The Express.
London, England, 1847-04-28 00:00:00

ART UNION OF LONDON.

The eleventh annual meeting of sub;eribers, and
distribution of prises took place yesterday at Drury-lane
Theatre, which was crowded in every part. The eh:. it was
taken by eke Duke of Cambridge, who having =dr, used a
few words to the meeting with regard to the beneficial in-
fluences of the society upon art and artists,
Mr. GODWIN, the honorary secretary, read the report of
the council, which commenced by alluding to the legalisation
atlas society, under Mr. Wyse's bid, which was passed in
August last, and its subsequent incorporation by royal char-
ter. At every preceding meeting the council bad had to re-
port a constant increase in the amount of subscriptions,
varying from 4891., the sum collected in the first year, to
18,9791. On the present occasion, notwithstanding a season
of unexampled and lamentable scarcity in parts of the king-
dom, and much financial embarrassment, the subscriptions
amounted to the sum of 17,0ri 11. The greatness of the
amount they considered might be attributed partly
'to the increased interest in the fine arts, induced
by the operation. of the society, mud partly to the increased
exertions of the provincial and colonial secretaries, from
whom a larger sum had been received than on any former
occasion. The number of provincial secretaries is now 398.
St. Lucia, Quebec, Australia, Sydney, and Jamaica, have I
been added to the list of places where the society hos an
honorary agent active in its behalf. The lilts before in-
cluded parts of Germany, New York, Mexico, Montreal,
New Brunswick, Ceylon, Singapore, Bombay, Dominica,
Monte Video, and China. Two hundred and fifty-eight
works of art were selected by the prizeholders of last year,
and were exhibited, as usual, four weeks, including a certain
number of evenings. That exhibition was visited by 200,000
persons. The council could not but again remark, that the
annual exhibition of works of fine art thus opened gratu-
itously to the public, might be regards d as one of the most
important results of the association. They would gladly see
greater facilities elsewhere afforded to the people generally
than now exist. For the premium of 6001. offered by the coun-
cil last year for a group or single figure in marble, twenty
I models sent In an the lat 01 July last were exhibited to the sub-
scribers and their Mends in the Princess's Concert-room ;
and after due consideration the premium was awarded to the
status, "The Dancing Girl Kerosine," which on opening
the letter arcompanying it was found to be the work of Mr.
Calder Marshall, A.R.A. Mr. Marshall is now executing
the model in marble, and it will form one of the prime for
an ensuing year, to which year's subscription of course the
amount of the premium well be charged. In order to ex-
press their high opinion of a second statue, " Innocence,"
the council awarded to the author of it, afterwards found to
be Mr. J. H. Foley, the sum of 1001., on condition of receiv-
ing from him a reduced copy of the figure, and the right of
reproducing it in statuary porcelain; fifty espies, in that
material, to be allotted that day. A third statue submitted
in competition, " Iris Ascending," found to be by Mr. Kirk,
was considered by the council well adapted for
working in bronze, and they accordingly arranged with
the sculptor to furnish a model of the required Use. A
copy in bronze had been produced by Mr. Hatfield, and the
right to twenty such would form part of the present distri-
bution. Mr. H. C. Selons's prize painting, from the selected
cartoon, " Queen Philippa interceding for the Lives of the
Durgcesso at Calais," was finished, and would be exhibited
with the prizes' of the year. The mode of appropriation
had not yet been determined on. The Chantry medals had
been distributed, and the Wren medal allotted last year had
been delayed by the indisposition of Mr. Wilson, the en-
graver, but might be expected in a short time. The council
were taking other steps to obtain other medals, in comme-
moration of Hogarth, lnigo Jones, and Banks, the sculptor.
The council had now to speak of the engravings. " Jephtlia's
Daughter," and the illustratioas to " Gertrude, of Wyoming,"
due to the subscribers of last ,-ear, had been distaff/sited. The
plate of " The Convalescent, from Waterloo," had been una-
voidably kept bath, but was now in the printer'. hands ; and
those for the current year, "The Last Embrace," and " The
Neapolitan Wedding," and the outlines from seven of the
cartoons submitted in competition for the premium of .5001.,
were in the same stage of forwardness. The council pro.
posed to issue fur the ensuing year a series of thirty illustra-
tions of Milton's " L'Allegro" and " II Penseroso," engraved
en wood in the best manner, every subscriber to receive a
copy of the work fur each guinea subscribed. For a future
year, Mr. Frost's "Sabrina," engraved by Mr. Lightfoot,
was in progress; and the council had arranged with Mr. W.
Fioden to produce for the association an engraving of large
size and in his best manner, after Hilton's picture, " The
Crucifixion," aow in the on of the corporation of
Liverpool. With a view of urther promoting the connexion
between manufactures and art, the council had commissioned
Mr. Nixon, sculptor, to make • reduced model, in
cast iron, of a figure of " Thalia," in the Gal-
lery of Antiquities at the British Museum, which
had been ably done, and is now ready for casting. The
right to thirty copies of it would be allotted that day. Since
the last meeting the council had been deprived, by death, of
the valuable asaistaues of Mr. Mount, one of the earliest
members of the society. Sir J. Jervis, M.P., had been
elected to the vacancy. Under a bye-law, in a code receatly
made for the regulation of the society, as required by the
eftniter, four vacancies in the aim 61 will be declared an-
omaly, and four new members elected to fill them. The
swerved fund now amounts to 2,1951. 16s. 4d. ; and with •
view of increasing that fund more rapidly, obtaining a gal-
lery, and carrying out the great objects of the society, it was
proposed that &ismer= of 21 per cent. of the amount of each
annual subscription (or 6d. in the pound) should be made ;
and with the game mid in view, it had been re-
solved to receive annual subscriptions in advance,
and that " each member who pays for 10 or more years
shall receive one of the society's medals in silver at the time
of payment, in additi,n to the advantage to which he may
be annually entitled." The billowing is a statement of re-
ceipts and disbursements. The cost of obtaining the charter
teas On 1711.; bat the council charged the present year's
adnedpies with • pardoa of it only.
ILipmes so pre meta ardoust,
Tverrematrpeart artlmi ta yawned rum% 401 13
dm Mail kr WWII. fa kargo,=pita,
mss.
En
ear visa& sod u 1,090 0 0
p11iM11911111191111161 derinbi, paper, Ike , dprinta, 1,613 0 0
Be. fte. cresnam,
991 gmttr expeeditura by rbeholden.
_

