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. MCCOL-
LUM, Mr. NADLER, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. HONDA, Mr. JOHN-
SON of Georgia, Mr. TONKO, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, Mr. GRI-
JALVA, 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. FRELING-
HUYSEN, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. ISRAEL, Mr. JOYCE, Mr. LANCE, Mr. KIL-
MER, and Mr. JENKINS of West Virginia) submitted the following resolu-
tion; 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 accept-
ing 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 An-
drew Mellon and his children Paul Mellon and Ailsa Mel-
lon 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 sup-
ported 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 na-
tion, 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 through-
out 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 vig-
orous educational resource, serving hundreds of thou-
sands of students who visit Washington, DC; 
Whereas since its founding, the National Gallery of Art has 
provided art education programs without charge to ele-
mentary 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 internation-
ally 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, periodi-
cals, 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 Or-
chestra 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 mis-
sion by providing free downloads of more than 45,000 
digital images of works from its collection through its in-
novative web service NGAImages; and 
Whereas the Gallery provides permanence in an ever chang-
ing world, maintaining a tangible record of human aspi-
rations and values for people in the United States: Now, 
therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) recognizes the 75th anniversary of the open-
ing of the National Gallery of Art; 
(2) acknowledges its contribution to the cultural 
life of the United States; 
(3) applauds the Gallery’s work to collect and 
preserve art, educate people in the United States, 
and bring exciting exhibitions for all to enjoy; 
(4) commends the work of its staff to ensure 
that all people in the United States have access to 
the highest quality of art; and 
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(5) continues to support this great national 
treasure. 
Æ 
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