Evening star., 1954-10-13
Scope of Fine Arts

The hearings held June 9 and by
the House Education and Labor SUBJ
committee on the IA bills before the
83d Congress to establish a national
program in the fine arts as q National
War Memorial were very interesting
and important from many viewpoints.
I would like to comment on just one
facet at this time however.
The hearings made 1t clear that there
was considerable dissatisfaction regard
ing the present art activities Of the
Federal Government, as well as with
the Commission of Fine Arts.
The American Federation Of Labor
and the CIO have deplored the fact
that appointments to the Fine Arts
Commission have unduly failed to in
clude representatives Of workers or OF
the fine arts of music, opera, theater.
dance and libraries.
The National Music Council, repre-
Senting As national organizations with
a combined membership of / million.
adopted unanimously in May reSolu-
ton urging that provision be made for
a non-political National Commission OF
the Arts in which the National Music
Council and it's member organizations
shall have adequate representation"
There. is much more in the hearing
record which shows the growing con-
cern with the continuing definition OF
the fine arts by the Commission of Fine
Arts as primarily the static arts OF
architecture, landscape architecture,
painting, and sculpture; and with a
situation in which only the static arts
have representatives on a Federal
agency which deals with all the arts.
including the living arts, and advises
Congress and the President in all mat
tiers pertaining to them.
One notes with pleasure, then, the
announcement on September 20 that
"The Department of State has engaged
the American National Theater and
Academy to act as its agent for the
purpose of encouraging and facilitating
tours abroad by American individuals
and groups in musical. theatrical and
other fields. This project is an extern
sion of the continuing exchange pro-
grams handled by the International
Education Exchange Service of the De-
partment of State"
Earlier this year periodicals in the
entertainment world carried stories to
the effect that the terms OF nve OF the
seven members of the Commission Of
Fine Arts expired in 1854. One Of the
five has just resigned.
This Federal agency has budget Of
$21, 200, but there is no salary attached
to the position of commission member.
Since it's establishment in 1910 its
members have been architects, land
scape architects. painters, and sculp-
tors. There is, however. no language
in the 1910 act establishing the Com
mission requiring that its members be
limited to the static arts. The Ian
guage of the act does require that its
members shall be well qualified judges
of the fine arts. Since the commission
advises the President and Congress on
both the static and living arts, it seems
only fair that some of its members be
drawn from the fields of the living arts
am. convinced that the country as
whole would hail the appointment of
cultural leaders to the Commission of
Fine Arts from the living arts field
Cultural leaders of the stature of the
following must be sought, however, for
these nationally important positions OF
public trust:
DR.. Howard Hanson, president, Ma