Power Plant Grant Webinar
2023-06-05 19:00 (America/Indiana/Indianapolis)
If you are interested in applying for a Power Plant Grant, please consider attending this virtual information session on Monday, June 5 at 7pm. Register here.

The Power Plant Grant program for 2023-24 will provide grants in the amount of $60,000 total. Six individual artists, art collectives, and/or artist-run spaces will receive cash grants of $10,000 each, for the creation and presentation of new work/projects with a strong visual component. Artists with ongoing projects or practices are welcome to apply, providing the application proposes significant evolution or adaptation that will open up new directions in the work – even if for only one year.
Applications for this round are due by July 10, 2023. For more information go to www.powerplantgrant.org

Emma Hall-Lunch Break Live Tuesdays presented by Lake City Bank
2023-06-06 11:30 - 13:30 | 1 Monument Circle, South Facing Steps, United States
Singer-songwriter Emma Hall pairs introspective lyrics and winding chord progressions with heartrending melodies, making something equal parts wistful and beautiful.”

Music performance 12-1pm in the SW Quad of Monument Circle.
Food Truck-Treats By Fee

We at Big Car are teaming up with Downtown Indy and the City of Indianapolis — with support from the Capital Improvement Board and the Indiana War Memorials Commission— to spark Monument Circle with human-scale activities like games, live music, artmaking, and socializing in a comfortable place. We’re based in the southwest quadrant.

African Dance with Uzuri
2023-06-07 19:30 - 21:00, 2023-06-14 19:30 - 21:00 | Contemporary Art Museum of Indianapolis (CAMi), 1125 Cruft St., Indianapolis, IN, 46203, United States
Join Uzuri Asad, artist in Big Car’s Public Life Residency, for a dose of culture, self-care, and community as we explore rhythms from West Africa and other parts of the Diaspora. Give your body and soul a moment to reflect and progress all at once, meet Asad on the floor!

Artist-led activities & Lunch at Lockerbie Place
2023-06-08 11:30 - 13:30 | Lockerbie Marketplace, 320 N New Jersey St, Indianapolis, IN, United States
Join us at Lockerbie Marketplace on Thursday, May 11 from 11:30 am – 1 pm in the downtown greenspace next to Needler’s Fresh Market for artist-led activities like our Post Card Project, WQRT DJ mix, authentic Filipino comfort food by Taste of Manilla, and games like Ping pong, foosball, and giant Jenga.

All events are free at 320 N New Jersey Street in the greenspace right off the Cultural Trail.

Kristen Bales-Lunch Break Live Tuesdays presented by Lake City Bank
2023-06-13 11:30 - 13:30 | 1 Monument Circle, South Facing Steps, United States
Kristen Bales is an indie-alternative/rock artist out of Indianapolis, Indiana. With a voice that at times appears relaxed and pristine, like the sweet crooning of Norah Jones, but at times crashes against the heavy, soul-filled tones of Janis Joplin, Kristen turns to roots of jazz to exemplify genres of blues, rock, and soul.
Music performance 12-1pm in the SW Quad of Monument Circle.

Food Truck- A Taste of Home

We at Big Car are teaming up with Downtown Indy and the City of Indianapolis — with support from the Capital Improvement Board and the Indiana War Memorials Commission— to spark Monument Circle with human-scale activities like games, live music, artmaking, and socializing in a comfortable place. We’re based in the southwest quadrant.

Live Music at Lockerbie with Haley Stevenson & Maya Nojiri Sutherland
2023-06-15 11:30 - 13:30 | Needler’s Market, 320 N New Jersey, Indianapolis, IN, 46204, United States
Check out live music by Haley Stevenson on violin/viola & Maya Nojiri Sutherland on cello. Food served by Tortas Mexican food truck with an eclectic menu of tortas, tacos, and tamales. Games like foosball, ping pong, chess & checkers, and giant Jenga are also available for additional entertainment.
About Haley Stevenson
Stevenson is a viola and violin teacher and performer based in northern Indianapolis and Carmel. She teaches private lessons to students ages 8 and up, and enjoys curating the lesson curriculum to each student’s abilities and interests, whether they be more interested in classical music, fiddling, or movie show tunes. Stevenson regularly performs with The Deoc Ensemble, Classical Music Indy, and regional orchestras such as Orchestra Indiana (Formerly the Muncie Symphony and Marion Philharmonic), the Columbus Symphony, and the Lafayette Symphony. When she is not working, Stevenson loves to read, play video games, and spend time with her cat.

Maya Nojiri Sutherland
Sutherland is freelance musician and cellist with the Indianapolis new music ensemble, Forward Motion. Maya has worked with Classical Music Indy over the past two years as a #RandomActsofMusic performer.

