An audit released this month examining Salt Lake County's art collection revealed a well-run program with few problems.

"These kinds of audits generally don't make the news, but there are many times where we go out and find very good compliance with policy procedure and state law," County Auditor Sean Thomas said.

Auditors found that, out of 436 county-owned paintings and pieces of artwork, ranging from drawings to the Salt Palace Convention Center windmills, all were properly handled and accounted for with a single exception.

The one missing piece was an oil painting worth $350, listed as being located at Mick Riley Golf Course but not found. In the aggregate, the collection is worth $1.6 million.

"Hundreds of pieces of art and one missing," Thomas said. "That suggests they have very tight control over those assets."

The audit also found that a painting purchased from a gallery had been painted by a member of the Art Collection Committee, a problem that can be taken care of by filling out a conflict-of-interest form. In general, "the county art collection is effectively tracked, and each piece is accurately documented," audit division director Jim Wightman wrote in the audit report.

Much of the county's art resides at the government center at 2001 S. State, the Salt Palace, South Towne Expo Center and the various library branches. By dint of county ordinance, each piece must have some connection to Utah, either through the artist's residence or the art itself.

"If you haven't seen the public art collection, you would be fascinated," said mayoral spokesman Jim Braden.

The 10 auditors in Wightman's division conduct an average of roughly one internal audit a month, Thomas said, with many or most of those revealing a few problems but nothing major or out of the norm. As another example, Thomas cited an audit on South Towne, also completed this month, that had similar findings to the art collection audit. South Towne was found to be "substantially compliant" with county ordinance and state law.

"There are thousands of good things that go on any given day in any government," Braden said. "We hear so much about the bad, we forget how much good is truly done."

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