HL Deb 25 July 1843 vol 70 cc1324-5
Lord Brougham

wished to notice something which had occurred in the Houses of Parliament building committee that morning with reference to the commission, of which his noble Friend (the Marquess of Lansdowne) was a member. The commission had issued an advertisement, addressed to all the artists of this country, inviting them to send in drawings or models of an ornamental nature for the two Houses of Parliament. He looked upon this, not so much as a matter of delay, because their Lordships could sit in the new Houses before they were adorned, and they might be adorned during the long recess, but he was afraid it would be a source of great expense. He was far from saying whet the wisdom and generosity of Parliament might do, hut it was only charity to give those persons who were likely to send in models or drawings timely notice that they would do so at their own risk. The artists must be told they would be wrong if they thought thereby that they were certain of public orders to execute the work, or if they took for granted, that they would obtain remuneration for their labour.

The Marquess of Lansdowne,

as the only one of their Lordships' House who had lately attended the Fine Arts' Commission, said that great care had been taken, in all the notices with regard to the works alluded to, to guard the artists against supposing that they would receive any remuneration besides that specifically stated in the notice. No expense would be incurred, except for the prizes, for the cartoons. With regard to them, persons bad to go out of their usual habits of study, which they could not be expected to do without a remuneration in the shape of prizes. With respect to other departments of the art, they would only have to execute works in accordance with their usual studies: the object was only to give specimens of the public proficiency of each artist. He should be as jealous as his noble Friend, if any. great expense were to be incurred; but a committee of the other House had advised that advantage should be taken of the decoration of the new Houses to give encouragement to art.