Evening star., 1924-12-11
ART EXHIBIT ON POPULAR SCALE
is PLANNED HERE NEXT SPRING
Increment launched to Collect Scattered " Orks
O,Uned BY United States and Citizens Into
Splendid Loan Display in April.

new American wing" was reported
as highly popular.
The museum has been opened to all
painters, sketchers and photograph
ers, Mr.. de Forest said, direct
change of policy from that adopted
in practically all of the museums OF
Europe.
Mr.. Saint-Gaudens made a plea for
a widespread appreciation of all art.
"Only a few years ago" he said,
everybody was too busy for art.
There may have been a wealthy class,
but there was no leisure class. Even
capitalists worked"
Mr.. Saint -Gaudens then told how
Houston, Tex, has lately opened an
art museum costing 100000 In a
community OF less than 100000, and
he urged strongly upon his audience
that art should be related to every
day life as II is related by the people
of Europe. Turning then to local
conditions, he said:
Yes. you say, but how can we go
to work to develop this expression
here in Washington?
Value I'm Everyday Life.
by bringing art through your mu-
seums into the everyday life OF the
layman, by convincing him that 1t Is
not something to revert to as to a
holiday pleasure, for seasonal inter-
est only, but something of as live and
continuing Importance as the front
page of our newspapers.
You have got a splendid founda-
tion here in Washington-a city of
extraordinary beauty, a modern mu-
scum. the Corcoran, and the hope OF
a national gallery. But the growth
Of the Corcoran can be Of the slowest,
the existence of the national gallery
never come to pass and the value or
both practically nil, without your en-
thusiasm permeating the community.
80, in the first place, lend your
every effort to seeing that the sup
port OF the Corcoran Gallery is wide
spread and that the project for the
national gallery IS brought to the at
tention Of our Legislators and put
through.
Your problem is not confined TO
what you put upon the walls OF these
galleries. but what you put into the
hearts of your people. You have not
only to collect beauty. You have a
barrier of prejudice and misunder-
standing to tear down. You must re-
assure your public day in and day
out, year in and year out, that 1t must
not feel the need of putting on felt
slippers when It approaches art.
Aid Asked for Art Societies.
Therefore, your nexs step. and
perhaps it Is the most important step
of all. Is that you lend your enthu-
siasm to the American Federation OF
Arts and to your Washington Society
OF Fine Arts.
Next, bring pressure to bear upon
your school board. In Pittsburgh
every child OF the eighth grade visits
the Department of Fine Arts to look
q little at painting, sculpture and arch
itecture, not for lessons in a criti-
cal analysis of art, but just to see
what they are missing by not look
ing.
Then arrange some place where
children who are interested may
draw, or play with clay, or cut sill
houettes-mess around In Art, as II
were. just as their fancy moves them
not in school, but IN a playground.
They'll do 1t in the Winter time Just
a they'll 60 down to the old swim
ming hole in the Summer.
Miss Mechlin told how Charles NJ
Pfoulke 10 years ago gathered about
him in his home on Massachusetts
avenue a group OF persons interested