Yeabsera Tabb Gallery Talk
2023-06-17 14:00 - 15:30 | Contemporary Art Museum of Indianapolis (CAMi), 1125 Cruft St., Indianapolis, IN, 46203, United States
Join Yeabsera Tabb as she gives an in-depth tour of her works in her exhibit, “Tezeta.” Tabb is an interdisciplinary visual artist with a focus in printmaking and textiles. Her work explores the intersectionalities and liminal space contained within one’s personal identity.
As an artist, Yeabsera often struggles to reconcile her pain, bewilderment, and anger with societal expectations to create beauty. Acknowledging anger, joy, and resistance, her work exists in a complicated middle ground, invoking the recognition and appreciation of disparate feelings and experiences.
After graduating with degrees in both Design for Social Impact and Fine Arts, Yeabsera held multiple solo and group shows in Indianapolis including a group show at Newfields. Additionally, she was one of 10 Black woman artists named as an Emerging Visionary Artist by Shea Moisture.

Keith Beatty-Lunch Break Live Tuesdays presented by Lake City Bank
2023-06-20 11:30 - 13:30 | 1 Monument Circle, South Facing Steps, United States
Hands down…Keith Beatty was born to sing. Growing up in Indianapolis and moving on to sing in the Indiana University Choral Ensemble, the crooner made his mark on teachers and students and was known as the man with the melodic voice.
Unleashing the music deep down, Beatty writes music for life, not hype. He sings with passion, emphasis, and with a way that will warm the coldest heart. He speaks truth to his listeners giving them a dose of reality a la his life experiences.
As a true talent that can draw you in with one stroke of his guitar, Beatty strongly believes music is life recorded, and those who love R&B and Soul will hear sweet sounds out of lips that only bring what’s real. Like the songs sang by Aretha Franklin and the Temptations, Keith Beatty’s songs will be added to the history books as songs from an artist with true talent.

Food Truck: Taste of Manila

We at Big Car are teaming up with Downtown Indy and the City of Indianapolis — with support from the Capital Improvement Board and the Indiana War Memorials Commission— to spark Monument Circle with human-scale activities like games, live music, artmaking, and socializing in a comfortable place. We’re based in the southwest quadrant.

Andrea Jandernoa- Power Plant Grant Juror Artist Talk
2023-06-25 13:00 - 15:00 | Contemporary Art Museum of Indianapolis (CAMi), 1125 Cruft St., Indianapolis, IN, 46203, United States
Learn about artist Andrea Jandernoa, a juror for our 2023 Power Plant Grant. Jandernoa is an award-winning artist and educator who specializes in community-based arts programming. She holds an MA in Philosophy and an MFA in Integrative Studio Practice from Herron School of Art & Design. Jandernoa experiments with intentional processes, materials, and forms, in order to discover metaphors that can be applied to social contexts or to challenge inequitable power structures. This results in a highly collaborative and interdisciplinary art practice. Jandernoa also maintains a studio space at the Circle City Industrial Complex where she paints and exhibits oil paintings.

About the The Power Plant Grant
Power Plant Grants support — on an annual basis — visual artists who live, work, or run spaces in Indianapolis with project grants of $10,000. Applications for this round are due by July 10, 2023.

Each year — based on selections by an independent panel — 6 individual artists or teams will receive awards of $10,000.

Eligible applicants are visual and or multidisciplinary artists who create original work in painting, drawing, sculpture, book art, ceramics, fiber, printmaking, digital and media works, film, video, photography, performance art, sound art, social practice and or hybrid or interdisciplinary practice of any or all of the above.

Artists must be over 21 at the time of the application, and may not be full-time students.

Employees or board members (or immediate family members of employees or board members) of Big Car Collaborative are not eligible for this opportunity.
Teams, partnerships, and unincorporated individuals running spaces are eligible. Nonprofit organizations are not.

Eligible projects are ones that can be primarily supported by grant funds. Much larger projects that would require far more funding are not eligible.
Previous Power Plant Grant recipients awarded in the previous year are not eligible to apply for this current round.

How it works
Apply by July 10, 2023. A panel of four judges, three Indiana-based and one out-of-state, will award six artists, artist teams, or artist-run space project grants of $10,000 — with a total of $60,000 granted in 2023.
Timeline:
Friday, May 5 – Application opens
Monday, June 5, 7-8 pm — Virtual information session.
Monday, June 26, 7-8 pm — Information session (in-person)
Monday, July 10 – Applications close online, at 11.59 PM EST
Friday, August 11 – All applications notified if they will proceed to the final round
Saturday, August 26, 9:30 am — 6pm — Artists’ presentations at Selection Panel meeting in Indianapolis*
Monday, August 28 – Award recipients notified
Monday, September 18 – Public Announcement of 2023-24 Awards

Power Plant Grant Information Session
2023-06-26 19:00 - 20:00 | Contemporary Art Museum of Indianapolis (CAMi), 1125 Cruft St., Indianapolis, IN, 46203, United States
If you are interested in applying for a Power Plant Grant, please consider attending our information session on Monday, June 26 (7-8 pm) at Tube Factory artspace (1125 Cruft Street).

