Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship 2020-2021 by Indy Arts Council

2020/2021

Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship

The Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship is funded through a grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. We thank them for their vision and for their 20+-year partnership on this groundbreaking program.

ABOVE: SOUND BATH MEDITATION PERFORMANCE BY DEVON GINN / FRONT COVER IMAGE: NEON THAW BY POLINA OSHEROV CATALOG DESIGN: ANDREA HAYDON | STUDIOHAYDON.COM / CATALOG EDITING: AMANDA KINGSBURY, MELISSA ROWE, BRANDI CARUTHERS ©2022 ARTS COUNCIL OF INDIANAPOLIS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

a look inside the eleventh issue P. 3

A BOU T THE CR E ATI V E RENE WAL ARTS FELLOWSHIP

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GUIDE TO THE 2020-2021 CR E ATI V E R ENE WA L A RT S FELLOWS

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E S S AY BY TAT J A N A R EB EL L E

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STORIES OF RENE WAL

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ART WORKS & PHOTOS

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PROGR AM GUIDELINES

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CR E ATI V E R ENE WA L ARTS FELLOWS THROUGH THE YEARS

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Explore your artistry. Refresh your creativity. Recharge your spirit. In 1999, the Indy Arts Council, with generous support from Lilly Endowment Inc., established the Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship program. It was an innovative step to try to retain the city’s artistic talent, designed to nurture their creative exploration and rekindle their spirits. Since then, the Arts Council has awarded $10,000 grants to nearly 470 professional artists and nonprofit arts administrators. They used the funding for travel, research, conferences, workshops, retreats, and other renewing experiences. We are honored to introduce you to the 2020 / 2021 Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship recipients, many of whom had to adjust their plans and dreams due to COVID-19 shutdowns and safety/travel restrictions. They proved resilient and imaginative, finding joy and inspiration in everything from watching flamenco on the streets of Lisbon, Portugal; to creating dance costumes on a pink sewing machine; to buying and converting a 1995 GMC van for a trip out West. As one artist noted: “Ultimately, the experience I ended up with was absolutely perfect and I would not trade it for anything.” The 2020-2021 Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship exhibition was held June 3-July 21, 2022, in Gallery 924 at the Indy Arts Council.

About the Indy Arts Council The Arts Council fosters meaningful engagement in the arts by nurturing a culture where artists and arts organizations thrive. We believe “A Full Creative Life for All” is possible in our city. Learn more at indyarts.org.

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" Indianapolis would be a very different place without the creative energy that artists and arts administrators bring to our community..." " They paint, sculpt and write. They run art galleries and studios, concert halls and museums. They fill stages with dance, music and theatrical productions. They broaden our perspectives and challenge us to see the world differently. When they replenish their physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual resources, their creativity continues to thrive. For these and other reasons, Lilly Endowment has been privileged to support the Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship program since its inception in 1999."

Ronni RONNI KLOTH

L I L LY E N D O W M E N T ’ S V I C E P R E S I D E N T FOR COMMUNIT Y DEVELOPMENT

2020 / 2021 Creative Renewal Arts Fellows Part-photo album, part-travelogue: Read the Fellows’ stories, edited from their own words, and follow along on their journeys.

Arts Administration Jean-Luc Howell Bryn Jackson Brian Mancuso Shauta Marsh Christy O’Grady Scott Shoemaker Suzanne Sweeney

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Dance Lalah Hazelwood Ronne Stone

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Literature Callista Buchen Chris Forhan Margaret Kimball Christian Moody Tatjana Rebelle Crystal V. Rhodes Dan Wakefield

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Music Diop Adisa Becky Archibald

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Patrick Fata Gregory Dugan Mina Keohane Sandy Lomax

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Theater Ryan Artzberger Claire Dana Devon Ginn Laura Glover Daniel Martin

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Visual Art Gina M. Baird Jeffrey Dalton Mirvia Eckert Valerie Eickmeier Amy Falstrom Mab Graves Craig McDaniel Katrina Murray Polina Osherov Nicole Powell Ashley Robinson Susan Tennant

