Love that you are greeted by this welcoming mural as you enter the city from the West. A welcome…read moreaddition to the rather drab West side of town and generally lacking murals. It is bright and blue, reminding us of Indiana's state flag. It covers the entire side of the building which is quite large. One drawback is that there are parking spots alongside this building causing the view to be obstructed rather frequently. Still eye-catching even with parked cars. I have stopped and taken pictures of my out of town friends in front of it and they love this little souvenir.

This used to be a really nice mural. However, it has been written on graffiti on tore up looking…read morejust does not do it justice. I hope that they paint over it and give it the respected deserves.

I'm not always a fan of Carmel's roundabout art projects, however, I will acknowledge I'm a fan, a…read morebig fan, of the "Classic Cars of Indiana" project. This sculpture, Marmon Wasp, is part of that collection. It was completed in 2023 and sits in the roundabout at East 96th Street and Priority Way. The entire collection sits along East 96th Street. I think this is a great sort of bridge between Carmel and Indy; it's also a tremendous acknowledging of Indy's history. For those who don't know, the Marmon Wasp was the first car to win the Indy 500 way back in 1911. The sculpture's black and yellow colors are the same colors from the original car. The sculpture was completed by Arlon Bayliss. The base of the sculpture is made of Indiana limestone and brick, the latter reflecting the "Brickyard." The car slants forward with the front wheels raised, a tribute to speed. Bayliss was born in England and is an emeritus professor of art at Anderson University. He's known for public art installations around Indiana, though he's also known across Europe for both studio glass and factory art glass. I'm always struck by the size and power of this sculpture whenever I drive by it. I wouldn't call it quite a destination piece, however, it's a tremendous piece to admire when in the area. I'm a fan of the entire collection - this and the Stutz sculpture are probably my two favorites. If you haven't seen it, I definitely recommend checking it out.

Again: I know nothing about art, just what I like and what I don't like…read more This is the first roundabout sculpture you see when you are coming leaving 465 and heading east on 96th Street. It is one in a series of roundabout sculptures that line up along 96th Street. Honoring the Marmon Wasp, one of the earliest race cars on the Speedway track. I not only love that it lights up (and yes I have a thing for sculptures that light up at night) but also that it is painted in yellow and black. How befitting a wasp. I glimpse a bit more of it each time I drive through this roundabout. One day I shall stop and take a really close look.

During my visit to nearby Fishers, Indiana I was excited to see a new youth-inspired installation…read morethat is to become a regular feature located at Brooks School Park. It's called the Fishers Art Wall, an idea that was first inspired by the 2018-2019 Mayor's Youth Council (now known as the Mayor's Youth Academy). Inspired by Mayor Fadness's question ""What are creative places doing to create creative spaces?," the youth council began looking at Venice, California's public art walls and how they'd become a local tourist attraction while creating a public for public art and place-making. The result is that such businesses as Hagerman Construction, Sagamore Concrete, Gilliatte General Contractors and Faegre, Baker, Daniels among others agreed to donate their services and a Fall 2019 date was set to begin creating the Fishers Art Wall that is now in place. The Fishers Art Wall is a two-sided 40' x 5' wall with 4 1" reveals creating up to 8 separate panels. It can be divided multiple ways allowing for variation during each art rotation. There's to be four revolving periods of art throughout the year. Two of the periods will feature local artists, while the other two will be devoted to Hamilton Southeastern Schools. The emphasis is on creation of either a 2-D mural or graffiti style artwork with acrylic or spray paint or as directed by staff. The emphasis is on celebrating diversity and inclusion within Fishers and the guidelines note that the art work should align with the vision of the Fishers Arts & Culture Commission that goes - "To reflect both what the community is today and what it hopes to be in the future... a smart, vibrant, and entrepreneurial city energized by and experienced through arts, architecture and culture." For local artists, there's no fee to submit work and no permit required for the painting. There's also an allowable reimbursement of $250 per panel ensuring that artists are compensated for their work. The wall is to be maintained and prepared by the City of Fishers before/after each rotation. I fell in love with the Fishers Art Wall, which is located along the Mud Creek Watershed and adjacent to the parking lot. It's a beautiful option for local art and the current installation emphasizes what is really an Indiana theme right now - the idea of being "All IN." I initially eyeballed the exhibit and just assumed it was a cute art thing similar to the rainbow bridge in Broad Ripple, but closer inspection revealed it was a formal and permanent installation with signage explaining the project. To be honest, I drove by it four times just soaking it in. If you're by Brooks School Park, I'd definitely check it out. If you're a local artist, you might also think about submitting for future installations.

