#riseupindy This installation is part of Indy Art & Seek, a project by the Arts Council of Indianapolis and Keep Indianapolis Beautiful to pair artists and communities to create site-specific art that encourages neighborhood residents to see their surroundings in new ways.
The mural was inspired by the calming view from the neighborhood side of an abandoned laundromat into a field of wildflowers and grasses. The artists combined their individual signature artistic practices to create a calming composition. Visitors can become part of the artwork as they access the healing power of meditation and spiritual connectedness. The color of the seating platform blends into the background, so in a photograph anyone seated seems to be floating.
Megan Jefferson is an Indianapolis-based painter originally from Ohio. She creates pieces with a focus on color-based abstraction, often derived from observation of natural landscapes.
Jamie Locke hand-carves intricate mandalas on wood, metal, glass, and leather. A self-taught artist, Locke hopes that her works inspire, encourage, and uplift those who view them.
Atlas Flowers Two panels mounted on the side of the Shi-Kay Lounge in the Little Flower neighborhood depict a field of calla lilies collaged with print materials, including sheet music and maps of the neighborhood. The mural is a temporary artwork commissioned by the Arts Council of Indianapolis and Keep Indianapolis Beautiful as part of their joint project Indy Art & Seek, on view from summer 2019 through December 2020.
The BRIDGE Collective is a membership organization composed of visual artists, DJs, and musicians dedicated to working together to improve their individual careers. The lead artist for Atlas Flower was Mike Graves, a printmaker, illustrator, and painter.
BRASS Flag This installation is part of Indy Art & Seek, a project by the Arts Council of Indianapolis and Keep Indianapolis Beautiful to pair artists and communities to create site-specific art that encourages neighborhood residents to see their surroundings in new ways.
The flag is assembled as a quilt, composed of pieces of material donated by residents of the four neighborhoods that meet at the corner of 10th and Rural: Brookside, Rivoli Park, St. Clair Place, and Springdale (B.R.S.S.). The Near Eastside is undergoing a great deal of physical change; the quilt/flag stands as a symbol of unity against forces that would change the underlying neighborhood character.
Philip Campbell, the artist, lives just two houses away from the artwork site. He prefers to make physically tactile work using craft-based media that support complex conceptual ideas. Campbell is a recipient of the Arts Council’s DeHaan Artist of Distinction award and a Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship, created the locally-known Masterpiece in a Day project, and exhibits his work frequently in solo and group shows.
Haughville Butterflies This installation is part of Indy Art & Seek, a project by the Arts Council of Indianapolis and Keep Indianapolis Beautiful to pair artists and communities to create site-specific art that encourages neighborhood residents to see their surroundings in new ways.
Inspired by members of the Haughville Strong community working with local youth through Matchbook Learning at Wendell Phillips IPS School 63, the artist created stencils of butterflies and placed them throughout the school grounds. He invited students to paint them with bright colors to symbolize positive community growth and change. The artist also created “hidden” butterflies using clear, hydrophobic paint: these butterflies are only visible when it rains, indicating that there is hope even on the darkest days.
Charles Shane (CS) Stanley is a Haughville resident and internationally-recognized street artist. He creates work in stencil, aerosol, brush, and marker, works with several graffiti crews, and is the Director of Art at Indianapolis’ First Church of Cannabis.
Immigrantes Bienvenidos (Immigrants Welcome) This installation is part of Indy Art & Seek, a project by the Arts Council of Indianapolis and Keep Indianapolis Beautiful to pair artists and communities to create site-specific art that encourages neighborhood residents to see their surroundings in new ways.
Working with the Christian Park neighborhood, and in light of current tense policies which target immigrant communities, the artist wanted to create a space that encourages Latinx neighbors to feel welcomed and safe to congregate in public. She was also inspired by her own Mexican heritage and her experience living on the east side and visiting Christian Park with her children. The imagery seen here includes Monarch butterflies, their own seasonal and generational migrations to and from Mexico serving as a symbol of the migratory patterns of immigrants seeking a new life in the United States. The mural on the picnic benches outside echoes elements of the paper sculpture inside the park building.
Beatriz Vasquez is a graduate of the Herron School of Art & Design, and is a self-taught papel picado artist. Her compositions often center on issues of the Mexican immigrant experience and personal and family memory.
Not a Drop to Drink This installation is part of Indy Art & Seek, a project by the Arts Council of Indianapolis and Keep Indianapolis Beautiful to pair artists and communities to create site-specific art that encourages neighborhood residents to see their surroundings in new ways.
The artist initiated this project in 2019 with the goal of celebrating the community’s commitment to cleaning up the White River in their neighborhood. Activities were happening that would ultimately result in people soon being able to once again swim and fish in the river in a way they hadn’t been able to for many decades. However, in January 2020 the Environmental Protection Agency repealed a number of the provisions of the Clean Water Act (1972), allowing the type of industrial pollution and dumping of raw sewage that will serve to roll back nearly all the progress made to date. The project’s intent quickly shifted to one of calling for intensified local and national action to preserve the river and its health.
The sculpture was co-created by the community, with youth from the Riverside neighborhood and art students at Riverside High School helping to make and paint the water droplets. The form was inspired by the round porthole windows seen throughout RHS, recalling the building’s original use as a naval armory.
Kimberly McNeelan is a sculptor and woodworker based in Indianapolis. As an artist, she undertakes projects that encourage action towards creating a more vibrant society composed of strong communities, particularly by inspiring harmony between humans and nature. She enjoys bringing the natural world into her work.
Spring Season This installation is part of Indy Art & Seek, a project by the Arts Council of Indianapolis and Keep Indianapolis Beautiful to pair artists and communities to create site-specific art that encourages neighborhood residents to see their surroundings in new ways.
As the artist explored the neighborhood, she was struck by the abundance of gardens and was inspired to create a bright, inviting mural celebrating the spirit of growth and community. The vacant house is called Touba Gardens, and is intended as a future community center.
Maria Iqbal is an illustrator and designer, trained at the Herron School of Art & Design and currently based in Indianapolis. She has worked with private clients and Cat Head Press.
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