£17,871 0 0
The amount set apart according to that statement for the
purchase of works of art would be thus allotted
SO works at .. £lO £3oo 12 works at £7O £o4o
40 „ .13 CO 12 „
$6 „ ...... 20 ...... ..... 720 6 „ .100 OOO
36 „
28 „
" "
20 „
15 „
,C 10,730
To these are to be added 20 bronses of " Iris Ascending ;"
30 statuettes of " Innocence ;" 30 casts in iron of " Thalia;"
273 lithographs of " La Fleur's Departure ;" and 30 silver
medals commemorative of Flagman. 30 cuts of Mr. Mar-
shall's grouo, " The First Whisper of Love," would be in-
eluded in the distribution that day, making, in the whole,
706 works of art. The total sum thus appropriated,
including the cost of outlines and engravings, would
he 14,9331. 2.. 10d. After deprecating the system
which had been proposed of confining the right of
the pictures to the coursed,—a system which they " would
consider it their duty to oppose by every means in their
power, as being c .lculated not only to lessen the good effects
of the association, but ultimately to destroy it altogether, I
and do great injury to art and artists," and some general
observation on the subject of art, the council concluded their
report by "again urging the prizeholders so to exercise
their right of selection as to furnish an additional argument
in support of their views on the subject."
The report was unanimously adopted, and the usual votes 1