The Power Plant Grant program for 2023-24 will provide grants in the amount of $60,000 total. Six individual artists, art collectives, and/or artist-run spaces will receive cash grants of $10,000 each, for the creation and presentation of new work/projects with a strong visual component. Artists with ongoing projects or practices are welcome to apply, providing the application proposes significant evolution or adaptation that will open up new directions in the work – even if for only one year.
Applications for this round are due by July 10, 2023. For more information go to www.powerplantgrant.org

Peyton Womok- Lunch Break Live Tuesdays presented by Lake City Bank
2023-06-27 11:30 - 13:30 | 1 Monument Circle, South Facing Steps, United States
Known for his skills as a saxophonist, Peyton Womak’s music incorporates his sax playing to innovatively allow him to cross over multiple genres from Smooth Jazz, Funk, R&B, Hip-Hop/Rap, to Pop. He is known for performing popular covers loved and cherished by many while also performing original pieces of his own.
“I have created a public brand and image that expresses my passion, energy, and personal story through my art,” says Womak.
Through his artistic journey, he has worked alongside artists such as Lil Nas X, Bootsy Collins, Babyface, Take A Day Trip, members of Kanye West’s team, After 7, and other Emmy/Grammy award-winning artists.

His music performance will start after the National Anthem plays at noon.

We at Big Car are teaming up with Downtown Indy and the City of Indianapolis — with support from the Capital Improvement Board and the Indiana War Memorials Commission— to spark Monument Circle with human-scale activities like games, live music, artmaking, and socializing in a comfortable place. We’re based in the southwest quadrant.

Live Music and Lunch at Lockerbie Place
2023-07-06 11:30 - 13:30 | Needler’s Market, 320 N New Jersey, Indianapolis, IN, 46204, United States
Join us at Lockerbie Marketplace on Thursday, July 6 from 11:30 am – 1 pm in the downtown greenspace next to Needler’s Fresh Market for live music by Luke Garrigus (piano/vocals) and Charissa Garrigus (piano); artist-led activities like our Post Card Project; Filipino dishes from Taste of Manilla and games like Ping pong, foosball, and giant Jenga.
All events are free at 320 N New Jersey Street in the greenspace right off the Cultural Trail.

About Luke Garrigus
Indianapolis Composer Luke Garrigus studied voice, piano, and composition at the University of Indianapolis. A well-rounded and enthusiastic performer, Luke is an active musician in the Indianapolis area. He participates in Classical Music Indy’s Random Acts of Music as a composer, pianist, and vocalist and can be heard in numerous other gigs throughout the city and surrounding areas. In addition, Luke directs the choir at Salem United Methodist Church in Zionsville. Luke is an up-and-coming composer and has written works for solo piano, solo and accompanied saxophone, wind quintet, orchestra, and choir among others. His works have been performed both locally and in Oxford and Falmouth England as part of an international music festival. He enjoys conducting and singing in choirs, writing music, cooking, searching for bugs and other wildlife in local parks, keeping aquariums, and spending time with his wonderful wife, Charissa.
Charissa Garrigus
As a performer and recitalist, Charissa Garrigus has been honored to premiere both solo and collaborative works of local composers including songs, piano solos, instrumental ensembles, and even a piano concerto in which she was the featured soloist. Charissa studied piano, music education, and literary studies at the University of Indianapolis, has numerous years of experience teaching PreK-8th grade general music, band, and choir, and is currently pursuing a Masters Degree in Musicology at Butler University. Charissa performs with Classical Music Indy’s Random Acts of Music and holds the position of Organist and Choral Accompanist at University Heights United Methodist Church. She keeps up an active performance schedule, featuring often in concert with Sound Ecologies, an Indy-based arts non-profit she runs with her husband Luke Garrigus.

First Friday Night Market
2023-07-07 18:00 - 22:00, 2023-08-04 18:00 - 22:00 | Contemporary Art Museum of Indianapolis (CAMi), 1125 Cruft St., Indianapolis, IN, 46203, United States
Join us again for this upcoming First Friday for a wonderful evening in Garfield Park. We are celebrating local artists, musicians, food trucks and vendors by featuring them in our night market.
Come check out our creative endeavors here around Cruft Street, where you will have the opportunity to purchase local goods from amazing artists and food vendors here at the Tube.
During the winter months, the Night Market is held inside Tube Factory artspace. In the fall, spring, and summer months, vending is located outside.
If you are a local artist or maker, please contact email hidden; JavaScript is required for more information.

