IV 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 762 

Recognizing the 75th anniversary of the opening of the National Gallery 

of Art. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 26, 2016 

Ms. SLAUGHTER (for herself, Mr. COLE, Ms. NORTON, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mrs. 

CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York, Mr. HECK of Washington, Ms. 

DELAURO, Ms. EDWARDS, Ms. WILSON of Florida, Miss RICE of New 

York, Mr. HASTINGS, Ms. TITUS, Mr. AMODEI, Mr. MICA, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. NADLER, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. HONDA, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. TONKO, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. TED LIEU of California, Mr. CA ́RDENAS, Mr. MOULTON, Mr. 

CALVERT, Mr. ROKITA, Mr. SIMPSON, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of 

Texas, Mrs. MILLER of Michigan, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. ISRAEL, Mr. JOYCE, Mr. LANCE, Mr. KILMER, and Mr. JENKINS of West Virginia) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on House Administration 

RESOLUTION 

Recognizing the 75th anniversary of the opening of the 

National Gallery of Art. 

Whereas, March 17, 2016, marks the 75th anniversary of the 

opening of the National Gallery of Art; 

Whereas the National Gallery of Art is the culmination of 

Andrew Mellon’s dream to endow a true national gallery 

in Washington, DC; 


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Whereas President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the 75th 

Congress recognized the importance of this monumental 

gift to the people of the United States by quickly accepting Mr. Mellon’s gift on behalf of a grateful Nation; 

Whereas the National Gallery’s landmark buildings were 

given to the people of the United States as gifts by Andrew Mellon and his children Paul Mellon and Ailsa Mellon Bruce; 

Whereas agreement to place the Gallery on the National 

Mall, side-by-side with the monuments most meaningful 

to people in the United States, symbolized the importance 

of art in the life of a Nation; 

Whereas Mr. Mellon’s extraordinary collection of 153 works 

of art served as a magnet to attract other gifts from 

across the Nation and established the highest standard of 

quality for the works of art, resulting in one of the finest 

collections in the world, with over 144,000 works; 

Whereas the Gallery’s collections have grown entirely through 

private donations from generous individuals in service to 

all the people of the United States; 

Whereas the Gallery epitomizes the fruitful collaboration of 

the United States Government and the Nation’s people in 

creating a great institution dedicated to art, education, 

and service; 

Whereas all subsequent Presidents and Congresses have supported the Gallery by providing for the protection and 

care of the collection; 

Whereas this Federal support and donations of extraordinary 

art from generous United States citizens, has resulted in 

the most successful public-private partnership in the nation, hosting over 250,000,000 visitors from every State 


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in the union and from other nations to demonstrate the 

commitment of the United States to the shared cultural 

heritage of all humanity; 

Whereas the Gallery’s collection comprises masterpieces of 

European and United States art from the Renaissance to 

the present day, some 1,200 temporary exhibitions have 

brought great art from throughout the world, from a 

wide range of cultures and time periods, to the people of 

the United States; 

Whereas the National Gallery of Art has set a standard of 

generosity in lending works of art to museums throughout the United States, and sending them as ambassadors 

of good will to nations throughout the world; 

Whereas the Gallery has for 75 years served as both trustee 

of the Nation’s fine arts collection and an active and vigorous educational resource, serving hundreds of thousands of students who visit Washington, DC; 

Whereas since its founding, the National Gallery of Art has 

provided art education programs without charge to elementary and secondary schools and institutions of higher 

learning in every State of the Union; 

Whereas through the support of Andrew Mellon and his son 

Paul, the Gallery serves as an international center for 

scholarship and research, and is a leader in internationally published conservation and research; 

Whereas it is home to a superb center for advanced studies 

in the visual arts that brings new insights to mankind’s 

humane heritage nationally and internationally; 

Whereas the Gallery has created a major art research library, 

housing a collection of more than 400,000 books, periodicals, and documents on the history, theory, and criticism 


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of art and architecture and an image collection of some 

13,000,000 photographs, slides, negatives, and microform 

images of Western art and architecture; 

Whereas since 1942, the Gallery has sponsored over 3,100 

free Sunday concerts featuring the National Gallery Orchestra as well as musicians and ensembles from around 

the world for the enjoyment of over 1,000,000 visitors 

creating what is considered the oldest continuous series 

of free weekly concerts in the Nation’s Capital; 

Whereas to facilitate learning, enrichment, enjoyment, and 

exploration, the Gallery has expanded its educational mission by providing free downloads of more than 45,000 

digital images of works from its collection through its innovative web service NGAImages; and 

Whereas the Gallery provides permanence in an ever changing world, maintaining a tangible record of human aspirations and values for people in the United States: Now, 

therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) recognizes the 75th anniversary of the open3 ing of the National Gallery of Art; 

4 (2) acknowledges its contribution to the cultural 

5 life of the United States; 

6 (3) applauds the Gallery’s work to collect and 

7 preserve art, educate people in the United States, 

8 and bring exciting exhibitions for all to enjoy; 

9 (4) commends the work of its staff to ensure 

10 that all people in the United States have access to 

11 the highest quality of art; and 


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1 (5) continues to support this great national 

2 treasure. 

Æ 


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