This obelisk-shaped structure welcomes drivers and pedestrians to the historic Fletcher Place neighborhood. Working closely with the neighborhood association, the designer/artist, Barbara Zech, hand-created and custom-colored all the ceramic tiles that cover the sculpture’s concrete core.  The artwork features rich colors and reproduces visual elements found on homes within the neighborhood, including ornamental corbels and scrollwork, and was created in collaboration with the Arts Council of Indianapolis and Keep Indianapolis Beautiful as part of an IPL Project Greenspace pocket park.

Barbara Zech is a contemporary ceramic artist whose studio is located in Indianapolis, Indiana. She was awarded the Indiana Arts Commission Individual Artist Grant in 2008; and the Arts Council of Indianapolis’ Creative Renewal grant in 2004 to travel to Japan for research in ceramics and papermaking. She earned a BFA from Herron School of Art in 1995, and has been an art educator for several years, providing creative therapeutic experiences for people with disabilities. Zech’s original ceramic wall pieces and handcrafted custom tile can be found in residential and public spaces, including Community North Hospital and Simon Cancer Center. Her community tile installations can be seen at various area schools, such as the Indiana Deaf School’s Monon sculpture made up of American Sign Language tiles.

Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc. believes in connecting people to nature, creating vibrant places rooted in community and building lasting value by working together. Committed to creating vibrant places and communities, IPL Project GreenSpace is a grassroots effort that transforms vacant lots and underused spaces into natural, beautiful, and functional pocket parks and greenspaces for neighborhoods. KIB also partners with Arts Council of Indianapolis to commission an artist to create unique pieces that reflect the community’s vision and culture.