Leibl’s Approach to Art

In William Wilson’s review of the Reinhart collection (“ ‘Friedrich’: Another Side of the Romantic Tradition,” Oct. 12), I believe he has made a misstatement.

From what I have read and observed on the subject, Wilhelm Leibl could not be considered a “precisionist precursor of Norman Rockwell.” On the contrary, Leibl and his circle believed that the subject of a painting was of secondary importance. In both his figure and head studies, brush stroke and color were predominant--”how I paint, not what I paint.”

JEAN SAPIN

Sherman Oaks