Contemporary Art Society Annual Report 1959-60
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Contemporary Art Society Annual Report Presentations to Art Galleries not recorded in 1959 Report Chairman's Ballarat, Australia: Graham Sutherland. Two Lyrebirds (gouache) Report Bournemouth: Frederick Gore. Olive Trees, Alpilles (oil) Exhibitions to which the Society has loaned 'Seventy Years of British Painting' Britain China Friendship Association Exhibition in China 'Contemporary British Landscape' Arts Council Touring Exhibition 'Art Alive' Northampton Museum and Art Gallery 'Eric Gregory Memorial Exhibition' Temple Newsam House, Leeds National Gallery of Modern Art, Edinburgh Nottingham University Art Gallery Slough Picture Collection Society Loans of Pictures to Hospitals, Colleges, and Educational Bodies Department of Anatomy, University College, London St Giles Hospital The Electricity Council Mond Nickel Company Architectural Association Sir Colin Anderson, who has been our Chairman our gifts to member galleries during the period Leonor Fini Exhibition on the 2nd November, and on since January 1957, resigned in July 1960 on 1910-1959. Some 36 member galleries, including the the 5th December, members had the unique becoming Chairman ofthe Tate Trustees. Sir Colin Tate Gallery (to whom we are most grateful for opportunity of hearing Mr Bryan Robertson's has been a most wonderful Chairman. He has devoted housing our exhibition), the Victoria and Albert excellent lecture on Henry Moore at the Whitechapel his great knowledge, taste and enthusiasm to the Museum and the British Museum lent some two Art Gallery. The lecture, for which we are most interests of the Society and we have greatly hundred works, which included oils, water-colours, grateful to Mr Robertson and the Trustees ofthe benefited. We shall miss him very much, and I know drawings and sculpture. that you would wish me on your behalf to thank Sir Whitechapel, was followed by an enjoyable party and Colin forthe help and inspiration he has given us the whole evening will be repeated on the 12th The Exhibition Sub-Committee must be thanked and during these years. Sir Colin has kindly agreed to December. To end the year's activities, we will be congratulated fortheir hard work and careful remain on the Committee, so I hope that we shall having an Evening Party on 20th December to enable selection from so many sources. I would also like to have the benefit of his wise advice for a long time to members to see the Whitney Collection at the Tate come. thank member galleries who so willingly lent works Gallery. to the Exhibition as well as those who, although unable to lend pictures, helped in other ways. We I would like to take this opportunity of thanking Sir I was elected to the Chairmanship and was happy to would have liked to include works presented to John Rothenstein and the Trustees of the Tate accept, particularly as Mr Anthony Lousada, who overseas galleries, but the distance and expense Gallery fortheir continued hospitality and for helping has a wide knowledge and experience of these involved did not make this practical. Seven thousand us in so many ways throughout the year. matters, consented to become Deputy Chairman. I people saw the Exhibition in London and thousands shall very much rely on his help and guidance during more when it visited Hull, Huddersfield, Manchester, Next year, we plan several visits to interesting private my period of office. Mr Lousada and I have agreed to Preston, Bradford and Bristol. collections in London and it is also hoped that a day serve for a term of three years. trip to Amsterdam will be organised in early May. Mr Raymond Mortimer's admirable Foreword brought The Chairman's task is greatly eased by the able out the interesting fact that the Tate Gallery received In 1961 the purchases ofthe last two years will be assistance received from our splendid Secretary, its first examples of works by Augustus John, presented to over one hundred member galleries, Miss Pauline Vogelpoel. Miss Vogelpoel should be Sickert, Paul Nash, Stanley Spencer, Epstein and and the works will be exhibited beforehand to enable thanked for many things, but in particular for making Gauguin from the Society. We also made a members and the public to see what we have bought. such a success of our evening parties. The Picasso contribution towards the acquisition of the Tate's Party, for example, made a very useful contribution first Picasso. towards ourfunds. I hope during the forthcoming year to examine the way we do things in orderto see whether any A great deal of work was involved in mounting an changes are desirable in the light of present This year, the Society celebrated its fiftieth Exhibition ofthe size of 'The First Fifty Years'. I hope, circumstances. I hope also to make a drive