Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-05-31

because of these conditions, it has
to an extent ceased to expand as it might un-
der more favorable crcumsts noes, it is very
much alive and has great hopes for the
future
AS a part of the National Gallery of Art a
national portrait collection is proposed Dur
ing the past few months William H. Holmes,
director, has been busy preparing a catalogue
of such portraits as may be appropriately in
cluded in such collection. Already there are
considerable number, including from the
earliest time, the gallery's gifts and requests.
Most notable the nucleus of such a collec-
ton is the group of portraits of those hold
ing prominent positions in the allied countries
during the World War, painted by our leading
American artists for special committee, self
organized, in New York, a gift to the Nation
and q memorial to leaders in this great and
trsgic epoch. This collection, which hangs in
the foyer of the National Museum. includes, it
will be remembered, portraits of Foch and
Clemenceau, Admiral Beatty and Field Mar
shall Haig, Bratiano, Gen. Diaz, the King and
Queen Of the Belgians, Cardinal Mercier,
woodrow Wilson, Herbert Hoover and others
To this collection has been added John c.
JohanSen's studies for his painting of the sign
ing OF the Treaty of Peace. Here is a splendid
beginning of a great national portrait gallery
To this collection interesting and ex-
cellent addition has recently been made through
gift OF portrait of Commodore Decatur
painted by Gilbert Stuart; an excellent portrait
by Benjamin West of himself is to be num-
bered in the catalogue, and there are other
works Of notable Importance.
Obviously, in assembling paintings for a ma
tiOnal portrait gallery two considerations have
to be kept in mind-subject and the painters
art In other words, such a collection should
consist of great men and women painted by
great painters only for none other could repre-
sent the subjects at their best. How intensely
interesting in this respect is the National Por-
trait Gallery of England, and what a magnh-
cent memorial to those who have helped to
make the nation!
IT so happens that there is at the present time
lection of portraits, chiefly of Americans by
early American artists. This is the Thomas
B. Clarke collection Of ITS portraits by ap-
proximatsly 10 or rs early American painters
Mr.. Clarke, lately deceased, spent many years
assembling this collection and succeeded in
bringing together works of notable merit as
well as historical interest such as exist today in
no one of our public galleries. Included in the
collection are portraits of Washington Adams
and other Presidents of the United States; of
Henry Clay and John Marshall; of Thornton,
the architect of the Capitol and of the Octagon;
OF Nathaniel Hawthorne and Clara Barton and
of many others of interest and note These
are by such outstanding painters as Gilbert
Stuart, Peale, Copley, Blackburn Harding,
Morse, Trumbull, Pine, Savage, Waldo, Jouett
and King, to name only few. Portions of the
collection have been shown from time to time
In the Century Club, New York, and have in
each instance constituted an event of interest
among art connoisseurs. One hundred and
sixty-four of the works included in this COL
lection are now on exhibition at the Pennsyl-
vania Museum of Art, to which they were lent
three years ago upon the opening of the
museum
The collection is to be sold as an entity and
offers will be received by the City Bank, Farm
ers' Trust Co. of New York up to IL o'clock
noon on June Is. It will go undoubtedly to
the highest bidder, provided the bid approaches
its real valuation.
Certainly this is a collection which should
come to our National Gallery, but unless some
public-spirited individual, some so-called
"angel" can be found to make the purchase as
O gift it will almost certainly pass into the
hands Of some other museum or q private