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ABOVE IMAGE: GLACIER NATIONAL PARK IN MONTANA BY GINA M. BAIRD

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intro

essay Artists are often tasked with showing the world what it's like to dream. We show people what humanity can be and the reality of what it is. We tap into imagination in a tangible way that is shared with the others. Some express themselves through words that land on paper. Notes that transcribe the yearnings of the heart. Bodies that reiterate the movement of the ancestors. We give voice and create spaces. We become a mirror, for people to see themselves or others. No matter if it’s intentional. It is the true beauty and magnitude that comes with being in the arts. However, for those of us lucky enough to be able to take our passions and make them our life’s work, there comes a point when one can forget to ask what their own heart dreams of. That is what the Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship does. It’s not just granting money but granting artists and curators the chance to dream. To step away and just take a breath. A chance to witness the world again, as a spectator and tap back into the innocence of what brought us to become artists in the first place. So you can only imagine the deflation that came for this round of fellows when the world shut down. Like the rest of the planet, dreams had to be deferred. We were tasked with reimagining imagination itself. To find what we sought within our own walls, our own city, and our own country. Many held tight to their visions. Not wanting to let go of what felt like the last tangible string to hope. Others learned the harsh reality brought on by borders and a mountain of red tape. As I look back on what this opportunity has brought, I can’t help but be proud and amazed at what we were able to accomplish when it felt like dreams never can come true. We found community in the most unexpected places. We, like the rest of the world, just had to pay attention. We just had to remember inspiration was around us all along. Tatjana Rebelle Activist, writer & performer 2020-2021 Creative Renewal Arts Fellow

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diop adisa hip-hop artist

Inspired by the intersectional artistic and community work of Nipsey Hussle, Diop traveled to Los Angeles to connect with other creatives in historically Black communities who are using their artistry in innovative, community-focused ways. There, he met with artist collectives to discuss ideas for building economic, cultural, and artistic infrastructure for Black creatives in Indianapolis. The reason I find this so renewing is because one of the main obstacles I've seen Black artists face is control of space and access to venues in their own communities. Connecting with people that are working to address this issue falls right in line with where I find my artistic journey as well. Diop has used this awareness to inform not only his creative content, but also where he performs, in an effort to challenge his and his creative circle’s thinking around the current social and economic structure for artists of color. I am much more conscious of the socioeconomic implications tied to performing or presenting my art in places that do not directly benefit the community that me or my art comes from.

" It solidified the belief I have in my own artistic community and what we can accomplish in our unique way." Diop Adisa

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becky archibald musician & composer

I found refreshment in the art, culture, and music of Lisbon, Portugal, and three areas of Italy: Florence, Pisa and the Ligurian Sea in Livorno. The high point was meeting a hero of mine, Italian pianist and Scarlatti master Sandro Ivo Bartoli. Becky was inspired to study flamenco in Spain after seeing her first flamenco performance while in Florida for her mom’s 80th birthday. But the pandemic closed dance schools and canceled festivals. Stuck at home, Becky became “magnetized” by Domenico Scarlatti, an Italian Baroque composer. She found out he’d lived in Lisbon, and dreamed of following in his footsteps. I’ve always loved Scarlatti, but now, from a composer’s point of view, I was seeing and hearing his Spanish rhythms and flamenco guitar-inspired creations in a new way.

" If I were to give a theme to my travels it would be, 'just say yes.'" Becky Archibald BECK YA RCHIB A LD.COM

In Lisbon, with friends who lived there as guides, Becky saw flamenco in the streets, Fado singers and guitarists in a bar, and a performance by the Metropolitan Orchestra of Lisbon. Before her travels, she reached out to Bartoli and was able to meet him and his wife, violinist Debra Fast, in Pisa. (“A dream come true.”) In Florence, she was inspired by the Terrazza Mascagni on the Ligurian Sea. This fellowship reminds us to dream big. I don’t think I would have pursued the dream to the end or written my note to Sandro Ivo Bartoli without this uplifting belief in me.

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ryan artzberger actor & director

Ryan originally proposed to travel to London and Stratford to experience Shakespearean theater and network with fellow thespians to flesh out his idea to combine Shakespeare and hip hop. While waiting for COVID travel updates, Ryan networked with local creatives who are helping to realize his vision. This period of limbo turned out to be the most renewing of anything because instead of waiting to talk to someone else, somewhere else, about Hip Hop Shakespeare, I stepped out of my comfort zone and made connections to the Indy hip hop community. I asked the artistic director and board of Indy Shakes to consider doing a full production of Hip Hop Shakespeare. I got the green light! Rather than traveling overseas, Ryan went on a North American Shakespeare tour. He went to Santa Cruz Shakespeare in California and American Players Theater in Wisconsin. He enjoyed the experiences, but also found them somewhat disappointing because of the inequities that exist in content and access, due to what he describes as the “old guard,” elitist view of Shakespeare. In July, Indy Shakes will produce "Ricky 3–A Hip Hop Shakespeare Richard III" at Taggart Memorial amphitheater in Riverside Park. There were many aspects of creative renewal that came from this. Much of it came from seeing friends and being able to travel to a place I’ve spent a lot of time in and another that is a sort of mecca of American Shakespeare that I’ve never been to.

