THE MAYOR'S ADDRESS

Evening Post, Issue 28, 1 August 1936, Page 10

THE MAYOR'S ADDRESS

STEP TOWARDS HIGH IDEAL

"From-this eminence upon which we stand today the early settlers looked down upon the shore and the wide waters of Port Nicholson," said the Mayor (Mr. T. C. A. Hislop). "They then made their plans where to build their houses and to erect their public buildings. Their first conception of the proper purpose to which to put this commanding site was to place upon it that deterrent to evildoers—a gaol. And so here in due course was erected a solid edifice of red brick to, house in lonely prominence the enemies of society and to show prominently to all that the King's writ ran in New Zealand. "To all who sailed up the harbour there came prominently before the eye this large and dominating building. Thenew arrival would turn and inquire: 'What is that striking building on so well chosen a site?' And the answer" was: 'The gaol.' "All who entered the port in ships could not help to have forced upon their minds the fact that the Government of New Zealand was determined to deal with evildoers. Perchance the dominant idea was in this way to ensure an indirect means of restricted immigration in the belief that only those of conscious virtue would dare to land near so formidable and, for the evil so terrifying an edifice. But as time passed, so changed the ideas of men, and from being a habitation for the enemies of society the building became a barracks for the country's defenders against foreign aggression."Now a greater change has come. The old building has gone for ever and this site is now dedicated to the service of beauty and knowledge. It stands now as a .manifestation of the higher conceptions of national life, the development of the mind and the spirit of the people. We can today justly take pride in this symbol of our development, this proof of the onward march of the people. "Today we view the fulfilment of the first step towards a great ideal. The completion of a worthy building to house our national treasures," said Mr. Hislop. "The second step is to see that nothing but the best in each respective sphere finds a permanent home within these walls. A standard of the highest merit must be maintained both in the Art Gallery and Museum sections. TESTS OF WORTH. "Nevertheless the artistic and technical merit should not be the sole test. Of equal importance is the national value of a work, its influence upon the community, and its place and effect in the history and development of our country in the past, and its influence in the years to come. Quality, judged from every aspect, and not mere quantity must be the test. Better one good picture, one good exhibit, one true reminder of our country's story, than a hundred of the mediocre or the second rate. On the purely art side the artistic standard, and I mean by that the expression of the highest artistic ideal as interpreted by world standards, must doubtless be the predominant consideration. "But in the Museum section and notably in the proposed National Portrait Gallery, other considerations must have equal, if not greater weight," continued the Mayor. -"Historical value must be given particular attention. A national portrait gallery is always a gallery of men eminent in the service of a nation. Men whose work marks particular

stages and events in the national history. They are not to be regarded as mere subjects for the artist's skill and admitted on the test of contemporary artistic opinion. The real and only true test is firstly, is the memory of the man or woman worthy of perpetuation for national services rendered? and secondly, is the picture a worthy portrayal of him? "A portrait may be in itself a brilliant work of art. As such, it would be eligible for admission to the general portion of the Art Gallery as a work of art; but for that special portion of the Art Gallery known as the National Portrait Gallery the paramount test must be the position of the individual in our national history and his work in our national development. "It,will not be easy to maintain the general standard-required. To do sc will require not merely technical and artistic ability but vision, imagination, and deep knowledge of the pageant of man's story through the ages, and with it all an inflexible courage to hold fast to the ideals for which this national edifice should stand. This surely can be achieved. "The first stage was reached only after great effort," said the Mayor. "An effort in which the people of this district can justly take pride. Let it be proudly remembered that the people of Wellington found one half of the cost of this building. Let the memory of that achievement give us confidence m the realisation of the true purpose of this building. " "Let it be our resolve that this building and all within'it shall be to us a national shrine. A place to which we may come for knowledge, for rest, for _quiet contemplation so that we each may go hence fired in body, mind, and spirit with a determination each in our respective spheres, and according Ito our rights, to work for the enrichment and ennoblement of our national life).