APPENDIX 2 

 REPORT ON THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART 



Sir : I have the honor to submit the following report on the activ- 

 ities of the National Gallery of Art for the fiscal year ended June 

 30, 1935 : 



In the past 12 months several events have taken place which may 

 have a bearing on the future of the National Gallery of Art, and 

 so it will be of interest to record them here. 



The press has reported that the Mellon Foundation may locate in 

 Washington a gallery of art to house the Mellon collection of paint- 

 ings as well as other masterpieces. The details of the foundation and 

 its relation to the National Gallery of Art have not been definitely 

 decided. 



Senator David I. Walsh, of Massachusetts, introduced into the 

 Senate a bill which may lead to the formation of a National Portrait 

 Gallery under the direction of the Smithsonian Institution. 



Representative William I. Sirovich, of New York, Chairman of the 

 Committee on Patents, held extensive hearings on House Joint Reso- 

 lution No. 220, which relates to the proposed formation of a new 

 Government department to be called the "Department of Science, 

 Art, and Literature." 



The Government has placed artists in the Civilian Conservation 

 Corps camps to record their activities. It has also awarded many 

 contracts for the decoration of Government buildings throughout 

 the United States. 



These events show that there is a widespread interest in art in our 

 country and raise the hope that the Government will sooner or later 

 provide a building where the works of art in its possession can be 

 properly shown. Collectors as a rule want their treasures in some 

 permanent museum, and would be attracted by the high standing of a 

 national gallery comparable to those of the European countries. Sel- 

 dom are collectors able to do as did Mr. Freer — furnish the material, 

 the building, and also the money for its upkeep, so that the Freer 

 Gallery is an almost independent unit under the direction of the 

 Smithsonian Institution. Many collectoi-s, when tliey shall see a 

 proper building for the National Gallery of Art, and the material in 

 it properly cared for, will feel that they have found the most suitable 

 place to give their collections. But without a building, with no room 

 to expand, our collections must stand still. 

 20 