Chicken Chapel of Love Grand Opening
2023-07-07 18:00 - 22:00 | Contemporary Art Museum of Indianapolis (CAMi), 1125 Cruft St., Indianapolis, IN, 46203, United States
Conceived by Big Car co-founder, Shauta Marsh in 2016– it’s taken 7 years to build and open this Las-Vegas style wedding chapel, meditation space and shrine designed by artist Jason Gray in 2019. Gray also hand-carved the wooden doors and built the altar cabinet. Commissions is the form of a mural, music and other objects will continue to be added.
When you open The Chicken Chapel of Love’s hand-carved wooden doors inscribed with the latin phrase Vide cor meum (See My Heart), you’re greeted with stained glass windows filtering the south and west sunlight, gilded gold candelabras, an altar cabinet honoring the elements & divine feminine with wood burnings by Nasreen Khan, taxidermied roosters, warm wood church pews, wax candles.
Located in our new Terri Sisson Park-a shrine for motherhood (which will formally open this fall)— the space represents the heart of humanity, the heart of the chicken. Our destinies and fates are overlapping and intertwining like those with whom we choose to share our lives.
From Danté’s La Vita Nuova
While thinking of her (Beatrice)
A sweet sleep came over me
I am your master
Here is your heart
And on this burning heart
Your heart
(she) obediently fed
Then I saw him (Amore) leaving in tears
Joy became bitterest lament
I am in peace
My heart
I am in peace
See my heart
The Chicken Chapel of Love was made possible by IHCDA, Patronicity and supporters like you!

Landon Caldwell & Rob Funkhouser: A House Is Alive with Sound
2023-07-07 18:00 - 22:00 | Contemporary Art Museum of Indianapolis (CAMi), 1125 Cruft St., Indianapolis, IN, 46203, United States
Funkhouser & Caldwell, building off their previous collaborations including their exhibition, “Sonic Potluck,” utilize sculptural, conceptual, and sound art works that rummage through the hidden ambiance of domestic environments to reveal the sounds between & behind our daily lives.

Marianne Glick: What Lies Beneath
2023-07-07 18:00 - 2023-07-21 15:00 | Contemporary Art Museum of Indianapolis (CAMi), 1125 Cruft St., Indianapolis, IN, 46203, United States
“All the paintings in this exhibit have multiple layers. The initial impression of the painting from a distance will change as you get closer-you will see more depth and dimension -things you maybe didn’t notice at first. I think this is a reflection of life. Often we make judgements based on first impressions, but once we get closer to someone, we realize that there is much more…beneath the surface.”– Marianne Glick

About the artist
Looking for a way to positively approach the winter months after a career in corporate training, Marianne began painting in September of 2005. Her love of gardening inspired many of her early paintings. Most of her recent work is abstract. She often uses more than one medium in her work, combining watercolor, acrylic and some collage to create pieces that reflect her exuberant nature. “I have worked in a variety of media and am now focusing on acrylics. I enjoy the use of rich colors and textures in my work. Exploring the interplay between transparent & opaque, warm & cool, brush work and pouring fascinates me. Most recently, I have been delving deeper by creating multiple layers and sanding back to reveal parts of early layers in the final painting.”

Marianne’s paintings have been accepted in juried competitions sponsored by the Hoosier Salon, California Art Day, Indianapolis Art Center, International Society of Acrylic Painters, International Society of Experimental Artists, Midwest Abstract National Exhibit, Watercolor Society of Indiana, and Women’s’ Works . Marianne likes to donate paintings to benefit some of her favorite non-profit organizations. To date she has donated paintings or profits from paintings to Women’s Fund, Dress for Success, Community Health Network Foundation, Joy’s House, Girls, Inc., Planned Parenthood, Indianapolis Symphony, Indianapolis Library and United Way.
Marianne now serves on the board of directors for the Glick Family Foundation, the Gene Glick Company, the Glick Housing Foundation, ASCEND, Central Indiana Community Foundation, Ivy Tech Community College, RISE Indy, TeenWorks and United Way of Central Indiana.
Her personal mission is to ignite, inspire and direct energy for positive action. Her paintings allow her to colorfully express her mission and hopefully bring joy to those who view them.

