Indianapolis’s art museums and galleries have a lot to offer Hoosiers, but what about the art you can see for free?
From public installations, outdoor sculptures, murals and First Fridays, Indianapolis is easily a treasure map for visual art. The Recorder has compiled a list of a few places around the city where art can be experienced for free.
READ MORE: Best of Black arts and culture 2025
Arts for Lawrence
8970 Otis Ave, Lawrence, Indiana
Located at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Arts for Lawrence is the largest arts nonprofit serving the northeast sector of Indianapolis. The organization hosts a variety of performing and visual arts programs, festivals, outdoor concerts and events throughout the year — many of which are free and open to the public.
The Fort Ben Cultural Campus is also home to the Musical Swings, Marching Sidewalk and a handful of outdoor sculptures such as “We Are All Connected,” “Steps,” “Bending Blue Notes” and “USO Girls.”
For more information, visit artsforlawrence.org.
Indy Art Center
820 E 67th St.
In the heart of Broad Ripple, the Indy Art Center hosts a variety of ticketed art fairs throughout the year in addition to regular season art classes. However, the center’s gallery exhibitions, which feature local and regional artists, are always free and open to the public, thanks to the support of donors.
For more information, visit indyartcenter.org.
Indianapolis Cultural Trail
Downtown Indianapolis
The Indianapolis Cultural Trail: A Legacy of Gene and Marilyn Glick aims to connect, support and engage Hoosiers in more ways than one. The 10-mile path winding through Downtown Indianapolis is full of cultural destinations and public art installations to check out, whether by foot or by bike — each designed to support innovation and promote connectivity.
The Indianapolis Cultural Trail’s public art collection includes “Ann Dancing,” “Looking through Windows,” “Care/Don’t Care,” “Moving Forward,” “Chatham Passage,” “Indiana Avenue Sound Experience” and more.
For more information, visit indyculturaltrail.org.
Indianapolis Public Library
40 E St. Clair. St.
The Central Library branch of the Indianapolis Public Library features several visual art exhibitions in its Yellow Gallery throughout the year. There are also a handful of display cases on each floor, where guests can view civic, educational, artistic or cultural exhibits which aim to highlight the voices of the community.
Meet the Artists, a gallery exhibition honoring Black Hoosier artists, also takes place at Central Library each February. Meet the Artists is also free and open to the public, and features various live entertainment and a fashion runway show.
For more information, visit indypl.org.
Virginia B. Fairbanks Art & Nature Park
1850 W. 38th St.
The 100-acre nature park at Newfields is free, open from dusk till dawn every day. The park features the Hawryluk Sculpture Green, the Home Again Exhibition, bright yellow “social benches” around the lake and the Funky Bones sculpture, most notably featured in John Green’s novel “The Fault in Our Stars.”
Visitors are also encouraged to play basketball on “Free Basket,” the internationally scaled and Los Caprinteros’ surrealist-designed court with red and blue arches.
For more information, visit discovernewfields.org/art-in-the-park.
First Fridays
Various locations
On the first Friday of each month, dozens of art galleries and centers across the city open their doors to the public. First Fridays allow artists to welcome their neighbors to peek into their studios, ask questions, participate in hands-on activities or watch live demonstrations for free.
Participating venues include The Harrison Center, Factory Arts District, Full Circle Nine Gallery, Murphy Arts Center, Garfield Park Arts Center, Tube Factory Artspace, The Stutz and Indiana Landmarks.
Murals
Various locations
Indianapolis has so many murals that it’s hard to keep track — unless you visit the Indy Arts Council’s public art directory. The city gained a handful of new murals and art installations in 2025, including the new Tamika Catchings and Tyrese Haliburton murals, “Water Dripping in a River” at Elanco and “Gavin-Divergence” in Broad Ripple, and there’s sure to be many more in 2026.
Hoosiers can browse through the Indy Arts Council’s directory to locate murals and sculptures in neighborhoods near them and learn more about the artists who created them. Many installations are located in public areas, such as parks, where people can visit in person or take photos.
To view the directory, visit indyarts.org/public-art-directory.
Contact Arts & Culture Reporter Chloe McGowan at 317-762-7848. Follow her on X @chloe_mcgowanxx.
Chloe McGowan is the Arts & Culture Reporter for the Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper. Originally from Columbus, OH, Chloe has a bachelor's in journalism from The Ohio State University. She is a former IndyStar Pulliam Fellow, and has previously worked for Indy Maven, The Lantern, and CityScene Media Group. In her free time, Chloe enjoys live theatre, reading, baking and keeping her plants alive.
