Exhibition Philosophy

The Indianapolis Art Center feels that to understand the process, product and context of art as it exists in the late 20th and early 21st centuries requires constant stimuli that illustrate both the breadth and depth of contemporary expression as well as its roots, variations and implications for the future. The exhibitions program is dedicated to providing the citizens of the Midwest with this broad range of perspectives on contemporary artistic expression. It is informed by the code of ethics of the Association of American Museums and generally follows the procedures dictated for handling, conserving, installing and displaying works of art.

We have many gallery spaces and utilize them in various ways throughout the year. We do more than 55 exhibitions a year and these shows range from student work and groups exhibitions to internationally recognized artists. A variety of media, techniques, and approaches are shown in a typical season and exhibitions are on view from six to eight weeks.
We focus on the meaning of contemporary art (i.e., "why make art?") and less on the techniques of the art (i.e., "how is art made?") unless it has a direct bearing on how it relates to the meaning. Adjunct educational programming is important to understanding our exhibitions: look for activities, events and other programs relating to the exhibitions elsewhere on our Web site. The Education and Exhibitions departments jointly innovate adjunct programming to engage the public even more with the concepts we present. Some of these programs include workshops or master classes with the exhibiting artists, hands-on activities both in the galleries and in the studios, tours for specialized audiences, films and distance learning programming.

The Art Center sends out a general call for proposals each year and receives nearly 200 proposals in response. Unsolicited project proposals are also received, and the Director of Exhibitions and Artist Services evaluates these in consultation with initiatives established departmentally and by the program team. The Director of Exhibitions and Artist Services also visits exhibitions and artists based in the region, and may invite some of these artists to exhibit. Artists are chosen based on the quality of their work and their ability to provide a diversity of viewpoints over the course of the season. Artists are also chosen to create as even a balance as possible between men and women, between Indiana artists and those from the rest of the Midwest. Special attention is paid each year to artists presenting perspectives from other cultures and/or experiences, and approximately every two years an exhibition presenting a global perspective is mounted. All exhibitions are temporary, lasting four to eight weeks each. We acknowledge our commitment to our students and faculty by mounting exhibitions of their work singly and in groups, and we also make use of traveling exhibitions.

Many works in the exhibitions are for sale and profit from the sales benefit the exhibiting artists and support the Exhibitions Department of the Indianapolis Art Center.