e>5 



WALKER ART GALLERY. 



The Curator has much satisfaction in reporting that the Institution of 

 which he has the honour of being the custodian, continues its career of 

 artistic usefulness with undiminished activity and popularity. The 

 Permanent Collection is yearly growing more and more important, and 

 is regarded by many other towns as an incentive to similar endeavours. 

 Architects who are interested in the erection of Art Galleries in other 

 parts of the United Kingdom visit the building for the purpose of 

 noting its proportions, and its arrangements for lighting, warming, and 

 ventilation. Requests for permission to reproduce important works in 

 the Collection by various Art Journals are becoming more numerous 

 and with a view to making these works more widely educational, these 

 requests have been granted at nominal fees in acknowledgement of the 

 Committee's rights. 



The crowded condition of the pictures, from want of adequate wall 

 space, still continues, and it is to be hoped that the Committee will in 

 the near future see their way to an enlargement of the Gallery. 



During the year the Gallery was open 347 days, excluding Sundays. 

 The number of visitors was 400,683, or a daily average of 1,155. This 

 total includes 60,004 visitors to the Autumn Exhibition, besides 14,862 

 pupils of schools of various denominations, who were admitted free. 

 In addition, the total attendance on Sundays was 16,753, being an 

 average of 493, the average of 1897 being 514. 