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" I got a shot in the arm of a renewed sense that what we do is valuable and meaningful, and most of all a renewed commitment to what we do and how we do it." Ryan Artzberger INDYSHAKES.COM

gina m. baird visual artist & art therapist

Gina wanted to return to the Rocky Mountains and reconnect with nature through horseback riding and hiking after recovering from an illness that robbed her of the ability to walk. Her journey took her to Glacier National Park in Montana, Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, and the Black Hills Forests in Western South Dakota. I created art outside, did yoga in the mountains, took photographs, hiked, picnicked by rivers and lakes, rode horseback, and watched sunsets from the window of a secluded cabin in the woods. A defining moment for me was hiking to Avalanche Lake and leaping high into the air.

" The pandemic helped me integrate the idea that it is important to have creative renewal every day in priceless ways." Gina M. Baird @GINASKILNINGIT

Being in the mountains deepened her spiritual connection to herself and nature. The trip inspired her to create animal vessels that celebrate the life and vitality within her, as well as the symbolic gifts found in the wildlife that survive in that epic wilderness. The activities I chose centered on connection with nature, mindfulness, and elevated exploration for artmaking, especially in ceramic arts. Gina also took weekly classes in yoga, Pilates, and ceramics. She added a ceramic kiln to her home studio. Working with clay and experimenting with ceramic sculpture helped her feel more inspired to create art. My creative renewal experience improved my quality of life. I have been inspired to develop myself creatively and professionally.

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callista buchen author & educator

I began this work inspired by my grandmother, a homemaker who desperately wanted to be recognized as an artist. A prolific sewer, embroiderer, painter, and knitter, my grandmother was also an unconventional housewife who was conflicted about how her marriage and motherhood limited the scope of her artistry and by extension, her life. Her grandmother taught her embroidery one summer when she was 10, but Callista didn’t take the lessons seriously. For her Creative Renewal project, she took a virtual course from the New York Sewing Center. She learned how to create using fabric and thread. I wrote poems inspired by my attempts. I have been trying to understand what motivates the impulse to create crafts from within systems that consistently devalue that which is homemade, especially by women. Prioritizing her project during the pandemic was challenging because she has a child with chronic lung disease. But being named a Fellow made Callista feel like she was still an artist and a writer. She’s been able to create healthier routines for her family, mentor other writers, edit books, and share her work at events.

" My renewal experience gave me a boost in confidence. For a long time, I’ve been plugging away at my writing without knowing if I’m on the right path." Callista Buchen C A L L IS TA BU CHEN .CO M

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I’ve found that I’m an artist of multiple mediums, and when something isn’t working on the page, I can turn to the textile and vice versa. I didn’t think that the needle would feel as comfortable to me as the pen does.

jeffrey dalton

ceramic artist

visiting artist / adjunct instructor at herron school of art & design Over 25 years ago, Jeffrey hiked all 2,158 miles of the Appalachian Trail (AT). At the end, he felt empowered to change his career path to pursue art. As part of his Creative Renewal experience, he planned to revisit Mount Katahdin in Maine, where he completed his AT journey, but the pandemic changed his plans. My renewal was achieved by watching my 6 year old navigate this pandemic. Leo and I hiked often, camped in the backyard, built a treehouse, and worked in our gardens, and he learned to ride his bike. We spent hours drawing and building cities out of blocks. Jeffrey started to see the connections between his own work, which has always included observation of architectural detail, brickwork, and stone carving, and the towers and fortresses he and his son were building. Online workshops through the Sonoma Ceramic Center gave him tools to realize this new work. This summer, he hopes to participate in the Indiana Limestone Symposium in Bedford.

" I was reminded that the ability to lift myself up resides wholly in me and not found in some far away place." Jeffrey Dalton

The pandemic has thrust many of us into the confines of our studios to try and move forward. This is when I remind myself, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade!” It’s advice I’m sharing with my 6-year-old son and now it’s up to me to make the best of the situation. CR E AT I V E R EN EWA L A RTS F ELLOWSH I P

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claire dana

painter & scenic theater artist

A “newly realized introvert,” Claire found solace in the slower pace during the pandemic. The meditation retreat in California she planned to attend was canceled, but she made connections at virtual retreats, found renewal in her home environment, and spent time in public spaces, photographing and drawing her neighborhood or meeting artists for sketching dates. I got more time by myself, got in way more selfreflection and introspection, and just more “quiet.” I may be one of the few people who was grateful for the medium of video conferencing. Claire gained a greater appreciation of the natural beauty of Indianapolis and Indiana. She learned plein air painting and joined the Indiana Plein Air Painters Association (IPAPA). She participated in “paint outs,” attended a three-day workshop in Bean Blossom, and visited Indiana state parks. She won an honorable mention in the 2021 IPAPA show. It was a new direction for an artist who professionally produces scenic art for theater. (“I had no idea I would like pencil so much.”) I gained a better understanding of how to balance the rewards and challenges of paid work and personal hobbies. My work and hobbies have an awful lot in common, and I can appreciate the nuances between them that make life rich rather than annoying. (Thank you, meditation!)

