Director of the Tate James Bolivar Manson

tate britain in 2004 (renamed tate gallery in 2000).

during time director, there no annual funding acquisitions government; had decline camille pissarro s offer loan painting la causette gallery lacked funds transport , insurance. manson complained friend, lucien pissarro conservative taste of trustee board—which had rejected work both monet , renoir—although himself averse post impressionist work, neglecting london shows artists such van gogh , matisse, until had no option accept 2 oils latter in 1933 part of bequest. same year, , trustees rejected donation of 4 william coldstream paintings , 2 henry moore sculptures, and, in 1935, declined buy matisse s interior figure £2000, turned down loan of picabia s courtyard in france , offer of gift of 3 roger fry oils. in 1938, manson asked sir robert sainsbury if tate borrow study of eve french sculptor charles despiau. sainsbury assented on condition gallery showed 1932 mother , child of friend henry moore. manson s response was, on dead body.

although frank rutter, sunday times art critic, praised advances in gallery s position on art since foundation, others—notably douglas cooper—who familiar contemporary european avant-garde art, such surrealism , german expressionism (which not represented @ in tate) considered hopelessly insular . manson preferred put on popular show of cricket pictures, coinciding 1934 ashes tour, , in 1935 substituted exhibition professor tonks proposed sickert retrospective.

the high points of irregular , dull exhibition programme centenaries, in 1933 of birth of edward burne-jones , in 1937 of death of john constable. other achievements accomplished during term of office included formal change of name national gallery, millbank tate gallery in october 1932, planting of cherry trees outside in 1933, installation of electric lighting in 1935 , toilets. manson on 1932 venice biennale british selection committee, staging shows in brussels in 1932 , bucharest in 1936.