2021 Newsmaker: Darrianne Christian, Newfields board chair
The board at Newfields chose Christian to serve as the chair and lead the arts campus out of a race-related controversy that led to the resignation of its former president.
Arts/Culture
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Indianapolis Opera takes shows on the road after buying its headquarters
Crews are spiffing up the grounds at the Basile Opera Center, the latest move in a rebirth of sorts for the opera company, which in August purchased the former church at 4011 N. Pennsylvania St. it’s been leasing for 10 years.
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Indiana Repertory Theatre to require COVID-19 vaccinations or testing for patrons
The IRT, which had previously decided to make masks mandatory for all patrons this season, said it’s decided to strengthen its COVID-19 protocols in light of the increase in cases.
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IBJ Podcast: How is the Big Car arts group changing the Garfield Park neighborhood?
Host Mason King talks with Big Car CEO Jim Walker about the art campus the organization has developed in the neighborhood and how the group is trying to ensure artists aren’t eventually priced out of being there.
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Big Car behind on Garfield Park revitalization, but confident it will finish
The centerpiece of the project—transforming a 40,000-square-foot former factory into an arts and cultural space—has not begun, but home renovations and greenspace development are underway.
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Articles
2021 Newsmaker: Alan Bacon, Mali Simone Jeffers, GangGang co-founders
Mali Simone Jeffers and Alan Bacon had the idea for cultural startup GangGang just more than a year ago, while sitting together one night on their couch: Why not incubate the creative economy and culture like you might a technology company or sector, while promoting equity along the way?
Arts community will ‘keep creating’ into 2022
Thanks to a $500,000 City-County Council allocation made possible through the federal American Rescue Plan Act, the #IndyKeepsCreating initiative launched in 2020 will continue until March.
More hotels making galleries part of the guest experience
Many of the art-forward hotels, such as the Art in Denver and the Alexander in Indianapolis, work with local artists to either showcase their portfolio for a specific amount of time or commission one-of-a-kind pieces to display on site indefinitely.
Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra to require COVID-19 vaccinations for concert audiences
The rule, which takes effect immediately, gives patrons the interim option of showing a recent negative COVID-19 test. But effective Nov. 1, all guests age 12 and older must be fully vaccinated in order to attend a performance.
Ticket sales for Newfields’ multisensory exhibit open to public July 6
“The Lume” exhibit, which launches July 27, will put visitors in the center of floor-to-ceiling projections of paintings such as “The Starry Night” and “Sunflowers” by Vincent van Gogh.
Carmel Christkindlmarkt to make measured return after last year’s cancellation
The last time the German-themed Christmas market was held in 2019, it drew more than 300,000 visitors. Event organizers aren’t sure if lingering concerns about COVID-19 will hurt attendance or if there will be a strong return.
Newfields’ new chair seeks to undo harm of race controversy
Darrianne Christian in May became the first Black woman to chair the Newfields board of trustees, just months after the art museum and gardens faced an uproar over its handling of race and inclusion issues.
$16 billion grant program for performance venues set to reopen for applications
The federal grant program, part of a larger pandemic relief effort, officially launched April 8, but its application portal crashed within hours because of technical problems. The portal is set to reopen Saturday.
Work on five-story downtown mural for Indy cycling legend to start next month
A mural honoring Indianapolis native Marshall “Major” Taylor, the first Black world champion cyclist, will begin going up in mid-May on a downtown building a block from Monument Circle, the Arts Council of Indianapolis said Monday.
Malina Jeffers: Sports and culture are never breaking up
Arts and culture feel like an easy pathway to support people of color and contribute to our city’s newfound commitment to racial equity.
Julie Goodman: Here’s why arts and sports team up in Indianapolis
Nearly 600 visual artists, musicians, dancers, spoken-word artists and other creative-industry professionals have been employed to turn downtown into a sidewalk art gallery and outdoor cultural corridor connecting NCAA game sites to a showcase of 50 artworks and more than 250 live performances.
Indiana should see some economic recovery this year, economist says
Indiana’s economy should start to recover this year from the damage of COVID-19, but the economy likely won’t fully rebound until late 2022 or early 2023, a Ball State University economist says.
Indiana museums to receive $8 million from Lilly Endowment
The Lilly Endowment Inc. has awarded more than $43 million to 18 museums and cultural organizations across the country, including four in Indiana.
IBJ Podcast: Helping artists and arts organizations survive the pandemic
Podcast host Mason King talked with Julie Goodman, president and CEO of the Arts Council of Indianapolis, about the group’s fundraising efforts and grant programs meant to sustain artists and arts groups. In addition, two artists join the conversation.
Vonnegut Museum shifts gears on Bluebeard-managed cafe plans
Fletcher Place restaurant Bluebeard, which was the museum’s original choice of cafe operator, says it can’t tackle the project right now because of uncertainty around the pandemic.
Museums, performance venues expect to withstand closures
Facing millions of dollars in lost revenue from the COVID-19 outbreak, major arts and cultural attractions throughout Indianapolis are slashing budgets, cutting staff and dipping into reserves or endowments to make ends meet.
LOU’S VIEWS: Children’s Museum ‘Dance!’ exhibit demonstrates the right moves
While not overloading visitors with facts, figures and history, “Dance!” does a nice job of introducing styles from around the world.
LOU’S VIEWS: Artist Don Gummer brings his world to Cultural Trail
Built from steel, bronze, aluminum and glass, the sculptures tend to grow larger the higher they get.
ISO maestro Urbanski has grown, gained global plaudits
In his fifth season in Indianapolis, the Polish native not only leads the ISO, but also has conducting and guest-conducting commitments worldwide.