Is It Art or Advertising?
2023-04-21
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1Where is the line between art and advertising?
2The question is central to a big dispute in a small American town.
3A large painting in Conway, New Hampshire, has led to a zoning conflict, a First Amendment legal action and a local vote.
4It started with a high school art project to paint a picture on a building in the town.
5The building houses a store called Leavitt's Country Bakery.
6The picture shows the sun shining over mountains of chocolate and strawberry donuts, a cinnamon roll and a blueberry muffin.
7These are the kinds of sweet treats found in bakeries.
8Then the town zoning board got involved.
9It decided that the painting was more advertising than art.
10Officials said that, as an advertisement, the sign was too big.
11Its size violated town rules.
12The board ordered the sign be removed or changed.
13Bakery owner Sean Young faced possible fines if he did not follow the order.
14So, he decided to fight it in court.
15Young's legal action accuses the town of Conway of violating his right to free speech, guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution.
16"They said it would be art elsewhere," Young told The Associated Press. "It's just not art here.
17"The town should not have the right to police art," he said.
18The dispute has the town of 10,000 people debating big questions about creativity and freedom.
19Conway is in the White Moutains, a popular area with visitors.
20The town is under pressure to increase business development.
21Some residents worry that compromises with development interests will lead to unwanted changes to their town.
22Many, including the zoning board members, liked the students' work.
23But they said rules must be followed.
24At about 8.6 square meters, the mural is four times bigger than zoning rules permit for advertising signs.
25At town meetings, residents discussed how to define a sign.
26Then, last week, they voted against changes to the rules.
27The local newspaper said the wording of the proposed changes was not clear.
28A judge may have to make the final decision on what remains an open debate in town.
29The lawsuit Young filed in January asks that the court prevent the town from enforcing its sign law.
30Other businesses have entered into the dispute.
31Long before the painting over Leavitt's, Conway had permitted other paintings at a local shopping center.
32But in December the town found that three of those pictures also violate size limits.
33The issue went before the zoning board Wednesday.
34The lawsuit argues that the town's definition of "sign" is very general and its zoning rules do not include the word "mural."
35Board member Luigi Bartolomeo said he thinks the painting at the bakery is art, not advertising.
36"I think it's a very badly written piece of code here," said Bartolomeo, who recently retired.
37But Board Chairperson John Colbath said the board has to work with the rule, which was approved by voters.
38He argues that the mural would likely be seen as art, and not advertising, if its subject did not represent the products found at Leavitt's.
39The town and Young agreed in February to suspend all legal action until a vote on a proposed definition.
40The proposal failed.
41The judge now wants to hear from both sides by May 10.
42"We're ready to keep going," Young said.
43I'm Dan Novak.
1Where is the line between art and advertising? The question is central to a big dispute in a small American town. A large painting in Conway, New Hampshire, has led to a zoning conflict, a First Amendment legal action and a local vote. 2It started with a high school art project to paint a picture on a building in the town. The building houses a store called Leavitt's Country Bakery. The picture shows the sun shining over mountains of chocolate and strawberry donuts, a cinnamon roll and a blueberry muffin. These are the kinds of sweet treats found in bakeries. 3Then the town zoning board got involved. It decided that the painting was more advertising than art. Officials said that, as an advertisement, the sign was too big. Its size violated town rules. The board ordered the sign be removed or changed. 4Bakery owner Sean Young faced possible fines if he did not follow the order. So, he decided to fight it in court. Young's legal action accuses the town of Conway of violating his right to free speech, guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution. 5"They said it would be art elsewhere," Young told The Associated Press. "It's just not art here. 6"The town should not have the right to police art," he said. 7The dispute has the town of 10,000 people debating big questions about creativity and freedom. Conway is in the White Moutains, a popular area with visitors. The town is under pressure to increase business development. Some residents worry that compromises with development interests will lead to unwanted changes to their town. 8Many, including the zoning board members, liked the students' work. But they said rules must be followed. At about 8.6 square meters, the mural is four times bigger than zoning rules permit for advertising signs. 9At town meetings, residents discussed how to define a sign. Then, last week, they voted against changes to the rules. The local newspaper said the wording of the proposed changes was not clear. A judge may have to make the final decision on what remains an open debate in town. 10The lawsuit Young filed in January asks that the court prevent the town from enforcing its sign law. 11Other businesses have entered into the dispute. 12Long before the painting over Leavitt's, Conway had permitted other paintings at a local shopping center. But in December the town found that three of those pictures also violate size limits. The issue went before the zoning board Wednesday. 13The lawsuit argues that the town's definition of "sign" is very general and its zoning rules do not include the word "mural." 14Board member Luigi Bartolomeo said he thinks the painting at the bakery is art, not advertising. 15"I think it's a very badly written piece of code here," said Bartolomeo, who recently retired. But Board Chairperson John Colbath said the board has to work with the rule, which was approved by voters. He argues that the mural would likely be seen as art, and not advertising, if its subject did not represent the products found at Leavitt's. 16The town and Young agreed in February to suspend all legal action until a vote on a proposed definition. The proposal failed. The judge now wants to hear from both sides by May 10. 17"We're ready to keep going," Young said. 18I'm Dan Novak. 19Dan Novak adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on reporting by The Associated Press. 20_________________________________________________________________ 21Words in This Story 22zoning - n. a system of rules used to control where businesses and homes are built in a city or town 23resident - n. someone who lives in a particular place 24code- n. a set of laws or regulations