PUBLIC OPINION

New Zealand Times, Volume XLIX, Issue 11247, 27 June 1922, Page 4

PUBLIC OPINION

DANCING AT "THE 'ART GALLEI&. (To the Editor “N.Z. Times.”) Sir,—l think it ie only right that the attention of ail those who take a keen interest in art should again be drawn to the conditions prevailing at the Gallery of Fine Arts, or, to speak plainly at the “Wellington Dancing Saloon,” which, when not being used for dancing is converted into the Art Cattery, pro tern. I paid a visit just recently and found the glass cases, statuettes, etc., in fact, everything, had been removed, and simplv stowed away in any corner out of flie w*y, so as to clear the floor for dancing. " Valtlhble works of art, especially statues and carvings, do not as a rule benefit by being constantly handled and moved about. The floor had been recently varnished and polished for dancing, and the visitors who had been to the Gallery had left the dirt and dust from their boots sticking to the floor; in fact, it looked more like a dusty high road than the floor of an Art Gallery. I feel sure that no one who saw it under those conditions wpuld over dream of placing a valuable picture at the disposal of the committee while the present conditions exist. lam not surprised when I hear 'visitors to Wellington, remark: “What a poor Art Gallery you have here!” -t hope that those who take an interest in tliia subject will express their opinions through the Press, as I think it only just that the public should know how their own property is being taken care of .' ..■ 4N ADMIRER OF . ART.