Looking Forward: Black Indianapolis Artists Imagine the Future
Saturday, November 5
Jonathan Michael Square, Ph.D., Past is Present curator and assistant professor of Black visual culture at Parsons School of Design, moderated a panel discussion with Indianapolis-based artists.
Panelists included featured artists LaShawnda Crowe Storm and Shamira Wilson. They discussed their sense of identity and future opportunities beyond the Past is Present exhibition.
This event was a collaboration between the Herron School of Art and Design, the Center for Africana Studies and Culture, and the IUPUI Senior Academy. It took place during IUPUI’s Spirit and Place Festival.
The Rise and Deconstruction of Reconstruction: A One-Act Play
Wednesday, October 19
In a one-act play produced by the Africana Repertory Theater at IUPUI, explored the complex landscape of the Reconstruction era and racial equity today.
This play shed light on the highs of Reconstruction and dissect the factors that led to its demise. White backlash was dramatized along with the key Reconstruction era achievers profiled from the stage. Their poignant oratory performance compelled the audience to consider the afterlives of slavery.
The Herron Galleries commissioned The Rise and Deconstruction of Reconstruction: A One-Act Play in conjunction with the exhibition Past is Present: Black Artists Respond to the Complicated Histories of Slavery.
Æsa Sigurjónsdóttir
Wednesday, October 12
Christel DeHaan Family Foundation Visiting Artist Lecture
Art historian and curator Æsa Sigurjónsdóttir discussed "Icelandicity" through the work of artists such as Birgir Andrésson, Ólöf Nordal, Rúrí, Ólafur Elíasson, and Ragnar Kjartansson, as well as the concept of nation branding developed by Simon Anholt and other marketing experts. After Sigurjónsdóttir’s presentation, Chancellor's Professor Emerita Jean Robertson moderated a Q&A.
Rebecca Norris Webb & Alex Webb
Saturday, Oct. 1
Rebecca Norris Webb and her creative partner and husband, Alex Webb, discussed their work, including the Night Calls project and series such as Violet Isle, My Dakota, and La Calle. The event was organized by Herron's photography degree program in collaboration with Aurora PhotoCenter, coinciding with the Shining A Light: Arts & Culture Series presentation of Night Calls.
Sonya Clark
Wednesday, Sept. 28
Sonya Clark, a featured artist in Past is Present: Black Artists Respond to the Complicated Histories of Slavery, delivered a talk titled "Monumental Histories From Dust." Clark creates monuments out of dust, cloth, or a strand of hair to inspire unyielding acts of resistance against unfathomable legacies of subjugation. Support for this event was provided by a generous gift from ESL-Spectrum in Indianapolis.
Understanding Housing Inequity in Indianapolis
Wednesday, June 22
During a panel discussion at Herron School of Art and Design, community development leaders discussed the factors that contribute to displacement and proposed ideas to increase housing access in Indianapolis neighborhoods.
Jeff Bennett, Deputy Mayor of Community Development for the City of Indianapolis, Lourenzo Giple, Deputy Director of Planning, Preservation, and Design in the Department of Metropolitan Development for the City of Indianapolis, Amy Nelson, Executive Director of the Fair Housing Center of Central Indiana, and Wildstyle Paschall, an artist and Central Indiana Community Foundation Community Ambassador, were among the panelists.
The moderator was Laura Holzman, Ph.D., an associate professor of art history and museum studies at IUPUI and a Public Scholar of Curatorial Practices and Visual Art. Jordan Ryan, a Herron alumnx, archivist, and interdisciplinary architectural historian, and Angie Calvert, an IUPUI School of Liberal Arts alumna, scholar, and lifelong resident of the Near Southeast, also provided brief primers.
Anne Harris
Wednesday, March 30
Nationally renowned artist Anne Harris discussed her ongoing collaborative drawing project, The Mind's I, which explores the complexities of perception and self-perception. This talk was held in conjunction with the exhibition Anne Harris: The Mind's I and was supported by a grant from the IUPUI Welcoming Campus Innovation (Re)Building Community through Engagement Fund.
Tarik Carroll
Wednesday, March 23
Michael A. and Laurie Burns McRobbie Emerging Artist Series
Tarik Carroll, a body positivity activist and New York-based artist-photographer, spoke at Herron in conjunction with Herron's inaugural presentation of the Michael A. and Laurie Burns McRobbie Emerging Artist Series exhibition Tarik Carroll–EveryBODY IS A GOOD BODY: The RE-formation of Beauty Standards. The discussion was moderated by Herron Galleries Director and Curator Joseph Mella.
Karen E Laine
Wednesday, February 23
Jordan H. and Joan R. Leibman Forum on the Legal and Business Environment of Art
Karen E Laine, a businesswoman, IU Robert H. McKinney School of Law graduate, and co-founder of the home restoration company Two Chicks and a Hammer, Inc., was discovered by HGTV in 2014 and transitioned from a successful legal career to a home renovation business after several seasons on the air with two shows.
Eleanor Heartney
Wednesday, January 26
Kerry Dinneen & Samuel Sutphin Visiting Artist Lecture
Eleanor Heartney, a noted art critic, discussed the work on display in John Buck: Prints and Sculpture from the Collections of Jordan D. Schnitzer and His Family Foundation, and how it helps us understand that America’s greatest strengths are its ability to question, examine the past honestly, and strive to do better.