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" The understanding that quiet and alone-time are profoundly nourishing to me, will serve me in every arena well beyond this year." Claire Dana

gregory dugan double bass player indianapolis symphony orchestra

Gregory had planned to travel to Costa Rica, where he had his first job in 1976 as principal bass with the National Symphony of Costa Rica, and to Guatemala. But COVID travel restrictions took him on a detour and led him to rediscover his home state of Oregon and to visit sites commemorating the history of marginalized people. My wife and I were on a hike in the Wallowa Mountains of northeastern Oregon. Despite the beauty, the area has a disturbing history of mistreatment and murder perpetrated against Native Americans and Asians. Exploring this early history, along with areas of the state which I knew very little about, struck me as a project I would find renewing in some way. He and his wife first stopped at Coos Bay, where Gregory has played in the Oregon Coast Music Festival almost every summer since 1998. They visited the Coos History Museum and learned about the 1903 lynching of Alonzo Tucker, the only documented victim of racial terror lynching in Oregon between 1877 and 1950, according the the Equal Justice Initiative.

" I have a renewed desire to spend time in nature, both in the Pacific Northwest and Indiana." Gregory Dugan I N D I A N A P O L I S S Y M P H O N Y.O RG

While walking in Gregory’s hometown of Eugene, they noticed a plaque commemorating the Mims House, a family home that sheltered traveling African Americans including Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong. The Eugene Springfield NAACP office is located there, so they stopped in to speak with the director. In Port Orford, they dined at a restaurant that overlooks Battle Rock, where the Qua-to-mah Native Americans fought Capt. William Tichenor’s men in 1851. The discovery of amazing geographic areas, juxtaposed with the increased knowledge of sad historical events, has again reminded me that beautiful scenery is only a backdrop to the continuing necessity to seek justice, and fair treatment for everyone.

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mirvia eckert painter

Mirvia’s battle with breast cancer changed her life view and sparked further development of her style. She entered group shows and built a body of work, leading to her first solo show. Her father’s passing a few years later left Mirvia unable to paint in her colorful style. Once the motivation to create returned, she used grayscale paintings as a form of therapy. This instilled confidence to re-engage in the arts community, and she co-founded the Indy Latina Artists group in 2021. The original plan for my renewal involved traveling to Puerto Rico and immersing myself in the culture while taking lessons in Bomba y Plena. Dance is a huge part of Puerto Rican culture and the traditional dance of the island is Bomba. Plena is the music and lyrics. I’d hoped to see first-hand how Bomba is danced on the streets. Instead, Mirvia traveled to Tampa, Florida, and took instruction from Jessica Albino, a dancer, musician, singer, and Bombera (female instructor). Jessica taught Mirvia a variety of Puerto Rican dance styles, but focused on sica and yuba. Mirvia’s immersion in Puerto Rican dance history also included performing with instruments like the barril (traditional drum), and having conversations around the challenges of being a Bombera, as Bomba culture is historically dominated by men. I gained a new perspective on my culture that I’m anxious to work into my paintings and am planning a new body of work that’ll bring it all together.

" The renewal has been a welcome energy boost. Ideas are flowing and there aren’t enough hours in the day to paint them all." Mirvia Eckert MIRVIA SOL .COM / @MIRVIA SOLPAINTER

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valerie eickmeier visual artist

former dean and professor of fine arts, herron school of art & design

Valerie’s original plan was to travel to Southeast Alaska in June 2020. However, when it became evident that the pandemic was going to impact travel, she decided to focus on the opposite spectrum of her project titled, “Coastal Connection: The Rising Tide.” I wanted to make a correlation between melting icefields and glaciers with the rising tides and increase of violent storms in the Gulf of Mexico. The shores of South Florida are the furthest from Alaska in the United States and yet they are connected through climate change. Valerie traveled to the gulf shores of Florida and Louisiana where it was easier for her to safely navigate during the pandemic. She witnessed hurricanes Dorian and Etta and archived images from her experiences. In Florida, she kayaked among the coastal mangroves and photographed the shorelines with an underwater camera. My project broadened in scope as time went on. I took a special interest in ocean currents and how the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is impacting weather events around the world, such as more hurricanes, violent storms, droughts, and unusually heavy snowfalls. I also became increasingly aware of how climate change and severe weather expose environmental social inequality and injustice.

