Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-06-06
THE SHERMAN STATUE
Necessity of National Art Commission
Shown in the Award.
A Protest Against Alleged Misuse of
the Peoples Money in Paying
for Rejected Design.



The need Of national art commission is
surely getting to be mo longer theory,
but condition" Now that the Sculptors'
Society of New York have sent their pro-
test to General Dodge and the Society of
Washington Artists have sent their me-
mortal to Congress begging a reconSidera-
ton of the most unfortunate award in the
Sherman statue competition, 1t Is permissi-
BILE for the public generally. and especially
of this city, to express its disappointment
at this unlooked-for and notifying result
1t is far more than a grievance between
the commission and the competing artists
1t is a public grievance, which is sure to be
| realized more and more by all Americans
| who have a pride in the advancement Of
our national art, but especially by the peo-
pie of Washington, who. residents of
the nations capital, are sensitive to any
thing that is going to bring slur either
upon our art or upon our republican ways
of dealing with important art undertake
ings. AS a matter of fact, this public
grievance falls little short of a maIappro-
priation, not to say a misappropriation, of
public money. Granting that the majority
Of the commission whose votes. 1t is I'M
derStood, oyerruled those of the Secretary
OF War and the general of the army were
acting entirely without selfish motives and
from their best judgment, nothing could
serve as better example than this award
of the utter incapacty of such judgment
in an important public trust such as this,
and the objectionable wrong such judg
ment Is doing to what is for the highest
public welfare 1t is not here a case Of
the donors of a gift being entitled to de-
terInine the choice of the gift.
The actual appropriation Of the peoples
money Tor this monument was. it Is said,
some $4,000. over against the paltry sum
OF $4,000 contributed by the Army of the
Tennessee. 1t would naturally be supposed
that the commissioners of the latter body
conscious
to act as far possible as agents of the
people in erecting this monument, and in
order to secure the work of high artistic
character that the people intended by their
appropriation to secure that they should
hold their own private judgment as art
critics entirely in allegiance and rely only
or the Judgment of experts whose ability
no one could question. 1t was supposed to
be in Difference to this wise purpose that
the judgment of sculptors of the highest
nationa! reputation was called in. The
very asking of the judgment of these men
lent dignity to the commission and awak-
ened a serious interest in the movement
one of real artistic as well as of patriotic
interest. But the result has only turned
the whole affair into what has been called
with perhaps equal propriety by local
paper scandal and by New York
paper ''farcical conclusion 1t is, in
plain words. the deprivation of the cap
ital city of such a work of art as the peo-
pie had abundant!y provided to pay for
and which had the approval of the most
instead of an inferior piece of work. re-
jected by the committee of experts I'M
worthy of competing even in the final COM
petition of four, and this solely to crafty
their own private preference.
That all due regard should have been
shown to the wishes of the army officers in
the commission in matters of detail, such
as accuracy or likeness and even the sub
jectS to be used in subordinate ornamental
ton is but reasonable, and it is not to be
supposed that any of the competing artists
would have objected to making modiGca-
tons of the nature in the second COMPETE
ton if good reasons had been urged; but all
this is a vastly different thing from passing
on the artistic merit of the monument as a
whole: and here. it is to be insisted upon, is
where the critical duty lay, and where the
presumption shown by the majority of the
commissioners WAS plainly unpdrdonab bic.
1t Is often said in reply to criticisms of the
poor art shown in our public buildings that
the American people look more to utility
than to art, and that provided the uses of
the building are well met. with sufficient
llShtlng, ventilation and other mechanical
details, We can afford to be Indifferent to
the matter of artistic beauty. But such a
reply will not answer the criticism here
for granting that use is to be the main
thlng, the whole use Of this costly monu-
n ent was to be a work of art, as perfect as
We could make 1t, in honor of a great man
and to nourish high sentiment in the peo-
pie 10 say, as a friend of the successful
competitor has urged in his letter to the
New York Evening Post. that this statue
deserved the award because it tells O. pain
story in number of pictures is no mora
than might be said of the rudest war pic-
ture-story of tie American Iniian
II is easy 10 choose pictures Subjects
put what the people of Washington and
the country, the people whose money is
here spent, is interested in, Is that the MIC
lures or the figure planted here to be seen
ana studied and criticised by the most
cultured people who come and so among
US should be examples of true art that we
may not have to blush at and to try to ex-
cuse by this or that story of how a noble
purpose OF generous people, jealous Of
tnelr progress in art, we'll as in other
things, was turned into 'farcical con-
clusion! Shall not Congress stop giving
money for such thingsI The people have
surely right to be heard in this matter of
the spending of public money for works
or art And how can the just demand Of
the people in such T. case as this and in
those that are constantly arising be better
met than by the appointment of ma
tlonal art commission, such as has been
twice urged in the recent reports of the
Secretary of War, and which shall include
the approval by experts, not only of works
OF art to be erected in the Capitol and in
the Library of Congress (as in the bill now
before the House,, but including all public
monuments to be- erected in the city of
Washington? There ought to be some wav
OF protecting our beautiful city, Of pre-
serving from misuse our important sites
and Of securing the public against the use,
Of public money for works which have
DeeA ieJeCleu DIS unworthy by the highest
judgment the country can produce We
hope the commissioners will vet see the
propriety of yielding their unprofessiopal
judgment to that of men in whose award
the people would have entire confidence and
feel the satisfaction that the purpose of
the government mad been ACCOMPLISHED In
erecting a work of art that would be alike
an honor to the memory of a great general
and lasting delight and pride of the peo-
| pie of all our land
FRANK SEWALIA