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Sunday, December 11, 2005
Ind. Gov't. - Good investigative story on Gary school system's mismanagement of its century-old art collection
Sharlonda L. Waterhouse of the Gary Post-Tribune has a nice piece of reporting today, headlined "Gary school superintendent denies mismanagement of art collection valued at $500,000." Some quotes from the beginning of the long report:
Original oil paintings by esteemed artists such as Theodore C. Steele, Frank Dudley and Karl Buehr have lined walls in Gary schools since the early 1900s.Access the story online today -- the Post-Tribune does not archive its stories, even overnight.The collection began as a tool to teach fine arts and instill culture under pioneering Superintendent William A. Wirt in 1906, but it has been reduced in the past century to an elusive, dwindling asset, often locked away from children’s eyes.
Some fear the district is close to losing an irreplaceable part of its art and educational history — whether by mismanagement, decay or mysterious pilfering.
Don’t ask Superintendent Mary Steele whether the district has failed to oversee its precious art properly. She doesn’t like disclosing details and won’t show premium pieces, which are allegedly kept in a secret vault.
Neither can Steele account for why a collection once boasting more than 200 works has been nearly halved.
“I don’t know if any are lost; they shouldn’t be lost,” Steele says, but declined to allow the Post-
Tribune to see inside the vault for verification.
“We know the paintings are there,” she said.
About 121 art pieces remain in the district, according to an inventory released by the public information office. That’s down from 133 pieces just 12 years ago. And down more than 87 from a 1939 count.
There is no record of formal auctions or sales in the past decades, so just what happened to the paintings entrusted to the stewardship of Gary Schools?
Neither Steele nor anyone on the School Board claims to know details. Formal tracking is lacking.
According to inventories obtained by the Post-Tribune, the district has failed to document whether they can locate at least five paintings: “Casinera” by Gerald Cassidy, “Indiana Dunes” by Helge Hopkinson, “Portrait of Daniel Webster” by Dorothy Jennings, “The Ash Tree” by Allen E. Philbrick and, most importantly, “Dunes, Lake Michigan” by Frank Dudley.
The Dudley, which was in the central administrative building in 1993, was then appraised at $2,500 by Michael A. Nickol of Mishawaka, who said it was in “excellent” condition. While it may exist somewhere in the system, it is no longer in the computer inventory of the district.
In shrinking, the district’s art collection also has downsized in dollars.
The works of art, whether accounted for or gone, are lucrative, ranging from $600 in value to more than $100,000 each.
The works of highest value and artistic merit are in the vault — like paintings by T.C. Steele and Edward Redfield.
That’s a pity to some who feel the collection should be seen and enjoyed. With the district on the verge of selecting a contractor for a new appraisal, there also are whispers that some of the paintings might be sold. Many art enthusiasts and community members, including School Board members Michael Scott and Deborah Morris, are against any sale.
Posted by Marcia Oddi on December 11, 2005 11:59 AM
Posted to Indiana Government