ART IN GREAT BRITAIN

Press, Volume LXXXV, Issue 25738, 25 February 1949, Page 3

ART IN GREAT BRITAIN

Changes in Last 20 Years IMPRESSIONS OF MRS FRANKEL A remarkable growth in interest among the general public, more recognition of contemporary artists because of changes in gallery policy, and increased attention to art in schools: these changes in the position of art in Great Britain since she was an art student there 20 years ago were noticed by Mrs O. H. Frankel during a recent visit to England and the Continent.

The work of the British Council and the Arts Council was largely responsible for the spread of interest in art. said Mrs, Frankel. The Arts Council sponsored exhibitions all over England. One such exhibition of paintings by Augustus John she had seen in a small town in Wales. The British Council was very helpful to visitors to Britain.

Contemporary artists were given much more prominence than they had been when she was there before, and much more of their work was being bought by the art galleries. Modern artists were well represented at the Tate Gallery in London, which had four paintings by Frances Hodgkins, two of her earlier works and two of the more recent ones. “I was sadly disappointed when I returned here and found that Frances Hodgkins was good enough for the Tate, but not good enough for Christchurch.” Mrs Frankel said. Other contemporary painters whose works were showing at the Tate were Graham Sutherland, John Piper, Stanley Spencer and Matthew Smith. Many of the present-day painters were not confining their work to pictures, said Mrs Frankel." She saw “Carmen" at Covent Garden with scenery by Edward Burra and a Verdi opera at Sadlers Wells <where all operas were now sung in English) with scenery by John Piper. Paintings by artists of the earlier periods were mostly kept at the National, the other London gallery. Both galleries were badly damaged during the war and were only half open, but they were constantly changing the pictures on exhibition. The opening of a new room in one of the galleries was almost a national event. The newspapers. generally, gave a lot of space to art. Modern Display Methods Modern display methods were a feature of many exhibitions, said Mrs Frankel. She noticed this particularly at an exhibition of “Design at Work,” exhibited jointly by the Royal Society of Arts and '‘the Council of Industrial Design, at which articles of practical use such as furniture and radios were arrestingly displayed. An exhibition of Danish art, at the Victoria and Albert Museum, showing the history of art in Denmark from the . Vikings to the present, was arranged in the “shop window” style. Some of the displays had fabric backgrounds and some were in specially designed cases. Awnings were used to lower the ceiling and concentrate the lighting. Child art was now considered a very important branch of art in England, and while she was there there had been three exhibitions of children’s work, one of them sponsored by a daily newspaper. One of the exhibitions was of work by child students of the late Marion Richardson, a teacher of art to children, z well known for her encouragement of free and modern methods of teaching art in schools. Art was now so important in secondary schools that art inspectors were employed arid most educational authorities had their art advisers. Marion Richardson, before her recent death, was inspector of art for the London County Council. Exchanges of- national treasures between European countries, something that did not take place 20 years ago, were quite general now. said Mrs Frankel. While in Sweden she saw an exhibition of art treasures from Vienna and while in Amsterdam one from Munich. Similar exchanges of modern art did not take place because of the financial positions of the various countries concerned. The Chantrey Bequest* Shortly before she left England there was an exhibition at Burlington House of pictures bought for the Chantrey Bequest. Chantrey, a Victorian sculptor, left a large bequest for the encouragement of British fine arts by the annual purchase of the most meritorious paintings and sculptures that could be obtained. The administration of the bequest had caused a lot of discussion. The purchase of the pictures was originally entrusted to the president and council of the Royal Academy, and the bequest became operative in 1875. No provision was made for housing and the Government agreed in 1897 to have the pictures kept in the Tate Gallery. Most' of them had been in the cellars there for the last 50 years. If exhibited they would have occupied half the gallery’ The exhibition at the Burlington House was held at the suggestion of the Tate Board. It was “a collection of Victorian rubbish,” said Mrs Frankel. Only one newspaper fiad had anything good to say for it. She understood that the selection of the pictures was now in the hands of a joint committee of the Royal Academy and the Tata Board.