JUSTIFICATION OF ESTIMATE FOR 1939 Mr. Caemmerer, do you have any general statement you would like to make before going into the details of your estimates? Mr. CAEMMERER. I have submitted a statement, and I would like to insert it in the record. I think the committee has copies of it. It is a concise statement. Mr. O'NEAL. Very well. (The statement referred to is as follows:) THE COMMISSION OF FINE ARTS The estimate of appropriation for the Commission of Fine Arts for the fiscal year 1939 amounts to $10,000, including an item of $300 for miscellaneous printing and binding, and is the same as the appropriation for the fiscal year 1938. There has been no change in the wording of legislation. The amount of $10,000 was authorized by Congress for annual expenses at the time of the establishment of the Commission of Fine Arts 27 years ago, although the duties of the Commission have been enlarged in numerous ways since then. During the fiscal year 1937 the Commission of Fine Arts held 11 official meetings and numerous committee meetings. The members are constantly attending to submissions that are submitted to the Commission of Fine Arts for advice, involving the fine arts, particularly architecture, sculpture, painting, and landscape architecture. The President, the executive departments, and committees of Congress consult the Commission on questions of art. Also Members of Congress individually confer with the Commission as to fine-arts projects. A list of the more important projects submitted during the fiscal year 1937 is included in this report. Travel expenses incurred for meetings of the Commission of Fine Arts during the fiscal year 1937 were as follows: Traveling expenses, Commission of Fine Arts, July 1, 1936, to June 30, 1937 Traveling expenses, Commission of Fine Arts, July 1, 1936, to June 30, 1937—Con. Mr. Gilmore D. Clarke, Apr. 22, in regard to Thomas Jefferson 43. 55 25. 30 27. 10 6. 00 12. 10 189. 15 25. 15 30.40 16. 10 43. 80 23. 80 23. 45 9.00 171. 70 10. 00 12.00 43. 80 24. 15 11. 85 29.96 131.76 27.70 25. 25 27. 10 44. 30 24. 15 26. 30 6.75 153.85 Traveling expenses, Commission of Fine Arts, July 30, 1936, to June 30, 1937—Con. Setting up model in connection with moving into new Department of the Interior Building.. 85. 00 102. 00 11. 67 Total, 1 to 11, inclusive.. Shipping models, hauling and framing pictures, equipment for offices in new Interior Building.. Expressage.. Grand total._____ 1, 650. 81 During the fiscal year 1937 there were 107 submissions by the building inspector of the District of Columbia of designs coming under the Shipstead-Luce Act (enacted May 16, 1930) by which nearly 20 miles of private building area adjacent to parks and public buildings in the National Capital are brought under the jurisdiction of the Commission of Fine Arts. The law has been in operation successfully for a period of 7 years, and has resulted in benefits both to the Government and to private enterprise, since the act prevents the erection of unsightly structures along the areas prescribed in the act and requires builders to adopt an improved design and often better building material. The most important project that came before the Commission of Fine Arts during the past fiscal year was the National Gallery of Art, the gift of the late Hon. Andrew W. Mellon in connection with his $50,000,000 gift of notable paintings to the Government. Congress having authorized a location for the National Gallery on the Mall, the Commission considered and approved the design submitted by Mr. John Russell Pope, architect. The building, now under construction, is to be completed in 2 years. It is to be a very fine gallery and will be in the classical style of architecture to harmonize with the classical type adopted by George Washington and Thomas Jefferson for the United States Capitol and the White House. The project next in importance was the design for the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, submitted by the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Commission. Having regard for the great service Thomas Jefferson rendered the Republic, the Commission recommended a location still available in the central composition of the National Capital, namely, the site south of the Washington Monument. Objection was raised to such recommendation, and the question of location has been placed before Congress for decision. The following is a list of the more important projects, showing also their variety, which came before the Commission this past fiscal year: BUILDINGS Federal Reserve Board Building, details of design by Paul Cret. Federal Trade Commission Building, revised design by Office of the Supervising Architect. National Gallery of Art, designed by John Russell Pope, for location on the Mall: the building is the gift of Hon. Andrew W. Mellon in connection with gift of notable paintings. Branch library, Petworth, by municipal architect. Vocational Training School, by municipal architect. National Auditorium, consideration of location. Stadium for District of Columbia, consideration of design by Francis Sullivan. Revised scheme for municipal center. Massachusetts Avenue apartment building, design by Francis Cunningham. Apartment building near Zoologica Park. Bulfinch Gate Houses, restoration. Washington water-front development; designs for series of buildings to be erected along the Washington Channel, submitted by district engineer, Office of the Chief of Engineers. Social Security Board Building, preliminary sketch. Hall of Fame, as proposed by H. R. 6792; bill referred by the committee on Public Buildings and Grounds, House