" This fellowship gave me creative purpose during a year that could have otherwise been isolating and dismal. It challenged me to think differently about what I could do as an artist to explore climate change." Valerie Eickmeier C R E AT E A RT4 C H A N G E .CO M

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amy falstrom painter & teacher

The unpredictable nature of the pandemic changed Amy’s plans to travel to England and Scotland in summer 2020. Instead, she explored remote areas of Ireland, driving to four counties in the southwest: Galway, Clare, Kerry and Cork. With no real itinerary, she walked through national parks and along heritage trails. Being alone in these strange and wild places had a deeply renewing effect. I wandered, open to the life around me, and cherished feeling no pressure to “capture it” for the purpose of producing art. Amy knew she needed a break after years of producing work and selling her work in commercial galleries. During her Creative Renewal experience, she recalled the training she received as an art student in the 1980s, which emphasized formal visual elements, development of drawing skills, the craft of painting, and the value of observing and interpreting the richness of the world as is. Until I hit a creative wall, I was not conscious of the accumulation of ideas about art I had imposed upon myself. I remembered that it was the “truth and beauty” found in nature that attracted me to art in the first place; to simply be true to what I observed and trust it would naturally reveal the beauty I wanted to convey in my unique way.

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" The strong desire I have to be alone in nature is almost like a metaphor in my life. Going to ‘outer nature’ keeps me in touch with my ‘inner nature." Amy Falstrom A M Y FA L STROM.COM

patrick fata musician & composer

Patrick had originally planned to reconnect to his time living in Europe as a child and introduce his daughters to that part of his life. Before COVID, Patrick was preparing to take a road trip from Romania, his mother’s home country, to France, his father’s. Alternatively, he decided to explore electronic music and sound design.

" It was a time of rest and refreshment, and also a time of transformation through the birth of new ideas." Patrick Fata PAT R I CK FATA .CO M

I spent weeks studying the basics of synthesizers. At the beginning, I was barely capable of making the most basic of sounds, but through online classes, tutorials, and experimentation, I came to a good understanding of the techniques. This exploration culminated in a retreat in a chalet in the mountains of Tennessee. I spent mornings finishing up an electronic composition, and the rest of the days enjoying time with my family. Patrick found freedom in working on a project without inhibitions, constraints, or preconceived notions. This resulted in what he describes as personal refreshment, and he plans to ensure he and his family prioritize time together. Professionally, studying electronic music challenged his process of composition and performance. This exploration did not stop at the mere undoing of pre-existing routines: it has yielded new techniques in my creative arsenal and, most importantly, has opened new horizons.

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chris forhan poet & memoirist

butler university english teacher Chris didn’t have to travel outside of Indianapolis to investigate how songs interact with our imagination and perceptions, and how our personal experiences affect the way we listen. He sat in on Butler music classes, took his research questions into his classroom, and surveyed more than 400 first-year Butler students. He also read books and listened to 20 songs recorded between 1927 and 2019. As I wrote, I found myself mixing narratives of my own experiences listening to music with meditations on the mental phenomena at work when we listen, and with analysis of songs that illustrate these phenomena. The result is a book titled, “A Mind Full of Music: Essays on Imagination and Popular Song.” A small press has agreed to publish the book in fall 2022, and Chris hopes that will lead to other opportunities. For most of my writing life, I have focused on poetry, but the fellowship furthered my experimentation with prose. I have proven that I can create a web of thoughts on topics that, fully explored, can cohere as a book.

" What most surprised me is what surprises many artists who take on an ambitious project unlike anything they have tried before: I found out that I could do it." Chris Forhan CHRISFORHAN.COM

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Along the way, he made some small but significant discoveries. For example, his 18-year-old college students are more familiar with Frank Sinatra than they are with Joni Mitchell or Prince. The guitar solos in Neil Young’s “Powderfinger” are as important to the song’s narrative as the lyrics are. And because any re-hearing of a song involves memories of having heard it before, we can never hear the same song twice, at least not exactly.

devon ginn

performance poet

manager of programs and outreach at the madam walker legacy center

To learn more about creative placemaking and peacekeeping, Devon traveled to Chicago in January 2020 to meet with Tracie D. Hall, who was with the Joyce Foundation before becoming the executive director of the American Library Association. She shared a wealth of resources and contacts. My Creative Renewal experience gifted me the time to learn the intricacies of mindfulness while researching place-based activations that catalyze joy and play. The novel coronavirus upended most of my plans, but I was lucky to pivot into something magical. Devon took a 200-hour yoga teacher training for people of color through Haven Yoga Studio. He bought three large crystal singing bowls and became a sound bath meditation leader. He also collaborated with Indy Convergence, Haughville Strong, and Charlie Redd to bring outdoor sound baths to Belmont Beach. Belmont Beach is a grassroots Haughville initiative to reclaim the story of a segregated swimming hole along the White River in Indianapolis and celebrate the resilience of the people and the river that endured in the face of endless harm.

