NOTABLE HOME FOR CITY'S COLLECTION OF PICTURES.

Press, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20574, 16 June 1932, Page 6

NOTABLE HOME FOR CITY'S COLLECTION OF PICTURES.

When the McDougall Art Gallery in the Botanic Gardens is officially opened at 3 o'clock tills afternoon the citizens of Christchurch mil have an opportunity of realising the munificence of the gift made to the City four years ago by Mr R. E. McDougall, when he handed to the then Mayor a cheque for £25,000, to be used in providing an art gallery worthy of Christchurch. The building is not blatantly imposing or ornate: it has a quiet beauty that is! in keeping

r J 1 HE Gallery now is complete—except that its collection of pictures and other works of art is naturally intended to be added to. On the walls are hung the many pictures that have been acquired from time to time by the City, or have been presented to it through the generosity of many citizens, or handed over by the Canterbury Society of Arts from its permanent collection. The story of the building of the Gallery, however, concerns endeavours that have •been made over many years, at last -brought to fulfilment by the gift of .Mr McDougall. As early as 1925 it was proposed that as art gallery should be erected to mark the Jubilee of the Christchurch City Council. A loan poll to raise funds for this purpose, however, was rejected, but Mr McDougall, who even before this had contemplated helping the City in the matter, offered to provide £SOO toward the cost. As no other offers of subscriptions were forthcoming, nothing came of the offer.

ting which' shall never err by overshadowing them, or by calling attention to itself to their detriment. For this purpose the modern classical style, which has been followed, has proved eminently suitable. The entrance hall, which is paved with Terazzo marble, gives into the Sculpture Hall, which is architecturally the most ornate part of the building. It is spacious, with a lofty roof, and surrounded by Corinthian columns in a veined orange marble effect. The floor is again of marble, with a star pattern set in the centre, and this, combined 'X- ■" V ... f ' *

manner of lighting. To adopt the pro-, cedure followed in other buildings, of admitting light through windows in the walls, will not do, for this gives a glare where it is not wanted, coming from the walls where the objects of interest must be placed, instead of being directed on to them. This condition, incidentally, explains why an art gallery must differ architecturally from other buildings, and must have outer walls unrelieved by windows. The system ,of top-side lighting adopted is designed to give a diffused light coming from above. In the main

On Saturday, March 10th, 1928, Mr McDougall offered, to present to. the City an art gallery, to cost at least £25,000. His main condition was that the City should provide the site, which, he said, he would prefer to be in the Gardens. Mr McDougall also stipulated that the design for the gallery should be determined by competition. Although, the foundation stone was laid on May 28th, 1928, the site was not definitely decided upon until September 2nd, 1930. In the meantime competitive designs were called for, *\».d that of Mr E. W. Armstrong, R.1.8A., a New Zealander practising in London, was accepted. The tender for the erection of the building was let on October 3ist, 1930, to. Messrs J. and W. Jamieson, Ltd., the amount of the tender, being £27,750, this, being covered by the original amonnt of the gift, together with the interest . that had accrued. " The Building Itself. Externally, the gallery is pleasing by its simplicity, and now that the debris has been removed from the nearby area, and the ground has been levelled, and shrubs planted, has begun to become one with - its surroundings. The walls, necessarily in an art gallery, are not broken by windows, and no confusing ornament has been permitted to distract from their, essentially pleasing proportions. The tapestry bricks used for the exterior give a pleasing softness, and, within a low range, variety of colour, while the lighter facings, of Oamaru stone, tone well in the rest.

with the fact that the bays at the side rise three steps higher than the hall itself, gives the impression of a fountain court—added to by the presence in the centre of a pedestal bearing a fine small bronze figure. The ceiling admits the light through many cellular openings, and diffused light comes in from the bays at the sides.

rooms this is achieved "by means of an opaque false ceiling, coming fairly low, and under which the visitor stands. Translucent slanting glass paneß link this to the walls at a higher level, so that the light is directed down the walls at an angle, none of it striking directly downwards into the room. The result is that the pictures stand out with exceptional and pleasing brilliance, and can be observed without any strain on the eyes. Under normal circumstances, as the gallery is to be open only during the day, there will be no need for artificial

Although the portico at the main entrance of the gallery, with its classical arch and graceful columns, is imposing and attractive, it gives only a slight indication of the quiet beauty of the interior. Throughout—in keeping with the- purpose of the building—there is nothing flamboyant, and the aim seems, rightly, to have been to provide a worthy setting for works of art, a set-

A Quietly Beautiful Interior.

As the purpose of an art gallery is to enable the pictures hung on the walls to be seen to best advantage, particular care has to be given to the

OFFICIAL OPENING THIS AFTERNOON.

b with its purpose—to be a place where the art treasures of i the City may be seen to advantage, under conditions that do I not detract from their value, and that will ensure their pre--3 servation for future citizens. That the Gallery itself is a r notable addition to the architecture of the City is incidental 7 to the main purpose of the gift, but it can be the source of an / added satisfaction that the Gallery itself is no less a work of % art than the pictures it has been built to house.

light. Nevertheless, exceptional occasions are provided for, with an artificial lighting system just as carefully planned. Except in some of the smaller bays no lighting fixtures aro visible, these being placed above the false ceilings so that the light may strike the pictures in the same way by night as by day. Pleasing Colour Effects. Another condition essential to an art galleiy—that the pictures shall have a setting at the same time pleasing and; unobtrusive—has been well observed. The walls are covered with coarselywoven fabric in low tones, giving a satisfactoiy matt surface. In most of the rooms grey is used, though a light chocolate colour in one, and green in some of the smaller bays, provide relief. The material is similar to that used in the Tait Gallery in London, and in order to obtain a sufficient quantity for the whole building most-of it had to be specially made. Dark, halfinch cork flooring is used throughout, except in the sculpture hall, relief being given by a lighter-toned border. Higher up on the walls, above the fabric, the light cream-coloured cement of the dado decorated in fan-pattern, is in keeping with the mood of repose which characterises the whole of the interior.

Correct heating and ventilation are an essential in an art gallery if the exhibits are to be protected from deterioration. The system in use at the E. McDougall Gallery is essentially modern, and provides that the air in the rooms shall be maintained at a constant temperature and humidity, despite changes in the conditions outside the walls. In the furnace-room in the basement of the building the air is washed and heated, and is then passed by concealed pipes to the various rooms, which it enters through bronze grilles high up on the walls. The cold air is taken back to the furnaccroom through large grilles set in the floor of the sculpture hall, but though the air is constantly moving through the building—being changed completely every 15 minutes—there is no sign of draught. The furnace is fitted with an automatic stoker in conjunction with a, thermostat to control the temperature, so that there is no chance of the gallery becoming overheated on warm day, or being cold and damp in winter. Provision for the storage of pictures has been made in the basement, where special care has been taken to make everything absolutely waterproof. This has been achieved by having, between the walls, a lining of Neuchatel. asphalt. Here also is the furnace-room, and its equipment of bloweTs and other apparatus concerned with the ventilation system.

The firms chiefly responsible for details of the work are: Messrs J. Ballantyne and Co., felts and fabrics; W. H. Harris, Tinsmiths, Ltd., heating and ventilation; Messrs Turnbull and Jones, Ltd., electric lighting; J. Tait, Ltd., paving of the portico; Neuchatel Asphalte Co., roofing; Thos. Andrews and Son, Terrazzo paving; E. Lockwood, interior decorations; and T. Hatherley, plastering.