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Show Objects to some pieces of art School Board denies increase The Board also said that they would not charge the Committee any fee for use of the building. Presently, they are being charged $500 for use of the Braithwaite Gallery. In other business, Bruce . Decker explained that the actual cost of power and fuel used in the Iron County School District over a four year period of time, showed an 83 percent increase and the BTU (British thermal units) consumption for that time showed a 21 percent increase. . According to Decker, the pay-back on the investment over the four year period of time was 99 percent. CEDAR CITY The Iron County School Board has declined to increase a donation to the Cedar City Art Committee, saying that the paintings the group exhibits aren't suitable for school students. 1 Eric Brown, chairman of the group, asked the Board at its regular meeting Tuesday for $500 instead of the usual $100. The Board felt that it could not contribute that much to the committee because of budget cuts in so many of its own programs. Instead a motion was passed to contribute $100. The Board was concerned about the type of art the group chose to exhibit. In the past, according to Superintendent Clair Morris, there has been concern by the School Board of not wanting the students to view nude paintings. Morris and others present at the board meeting expressed extreme opposition to letting the children of school age be exposed to such art, primarily because they were not old enough to understand the purpose intended by the painter. Morris stated that according to school policy, the students would not be allowed to view such paintings. Brown explained to the Board that he felt it was unfair to stifle an artist's creativity by banning such paintings. "The Art Committee is meeting their own objectives and not ours is basically the problem,"said Morris. Another problem is the location of the exhibition. This year it will be in the Braithwaite Fine Arts Gallerys on the campus of Southern Utah State College. Board members expressed negative feelings toward transporting the students to the gallery and managing them in such a small facility. Another problem is the limited parking space available at the gallery. The Board recommended to Brown that the Art Committee sample the feelings of the community and also think about relocating the exhibition back at the school where students and teachers would have better access to . the show. |