Art Exhibitions

The Art Association of Indianapolis had its first art exhibition in 1883. Supervised by local painter and art instructor Sue Ketcham and held at the English Hotel on the Circle, this event brought fine American art to the attention of the average Indianapolis citizen.

In 1885, the emerging Hoosier Group attracted local attention when the association showed works by William Forsyth and T. C. Steele. “Ye Hoosiers Colony in Muenchen” was a turning point in the Indianapolis art world. Because attendance was high, the Art Association decided to hold annual exhibits thereafter. Also as a result of the exhibit, local art students filled the Hoosier Group’s art classes.

In the early 20th century, the museum of Herron School of Art became an important venue for art exhibitions. Hoosiers experienced global art when they attended Herron exhibits, showing everything from Japanese prints to paintings by Norwegian artists. However, the most popular exhibits in the Hoosier capital were those featuring American artists. Winslow Homer, John James Audubon, and Thomas Hart Benton exhibits drew large crowds. In 1938, Herron showcased another medium when it featured an Archipenko exhibit of contemporary sculpture, the first major showing of sculpture in the city. In addition to exhibits curated by its own staff, Herron also hosted traveling exhibitions which included works by Salvador Dali and Vincent Van Gogh.

In 1970, the Indianapolis Museum of Art (IMA), formerly the Herron Museum of Art and now Newfields, relocated to the former J. K. Lilly, Jr. estate on West 38th Street. One of the first important exhibits at the new IMA was the 1973 showing of Max Beckman contemporary graphics. In 1987, almost 12,000 people attended the IMA’s “Art of the Fantastic: Latin America 1920-1987,” an exhibition in celebration of the Pan American Games.

The Herron Gallery opened at the former Herron Museum site in 1978. New programming at Herron Gallery included a film festival of contemporary German-narrative films that later traveled throughout the state. A 1979 exhibit at Herron Gallery, “Fiberstructures and Fabric Surfaces,” was a large traveling show that was cited by art critics as an important exhibition of contemporary art.

Indianapolis’ private galleries have also had important shows. The Washington Gallery exhibited avant-garde regional art, and in the 1970s was the first venue in Indianapolis to show installation and video art. In 1983, the Patrick King Contemporary Art Gallery presented “Modular Form,” an exhibit of textile installation art. This was the first time a commercial gallery allowed an artist to rebuild the exhibition space to better suit their art. The success of the show influenced other commercial galleries in the city to allow similar major installations.

Other sites in Indianapolis have also housed significant exhibitions. The Indiana State Museum has showcased the work of Indiana artists. The 1990 exhibit “Robert Berkshire: A Retrospective” displayed the work of an Indiana University Herron School of Art professor to over 60,000 people. For many years, L. S. Ayres, a downtown department store, hosted the annual Hoosier Salon. This exhibit presented works of Indiana artists in an environment calculated to reach persons who might not visit an art gallery or museum.

Art exhibitions continued to play an important part in the cultural life of Indianapolis, and 1990 was a landmark year in the city’s art world. To celebrate the opening of the Hulman Pavilion, over 26,000 people attended the IMA-curated “Seurat at Gravelines: The Last Landscapes”. Two other exhibits in 1990 were “firsts” for the IMA. The Richard Pousette-Dart retrospective was the first exhibit at the museum to be reviewed byTime magazine. “The Passage: Return of Indiana Painters from Germany, 1880-1905” became the IMA’s first international traveling show when it went to Indianapolis’ sister city, Cologne, Germany. “The Passage” returned to the IMA in November, 1991, to an enthusiastic reception.

In addition to the IMA’s successful shows in 1990, the Smithsonian Museum chose to display the largest traveling show ever curated by the Washington, D.C., institution at the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indian and Western Art. “Crossroads of Continents: Cultures of Siberia and Alaska,” was viewed by 62,000 people in Indianapolis, the only midwestern city in its circuit, before traveling to other venues in Seattle, New York City, and Canada.

*Note: This entry is from the original print edition of the Encyclopedia of Indianapolis (1994). We are currently seeking an individual with knowledge of this topic to update this entry.