GAY, Maria, Spanish opera singer: b. Bar celona 1880. Until her 16th year she devoted her attention to sculpture, but in 1897 began her studies of piano. Through a chance meet ing with Pugno she was induced to join his concert troupe as a singer. At Brussels by a fortuitous chance she was given the role of Carmen to study, mastered it in five days and scored a triumph in the Opera de la Monnaie. This was in 1902 and now she determined to cultivate her voice under the best masters. At Paris she studied for one year under Madame Adiny and the following year began her long series of tours in Europe and America. In 1908-09 she was at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York.
GAY, gi, Nicolay, Russian' painter: b. 1831; d. 14 June 1894. He achieved real suc cess with his (Puschkin) and his 'Peter I,' as Muther says with rather pointed brevity, To us it seems that his other works, or some of them,— so familiar to the public through reproductions,— merit a more attentive study. In religious painting, for example, he appears at first sight to be Ivanov's nearest successor, because of similarities in the aims and problems of the two artists; but A. Benois has shown clearly in 'The Russian School of Painting' (New York 1916) that Gay's whole personality differed essentially from Ivanov's. Gay's high est technical achievement is a certain brilliancy and originality of coloring, hut the drawing in his canvases is, with rare exceptions, childish or slovenly; Ivanov, on the contrary, was brought up under the old scholastic discipline and drill of the Academy and showed the results in every stroke of his brush. Again, Gay's themes, marked with the stamp of almost hysterical passion, were diametrically opposed to the holy tranquillity of Ivanov's aspirations. It is only fair to correct a popular misconception and to regard Gay as (despite his faults) a well-pro nounced and brilliant artistic personality espe cially in his last works, which expressed a pecul iar and very "Russian" attitude toward the Scriptures. "He views the New Testament," says Benois, "as the gospel of spiritual beauty exclusively, and purposely emphasizes the out ward of both Christ and his surroundings. Had Raphael seen (The Crucifixion> and other of Gay's paintings, monstrous in their ugliness, he would have torn his garments in his indignation. Different would be the relation of Gay to Rem brandt, in whose gloomy art the same notes sound as in Gay's. But Rembrandt was too much of an artist not to conceal the inten tional ugliness of his images under the beauty of paintings and coloring. Gay, however, with true Russian straightforwardness, and with truly Russian nihilism, ever in quest of har rowing impressions, strove to depict what ap peared to him as truth." Hence these creations —repugnant; quivering with life, inspiring ter ror; nevertheless luminously devoid of trivi ality, wholly individual utterances, white-hot with sincerity and conviction. "The same rare quality distinguishes also Gay's portraits, prob ably the best Russian portraits of the second half of the 19th century"— the faces almost startlingly life-like, yet bearing also, all of them, the same imprint — that of the painter's own mind. His most impressive portrait, far bet ter than the is his (Tolstoy,' in the Tretyakov Gallery. In an entirely different class, but also admirable, is his portrait of Mme.•Petrunkevich, standing at a window open ing on a forest. Another famously good por trait by Gay is his (Herzen.' GAY, Sidney Howard, American journalist and author: b. 'Hingham, Mass., 22 May 1814;
d. New Brighton, Staten Island, N. Y., 25 June 1888. Unwilling to take the oath to support the Constitution of the United States, which fostered and protected slavery, he gave up a legal career and devoted himself to anti-slavery journalism and lecturing. He became, in 1842, editor of The Antislavery Standard, a posP non he retained till he joined, in 1857, the edi torial staff of the New York Tribune, of which he was managing editor 1862-66. From 1867 to 1871 he occupied the same position on the Chicago Tribune, and for another two years was managing editor of the Evening Post. He was the author of Bryant and Gay's
GAY, Walter, American artist: b. Hing ham, Mass., 22 Jan. 1856. He is a nephew of S. H. Gay (q.v.), and W. A. Gay (q.v.). At 20 he went to Paris, where he studied art under Bonnat, and he has been a frequent exhibitor at the Salon. He resides in Paris since 1879, and has disposed of more pictures in France than any other foreigner. Among his paintings, which have won many medals, are (Benedicite,' now in the Museum of Amiens, France,
GAY, Winckworth Allan, American artist: b. Hingham, Mass., 18 Aug. 1821; d. 1910. At an early age he became a pupil of Rob. ert Weir, professor of drawing at West Point, subsequently went to Europe, and passed five i years there in study, a part of the time under Troyon in Paris. He painted exclusively in landscape. 'A Scene in the White Mountains,' a picture painted for the Boston Athenteutn, is a good specimen of his method of treatment of mountain scenery. Some of his best works depict that region. But he also painted views of Nantasket beach and rocks, which have at tracted much attention, and some critics have pronounced coast scenery to be his proper specialty. Among his best works are <1.4ack erel Fleet off Beverly Coast' ;
Joseph Louis, French physicist: b. Saint Leonard, Haute Vienne, France, 6 Dec. 1778; d. Paris, 9 May 1850. In 1804 he was the first to make balloon ascensions for purposes of scientific investiga tion. He became a member of the Society of Arcueil, and was introduced to Humboldt, with whom he prosecuted an investigation of the polarization of light and other subjects. He also devoted much of his time to the study of chemistry, and to him we are indebted for the discovery of the hydro-sulphuric and oxy-chlo ride acids. In 1830 he became a member of the Chamber of Deputies, and in 1839 was created a peer of France. He enjoyed several official ap pointments, and was professor of chemistry at the Jardin du Roi.