Evening star., 1944-12-17
Bp Leila MechHn

Owing to the cessation of certain
activities in the midst of war, the
commission which passes on all aC-
uuisitions made by the Smithsonian
Institution for the National Col
lection of Fine Arts has not met
for two or three years A meeting
was held, however, within the rast
fortnight at which favorable action
was taken on quite number of
works offered, or submitted, includ-
ing oil paintings, miniatures and a
few prints.
Among these were five oil paint
ings purchased through the Renger
Fund, administered by the National
Academy of Design. TheSe-all by
deceased painters-are Clearing
After September Gale by Howard
Russell Butler; Return to the
Farm, by Elliott Daingerfieid; Self
Portrait" by Will Low; New Year s
Shooter" by George Luks, and The
Sermon" by Carl Melchers. OF
these the last is the largest and
perhaps the most important.
Carl Melchers, who during his
last years made his home with his
gifted wife near Fredericksburg, Va,
lived for a long time during early
manhood in Holland, and there did
some of his best work-work which
will always give him high place in
the world of art. THE Sermon
is one of these early canVases. It
represents group of devout wor-
shippers in characteristic Dutch
church-possibly one of those re-
Gently destroyed by the Nazi invad-
ers. In spirit and feeling it is
essentially Dutch, but it borrows
nothing from the Dutch painting
of the past. Exhibited in the Paris
Salon of 1926, it won for the painter
an honorable mention. In 1882 t
was included in the exhibition Of
Mr.. Melcher's work held in the
American Academy of Arts and
Letters, New York. 1t was also
shown in the Melchers Memorial
exhibitions held in 1888 and 1884
at the Corcoran Gallery Of Art and
the Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh,
respectively. OF late it has hung
as a loan in the Corcoran Gallery.
Sincere Originality
Despite the fact that Carl Mel
chers studied in Germany, Holland
and Paris, and profited thereby, he
never lost his own simple and SIN
cere originality. His watch words
were, we are told on good authority,
True" and "Clear"-and certainly
he never fumbled. In foreWord
to the Carnegie Show, Royal Cor1is
soz, art critic of the New York
Herald Tribune, paid him the follow
ing tribute: He has had much to
say and he has steadily said it in
terms of a fine artistic rectitude.
Surely none better merits a PLACE
in our remembrance Though rep
representation in one OF our ma
tional art collections.
There is, quite naturally, confu-
sion in many minds of the National
Collection of Fine Arts, and the
great collection in the National GAL
lery of Art. When the Smithsonian
was established in 1916, art was
listed as one of its possibilities.
1t was not, however, until 1906 that,
by a decision of the Supreme Court
of the District of Columbia, the
name National Gallery of Art" was
applied, legalizing gifts made to
such an institution up to that time.
Then, in 1887, when by act of Con-
greSs this title was transferred to
the great building and it's contents,
made possible through the generos-
ity and forethought of the late An
drew w. Mellon, that part of the
national art collection was renamed
as of today, National Collection of
Fine Arts" Some day a Smithson-
ian Gallery will be built, presumably
on the Mall, to house the Smith
sonian Collection, chiefly of Amer
lean works, and certainly the FRO
posed National Portrait Gallery
independent units, all of these ac-
tivities are under the Smithsonian.
The Commission
But to return to the National Fine
Arts Commission and its recent
meeting. This commission is made
up of artists and laymen especially
qualified as advisers in the arts.
Those who attended and took part
in the recent meeting were David
E. Finley, director of the National
Gallery of Art; Frank Jewett
Mather, author, critic; Edward Red