SPARK on the Circle
2023-07-08 11:00 - 2023-11-03 19:00 | 1 Monument Circle, South Facing Steps, United States
We have returned with an even more transformational SPARK on the Circle this year. The entire southwest quadrant of Monument Circle is closed to traffic and has become a park with lots of seating, shade, food and drink, and opportunities to socialize and get creative in the middle of the city. SPARK, which is always free to enjoy, is open every day 11 a.m. until dusk until Nov. 3.
Oct. 5, 12pm- Circle Side Chats: Poems with Kelvin McKelvey
Oct. 5, 4pm- Candle making with Freetown Village
Oct 7, 12pm- Scavenger Hunt with Brittany Fukushima
Oct. 10, 12pm- Lunch Break Live-Cara Jean Wahlers
Oct.11, 1pm- Drum Circle with Rhythm! Discover Center
Oct.11, 4pm- Found Art with Giselle Trujillo
Oct. 12, 12pm- Circle Side Chats: Symbols with DeeDee Davis
Oct. 12, 4pm- Indy Movement Arts Bump City & Bollywood
Oct. 13, 12pm- A.I.R. Head Book Tour
Oct. 13, 12pm- Hardrick Live Mural Painting
Oct 14, 4pm- Ink Workshop with Brittany Fukushima
Oct 14, 4pm- Sofar Sounds at SPARK
Oct 16, 4pm- Plein Air painting with Brittany Fukushima
Oct. 18, 1pm- Drum Circle with Rhythm! Discover Center
Oct. 18, 4pm- Amulet Making with Rachel Leah Cohen
Oct. 19, 12pm- Circle Side Chats: Drag History with Stephen Lane
Oct. 19, 4pm- Wagon of Wonders Puppet Show
Oct. 22, 12pm- Costume Pet Parade
Oct. 22, 4pm- Artist Hangout
Oct 24, 12pm-Lunch Break Live with Rob Funkhouser
Oct 25, 1pm- Drum Circle with Rhythm! Discover Center
Oct 25, 4pm- Graffiti Knitting
Oct. 28, 11am-6pm- Circle Spark Fest
Oct. 29, 11am-6pm- Circle Spark Fest
Oct. 30, 4-6pm- Dia de los Muertos Altar
Oct. 31, 12pm- Lunch Break Live with Progressive Knife
SPARK is a partnership with Downtown Indy, the City of Indianapolis, and the Indiana War Memorials Commission — and funded by the Capital Improvements Board. It is a continuation of our work last year and in 2015 on the Circle.
At Big Car, we approach our work at the Circle as a site- and community-specific socially engaged art and creative placemaking project. The SPARK on the Circle pop-up park was collaboratively designed with Indianapolis-based Merritt Chase to be a restorative public place where people of all walks of life can relax, play, socialize, and engage with art and artists in the heart of our city.

Frida Está Chida
2023-07-08 14:00 - 19:00 | Contemporary Art Museum of Indianapolis (CAMi), 1125 Cruft St., Indianapolis, IN, 46203, United States
Bilingual Description
El 6 de Julio de 1907, en Coyoacán, México nació una pintora conocida por sus famosos autorretratos. Frida Kahlo se convirtió en una fuerza del movimiento surrealista al crear un estilo único mezclando elementos de la naturaleza y la identidad mexicana con aspectos de su vida.
On July 6, 1907 in Coyoacán, Mexico a painter was born, known for her famous selfportraits. Frida Kahlo became a force in the surrealist movement by creating a unique style mixing elements of nature and the Mexican identify and aspects of her life.

La imágen de Frida continua influyendo la cultura popular. El Festival İFrida está Chida! celebra la influencia de Frida Kahlo a nivel mundial atravesando fronteras, idiomas y tiempo.
Frida’s image continues influencing pop culture. The İFrida está Chida! Festival celebrates Frida Kahlo’s influence worldwide piercing through borders, languages and time.

Con sus propias creaciones en honor a Frida, los artistas presentados en éste Festival muestran la fuerza de la imágen de la famosa pintora mexicana.
With their own creations in honor of Frida, the Festival’s artists showcase the famous Mexican painter’s force.

Este evento es familiar y abierto al publico. Están invitados a traer su mejor atuendo para celebrar a Frida porque….İFrida está Chida!
This is a family event open to the public. You are invited to join the celebration by wearing your best Frida custom because…İFrida está Chida!

Frida Está Chida es posible gracias al apoyo del Consejo de las Artes de Indianápolis, Big Car Collaborative y la Fundación de Indianápolis, un afiliado de CICF. Gracias a nuestros socios comunitarios Mujeres Conectadas, Consulado de México en Indianápolis, Red Global MX Crossroads, Nopal Cultural.
Gracias a Cueller Law Office por su patrocinio.

