ART

Mapplethorpe Exhibit Subject to ‘Censornati’?: About 1,000 people rallied in support of a Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center threatened with prosecution for running a photography exhibit called obscene by some of the city’s lawmen. The exhibit of the late Robert Mapplethorpe’s photos--which opens at the museum tonight--last year sparked a national debate on censorship and public funding of the arts. The Contemporary Arts Center is awaiting a court hearing today on the artistic merit of the photos. The private museum’s supporters carried signs declaring the city “Censornati” at the rally Wednesday. Police Chief Larry Whalen, claiming some of the photographs in the show are obscene, said authorities haven’t decided to file charges against the center.