These cool brick head sculptures are showing up around Indiana, so am finally getting the scoop…read more The giant head sculptures are the work of American artist, James Tyler. According to the plaque, Tyler is an Indianapolis native, who now works in New York. The sculptures are made of terra cotta and treated with metals to give unique a patina on the surface. The head on Mass Ave (outside Bru Burger) is entitled "Brickhead 3". According to a nearby plaque, the sculpture is supposed to have an audio feature that is activated by nearby movement. Unfortunately, I did not notice an audio feature during my walk around the sculpture. Perhaps, the feature is turned off during the winter? Brickhead 3 was made in 2004 and placed permanently on Mass Ave. I love that an Indy artist is featured locally. The head is whimsical and seems blend in with nature. The surrounding green space could use a cleanup. There is metered street parking nearby (if you are lucky). Worth a visit if you like art.

This is a very neat and unique sculpture located among the other Mass Avenue pieces such as Ann…read moreDancing. It is placed on a plot of grass right out front of Bru Burger. It is the third in a series, 2 others are in New York and 2 more at at Purdue. It is the work of James Tyler and was created in 2006. It stands about 90 feet tall and is composed of bricks that were each individually cut to form a human head. It could not have turned out better, if it was one sculpted piece. It looks great, especially considering its age. I really like this piece. It is supposed to have supposed to have a motion activated sound element that was intended to depict a "calculating mind" with references to thought patterns that are on one hand permanent, and another fleeting. It is supposed to be emitting calls of birds and insects, wind and rain. However, the sound track was not working while I was there. But that was ok. I still enjoyed seeing the piece. This piece is very accurate and the face is so detailed, which I find amazing because they are made of individually stacked cut bricks. It is definitely a sight to see. It has an ancient civilization vibe to it, which I believe was Tyler's intention. Being that it is located right off of a bunch of metered street parking, parking your vehicle to get out and take a closer look is easy. I was able to find a spot right behind the sculpture. Easy peasy. As with most sculptures that I have visited and reviewed, this is not a very long stop. I was there less than 5 minutes. You may want to consider planning out additional stops at many of the other sculptures, murals and other attractions in the area, or making this stop part of a larger itinerary to maximize your time and trip. There are some nice one located along Mass Ave, in a quarter mile radius to check out, such as Viewfinders, Ann Dancing 2.0, and the Kurt Vonnegut Mural.

This piece is part of the 2020 Jiffy Lube Mural project, in conjunction with the Arts Council of…read moreIndianapolis. It is the work of Artur Silva and Shaunte Lewis and is not your typical mural. It is not painted directly on the building wall. The image was printed on vinyl and installed on the building. This is the first digitally-created artwork in the Jiffy Lube mural program. So, obviously it is on the side a Jiffy Lube. The mural is abstract. It goes from color in the center to black and white as it gets toward the outer edges. The left side of the mural is a mirror of the right side. It mainly consists of a lot of colorful hands. There is also a heart thrown in for good measure. The hands are based on Silva's friends' performing various actions with their hands. He also used screenshots of films highlighting the role of hands in telling a story. I will say that it is an interesting piece that I found very intriguing. I was trying to figure out which each hand was doing in the mural. I like the way the color portion of the mural contrasts with the back and white portion. They both really pop. I just pulled into the BP gas station that the mural overlooks to park. It was very easy. As with most murals that I have visited and reviewed, this is not a very long stop. I was there less than 5 minutes. You may want to consider planning out additional stops at many of the other attractions in the area, or making this stop part of a larger itinerary to maximize your time and trip.

As part of the ongoing commitment from the local owners of many Central Indiana Jiffy Lubes,…read moreanother new mural was added to the south wall of the Jiffy Lube on 151st in Westfield. The artists for this piece were Artur Silva and Shaunte Lewis. The artwork is a mixture of bright colored pieces surrounded by black and white "sketches". There are many images of hands that I haven't had a chance to understand what they represent. It is a definite eye catching mural as I noticed it from 151st even though it was just beyond a BP gas station on the south wall of the Jiffy Lube on Thatcher Lane. For more information about the artists and Jiffy Lube art program, see the link to the Arts Council of Indiana that I have added to the Business page of the mural. This piece was added in 2020, so something good came out of that year! Review #3861

