Indianapolis City Market: Reclaim Space Art Project

When opportunity presents itself in 2020, its a good rule of thumb to seize it. That’s what I did when I was asked to serve as Interim Executive Director of the 134 year old Indianapolis City Market. An opportunity to guide this historic and important landmark during the craziness of 2020 was just the challenge I didn’t know I needed. 

Challenge being the optimal word because in addition to the drastic downturn of hungry patrons for our 25 merchants due to the pandemic; the closure of Market Street has made our wide open plazas dauntingly hard to find. Our restaurants, shops, and barbers are doing the best they can to serve Indianapolis amidst the obstacles this year has thrown at them. 

So, in the spirit of working with what we’ve got and with the financial support of Gershman Partners and Citimark, sixteen artists were invited to leave their artistic mark on the construction barricades this past weekend. As people waited in line to vote at the City-County Building across the road, the artists got to work! At the end of the day, the drab concrete barricades of construction were transformed into a colorful celebration of creativity and art. The weather was perfect and the vibes were uplifting. Still to come, fire pits and additional lights on the plazas to maximize the public spaces at City Market.

The Indianapolis City Market is open and needs your support. Check out www.indycm.com to see a list of vendors and plan your mid day adventure, #backdowntownindy

Curated by Deonna Craig, participating artists included: Tasha Beckwith, Sketches of Vision, Rebecca Robinson, Nate Rhodes, Nathan Holmes, Michael Martin, Megan Jefferson, Kyle “Stuffy Fresh” Rogan, Kierrra Ready, Kaila Austin, Bezol One, JD Bills, Israel Solomon, Andrea Light and Alex Kim.

Photography by Sarah Boutwell

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