Evening star., 1950-10-08
Art
Major Event in Art
At National Gallery
BY Florence S. Berrymon

By Florence S. Berymon
The National Gallery of Art in
recent years has been the setting
Of major event oftener than an
nually. The opening at 3 this
afternoon of the Gulbenkian COL
lection of European painting is
another esthetic thrill which, were
it presented in any one of the ma
jority of American museums,
would be an event Of a lifetime"
Carlouste Sarkis Gulbenkian,
owner of this important collection,
sent his first loan to the National
Gallery. a distinguished group of
Egyptian sculpture. two years ago,
and shortly thereafter, his second
loan, 18th century French draw
ings, and other works. Those and
the present group of 40 MASTER
pieces Of painting, will remain on
view indefinitely.
The owner of these treasures
has never been to the United
States. He is a British subject of
Armenian parentage, and is now
81. He has a genius for privacy,
among other things. The New
Yorker for September 80 calls his
collection of paintings "the finest
privately owned one in existence"
and says that he is the worlds
No. man" in art and oil, and
possibly in finance. The page
and half of data in this maga-
zine is the only account I have
seen which reveals Mr.. Gulben-
khan as personality.
John Walker, chief curator of
the National Gallery, said that he
considered the Gulbenkian collec-
ton "one of the greatest formed
in the Goth century" The 40
paintings to be presented to the
public today represent only a part
OF large collection. but these are
among the finest and include rare
and beautiful masterpieces.
Famous Former Owners.
Only four of these paintings
have been seen previously in the
United States: Works by Corot,
Lawrence, Manet and Natter.
which Mr.. Gulbenkian acquired
from American collections. He
has purchased paintings from
some Of the greatest public and
private collections in Europe and
America.
He was one Of the first private
collectors" Mr.. Walker said, ito
persuade the Soviet government
to sell a number of supreme treas
ures from the Hermitage Gallery
in Leningrad." approximately 20
years ago. Mr.. Gulbenkian OBJ
tanned from Russia the exquisite
little "Annunciation," by Dierick
Bouts. the famous full-length por-
trait by Rubens of his wife, Helena
Fourment:: Rembrandt's "Pallas
Athena" and penetrating study Of
an "Old Man Seated" the last
three having once belonged to
catherine the Great.
Still others from the Hermitage
are the two scenes by Hubert Rob-
ert called FEELING the Trees" in
the park Of Versailles, when its
gardens in the formal style of
LIE Notre (for Louis XIV were
destroyed to make way for the
romantic English-type gardens.
Lancret's "Fete Galante" belonged
to Frederick the Great of Prus-
sia. and Boucher's large oval,
Cupid and the Graces," was
owned by Sir Richard Wallace,
founder of London's famous wal
lace Collection"
-Four new rooms in the National
Gallery (east end, beyond the
Makers of Washington History"
exhibition) are opened for the
display of the Gulbenkian paint
ings. In the smallest, gallery 69A,
are hung the five earliest works,
18th and 18th century German,
Flemish and Italian. These are
the Bouts already mentioned, a
lovely little late Gothic panel by
Stefan Lochner, whose characters
are all winsomely human, even to
the affectionate Christ Child; a
beautiful Florentine portrait of a
young woman in rose red; an Ad-
grafton by Carpaccio with two
donors in rich Renaissance cos
tunes, and Holy Conversation"
by Gina, lovely in color. The de-
tails and landscapes of these last
two are enchanting.
18th and 18th Centuries.
Besides the outstanding MASTER
pieces by Rembrandt and Rubens,
there are other important ex-
amples of the 17th century Dutch
and Flemish schools; Halls superb