" I'm so grateful for my mindfulness routine. The renewal gave me the time and space to take my practice to the next level." Devon Ginn @YODE VG

For his Indy Art & Seek project, Devon created a series of meditative performances called "Midnight Mind Melt" along Indiana Avenue, where a vibrant African-American community lived, worked, played, and worshipped before the area was cleared for the IUPUI campus and gentrified. As a performance poet, I’ve learned how to incorporate sound bath meditation into my performances. It’s opened doors for new works, and I'm drafting my manuscript of poetry and planning a tour.

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laura glover resident lighting designer dance kaleidoscope and phoenix theatre cultural center

Laura drove her Jeep to North Carolina, rented a beach house, and spent two weeks on the northern end of the Outer Banks. She strolled along the shore, got sand between her toes and salt water in her hair, walked through fog so thick she felt like she was cloudwalking, and enjoyed sunrises, sunsets, and moon rises. I watched wild horses play on the dunes and munch in our yard. I journaled and conversed with myself–got deep. I cooked great food, grilled magnificent steaks, and drank wonderful wine. I lived. Laura returned energized, grounded, and centered. She’s used photographs taken on the trip to inspire her lighting work, and has shared them with choreographers to help them understand the lighting of their own work. The thrall of the experience still has a hold of me. When I start to get frazzled, I remember the sound of the waves, the sight of the sun caressing clouds, the feel of the ocean breeze, and a little bit of the trip comes back to me...breathe in, breathe out.

" The beauty I encountered, the serenity I still feel, has a lasting effect on my soul and my art." Laura Glover DANCEK AL.ORG

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mab graves

contemporary pop-surrealist artist co-owner of monster gallery

Mab planned to construct a new creative space for herself on forested land her family owns on Sugar Creek in rural Johnson County and explore her lifelong connection to the natural world. The land was sacred to her father, who died suddenly and tragically on it in March 2019. Over 12 months, I planned to transform a small outbuilding into a studio and to begin the creation of a major new body of work that is deeply embedded in my experience of the forest and her inhabitants. However, by March 2020, I was forced to ask: What does creative renewal look like when the world is constricting all around you?

" I was a caretaker, I was grieving, and the world felt very dark. My time of renewal became a time of survival." Mab Graves MABGR AVES.COM

Mab felt no retreat was possible amid lockdown, and no emotional space was available to conceptualize a new body of work. Despite the challenges, she was able to design her forest studio and finish a portion of the project. Meanwhile, she has created a surrealistic shrine, a small primitive cabinet piece black-boxed in velvet, to embody the project. The shrine’s glowing womb holds a 1:144th-scale model of the studio, and represents the dream of completion in 2022. While nothing about this fellowship or the last two years unfolded the way I expected, I expect that the work I began will become part of a larger thematic body of work that explores my relationship with the forest, with this land, and with the elements of renewal, survival, and loss.

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lalah hazelwood

co-artistic director of kenyettá dance company professional dancer Interest in the Horton Technique developed by legendary modern dancer/choreographer Lester Horton (1906-1953) has recently resurged across the country, and Lalah had hoped to travel to New York City to attend a training course. But as COVID-19 cases began to increase, she stayed home to take online professional classes. I had the chance to be a student and to focus on learning instead of teaching. I used the knowledge to teach at Indiana University for contemporary dance majors and minors. As part of her Creative Renewal experience, Lalah worked with a videographer on a dance film that she edited and published; the movie was screened at two virtual events in Indy. She also took an online sewing class and created dance costumes with her new pink sewing machine. I am surprised by how sewing has become a form of therapy. It makes me focus on one task, and I feel proud when I complete a project.

" I poured into myself during this period. I no longer felt like I was pouring from an empty cup." Lalah Hazelwood K EN Y E T TA DA N CE .CO M

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Her costume designs were showcased at Kenyettá Dance Company’s performance with the Anderson Symphony Orchestra in 2022. Lalah plans to premiere a dance work dedicated to her grandfather this fall at Kenyettá’s 15th-anniversary celebration at the Toby Theater at Newfields. And she still hopes to attend the Horton Technique class in New York City. My renewal experience allowed me to persevere when faced with challenges and adversity. Because I took time to do things that made me fulfilled, I was better able to serve my community. It's amazing what renewal can do for you.

jean-luc howell director of historic preservation newfields

Jean-Luc and his girlfriend drove from Indianapolis to Philadelphia and then to Asheville, N.C., staying with friends or at Airbnb rentals. During the 10-day trip, they checked out historic sites including Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens in Akron, Ohio; Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania; the Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library in Winterthur, Delaware; and the Biltmore Estate in Asheville. Along the way, he also took wax rubbings of manhole covers. Doing the rubbings is a project I started when living in New York City and it’s a great way to record places I’ve been. Cities and communities use manhole covers to provide a sense of place and tell a bit about their identity. It's a great record of the built environment and local history. At the Winterthur Museum, the retail manager spotted Jean-Luc doing a wax rubbing of the site’s custom manhole covers. He explained his project, and she offered her business card so they could discuss opportunities for his creating items for their shop. You never know how people are going to react, thinking I may be defacing property. Once they understand the process, people find the project interesting and they see their community a little differently.

