Evening star., 1933-12-17

- ARLY this week art took a prominent
place at the front of the stage which
~ is being played the drama Of contem-
porary. life On Monday = was an
nounced il. the news columns of The
Star that from the fund appropriated
for emergency relief $500 artists would be i'm
mediately given employment The proposed
employment will include the decoration Of Fed
era and other publicly owned buildings in
Washington and throughout the country; only
such, however, as are supported wholly or in
part by funds received through taxes. The
artists, it is understood, are to be free to work
out their own projects, and it is thought that
in this way those with special talent who have
had in the past, and especially in the immedi-
ate past, little encouragement for production,
will find new and adequate means of express
sion. Primarily, however, this is a relief meas
ure, and only those really in immediate need
will profit by it.
There are comparatively few persons who re-
gard art as necessity of life, therefore when
economic measures become necessary, spend
ing in this quarter not only diminishes, but
sometimes ceases Thus it is easily under
standable that among all professionals, artists
have perhaps been hardest hit by the general
financial conditions Of the country. 1t is to
relieve this sitution that the new Public Works
Of Art organization has come into existence
The work will be carried on throughout the
country by IA regional committees, headed, in
most instances, by the directors of art mu-
Sums. No artist or art dealer will be men,
Der of these committees but will serve when
called upon in advisory capacity. To work out
this plan, to set the machinery rapidly in mo-
tion the art directors of the leading museums
were called here to Washington for conference.
The emergency measure is limited both in
scope and in time, the period of its effective
ness being concluded in February.
The Washington Committee is headed by
Duncan Phillips of the Phillips Memorial Gal
lery c. Powell Minnigerode, director of the
Corcoran Gallery, is a member of the commit
tee. Forbes Watson, formerly editor of the
Arts, an illustrated monthly magazine published
in New York, is serving as general technical
director, with an Office In the Treasury De-
partment. Edward Bruce, who is an artist and
a very gifted one, well a business man,
will serve as general secretary
Evidencing the promptness with which this
work will be put into effect it Is interesting to
know that by Tuesday evening" "A hours after
the announcement of the project was made, IL
local artists had been put to work. The first
work undertaken the painting of certain
habitat backgrounds for houses in Zoo
logical Park
AZ the same time that this announcement
made the appointment of four members
of National Advisory Committee to
a COMMITTEES of Seven to aid in preserving
historical buildings and give immediate en-
ployment to q thousand or more unemployed
architects, was made known. Those named by
the American Institute OF Architects were Lei
cester B. Holland. chief Of the division of Fine
Ferry Of Williamsburg, Va; Albert Simons Of
Charleston, 8. c.. and John Carr Mems Of
Santa Fe. N. Mex. Through the acquaintance