Art: Garden Party at the National

Six months ago, Washington's National Gallery of Art faced its approaching 25th birthday with no idea of how to celebrate it. Almost as a matter of reflex, Director John Walker turned to the gallery's president, Paul Mellon. Nothing could be more natural. He is the son of Andrew Mellon, many-time Secretary of the Treasury, whose personal fortune built the gallery. In his own right, Paul Mellon, along with his wife and his sister, Mrs. Ailsa Mellon Bruce (first wife of U.S. Ambassador David K. E. Bruce), is a collector of the first order.

"Since...

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