New-York tribune., 1922-01-01

WIN ale nero ActlVeiy at Work. ms
'Glavmusei' is, of course, divided into
various sections devoted to the inter
ests Of tho museums in the capital as
well rs the provinces. to the protcc-
ton of monuments, TO the scientific
cataloguing of works of art, to the re
discovery and restoration Of ancient
Russian religious paintings. The work
Of these departments forms the prin-
clpal subject OF the following notes:
AS regards the public museums Of
Moscow-snd the same is true of Pct
rogHad--it may IN the first place be
stated that they all continue to func-
ton more or less as before, that they
IN no wise have suffered any curtail-
ment and, on the contrary, through
many new acccssions and purchases,
have been in many directions even con
siderably enriched. Thus the Rum
yantzov Museum and the Histericsl sl
Museum, the Alexander III Museum,
alhllated With Moscow University, and
the Tretyakov Gallery have, on the
whole, retained their previous charac-
ter and in the main also their former
scientific staff. In spite OF the serious
lack of fuel and innumerable other
Glihcultles, activity has never com
pletely ceased, although the public at
tendance almost stopped at times In
support OF this assertion one may refer
inter ALA to series of special cxhbi-
tions which have been arranged at diff
ferent times in various places Men
ton may be made, for instance, Of the
Somov and Wrubel exhibitions in the
Iretyakov Gallery and the recently
opened exhibition of new acquisitions
IN the same gallery, on which | shall
report later at greater length The
Rumyantzov Gallery showed lately in
special exhibition the whole work of
the talented engraver ". Massyutin,
and is now organizing an exhibition of
works by old masters, while the His
torlcal Museum announces for The au-
tumn great exhibition of Russian
popular art. Great interest was shown
last autumn in ar exhibition of pic
lures and drawings by French roman
/ ticists and masters of the Barbzon
school, arranged by the section for CEN
trail museums Of the Glavmusei. Re.
Gently this last mentioned department
has elaborated complex plan for radi-
cal rearrangements of the Moscow nu-
seums, but for the present things re-
main unchanged.
ut was soon found impossible TO
carry out the original project of ma
tionalizirg all works Of art in private
possession, and only the great private
collections Of Moscow have been nation
alized, while all export of works of art
is vigorously forbidden. Smaller collec-
tions were left TO their owners, al
though they had to be registered with
the Glavmusci, as indeed every artistic
possession in private hands. However
this law was in practice not so strictly
/ followed, which indeed would be diff
cult to enforce.
"The we'll known Shtchukin and Moro
SOW collections, with their marvellous
treasures of the most recent French
painting function now as public mu-
seums, and since they ceased to pos
sess the character of private residences
it has been possible to exhibit TIE
contents in more favorable manner
The Shtrhnkin cOIlortinn ocroc;a "
now The First Museum of the Most
Recent Western Painting'-has gained
considerably through a radical rehang
ing, separate rooms having been as
signed to Monet, btatisse, Gauguin,
Picasso and Derain the impression
produced by the two last named is
particularly striking. Singuarly init
mate is the effect Of collection previ
ously very difficult of access-that OF
old masters, especially Dutchmen,
formed by Dmitry J. Shtchukin in the
administration of which the ex-owner
is taking part. The same is true Of
flya E. Ostrouchov, whose collection
consists of marvellous ikons, going back
to the fourteenth century, and choice
pictures of Russian and Western mas
ters. A public Porcelain Museum is
what has become Of the private col
lection Of Alexei V. Morosov, which is
almost unique in its richness in Rus
sian porcelain Of Ill epochs and marks.