to anniversary, and in orderto commemorate this therefore, that the Secretary will be forgiven for not increase membership so that we can augment our important occasion, we organised an exhibition having organised quite as many 'occasions' as usual. capacity to help member galleries, and generally called 'The First Fifty Years' which was held atthe We did, however, provide members with a chance to expand our activities. Tate Gallery from 1 st April to 8th May. see the Picasso Exhibition at a Special Viewing on the 13th July, which was attended by a record I would ask each memberto help us by bringing in at This exhibition, the largest we have ever put number of well over a thousand people. The Kaplan least one new member during the year. Please give together, served to illustrate the extent and quality of Gallery very kindly invited us to a Private View ofthe us your support in this way. The accounts I am presenting are for 1959, and in amounts to £5,100. However, it is only through the Treasurer's that year our income was once again more than generosity of a number of people who charged us a £5,100-only slightly belowthe record figure of 1958. reduced fee because of the nature of our work, that £460 of this came from the provincial tour of our we are able to keep our expenses as low as they are. Report 'Religious Theme' exhibition and is, therefore, a There is also the fact that when the basic non-recurring item, but on the other hand, it is subscription is only one guinea, it is inevitable that particularly satisfactory that our subscriptions the work involved in collecting it should be out of all showed an increase of over £200 and, for the first proportion to the sum in question, particularly as our time, exceeded £4,000. From these two items alone, members show a quite remarkable facility for not one would have expected a substantial increase in answering letters, and steadily refusing to sign a ourtotal income, but there is a reverse side ofthe Banker's Order, in spite of my impassioned pleading picture. in these annual statements. In fact, no one seems to take any notice of my pleas, whetherfor Banker's You will rememberthat, in 1958, we used part of our Orders, Deeds of Covenant, or higher subscriptions. reserves to buy pictures from the 'Religious Theme' Sothisyear, I won't askfor anything new but simply exhibition. To do this, we had to realise some of our echo the Chairman's appeal for still more members. investments, and so the interest received in 1959 was less than in the previous year. Our benefactors, too, were less numerous than before, and as we had only two parties instead of three, it's not surprising that they produced less income. With this £5,100, our Buyers spent about £3,000 on works of art, which is the same figure that they were allocated in each of the previous two years, and our general expenses amounted to £2,100, making a deficit for the year of £35. These expenses were £600 more than in 1958. Over £200 of this was due to special charges, such asthe redecoration ofthe offices and the printing of a new brochure, but there were some items that had remained at the same level for several years, and the inevitable increase in these is responsible for the balance. It may seem surprising that it should cost over £2,000 to administer a Society whose total income only Report of the Auditors to the Members of the Balance Contemporary Art Society Sheet We have obtained all the information and explanations which to the best of our knowledge and belief were necessary for the purposes of our audit. In our opinion proper books of account have been kept by the Society so far as appears from our examination of those books. We have examined the above Balance Sheet and annexed Revenue Account which are in agreement with the books of account. In our opinion and to the best of our Information and according to the explanations given us the said Accounts give the information required by the Companies Act, 1948, in the manner so required and the Balance Sheet gives a true and fair view of the state of the Society's affairs as at 31 December 1959 and the Revenue Account gives a true and fair view of the deficit for the year ended on that date. Gerard van de Linde & Son, Chartered Accountants Auditors. Chesterfield House, 26-28 Fenchurch Street, London E.C.3. 18 October 1960. The Contemporary Art Society Revenue Account for the year ended 31 Dece er 1959 1958 1958 £ s d £ s d £ Purchases £ s d £ • d £ Subscriptions General 3032 13 7 2997 (including Estimated Refund of Income Tax on Deeds of 'The Religious Theme' Exhibition _ 110g Covenant) 4064 17 6 3800 3032 13 7 Bequests and Donations 200 0 0 597 ExPenses 2111 1 10 1514 Interest on Investments and Deposit Accounts (gross) 278 8 a 351 Sale of Tickets for Parties and Visits less Expenses 104 2 0 297 Hiring