Frida Está Chida is made possible by the support of The Indy Arts Council, Big Car Collaborative and the Indianapolis Foundation, a CICF affiliate. Thanks to our community partners Mujeres Conectadas, Consulado de México en Indianapolis, Red Global MX Crossroads, Nopal Cultural.
Thank you to Cueller Law Office for your sponsorship.

Bashiri Asad- Lunch Break Live Tuesdays presented by Lake City Bank
2023-07-11 11:00 - 13:00 | 1 Monument Circle, South Facing Steps, United States
Join us for the soft return of SPARK Monument Circle with live music from Bashiri Asad! Food trucks, Bearded Bagel and Tijuana Flats, will be onsite starting at 11am. Music performance 12-1pm.

“He laughs. He cries. He loves. He dreams. Just like you, everyday. He feels deeply, and turns his feelings into music. Soul music. Music that says exactly how you feel, everyday. Bashiri Asad is the “Everyday Soul Singer,” and he will remind you that feeling what you feel, in your soul, is just fine. IndySoul is his passion, and he exudes this with every song!

We at Big Car are teaming up with Downtown Indy and the City of Indianapolis — with support from the Capital Improvement Board and the Indiana War Memorials Commission— to spark Monument Circle with human-scale activities like games, live music, artmaking, and socializing in a comfortable place. We’re based in the southwest quadrant

Mina Keohane- Lunch Break Live Tuesdays presented by Lake City Bank
2023-07-11 11:00 - 13:00 | 1 Monument Circle, South Facing Steps, United States
Join us for SPARK on the Circle with live music from Mina Keohane! Food trucks, will be onsite starting at 11am. Music performance 12-1pm.

“…full of surprises. She possesses a songbird’s voice, a wisdom beyond her years and a delightfully smooth way of gliding across the piano keys. Everything from mournful sonic sculptures to crisp, lightweight ballads carried the day — always in celebration of the moment, whether it be the memory of something long gone or the freshness of something new.” –Nuvo Newsweekly
Mina Keohane is an Indianapolis based composer/performer. Her music is a piano-driven cross-pollination of singer-songwriter, indie rock and a hint of jazz using lush chords and impulsive lines to create a distinctive sound. Her songs have been described as “if Joni Mitchell and Aimee Mann had a baby with Charles Mingus.” She spends most of her time writing music for commercials and short films, as well as playing keyboards and accordion with Public Universal Friend, Sarah Grain & the Billions of Stars, Nashville-based recording artist Brandon Whyde, The Dopacetics, Teresa Reynolds and the Slicktones, and her own band Mina & the Wondrous Flying Machine. She has had the opportunity and privilege of opening for many wonderful artists including Becca Stevens, Nathaniel Rateliff & the Nightsweats, Blues Traveler, Dwight Yoakam, Esme Patterson & Robby Krieger.

We at Big Car are teaming up with Downtown Indy and the City of Indianapolis — with support from the Capital Improvement Board and the Indiana War Memorials Commission— to spark Monument Circle with human-scale activities like games, live music, artmaking, and socializing in a comfortable place. We’re based in the southwest quadrant.

Cyanotype Workshop with Asli Narin
2023-07-14 11:00 - 16:00 | 1 Monument Circle, South Facing Steps, United States
Cyanotype is a camera-less photography made out in the sun, rather than in a darkroom. You place objects — such as plants — on top of a piece of photo-treated paper, and then use the sun to expose the paper. The result is an image that is an exact outline of the object. It’s a fun and magical way to engage photography! Although it may be new to modern people, cyanotype has been around since photography was invented in the 1800s.

Come explore the creative possibilities of this fascinating process with Indianapolis-based artist Asli Narin. Narin often incorporates cyanotype into her artistic practice. She will give a short talk about cyanotype at the beginning of each hour, and then you will make your own cyanotypes with Narin’s assistance.

We will have some objects on hand to experiment with, but feel free to bring your own objects. Flat items usually work best, and cyanotype can be messy, so precious things like family heirlooms should probably stay at home. All other necessary materials will be provided free at the workshop.

This activity is best suited for artists 7+ years old; minors must be accompanied by an adult.

Asli Narin (1985, Istanbul) is a visual artist and an educator based in Indianapolis, US. Narin’s artistic practice is based on photography as well as video, installation, and performance, inspired by nature and the cities. Taking inspiration from walking and wandering, she explores the human experience through forms and abstractions. Her subjects are often the thresholds and dualities of life.

Image: Anna Atkins is famous for these cyanotypes she made of British algae in the 1840s. A book she made out of her cyanotypes is considered to be the first photobook ever made.

In partnership with Aurora PhotoCenter for SPARK on the Circle .

