Art comes at a price, even if someone else is paying most of the cost.

The Office of Super-intendent of Public Instruction allocated $21,800 for the Oak Harbor School District to spend on a commissioned art piece for Oak Harbor High School, but in order for the school district to utilize the funds, it has to pay approximately $9,600.

At an Oak Harbor School Board meeting this month, the board decided to pursue this path.

OSPI allocated approximately $21,800 through the state’s Art in Public Places program for Oak Harbor High School because of its recent construction. This money came from the state match funding for the construction of the school, which was collected from state tax money.

Commissioning a piece of artwork costs $31,500. The district plans to create a committee for artist selection from OSPI’s list of approved artists and the committee would view artists’ works before ordering the artwork.

“I can’t tell you exactly where the money would come from. If we want to participate, I would find the money by not spending somewhere else,” said Superintendent Rick Schulte, who was reluctant to give up the allocated $21,800. “Knowing there’s $22,000 there that’s ours makes me not want to lose it … If we want to, we can find things to cut for that amount.”

Not everyone was so sure.

“It seems like a want and not a need,” said Christine Cribb, school board member, adding that the school district has put out a list of needs in preparation for asking that the community pass a higher levy in February.

However, school board member Peter Hunt liked the idea of purchasing the art. He said it would be a shame not to add the art to such an expensive, new building.

School board member Christine Abbott said she would rather use student talent to create art at the school, but this money can’t be used to commission art outside of the OSPI’s list of pre-approved artists.

“It could even be something incorporating student work,” Hunt said, adding that the commissioned piece could be an artistic area where student art could be displayed.

“We can design something that meets our needs and the school’s and community’s interest,” Schulte said, adding that the district will have a lot of control over the art and the process.

While Schulte isn’t sure what size the artwork will be, he spoke to the principal of Oak Harbor High School, Dwight Lundstrom, who suggested creating art to put in the main entrance of the school, a two-story atrium.

“It’s kind of a unique setting, a unique place,” Schulte said.

The school district already has a few commissioned art pieces, the most prominent of which is the steel sculpture of books located at North Whidbey Middle School, which cost $12,000 to $13,000 about 13 years ago, Schulte said. The middle school features a framed print by prominent Seattle artist Jacob Lawrence, and Oak Harbor Elementary School and Oak Harbor Middle School also have artwork.

“So we’ve always participated in the past,” Schulte said.

Oak Harbor High School doesn’t have any other commissioned artwork from this program. Well-known art on the campus includes a sculpture in the shape of a “W” that dates back to about 1974, and a real anchor from a ship, also dating back to about 1974, Schulte said.

With past struggles to maintain an art program in the elementary schools, Hunt said this art piece would be a good way to support art.

“We should celebrate arts generally and we should show students you can be a professional artist,” Schulte said.