swift, who had a happy knack of inventing sc.r.a.ps of poetry to suit his purposes, and thus applied himself on the occasion; "I remember that my old grandmother had a saying:--

"Always take a peach When within your reach."

Action suited to the words quickly followed. The quick arch wit of St. Patrick's put forth his hand, and his good example was followed by all the company, who each took a peach, when within his reach.

Now, we must confess that we were almost tempted to essay a similar feat of onslaught on Mrs. Peachey's magic garden, but were, fortunately for all future sight-seers, withheld by the consciousness that those many rainbow liveried sweets to the eye, were not for ourselves or Covent-garden, but were the triumphs of a skilful artiste.

And are these the works that have been, which are refused a fitting place in the high field of universal, peaceful rivalry and compet.i.tion in the Crystal Palace for the works _of all nations_?

What! Can this be possible? Here are the works _of our own nation not there_--excluded! Surely for the credit of the Exhibition--for the honorable name of the Executive Committee, there should be enquiry. The works cannot be said to be excluded upon their merits, for they have not been inspected by the authorities. There was, nay, there is room enough in the building in Hyde Park for this peerless and costly challenge of an English woman as an artiste. England in fair compet.i.tion against the world! We looked for these gems of art in the Crystal Hall--but found them only in the catalogue! We asked where they were, and the nymph Echo answered "where!" If there be any unworthy motive for this, to us, incomprehensible exclusion of native art, let such be dissipated by the breath of public opinion.

But we would fain persuade ourselves that there must be some misapprehension. The works of a lady--patronized by the Queen, to be excluded from an Exhibition open to the people of all nations--we cannot comprehend it; but for the honour and fame of the nation, hope to see in their proper places, works daily visited, and admired by the aristocracies of rank, wealth, and refined taste.

Mrs. Peachey has spared neither pains nor expense, the gla.s.s flower-shade having cost her 200; she has contributed to the Exhibition, and exhibits freely. The press has noticed the emanations of her genius, and we add our testimony.--_West Kent Guardian._

And before pa.s.sing from the wax flower group, we may add an expression of our regret, that differences of some kind prevented its including the very magnificent case and bouquet which had been prepared by Mrs. Peachey, one of the artistes in wax to her Majesty.

The stand itself, which, with its contents, was on private view, is externally, more elegant than any of the cases in the Exhibition, and the flowers would have yielded to none in variety or brilliancy of tint. The reputation of Mrs. Peachey, whose artistic talent is of a first-rate description, would have justified the authorities in some concession, and would have enriched this department of the Exhibition with a feature of no ordinary beauty.--_Ill.u.s.trated London News._

We have inspected, at the private residence of Mrs. Peachey (in Rathbone Place, Oxford Street,) artiste in wax-work to Her Majesty, one of the most remarkable specimens of ingenuity and industry which London at present contains. This is an immense bouquet of wax flowers which that lady had prepared for the Crystal Palace, but which are not at present within its walls, for a reason to which we will presently advert. Let us first describe this really magnificent work. On four st.u.r.dy stone columns, tastefully designed, and edged with gold, is a looking-gla.s.s platform upwards of four-feet square, and representing water. From the centre of this fairy lake rises a gla.s.s column supporting a golden basket. In this is placed a bouquet some two feet high, and of proportionate girth, in which are cl.u.s.tered all the flowers we ever saw, and a great many which we never saw--from the humble favorites of our _Rigolettes_ and _Fleur de Maries_, up to the floral aristocracy of the conservatory. There they are exquisitely reproduced in all their graces of form and colour, and arranged with the attention to contrast and general effect which bespeaks the superintending eye of the real artist. We are afraid to say how many hundred wax flowers compose this splendid bouquet; but we can safely say that, after having walked round and round it, and, as we thought, having completely examined it, the eye continually insisted on detecting some new variety, and we finally abandoned the hope of ever becoming acquainted with the whole. From the corners of the imitative waters rise various superb specimens of water plants, fresh, cool, opaque-looking, productions; and at the foot of the gla.s.s column, as if planted by accident, spring a few of our more common and very beautiful garden flowers. The whole is covered by an enormous bent gla.s.s shade, from the centre of which rises a pretty copy of Her Majesty's crown. Nothing can be more beautiful or in better taste than the object we have described. Near it is another vase, not so large, and filled with wax fruit of every kind--the bloom of the grape, the blush of the apple, the rich brown of the nut, the velvet of the apricot, the glow of the orange, and the characteristics of a hundred other fruits being represented with a tantalizing fidelity. We would have flogged the fellow who broke the Portland Vase, but we did not feel so sure, while gazing upon these admirable imitations of the most delicious fruits, that we should have been so severe upon some earnest gourmand who might dash down the vase of which we speak, in wrath that his eye and his palate had been so n.o.bly cheated. The two vases, one of flowers, the other of fruits, are certainly the most sumptuous specimens of wax composition we ever saw.

