There was a time when if you wanted to see great artwork, you had to visit a museum. Those quiet and oftentimes humdrum institutions of art only featured certain kinds of works from specific types of artists.
Artists are now skirting traditional routes and looking to unconventional locations to feature their work.
There was also a time when community engagement meant long forums within four walls. Now, public engagement is outside and done creatively.
Indianapolis is a part of the public art and civic engagement movement. Whether it’s on a city bus or on a highway bridge column, Circle City artists’ work is being handed to the masses in a modern way.
Following are some examples of public art and community engagement and where you can find them.
Eskenazi Health
During the completion of the new Sidney & Lois Eskenazi Hospital and Eskenazi Health facility, the health care system created the Eskenazi Health Art Program that includes commissioned works from 16 contemporary artists. The art program for the new hospital will also celebrate and include paintings from the original collection, which were created over 100 years ago for what was then City Hospital.
The Eskenazi Health Art Program is one of many aspects of the new hospital officials designed to enhance patient care as well as uplift and inspire the community.
IndyGo
The IndyGo board of directors recently approved an ambitious long-term program to include public art throughout the Indianapolis transit system.
The Art in Transit program invests strategically in public artworks connected to neighborhoods and transit.
The vision for the Art in Transit partnership is to build a bold, long-term, nationally recognized $5 million public art program. With the IndyGo board approval of the program, the transit agency has committed a $500,000 investment in the arts over 10 years.
Soon, the Arts Council will submit competitive grant applications to arts funders, manage calls for artists and provide support for project selection and administration.
Street corridors
Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, the Arts Council of Indianapolis and Downtown Indy have partnered to fund and create painted mural artwork in gateway underpasses around downtown, in a civic-led initiative called Vibrant Corridors. Vibrant Corridors transforms underpasses into beautiful community assets, employs artists, engages local businesses as suppliers, and motivates community volunteers to improve the city.
Locations include: Alabama Street under I-65; White River Trail under I-70; and Central Avenue Under I-65.
Traffic signal boxes
The purpose of the traffic signal box art program is to enable Indianapolis’ neighborhoods to express their identity, beautify their streets and discourage “tagging” vandalism of the neighborhood’s traffic signal control boxes (TSBs). The process is neighborhood-driven, with the Arts Council of Indianapolis assisting neighborhoods or other citizen groups by setting a common process, technical standards and aesthetic guidelines; working with the Department of Public Works to reserve, permit and track the boxes used; and providing advice and support for finding and working with artists and then maintaining the TSBs once they are done.
Monument Circle
Visitors to Monument Circle will soon enjoy more places to relax, play games, exercise, socialize and enjoy creative programming through an artist-led programming initiative called “Spark: Monument Circle,” a partnership between The City of Indianapolis, Big Car Collaborative — a local nonprofit placemaking organization — and Downtown Indy.
Big Car artists are leading this 10-week demonstration in collaboration with many partner organizations and individual artists and performers. Now until Oct. 16, hospitality staff will facilitate programming and visitor experiences for people who will enjoy bistro-style seats on custom-built wooden decks, interactive art, music, history experiences, yoga, guided walks, talks and play experiences for people of all ages.
This additional programming will be free to the public, easily accessible, and designed to make the civic plaza a more vibrant place.
