Henry James

The Real Thing Henry James

Book Excerpt: ... I couldn't get the honours, to say nothing of the emoluments, of a great painter of portraits out of my head. My "illustrations" were my pot-boilers; I looked to a different branch of art (far and away the most interesting it had always seemed to me), to perpetuate my fame. There was no shame in looking to it also to make my fortune; but that fortune was by so much further from being made from the moment my visitors wished to be "done" for nothing. I was disappointed; for in the pictorial sense I had immediately SEEN them. I had seized their type--I had already settled what I would do with it. Something that wouldn't absolutely have pleased them, I afterwards reflected."Ah, you're--you're--a--?" I began, as soon as I had mastered my surprise. I couldn't bring out the dingy word "models"; it seemed to fit the case so little."We haven't had much practice," said the lady."We've got to DO something, and we've thought that an artist in your line might perhaps make something of us," her husband t...