of Representatives. Commercial building, North Capitol Street and Massachusetts Avenue, design. Pan American Administration Building, revised design. New Naval Hospital, question of relocation. Plan for improvement of north side of Pennsylvania Avenue. Design of new Chain Bridge. Design for proposed new Pennsylvania Avenue Bridge, SE. Design for Boundary Channel Bridge. Over 100 submissions under the Shipstead-Luce Act, by which nearly 20 miles of private building area adjacent to parks and public buildings in the National Capital are brought under the jurisdiction of the Commission of Fine Arts. STATUES, MONUMENTS AND MEMORIALS Texas Centennial monuments; Commission advised as to designs; the monuments are being erected by the Texas Centennial Commission. Grover Cleveland Memorial, revised design. Nurses Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery. Second Division Memorial, lighting. Sculptured panels for new Government Printing Office Building. Markers for national military parks, designs. Memorial bench for Naval Academy, Annapolis. Thomas Jefferson Memorial, consideration of design submitted; design and landscape features to be given further study. Sculpture for New Post Office Department Building: Statue by Attilio Piccirilli, statue, City Delivery Carrier of 1863, by Carl L. Schmitz; statue of a continental post rider, 1775 to 1789 by A. Stirling Calder; statue of Hawaiian postman by Louis Slebodkin; statue of an Alaska snowshoe carrier by Chaim Gross: statue of an air-mail pilot by Oronzio Maldarelli; statue of a stage driver, 1789-1836, by Sidney Waugh. Proposed monument to Joel Barlow. Proposed memorial to veterans of all wars. General Wadsworth Memorial, design, Wilderness Battlefield. Albert Gallatin statue. Franklin K. Lane, memorial, location. Tablet for Fort Wood, N. Y. General Goethals Monument, Panama. Sculpture for Federal Reserve Board Building. Sculptural panels for Home Owners' Loan Corporation Building. LANDSCAPE PLANS Landscape plan for the White House Grounds, changes in planting, roadways, new fence, etc. Lee Boulevard connection from Fort Myer to Columbia Island. Barney Circle development, approach to Pennsylvania Avenue Bridge, SE. Levee, Potomac Park, design. Wilderness Military Cemetery design. Meridian Hill Park planting plan. Columbia Island Plaza development. Rock Creek Park improvement plans. Planting plans for the Mall. George Washington Memorial Parkway. Landscape plans for the Triangle. Plan for Judiciary Square in connection with new District of Columbia courts buildings. Approaches for Key Bridge. Anacostia Park plans. Washington waterfront, improvement plans. MEMORIAL COINS, MEDALS, AND INSIGNIA Albany, N. Y., memorial coin, in commemoration of the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the city. Roanoke memorial coin, in commemoration of the three hundred and fiftieth anniversary of Sir Walter Raleigh's colony on Roanoke Island, N. C., and the birth of Virginia Dare, the first child of English parentage to be born on the American continent. New Rochelle, N. Y., memorial coin in commemoration of the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the city, 1688-1938. 35. Battle of Gettysburg memorial coin, seventy-fifth anniversary. Admiral Byrd medal to commemorate his Second Antarctic Expedition, 1933 Medal for Naval Expeditionary Forces for service in foreign lands. PAINTINGS Large map for Federal Reserve Board Building, by Ezra Winter. Painting for Department of Justice Building by Simeon Shimin; seriesEmancipation of Man, Woman, and Child. Mural painting for Post Office Department Building by Doris Lee. MISCELLANEOUS Water tower, Fort Stanton, Anacostia, design. Elevated parking scheme, design submitted by District Commissioners. Mounting of historic flag at Annapolis. Monuments in Arlington National Cemetery. The membership of the Commission consists of Mr. Gilmore D. Clarke, chairman; Mr. Eugene F. Savage, painter; Mr. Charles Moore, historian and art critic; Mr. Charles L. Borie, architect; Mr. Henry R. Shepley, architect; Mr. William F. Lamb, architect; Mr. Paul Manship, sculptor. The members are appointed by the President and serve without compensation. Since the creation of the Commission by Congress in 1910 the artist members have been drawn from the representative men of their several professions-men of training, experience, and achievement; and considerate in dealing with other artists. They give freely of their time out of patriotic devotion and their interest in maintaining standards in the fine arts of this country. MEMBERSHIP OF COMMISSION Mr. O'NEAL. Mr. Caemmerer, I would like to ask you a few questions about the make-up of the Commission, with the number and how they are appointed. Mr. CAEMMERER. We have seven members on the Commission. They are well-qualified judges of the fine arts, and they are appointed in accordance with the act of Congress approved May 17, 1910. The members are appointed by the President. We have on our Commission three architects, a sculptor, a painter, a landscape architect, and an art critic and historian, all prominent in their respective professions. Mr. O'NEAL. How are they appointed? Mr. CAEMMERER. They are appointed by the President for a period of 4 years. Mr. O'NEAL. What compensation do they receive? Mr. CAEMMERER. They receive no compensation. They are reimbursed for their traveling expenses. NUMBER OF MEETINGS Mr. O'NEAL. About how many meetings a year does the Commission hold? Mr. CAEMMERER. We had 11 the past fiscal year. We meet on an average once a month, and, in addition to that, we have committee meetings. |