Biography
The National Gallery of Zimbabwe has been in existence for more than 55 years, and in its lifetime has witnessed the dramatic shift in the country from colonialism to independence. In addition, it has been central to the meteoric rise of Zimbabwean artists in the world art market. The Gallery was initially planned in the 1930s, but the outbreak of the Second World War impeded the colonial government's involvement in its progress. However, the idea was given new life when in 1943, Sir James McDonald, a friend and colleague of Cecil John Rhodes,left a bequest of30,000 pounds "in trust for the people of the colony"to establish an art gallery and art museum in Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia. At the end of 1953, the Inaugural Board of the Gallery was established, chaired by the Governor of Southern Rhodesia. The passing of the National Gallery Act of Parliament in early 1952 saw the dissolution of the Inaugural Board and the establishment of the Board of Trustees. Major (later Sir) Stephen Courtauld presided as Chairman of the Board until 1962. He was an enthusiastic supporter of the Gallery right from its inception, and remained so even after his departure from the Board, when he and his wife became the first patrons of the Gallery.
From the outset, the Gallery was conceived as a national institution, acting as the artistic representative not only for Southern Rhodesia, but also Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland, governed from 1953 to 1963 as a united Federation. Salisbury City Council agreed to take full responsibility for overseeing the building, establishment and administration of the Gallery, and the Mayor of Salisbury was made a fixed appointee to the Board of Trustees. The first responsibilities of the Board were: to establish funds for the building; to select the building design and to appoint a Director. The second responsibilities were: to establish funds for the running and administration costs of the Gallery, and to make provision for an endowment fund for the acquisition of a permanent collection. At that time, the building funds consisted only of the McDonald bequest, and a further150,000 pounds had yet to be raised. It was decided that an appeal should be launched among local businesses in support of building a gallery in Southern Rhodesia. "In all great countries of the world art galleries have their place in the cultural life of the community, and it is the firm belief of the Trustees that a National Art Gallery is essential to the progress of the people of this land," stated Sir Stephen Courtauld in the annual report of 1954, giving voice to the Board's support of the establishment of the Gallery.
An architectural competition was launched for the design of the building. This was assessed by two Johannesburg architects trained at the Royal Institute of British Architecture, London. The competition was open solely to architects registered and normally resident in the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. The winners of the architecture competition were Messrs. Montgomerie and Oldfield, whose design was put into construction in 1955. It was pertinent to the design of the building to have the guidance of an experienced gallery director, thus necessitating the appointment of such a person as soon as possible. The post was advertised overseas, as there was no such person qualified to undertake this position in the Federation. Of the twelve applicants for the position of Director, Frank McEwen was appointed and took up his post in an advisory capacity in 1955. He was previously Fine Arts Officer at the British Council, having trained in Art History and Painting in Paris. He was well known for his skill in organising large, significant exhibitions, notably the first Picasso-Matisse Exhibition in London, and was an avid supporter of Henry Moore, promoting his work in Paris during the 1940s and 50s. McEwen assumed his Directorship on the 1st April 1956 and was closely involved with the design of the building, ensuring among other things that it was capable of displaying and storing loaned works from overseas. The final design is typical of architectural theory of the time. It makes use primarily of natural light, and is essentially a large open-plan space, which can be divided and broken up into smaller areas through the use of temporary partitions.
The Rhodes National Gallery was opened to the public on 16th July 1957, by Her Majesty, The Queen Mother. In her opening address, she stated, "I trust that this centre of art, with your continued support and care, will radiate an influence which will enrich the lives of all who dwell in Rhodesia". The Inaugural Exhibition was an enormous undertaking, involving the loan of many art objects from around the world, with most of the work coming from some of the world's most prestigious galleries and museums. McEwen selected the loans in three parts; Old Masters, Impressionists and Contemporaries. While he expressed doubt over his ability to persuade international galleries to lend important works to an as yet unknown, remote art gallery, McEwen succeeded in borrowing approximately 200 works of art, mostly paintings anda selection of tapestries, from galleries such as the Louvre and the Mus‚e De l'Art Modern in Paris, and the National Gallery and the Tate Gallery in the London.