I have passed this mural 100s of times and finally decided to take a closer look. This mural was…read morecommissioned and is located on the side of the Sun King brewery/restaurant. It was painted in 2015 by renowned artist Carl Leck. It depicts about some wheat and 7 very detailed green hops on the left and a very nice image of the Indianapolis cityscape, including the Sales Force Tower, the USS Indianapolis Memorial, the canal, Regions Tower, and Bank of America Building, in the center and the orange and black Sun King logo, with a can of beer being poured into a glass, on the right. I cannot stress how detailed this mural is. The cityscape, may not be to scale or positionally accurate, but it is still amazing. You will also find another 3D Sun King logo placed on the mural. If you have not figured it out by now the mural depicts the basic components of beer: wheat, hops, and water. The only thing missing is the yeast. And if you figure out a good way to depict it then you should probably let Leck know. The mural is the backdrop of the business's patio/ outdoor waiting area and overlooks their parking lot. The detail put into this mural is astounding. I had passed it many times and never noticed it though. My attention was always focused on the bright logo. I also missed how nice Leck incorporated the fenced in A/C unit, vents, water drain, utility piping, and security camera in the mural. It is seamless and they are camouflaged very well. I really like this mural. It is definitely worthy of a visit. Parking here is easy with it being right off of a parking lot. As with most murals that I have visited and reviewed, this is probably not a very long stop. I was there less than 5 minutes. You may want to consider planning out additional stops at many of the other attractions in the area, or making this stop part of a larger itinerary to maximize your time and trip. FYI: The beer can pouring into the glass in the mural is Osiris, one of Sun King's best-selling beers.

This Sun King patio is one of my favorites in the city. The Hops mural amps up the energy in this…read morearea and makes this a fun destination for visitors and locals. Shout out to local artist Carl Leck for painting this stunner!

Carmel is full of roundabouts and public art, and at first when I was at the midtown plaza,…read morechecking out the area and enjoying some food, I saw this piece because it was noticeable in the dark, and I really enjoyed the colors. I googled around a bit and discovered that it is called sail, and that makes sense since it looks like the sails of a ship. It was created by two people who met while they were teaching at the Herron school of art. The structure is acrylic, steal and lights. Check it out! It's hard to miss, and very cool at night.

This is an eye catching sculpture that is constructed of steel and colorful arcylic. It is also…read moreequioed with lights that illuminate the colored glass at night. It is 30 feet tall and the city commissioned Quincy Owens and Luke Crawley of Owens + Crowley to construct the piece. In 2019 They wanted it to be an iconic landmark for the new Midtown plaza area. The three towing structures resemble sails of a ship, hence the name. They definitely do stick out. It is located along the Monon Trail and I saw it from far away. I liked the way the sun beamed through the colored glass and it's humongous size. It demanded my attention. There is free street parking available all along the section of the trail that the sculpture is located. It I may be difficult to find a spot though, so be prepared to walk. There are a few spots that are across from the sculpture and are designated as 20 minute parking. That is where I parked. You have a real good chance of snagging one of those spots. And I doubt you will be there longer than 20 minutes, so you should be good. As with most sculptures that I have visited and reviewed, this is probably not a very long stop. I was there less than 5 minutes and tht includes me being hypnotized by the light hinting through the sculpture's colored glass. You may want to consider planning out additional stops at many of the other attractions in the area, or making this stop part of a larger itinerary to maximize your time and trip. There is another piece on the trail and nearby roundabouts that would be perfect to start with.

This is an awesome mural that consumes the entire building. It is on 6 walls of the building and…read morewas designed by Anne Costillo. It is one of the better Lilly Day of Service murals. It was painted in 2013 by volunteers, most of which with little to no formal artistic training or experience, through collaboration by Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, the Indianapolis Children's Museum and the Lilly Day of Service. The mural is on Ikelite's worldwide headquarters, an Indianapolis-based company that has produced underwater photographic equipment. So this mural is a perfect fit for the building. The mural is very detailed and depicts underwater scenes taken from photographs from photographers Bob Stubbs, Steven Miller and David Fleetham, of the deep blue sea shot around the world. The mural is in great shape and looks relatively new. They must have used some really good paint. The mural is very detailed, especially considering that it was painted by volunteers. You will find a bunch of scuba divers, some sharks, and an octopus. I love the shading used to make the blue water. It is awesome. Parking here to take a good look is relatively easy. Most of the mural overlooks a parking lot and there is also free street parking available to check the mural out as well. I just parked in the street on the side of the building the mural is on. As with most murals that I have reviewed, this is probably not a very long stop. I was there less than 5 minutes. So, you may want to consider planning out additional stops at many of the other wonderful murals in the area, or making this stop part of a larger itinerary to maximize your time and trip.

What's not to like about a mural with scuba divers, a shark, and an octopus? This mural was…read morecreated in 2013 as part of the Lilly Day of Service (LDOS) in part with the Children's Museum and Keep Indianapolis Beautiful (KIB). The design was created by Anne Costillo and the mural was painted with the help of lots of volunteers. I would say this is one of the better "paint by number" murals done by volunteers in the community. Review #1757