As we have said, these works were intended by Her Majesty's artiste for the Great Exhibition. On her applying for a site, that lady states that a very admirable one was a.s.signed her upon the ground-floor of the building, near the fountains. Upon her work being complete, she was directed to place it in the gallery. This, Mrs. Peachey considered would be to jeopardise it, from the danger so fragile a production would probably sustain in being taken up stairs, and still more from the heat of the sun, to which the wax would in that situation be exposed, and which would speedily produce Icarian results destructive to the work.--_Bell's Weekly Messenger._

Two groups of flowers and fruit most tastefully and elaborately executed in wax by Mrs. Peachey, of Rathbone Place, have, we regret to say, been withdrawn from the Crystal Palace in consequence of an inappropriate position having been a.s.signed them by the Committee.

Mrs. Peachey, who stands unrivalled in this cla.s.s of ornamental art, feeling herself aggrieved by the decision of the committee, has appealed from it to the judgment of the public, and with that view has placed her works in an apartment of her residence, 35, Rathbone Place, for inspection. The taste, the labour, the time bestowed on these magnificent works, must have been very great, and we fancy the visitors to the Crystal Palace will be greater losers by their absence from that repository than even the fair artiste herself, for they are deemed by all who have seen them the finest works of the kind ever executed.--_Morning Herald._

We have several times during the past week inspected, with much gratification a magnificent bouquet of the most rare exotics, as also a large collection of grouped fruits, modelled entirely in wax, by Mrs. Peachey, Her Majesty's artiste in ordinary in that department of feminine accomplishment, and intended by that lady for compet.i.tion in "the World's Fair." We have often had occasion to witness the extraordinary skill displayed by this lady in imitating the beauties of nature from her kindly materials, but we must confess (although previously informed that the present works outvied all the previous attempts of the artiste) that we were unprepared for designs and executions so exquisitely chaste and artistic, and true in the imitation of nature. What could have induced the executive committee of the Great Exhibition to decide upon excluding works of such elaborate labour and beauty, and these the works of an English artist, of the first standing, we are totally at a loss to conjecture. We say "excluding," for it is tantamount to exclusion to tell Mrs. Peachey that she must place such volatile work in a top gallery, exposed to the heat of a July sun, or withdraw them, although she had been previously allocated s.p.a.ce on the bas.e.m.e.nt of the building. Mrs. Peachey adopted the latter alternative, feeling it detrimental to her works, not only from the objectionable position a.s.signed her, but also from the impossibility of having her cases, which are of a large size, conveyed into the gallery, without materially injuring designs of so fragile a nature.

It is to be regretted that Mrs. Peachey should be thus compelled to adopt a measure which has deprived the Exhibition of one of its rarest specimens of art, specimens which we are certain would severely test, if not outvie,--all other compet.i.tors in that department. We are glad to know, however, that the artiste's credit will not suffer from this harsh exclusion. The labour, skill, and expense she has bestowed are already duly appreciated by a discerning public, thousands of the _elite_ of the aristocracy and gentry having already visited Mrs. Peachey at her residence in Rathbone-place, all of whom have expressed the most unequivocal satisfaction and delight at the beauty of the specimens, which, they allege, are far superior to any in the Exhibition. We ourselves strongly recommend our fair readers to inspect these inimitable works, feeling certain that they will continue to be p.r.o.nounced the finest works of the kind ever executed.--_Observer._

The complaints against the partiality and want of discrimination on the part of the executive committee of the Great Exhibition in the allotment of s.p.a.ce to the would-be exhibitors are of daily and hourly recurrence. Among the grievances which are more especially injurious to the thorough development of British industry in the more delicate and refined art in feminine accomplishments, we may mention the case of Mrs. Peachey, of Rathbone-place, the "warranted"

wax florist to Her Most Gracious Majesty. This lady, one of the earliest claimants for pedestal s.p.a.ce, on the first announcement of the intended Congregation of the Industry of All Nations, we think, has been most harshly dealt by. Her first application was duly answered, and an allotment made her of s.p.a.ce on the bas.e.m.e.nt of the building near one of the fountains, and amongst the other gems of art. Subsequently, privately, she ascertained that some alteration was made with reference to her contributions; and, on application, it was intimated to her that, in consequence of "want of room," the executive had determined on transferring her cases to cla.s.s 29, situated in one of the galleries. Mrs. Peachey, on inspecting the location, objected, on the just plea that wax flowers were liable to atmospheric influence from the great heat accruing from the gla.s.s roof and plate gla.s.s surrounding her flowers; and also their material and serious injury from the impracticability of moving her compositions, composed entirety of wax, up staircases without injuring her designs. The whole has resulted in the total exclusion of one of the most beautiful contributions, designed and arranged by one of our most honoured and worthy British Artists. Since Mrs.

Peachey's exclusion has been known, her studio has been visited by the most aristocratic of the n.o.bility and gentry, who have expressed the utmost indignation at her exclusion from the great compet.i.tion in the World's Fair. The contributions, which occupy a small s.p.a.ce, consist of the most rare exotic and indigenous flowers and fruits, which so closely imitate nature as nearly to deceive the spectator, and give him a desire to take and taste of the luscious banquet.

Altogether the cases, which occupied her twelve months in completing, are worthy of inspection, a gratification which Mrs.

Peachey affords the public by throwing open her rooms for public inspection. We recommend the admirers of imitative art to inspect these beautiful and artistic gems.--_Expositor._