Artist led activities & Lunch at Lockerbie
2023-07-20 11:30 - 13:30 | Needler’s Market, 320 N New Jersey, Indianapolis, IN, 46204, United States
Join us at Lockerbie Marketplace on Thursday, July 20 from 11:30 am – 1 pm in the downtown greenspace next to Needler’s Fresh Market for artist-led activities like our Post Card Project, WQRT DJ mix, Mexican street-style food by Latin Flavor, and games like Ping pong, foosball, and giant Jenga.
All events are free at 320 N New Jersey Street in the greenspace right off the Cultural Trail.

Bashiri Asad- Lunch Break Live Tuesdays presented by Lake City Bank
2023-07-25 11:00 - 13:00 | 1 Monument Circle, South Facing Steps, United States
Join us for the return of SPARK on the Circle with live music from Bashiri Asad! Food trucks will be onsite starting at 11am. Music performance 12-1pm.

“He laughs. He cries. He loves. He dreams. Just like you, everyday. He feels deeply, and turns his feelings into music. Soul music. Music that says exactly how you feel, everyday. Bashiri Asad is the “Everyday Soul Singer,” and he will remind you that feeling what you feel, in your soul, is just fine. IndySoul is his passion, and he exudes this with every song!
We at Big Car are teaming up with Downtown Indy and the City of Indianapolis — with support from the Capital Improvement Board and the Indiana War Memorials Commission— to spark Monument Circle with human-scale activities like games, live music, artmaking, and socializing in a comfortable place. We’re based in the southwest quadrant

Live music, food & artist-led activities at Lockerbie Place
2023-07-27 11:30 - 13:30 | Needler’s Market, 320 N New Jersey, Indianapolis, IN, 46204, United States
Join us for live music by Adam Graahs (singer/songwriter). American comfort dishes by Box Burger. Games like foosball, ping pong, chess & checkers, and giant Jenga are also available for additional entertainment.
About the artist
Adam Graahs is a multi-instrumentalist and songwriter from Indianapolis. He writes music for his own bands, S.M. Wolf and Amo Joy, and has played with several other local acts including Vess Ruhtenberg, Louie Louie and Raw McCartney. Graahs has released more than a dozen albums of his own material and has toured the US, Europe and Japan. While he typically writes fuzzed-out rock songs for his bands, during the downtime of the pandemic he honed his acoustic finger-picking skills giving his new solo material a more downtempo, reflective vibe.
All events are free at 320 N New Jersey Street in the greenspace right off the Cultural Trail.

Lunch at Lockerbie
2023-08-03 11:30 - 13:30 | Lockerbie Marketplace, 320 N New Jersey St, Indianapolis, IN, United States
Join us at Lockerbie Marketplace on Thursday, August 3 from 11:30 am – 1:30 pm in the downtown greenspace next to Needler’s Fresh Market for artist-led activities like our Post Card Project, WQRT DJ mix, food by That Vegan Joint, and games like Ping pong, foosball, and giant Jenga.

All events are free at 320 N New Jersey Street in the greenspace right off the Cultural Trail.

Brian DePauli: Not Sorry We're Closed
2023-08-04 18:00 - 2023-09-24 15:00 | Contemporary Art Museum of Indianapolis (CAMi), 1125 Cruft St., Indianapolis, IN, 46203, United States
Not Sorry We’re Closed is an exhibition inspired by and questions American society’s live-to-work mentality, and is comprised primarily of hyper-realistic oil paintings. DePauli’s pieces preserve and draw attention to objects and scenes from the lighter side of daily life: a worn bicycle seat, a chimney on the grill in summer, a homemade skate ramp in a fenced-in backyard, a ballcap lying in the garden proclaiming “RETIRED, No Phone! No Fax! No Stress! No Worries!” The surface meaning of these items and scenes are emphasized as a lifestyle to aspire to rather than objects to contemplate.
“I am concerned with the cultural and environmental effects of America’s obsession with work, as well as the physical and mental health ramifications,” says DePauli. “In 1930, distinguished economist John Maynard Keynes published a short essay, ‘Economic Possibilities for Our Grandchildren,’ where, among other ideas, he states that ‘by 2030 the standard of living would be dramatically higher; people, liberated from want (and without the desire to consume for the sake of consumption), would work no more than fifteen hours a week, devoting the rest of their time to leisure and culture.’ My work envisions a world where his prediction has come true.”
About the artist
Brian DePauli received his MA in visual art from Fontbonne University. His work has been exhibited widely throughout the St. Louis area at galleries including Fort Gondo, Boots Contemporary Art, and White Flag Projects, as well as nationally at Around the Coyote in Chicago, IL, and The Berkeley Art Center in Berkeley, CA. DePauli’s works have been featured in several publications and platforms, such as New American Paintings and BOOOOOOOM. He has participated in residencies at The Luminary in St. Louis, MO, and Paul Art Space in Florissant, MO. Brian DePauli lives and works in Saint Louis.
This exhibit is made possible by the Indy Arts Council, The City of Indianapolis and Allen Whitehill Clowes Foundation.

