Indianapolis Museum of Art Blog

On Monday morning there were rumors of lines out the door. There were tales of children dressed in gladiator costumes. There was even mention of hundreds of adults walking around with laurel wreaths on their heads. Can this be true? The visitors are coming! The visitors are coming!

I had no doubt that we would get a crowd opening weekend. However, I am surprised at the enthusiasm the visitors have for the exhibition. For art that is over 2,000 years old, it still has an impressive fan base. It’s been really great to see the reaction people have had to the marketing campaign, but more importantly, it has been really nice to see the reaction people have had to the exhibition. People really love it. And the entire IMA staff is breathing a collective sigh of relief after opening weekend. Read the rest of this entry »

I’m disappointed. Really disappointed.

Last night I was very excited to go to Herron School of Art on the campus of IUPUI to see a lecture by Allison Smith. Smith is a generous and talented artist who in the spring of 2008 will undertake a major sculpture project with students and faculty at the Herron School to be featured in the “On Procession” parade and exhibition at the Indianapolis Museum of Art. Almost 100 eager students and art lovers showed up for the lecture in the Basile Auditorium. Unfortunately, all of us were sent home without hearing from Smith. No one was more upset by this than the artist. She was forced to cancel the lecture because her 17″ silver Macbook was stolen from the auditorium after she set up her presentation, but before she began. It happened between 5:40 and 6:00 PM. Read the rest of this entry »

This past Saturday was the Penrod Arts Fair. Held on the second Saturday of every September on the grounds of the Indianapolis Museum of Art, Penrod is known as “Indiana’s Nicest Day.” However, the weather this year left a bit to be desired. (I’ve always assumed that the slogan referred to the weather, but perhaps it actually refers to the crowd, because the oppressive humidity and afternoon rain showers didn’t seem to faze the thousands of arts enthusiasts eager to browse, buy, lunch and listen.) While the total numbers aren’t in yet for 2008, on average nearly 30,000 people make it out to the Museum’s property every year for this event. However, only about 10% of those visitors ever make it inside the Museum. Even less actually make it to the collection. Read the rest of this entry »