Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1910-12-29
Claim Is Made Purchasing Committee
Members Bought Their Own
Work for the State.

When the exhibition committee Of the
| Utah Art Institute submits its report
OF awards in the annual contest. Gov.
william Spry will make a thorough in
Nestigation OF charges of discrimination
against several we'll known artists and
| the methods used by the executive COM
mittcc, and purchasing committee In
| expanding the. appropriation made by
the state legislature. While no formal
charges have been made In writing to
Gov. Spry, several artists who arc dis
satisfied Will! the manner in which they
have been treated. have laid consider
able information before the chief exccu-
tive which he has decided to probe. The
awards were made yesterday and, ac-
Cording to the artists whose pictures
were refused without any apparent rca-
son. the prizes were given to the art
lists who belong to the committees
handling the exhibits.
Gov. Spry was interviewed this moru-
ing In regard to the matter. and said:
"Tne committee has not reported to
me and when it is before me officially
| will consider the information that
some artists have submitted to me In
which there seems to be some dissatis-
faction and misunderstanding in regard
to the manner of conducting the Utah
Art Institute. According to the law,
believe, the governor OF the state makes
the cash rewards upon the result of
the ballot of the exhibitors. This will
not be done until the report of the COM
mittee is reviewed"
In the awards of the exhibitors yes
terday. Donald Beuuregard secured the
hrst prize of $500. He is one of the OK
hibting committees. A. r. Wright car
ried off the second prize of s125. He Is
also q member of the exhibiting COM
mittec. For their third prize there was
a tic, between NJ. NJ. Young and ]. r, !
HARDWOOD. The fourth and fifth prizes
OF go each went to artists outside the |
clique charged with running the in
stitute for their own personal gain.
CALL UPON GOVERNOR.
After the awards were made yester-
day three prominent artists, H. L. a.
Gunner. j. Leo Fairbanks and H. A.
Ramsey. called upon Gov. William Spry
and laid before him some facts in re-
gard to the manner in which the In
stitute was being conducted. Their
pictures were refused without any APP
parent reason. These artists received
notices Of tile annual exhibition on the
day that the entries closed. When they
did rush their pictures over the next
morning. they We're refused 1t was
shown that several of the members on
the exhibition committee did not have
their pictures in for a day or two after
the date set for the closing OF the ex-
hiblts. Besides these three artists,
Thomas Slight of Ogden and Edward
Hill of Salt Lake We're refused the
of hanging pictures for en-
hibition.
]. 3. Fairbanks submitted n picture
or exhibition and 1t was refused also.
This picture was placed on exhibition
n the National Academy of Design in
Sew York. one of the most exclusive ex-
EDITIONS In the country and received
,laise from every quarter. The COM
nittee in charge OF the Utah Art nsti-
ute refused to exhibit it. saying it was
n inferior PIECE of work and not UP to
he standard maintained by the state
Miss Mcclure, who has
ainted in Utah for years. was also
enied the privilege of exhibiting her
York In the institute. These things.
18th the notice sent out to some of the
rtists, were filed with the governor to-
ether with considerable information
WILL DATE BACK. {
The investigation will probably reach
ack into 1908. when the purchasing
'ii'H''''tE SicHt $i,Vpu buying .thelr
wn work with the states appropra- I.
on. Each year the Legislature appro- =
rates $1,000 to the institute. One :,
lousand dollars Is to defray the eX- ~
enses of the exhibit and award prizes
$500. The other $1,000 is to buy pie
Tres. or this amount $500 is set aside i
buy the original paintings Of Utah
fists who have been in the state more
ian five years, and $500 to purchase
1intings of non-resdents
After the exhibit in Ogden a wear
go in which Edwin Evans, president.
.ceived the first prize and some of tho
her members of tho other important
'izes. the purchasing committee sent
1T notices to some artists to bring
le pictures they had to sell and cS-
bit them In Salt Lake. The exhibit
as arranged In a room over the Des-
ct National bank. The purchasing
according to law shall con-
st of seven members. When the COM
ittce met to purchase the pictures
ere were only four present. IL Is stat
|. John Hafen was then in the east |
. NJ. Young was sick. and 1t Is stated =
at j. w. Clawson was not present. =
Edwin Evans, who received the $500
lie in Ogden, sold ii copied painting
r $3.50. Donald Beauregard received X
% for his painting. Lorlls Pratt re-
lived 800 for painting. J. Il. Har-
God. the fourth member of the com OF
ittec present, got 500 for painting, AT
me small amounts We're paid for a. -,
!mber Of other pictures by artists out -
lie of the committee This lnforma
~ has been laid before Gov. Sprv ns +
Ing contrary to the law and il win :
an he inyest