Subscribe | UPI Odd Newsletter Subscribe PENTICTON, British Columbia, Jan. 11 (UPI) -- A nude male statue erected in a British Columbian town square has aroused controversy over its cost and propriety as art. The nearly 16-foot tall figure has only been up for a week in Penticton, but many taxpayers are already angry at the $5,000 expense, while others are miffed at the nudity of the publicly funded art, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported Tuesday. Advertisement After some drivers narrowly avoided accidents because they were distracted by the display, artist Michael Hermesh was told to cover statue's sex organs. "I was furious!" he recalled. The city then had a change of heart, with officials voting 5-1 Monday night to tell Hermesh to uncover the genitalia. Curtis Collins, a curator at the South Okanagan Art Gallery, thought the controversy was much ado about rather little: "He looks like he just got out of Okanagan Lake."
