﻿APPENDIX 
  2 
  

   REPORT 
  ON 
  THE 
  NATIONAL 
  GALLERY 
  OF 
  ART 
  

  

  Sir: 
  I 
  have 
  the 
  honor 
  to 
  submit 
  the 
  following 
  report 
  on 
  the 
  affair's 
  

   of 
  the 
  National 
  Gallery 
  of 
  Art 
  for 
  the 
  year 
  ending 
  June 
  30, 
  1927 
  : 
  

  

  Although 
  the 
  year 
  has 
  been 
  marked 
  by 
  numerous 
  features 
  and 
  

   events 
  of 
  interest, 
  the 
  two 
  great 
  lines 
  of 
  prospective 
  development 
  have 
  

   remained 
  practically 
  dormant— 
  these 
  are 
  the 
  erection 
  of 
  a 
  gallery 
  

   building 
  and 
  the 
  enhancement 
  of 
  the 
  collections 
  by 
  gift 
  and 
  bequest. 
  

   The 
  meagerness 
  of 
  the 
  offerings 
  of 
  art 
  works 
  is 
  doubtless 
  due 
  in 
  

   large 
  measure 
  to 
  the 
  well-known 
  fact 
  that 
  exhibition 
  space 
  in 
  the 
  

   National 
  Museum 
  ' 
  entirely 
  exhausted. 
  

  

  THE 
  GALLERY 
  COMMISSION 
  

  

  The 
  sixth 
  annual 
  meeting 
  of 
  the 
  National 
  Gallery 
  Commission 
  

   was 
  held 
  in 
  the 
  regents' 
  room 
  of 
  the 
  Smithsonian 
  Institution, 
  Decem- 
  

   ber 
  7, 
  1926. 
  The 
  members 
  present 
  were 
  Gari 
  Melchers, 
  chairman; 
  

   Frank 
  J. 
  Mather, 
  jr., 
  vice 
  chairman; 
  W. 
  H. 
  Holmes, 
  secretary; 
  

   Herbert 
  Adams, 
  James 
  E. 
  Eraser, 
  J. 
  H. 
  Gest, 
  John 
  E. 
  Lodge, 
  Charles 
  

   Moore, 
  James 
  Parmelee, 
  E. 
  W. 
  Redfield, 
  and 
  C. 
  D. 
  Walcott. 
  

  

  The 
  minutes 
  of 
  the 
  preceding 
  meeting 
  were 
  read 
  and 
  approved 
  

   and 
  the 
  secretary 
  presented 
  his 
  report 
  on 
  the 
  activities 
  of 
  the 
  gal- 
  

   lery 
  for 
  the 
  calendar 
  year. 
  The 
  report 
  touched 
  briefly 
  on 
  affairs 
  

   of 
  administration, 
  the 
  offerings 
  of 
  art 
  works 
  by 
  gift 
  and 
  bequest, 
  

   the 
  purchase 
  of 
  paintings 
  from 
  the 
  Henry 
  "Ward 
  Ranger 
  fund, 
  the 
  

   loans 
  and 
  loan 
  exhibits, 
  etc., 
  for 
  the 
  year. 
  

  

  Discussion 
  arose 
  regarding 
  the 
  war 
  portrait 
  collection, 
  and 
  after 
  

   the 
  expression 
  of 
  various 
  views, 
  the 
  following 
  resolution 
  was 
  adopted 
  : 
  

  

  Resolved, 
  That 
  the 
  National 
  Gallery 
  Commission 
  looks 
  with 
  favor 
  upon 
  the 
  

   establishment 
  of 
  a 
  national 
  portrait 
  gallery 
  (of 
  which 
  the 
  present 
  collection 
  of 
  

   war 
  portraits 
  may 
  be 
  regarded 
  as 
  the 
  nucleus) 
  to 
  constitute 
  a 
  separate 
  unit 
  of 
  

   the 
  collections 
  of 
  the 
  National 
  Gallery 
  of 
  Art. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Mather, 
  chairman 
  of 
  the 
  committee 
  on 
  Old 
  World 
  art, 
  sp^e 
  

   informally 
  upon 
  the 
  project 
  initiated 
  at 
  the 
  1925 
  meeting 
  of 
  organ- 
  

   izing 
  an 
  exhibit 
  of 
  old 
  masters 
  in 
  the 
  gallery, 
  saying 
  that 
  he 
  had 
  

   examined 
  most 
  of 
  those 
  owned 
  in 
  Washington 
  and 
  found 
  them 
  in 
  

   his 
  opinion 
  not 
  sufficiently 
  representative 
  to 
  make 
  their 
  assemblage 
  

   as 
  an 
  exhibit 
  advisable, 
  though 
  he 
  favored 
  such 
  an 
  exhibition 
  of 
  old 
  

   masters 
  of 
  the 
  highest 
  quality 
  such 
  as 
  might 
  be 
  assembled 
  by 
  

   enlarging 
  the 
  field 
  to 
  be 
  drawn 
  upon. 
  

   54 
  

  

  