Pick downtown art carefully

As the old ZCMI Center comes down and the new City Creek Center rises, debate has focused recently on downtown art. Where should it be? How much should there be? And, most of all, what kind of art should it be?

Salt Lake City has a good track history of displaying art in public places: the Allan Houser bronzes at the City-County Building, the colorful murals, even the little inlaid elements on downtown sidewalks.

Still, finding appropriate art for the city has not been an easy task.

Years ago, controversy raged over whether a bronze of a Wild West figure was appropriate for the Art Center, the glass flame in Symphony Hall had a trial by fire — and who can forget the disgruntled businessmen who spray-painted a white metal sculpture black because it annoyed them?

Was the big "rock on a stick" at Gallivan Plaza the best choice? And don't forget the fiasco of the painted kiosks along Main Street.

Part of the dilemma is a backhanded compliment to the city. Salt Lake City has so many types of people that one person's abstract masterpiece is another person's "monkey scribbles."

The key in choosing art for the area is to make sure it is not only durable but has enough good design elements to remain attractive for decades to come.

As the city starts looking for ways to enhance downtown life with artwork, we urge decisionmakers to select things that speak to a sense of humanity and common aspirations. Mere decoration is pointless. Art is more than embroidery on the edges of a society; it is a representation of the lifeblood that pumps through the veins of every city. Abstract art isn't always ugly, and representational art isn't always fuddy-duddy. Quality will win out in both cases.

And quality art in public places speaks to a quality, caring populace. A serious city has no reason to settle for anything slipshod.

Only the best will do. And the best is sometimes expensive.

But then that's the price of having an appealing downtown.