CHILDREN’S ART

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 229, 24 June 1944, Page 8

CHILDREN’S ART

Exhibition Of Pictures From Britain

Of profound significance is the exhibition of water-colours by British school children, which has come to Wellington through the auspices of the British Council, after a tour through the United States, Canada and Australia, and which was opened at the National Gallery in the D.I.C. building yesterday afternoon by the Minister of Education. Mr. Mason, in the presence of a large gathering. Mr. D. A. Ewfli, who presided, said they were fortunate in having secured, through the offices of the British Council, such a unique collection of pictures by British children, a collection which had made an impression wherever they had been exhibited. There were also pictures painted by New Zealand children, so that the opportunity was presented of comparing one with the other. He mentioned that Sir Harry Batterbee. High Commissioner for Great Britain, had been interested in securing the exhibition for New Zealand. Sir Harry said the exhibition showed that, though Britain was enduring the greatest war ever known in her history, it was not dimming her interest in art, nor was she failing, to pass that knowledge and appreciation of art on to her children for the enlightenment of that better world they all hoped would come out of the' war. In the United States, Canada and Australia the exhibition had created great interest, as he hoped it would here. The pictures were from school children all over Great Britain, from Eton down to the elementary schools of London east. What Struck one most, he thought, was their extraordinary vitality; that lively sense of trying to depict what was seen by the eyes of childhood —the power to see vividly. Mr. Mason expressed the warmest thanks to Sir Harry Batterbee, and through him the British Council, for what they were doing on behalf of education. It was good to have such an exhibition, as. living as they did so, far f- oru the world's cultural centres. New Zealanders were apt to suffer from insularity, and become imbued with seltsatisfaction, which probably entailed a limited outlook. In some ways that might not be such a bad thing, but in others such insularity had its had features, especially in education. Mr. W. B. Harris, of the Education Department, announced thnt during the exhibition a series of lectures on child art would be delivered in the gallery- by Mr Roland Ilipkins. the first at 12.30 p.m. on Wednesday next and the second at 3.15 p.m. mi Thursday.