Tube Factory artspace
Jeremy D Efroymson Gallery
VISIT US
Wednesday -Friday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Saturday & Sunday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Tube is also open until 10 p.m. each First Friday.
Closed Holidays
Big Car Collaborative brings art to people and people to art, sparking creativity in lives to support communities. As an artist-run nonprofit organization, we utilize tools of culture and creativity to build community and social cohesion — connecting people as a way to boost quality of life. We support our community by supporting artists.
Much of our work happens on a single block where we own or co-own more than 20 properties — including a long-term affordable housing program for artists and Tube Factory — a contemporary art museum with a cafe, studios, and community space. At our campus of adaptive reuse buildings and public greenspace, we host community and cultural programs to promote social connectivity, cooperation, and creativity.
We also facilitate people-focused placemaking and place keeping projects across the city and beyond through Spark. Tune in to our experimental, community-focused radio station, WQRT 99.1 FM — also streaming at wqrt.org.

Justin Cooper-Archetypes
2023-08-04 18:00 - 2023-09-24 15:00 | Contemporary Art Museum of Indianapolis (CAMi), 1125 Cruft St., Indianapolis, IN, 46203, United States
“In 2015 — after over a decade of painting and art making — I asked myself what brought me to want to create in the first place. Thinking back to my childhood, it was probably directly linked to enjoying playing with plastic blocks and how excited I was to get my hands on a grid-lined sketchbook. I would design my own toys and sketch out the floor plans for houses, cars and symmetrical objects.

As I looked back, I started to remember what I loved about the creative process. And I used that reflection as a direct influence on a new approach to my work. I applied this to, at first, designing objects and components to paintings that could be replicated, multiplied, and combined to eventually create an environment or larger narrative pieces. I spent the first few years of this process building up a catalog of shapes. I’ve always been drawn to plants and wildlife. So I started designing single lily pads, flowers and animals that could later be placed into different contexts. I approached the planning of these individual components like I would an isometric architectural diagram. The geometric abstraction was also influenced by the ever increasing construction of blocklike buildings in my neighborhood — as well as all of the digital media that was and is still expanding. The paintings are a direct reflection of the urbanization and technology that is growing around us.

Acknowledging my own arrogance in the interpretation and redesigning of natural forms, this series is a reflection of a larger trend of attempting to bend nature to our will rather than being inspired by its lead and flowing within it. I created these works with the hope that humans can look more to nature for inspiration and shift our viewpoint of our role within it to correct our disruptive path.” –Justin Cooper

About Justin Cooper
Cooper is an Indianapolis native who has worked as an artist here for over 20 years. He spent most of that time as a studio artist. Central to Cooper’s artistic evolution has been independently developing my artistic voice while forming relationships with artists he connected with while maintaining studios at the Murphy Art Center, Wheeler Arts Community, and as an artist in Big Car’s Artist and Public Life Residency program.
In the studio, he concentrates on creating multiple series that will eventually go together and be displayed as cohesive bodies of work. “I’ve always enjoyed learning new mediums and techniques to incorporate into pieces in hopes of expanding my visual language,” Cooper says. In recent years his interest has increased in creating larger-scale mural projects and public art. “Experimenting with the scale and design of an image while being thoughtful of how the piece will be viewed from different distances has been intriguing to me. The consideration of placement and the context of the image as it relates to its surrounding environment has been an interesting challenge,” he adds.

This exhibit is made possible by The Arts Council of Indianapolis, The City of Indianapolis and Allen Whitehill Clowes Foundation.

Main Gallery
Tube Factory art space
VISIT US
Wednesday -Friday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Saturday & Sunday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Tube is also open until 10 p.m. each First Friday.
Closed Holidays

Live music by Fred Miller & free numerology readings
2023-08-10 10:30 - 13:30 | Needler’s Market, 320 N New Jersey, Indianapolis, IN, 46204, United States
Join us for live music by Fred Miller Filpino comfort dishes by Taste of Manila, and Numerology Readings by Ellen Robinson. Games like foosball, ping pong, chess & checkers, and giant Jenga are also available for additional entertainment.
Ellen Brown Robinson is an artist, author and numerologist. An Indiana native, she has been painting since 2007 and reading number energy since 2012. She’s also written three books. Each human is uniquely coded with their own energy blueprint and numerology is one way to read this distinct coding.
All events are free at 320 N New Jersey Street in the greenspace right off the Cultural Trail.
