State

Mural Five HALIFAX RESOLVES In the series painted by Francis V . К lighter for the Institute of Government building in Chapel Hill The “Halifax Resolves'* came out of lhe Provincial Congress of North Carolina leaders held at Halifax. April 12. 1776. and authorized North Carolina delegates in the Continental Congress "to concur in independency." This was the first official slate action for independence, lhe "Resolves" were not a manifesta¬ tion of hysteria, but a determined and carefully considered de¬ cision. lhe delegates knew that what they were doing would be regarded as treason and could lead to the forfeit of their property and their lives. For this reason, it seemed to me that painting would be most effective if the emotional quality of the scene were played down rather than emphasized. I would paint relentless determination, but lighten it with little human touches indicating a balance in the mood of the patriots. I could not set the scene inside the meeting house which was quite small, for I should not have been able to get far enough away to obtain a view in conformity with the organization of the mural scheme I had set up. By painting the men emerging from the meeting house, I had a better chance to get front view portraits. Also, I wanted to give an overall impression of some¬ thing affecting the entire family by including women and children. lhe picture shows the delegates leaving the meeting house at nightfall. The interior of the house and the lantern over the door are lighted; lights arc flickering through the crowd, and one man is holding a flaming pine torch. In the central group, Cornelius Harnett, the courageous Revolu¬ tionary patriot, stands with another delegate and a militiaman carrying a long Kentucky rifle. I hey are in consultation, possibly already making plans to present the • Resolves" that have just been drawn up; Harnett has a copy of them in his hand. A serving woman is placing a cloak on his shoulders and below to the left a liveryman stands waiting. In the lower center of the canvas near the head of the line of emerging delegates is Samuel Johnston, one of the leaders of the meeting, who later became governor of North Carolina. In one hand he holds a gold-headed cane and in the other the minutes of the meeting; he carries himself with an air of as¬ surance. In front of him in the line arc a grim-faced clergyman and a bareheaded man who gaze contemplatively ahead. They arc evidently thinking of many serious things that might occur as a result of the meeting. At the extreme lower right, a tall gentleman with a long clay pipe bows flirtatiously to a wistful young girl who appears much impressed by his attention. In front of him a liveried servant carrying a lantern leads the way to his carriage. Next to the young girl a stern-faced elderly couple, possibly her parents, are deeply moved by the action the delegates have just taken, lie is a tall mountaineer type, as is his wife; perhaps someone dear to them has been involved in a violent incident rising from the oppression of the king. Behind Samuel Johnston is Thomas Burke who became a governor of North Carolina during the Revolution — an eloquent speaker and a fervent patriot. The records describe him as blind in one eye. Behind Burke is a delegate of more tranquil mien and to the left of this group a serious-faced man is about to be embraced by his anxious wife. Their two little girls arc near by. A gallant young man carrying a lantern bends over to kiss the fingers of one of the little girls who seems much pleased to be treated like a grown lady. To the upper right of Samuel John¬ ston. a bailiff holds back the crowd. In front of the bailiff a man holding a lantern acclaims the delegates with upraised arm. Below him an apprentice with his sister, who is holding a small lantern, applauds Samuel Johnston. To their right a perky young lady looks on approvingly, and above her an elderly woman wearing a kerchief over her head is watching Harnett. In front of her a substantial citizen showing concern raises a hand to emphasize something he has overheard; and behind him to the right another citizen raises his hand in a gesture of approval. To the right of the central group a fur-capped woodsman listens intently, and to his right is a man wearing spectacles; further along are three other men — an Indian and two muluttoes. Behind the central group, a glare of light floods from a pine torch held by a riverman wear¬ ing a bandana. Over the door of the meeting house hangs a huge lantern. A group of men emerges from the door and the young man in the lead waves his arm in exultation. In the background sits a coach with its driver on the seat; a footman stands at its door and people arc entering the coach. In the background only a glow of the day is left and lights arc coming on in windows of the distant houses. The principal pattern used in this mural is composed of three angular masses which incline downward in the center of the canvas. 'These arc formed by the three groups of the emerging delegates and the waiting crowd, and constitute most of the area of the painting. So as not to be too forceful, these swags arc broken here and there by patches of white and black — the costumes of the people. The whole triad group is sustained by a white mass near the upper center of the canvas and by an up¬ ward pointed dark mass just above it. These patterns arc the flames of the pine torch and the dark silhouette of the seated coachman. To do away with the sensation of too equal a balance, the whole arrangement is thrown off-center by an inverted L-shapcd mass of white in the upper left hand corner formed by the open door and the large lantern above it. This off-center pattern is itself brought into stability by a narrow horizontal mass of light at the upper right, the last vestige of the declining day. 'To express unrest, a cross-grained or counterpoint textural effect is achieved by contrasting treatment of hands, faces, and hats, and by larger spoitings of lanterns and clothes. Staccato emphasis is given by long and sharply-shaped patterns, such as outstretched arms, the gun, and the railing. The resultant overall sensation is one o! turbulent but unified movement expressing the spirit of rebellion which brought the people together. — l-KANCIS V. kLUHl tK. THE STATE. SEPTEMBER 16, 1961