People's Pilot, Volume 6, Number 37, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 March 1897 — THE CORCORAN GALLERY OF FINE ARTS [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

THE CORCORAN GALLERY OF FINE ARTS

The Corcoran Gallery of Fine Arts at Washington was opened the other night with every symptom of appreciation on the part of the people invited. The brilliant assemblage of visitors wandered the lines of noble statuary and costly paintings, inspected the interior structure of the building, and listened to a most entertaining concert rendered by the Marine Band. The new gallery is declared to be the most perfect thing of its kind in the world. The rooms are so arranged as to show, with every advantage of light, the works of art that are exhibited in them. It has been finished at a cost, including the site, of almost $1,000,000, and the best judges of these enterprises say that nothing was left undone and no feature forgotten that would render the building suitable for the purpose for which it was created. The architecture of the exterior is of th,e NeoGrecian style. The interior is finished

in pink granite, Georgia white marble and Indiana limestone generally, and the whole structure is perfectly fireproof. The sculptures are perhaps the most interesting content of the gallery. The collection of bronzes is an exceptionally fine one. The floors of the rooms in which the statuary is placed are of oak or mosaic in marble. The second floor, in which are hung the pictures, is finished in white marble. On the upper floor there are eight large rooms for the exhibition of pictures, and one of these rooms has been set aside for the works of American painters. The building is lighted by electricity and heated by steam. A feature of the gallery is a large auditorium with a seating capacity of 250, for the use of the Corcoran School of Art. The building is the gift of Lawrence Corcoran, once a Cameron Irish laborer, but who died a year or two ago worth several million dollars. •