" During a difficult year that left many people feeling disconnected, the trip allowed my girlfriend and me to share experiences and connect in a new and different way." Jean-Luc Howell DISCOVERNEWFIELDS.ORG

Even though he manages two National Historic Landmarks at Newfields, Jean-Luc hasn’t had the time or ability to visit other such cultural sites. The Creative Renewal experience gave him a new perspective of the work he does. I found that the issues I face at my job are not unique. Traveling to other sites allowed for comparisons and showed me how rich the local cultural sites are in Indianapolis and Central Indiana.

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bryn jackson artist & curator

When he was a curator at the IMA at Newfields, Bryn worked with staff and community organizers to bring large, collaborative efforts such as At the Crossroads: A Community Meal and Mónica Mayer's "El Tendedero" exhibition to Indianapolis. As part of his Creative Renewal project, Bryn wanted to learn how artists center community in their practice, so he made his first trip to Los Angeles in 2020. What surprised me is the extent to which I would need to develop a better understanding of myself in order to feel renewed. Sure, I traveled, but this was no vacation. This was a process of unpacking trauma, expelling toxicity, and embracing the unknown. Bryn connected with several artists, including Bradley Hale, whose photographic work asserts the necessity of queer representation in the image economy. He visited Tatak Ng Apat Na Alon, a Filipino diasporic tribe that’s reviving and sustaining precolonial Filipino tattoo tradition. There, he met with Elle Festin, one of the founding elders. Elle fed me food I hadn’t had since I was a child, and after our 8-hour meeting, he invited me to join. So I am now learning about my mother, her parents, and her grandparents, as my family history will inform the structure and symbolism of my own tattoo. Bryn and his partner have since moved to Oaxaca, Mexico, to help a friend develop and program a communitydriven, artist-activated botanical garden in San José del Pacífico. They’ ll also be collaborating with Zapotec people and communities to honor indigenous thought and practice in relation to land stewardship and the preservation of local biodiversity. Without this opportunity, I don’t know that I would have had it in me to manifest the change necessary for me to be happy.

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" I am a changed person, and I understand myself to be capable of embracing and manifesting radical change." Bryn Jackson G3TJ4KD.COM / @J4KD

mina keohane

musician & composer

Mina planned to travel to Cork, Ireland, the city of origin of her surname, to connect to her ancestry. She also wanted to conduct field recordings of the speech patterns of the Irish Travellers to create microtonal music based on their speech patterns and inflections. As COVID halted travel plans, Mina decided to take a solo road trip in the U.S., using a field recorder and her phone to create soundscapes. One thing I discovered while gathering these sounds was how I had to become present while attuning to the environment from moment to moment. It was both such a calming and exhilarating experience. Mina stopped in Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Glacier National Park in Montana; Zion National Park in Utah; Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, and other places of natural wonder. She stayed in tiny homes and even camped among the stars.

" I feel more confident, more relaxed, stronger in my sense of self. I feel more certain of the steps ahead of me on my journey." Mina Keohane MINAKEOHANE.COM

When I began creating the soundscapes, it really hit home what the creative renewal was for. I was creating for the sake of art, for joy, for pleasure, for fun. For me, it also acted as a little audio scrapbook of memories. I can envision where I was and what I was feeling when listening to these sounds. Mina hiked or walked 5-12 miles on days when she wasn’t driving. She hadn’t realized how much the pressure of deadlines, writing, practicing, and performing had built up until she had a chance to be away from it. I am truly grateful for this experience and realize now how important and necessary reflection and renewal time is for the growth of any artist.

