40. The French nation, from its vicinity and intercourse with Italy, obtained from that country the means of improvement in every branch of the fine arts. Accordingly, native artists of considerable merit occasionally appeared. The kings of France, also, often employed Italian architects and sculptors on their great public works. In the reign of Francis I., Leonardo da Vinci, and two other artists from Italy, established a school of fine arts similar to that of St. Luke, at Florence; and the genius of the people, added to national munificence, have kept a respectable school of sculpture to the present time. 41. Considerable ability in sculpture has likewise been exhibited by native artists of Spain, Germany, Holland, England, and some other countries of Europe; but whatever skill has been displayed in any of these countries has been derived, in an indirect manner, at least, from Italy. In the United States, the fine arts have been cultivated with considerable spirit. An academy for this purpose has been established both in New York and Philadelphia, and a picture gallery has been connected with the Athenæum in Boston, in which the annual exhibition of paintings is respectable. [Illustration: The PAINTER.] THE PAINTER. 1. Painting is the art of representing visible objects, by means of lines and colors, on a plane surface, so as to produce the appearance of relief. It is justly ranked among the highest of that class of arts denominated fine, or liberal; and its tendencies and powers being similar to those of poetry, it is considered an employment worthy of men of the most exalted rank. 2. The theory and practice of this ingenious and delightful art, are divided by its professors into five distinct branches,----_invention_, _composition_, _design_, _chiaro-scuro_, and _coloring_. _Invention_ relates to the choice of subjects to be introduced into a picture. It is this which gives the highest character to the artist, as it affords the greatest opportunity to display the powers of his mind. 3. _Composition_ regards the general distribution and grouping of figures, the choice of attitudes, the disposal of draperies, the situation of the scene itself, as well as the arrangement and connexion of the various parts of the scenery. Invention and composition are employed particularly in the first rough sketch of a picture. 4. _Design_ refers to the expression of a proposed picture in simple contour, or outlines. It is applied in making the first rough sketch of the picture, whether in miniature or in its full size, as well as in the more accurate expression of the form of the figures, in its final finish. The artist, in making his design, is guided in drawing his lines by the rules of _perspective_, according to which he is able to _foreshorten_ objects, and thereby diminish the space which they occupy, without giving them the appearance of diminished magnitude.