164*

FINE ART DIVISION.

UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND.FINE AET DIVISION.

REPORT on the ARRANGEMENT of the PICTURES, &c., contributed by GREAT BRITAINand IRELAND to the PARIS UNIVERSAL EXHIBITION.

A -gem^t Having been deputed by the Lords of Her Majesty’s Committee of Privy Council for Trade to proceed tot ire». Paris to aid Mr. Redgrave with our advice as to the hanging and arranging the Paintings, ArchitecturalDesigns, and Engravings contributed by the Artists of the United Kingdom to the Paris Universal Exhi-bition, we beg to submit the following Report of our proceedings :—

On our arrival in Paris, we found that a long side hall of the main floor of the “ Palais des Beaux-Arts ” had been appropriated to the British Oil Pictures, and an upper gallery, on the same side of thebuilding, to Water-colour Paintings, Architectural Designs, and Engravings.

This appropriation has been made partly because the British works were mostly of a cabinet size, andpartly because the allotted space was that part of the building the farthest possible removed from appre-hended danger by fire ; which danger is, however, now greatly abated by the increased precautions adoptedby the French Government.

The space allotted in the lower hall to the Oil Pictures is well lighted, and sufficiently low to preventthe necessity of hanging the works at a great elevation ; it also affords the opportunity for all the works ofthis kind to hang in one continuity. The space, however, presented many obstacles to an agreeablearrangement of the pictures; it was broken into short lengths by numerous openings and doors, andinterrupted by many projections.

The light and space in the upper gallery provided for the Water-colour Paintings, the ArchitecturalDesigns, and the Engravings, are quite unobjectionable.

There were, however, other difficulties to be surmounted in the prosecution of our labours. It mighthave been desirable to adopt an alphabetic arrangement, and to hang all the works of each Artist in closeproximity ; but this was found to be wholly impracticable, not only from the causes before mentioned—thedivided nature of the space, but more especially from the extreme irregularity in the arrival of the works,many of which were not deposited in the building until the last week in April, while others by the sameArtists had already been placed on the walls. This irregularity arose from the circumstance of the variedlocalities in England whence the pictures were obtained from the various proprietors.

Notwithstanding, however, the hindrances and obstacles, we trust that we may safely report that a verysatisfactory arrangement has been made of all the works intrusted to us ; that all are well seen ; that thespace allotted to British Art has been occupied with the least possible loss of room ; and the whole completed and in order, so that nothing on our part prevented the opening of the “ Exhibition of Beaux-Arts”on the first of May, had other circumstances permitted the adherence to this date.

It has long been felt desirable to exhibit a suitable collection of British Art on the Continent, wherehitherto the works of the British School have been but little known. While we regret that the date deter-mined by the Decree of the French Imperial Commission has prevented the exhibition of the works ofmany of our most eminent artists lately deceased, we still venture to believe that the present collection willredound to the honour of British Art.

At the same time, impressed with the many excellences of the French and other foreign works in thiscollection, we feel satisfied of the general benefit to art that will arise from the assembled Exhibition. Eachwill learn from all ; many prejudices will gradually be eradicated ; and we may trust in future to a betterappreciation of one another.

In conclusion, we would venture to hope, that in the event of the British Government, as in the GreatExhibition of 1851, devoting a sum of money to the purchase of rare works contained in the Exhibition,the department of the Fine Arts, now, as a whole, for the first time, combined with industry in a universalExhibition, may not be excluded from a proper share of consideration.

THOMAS CRESWICK.

HENRY WARREN.

FREDERICK YEATES HURLSTONE.

May 1855.