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A H A Z Y R E D A N D A M B E R S U N R I S E I N T H E O U T E R B A N K S I N S P I R E D L A U R A G L O V E R ' S L I G H T I N G D E S I G N F O R S W E E T S O R R O W, PRODUCED BY DANCE K ALEIDOSCOPE IN 2022. PHOTO BY LOR A OLIVE

D A N I E L A . M A R T I N P O R T R AY E D LY S A N D E R I N I N DY S H A K E S ' P R O D U C T I O N O F A M I D S U M M E R N I G H T S D R E A M I N 202 1 AT TAGG A RT MEM O R I A L A MPHI T HE AT R E IN R I V ER S ID E PA R K

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CR AIG MCDANIEL , FALCONRY (ACRYLIC ON C ANVA S, 2021)

GINA BAIRD, FOX

NI COLE P OW ELL , WATER MELON & G R A PE S

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A Mind Full of Music: Essays on Imagination and Popular Song Chris Forhan (Overcup Press, 2022) The cry of a pedal steel guitar, the sprinkling of a few piano notes, and then a voice—wounded, fragile—singing, “You may be sweet and nice / But that won’t keep you warm at night.” Why am I taking this personally? Why the heaviness in my heart? I didn’t write this song—“Hot Burrito #1” by the Flying Burrito Brothers. I am not the singer; Gram Parsons is. I am not the “you” Parsons addresses. By all rights, I should be considered a stranger to the song, which existed in the world a dozen years before I knew of it, its singer dead a decade before I first heard his voice. What is he to me, or I to him, that I should weep for him? This song’s business is not my business. I am an eavesdropper. Maybe that’s the point: I spy on any song from the safety of a concealed location—my own interior. Such eavesdropping is less like overhearing a conversation in the neighboring booth at a restaurant than like stumbling upon it in a dream. Defenseless, I become a party to the song’s concerns. I identify with, maybe imagine I am, the singer, finding in the song—or imposing upon it—some worry or wonder or gladness of my own. Personal memories and imaginings, like ghosts frustrated by unfinished business, are awakened by the music and emerge and intertwine, liberated to create and play out a private drama, an enactment of feelings taken from life but at one remove from it, one remove from other people. In our normal, everyday interactions with others, we are armed with wariness. To open ourselves emotionally to them, or themselves to us, is to risk disapproval or misunderstanding. A song, though, offers inspiration and permission to feel—without apology, explanation, or risk. We can listen as many times as we wish, in as many ways as we wish. The song will never know we are there.

A RTIST MA B GR AVE S CR E ATED A " SUR R E A LISTIC SHR INE" TO EMBODY HER PROJEC T OF TR A NSFOR MING A SMA LL OUTBUILDING INTO A NEW STUDIO

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GOOD QUIE T (OIL ON C A N VA S) BY CL A IR E DA NA WON A MER IT AWA R D AT THE 202 1 INDIA NA PLEIN A RT PA INTER S A SSOCIATION MEMBER S SHOW

M ED I TAT I O N P O N D ( 202 2 , O I L O N C A N VA S) BY VA L E R I E EICK MEIER WA S INSPIR ED BY THE WATER R EFLEC TION OF A S M A L L P O ND AT M A R IE S EL BY B OTA NI C A L G A R D ENS IN S A R A S OTA , FLO R IDA

M A R G A R E T K I M B A L L’ S I L L U S T R A T E D M E M O I R , A N D N O W I S P I L L T H E F A M I LY S E C R E T S

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GET TING MY RHY THM ON. BOMBA! (ACRYLIC ON C ANVA S) IS PART OF THE NE W PUERTO RIC AN DANCE SERIES BY MIRVIA SOL ECKERT

ART WORK BY SCOTT SHOEMAKER

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P O L I N A O S H E ROV TO O K A C R E W O F P H OTO G R A P H E R S A N D M O D E L S TO G A RY, I N D., TO D O A FA S H I O N S H O OT I N H I S TO R I C B U I L D I N G S A ND LOC ATIONS

FELIX ' S DRE A M , A N ELEC TRONI C COMP OSITI ON BY PATR ICK FATA

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margaret kimball writer & illustrator

Margaret’s original project involved traveling to Provincetown, Mass., to take a course at the Fine Arts Work Center, an international home for artists and writers. She wanted to reconnect with her childhood memories of summers in Cape Cod and do research for an autobiographical book. Because of the pandemic, Margaret’s travel plans were canceled and time to finish her book became scarce. With support from the fellowship, she was able to complete her book, "And Now I Spill the Family Secrets" (HarperOne, 2021). She then found surprising inspiration from a virtual writing workshop with graphic memoirists. The course ended up being more valuable to me, because it gave me the opportunity to develop a piece of illustrated writing, while also getting to know a small community of comic writers. My piece was published in The Believer, and I've stayed in touch with several of the writers from our class. The magazine also invited Margaret to host an online workshop for over 300 attendees. She’s since spoken at the University of Indianapolis and Southport High School, and has begun working on a new book. I was able take a deeply informative, inspiring course online and become involved in a community I wouldn't have otherwise met, all the while publishing my first graphic memoir.

" This was a fantastic opportunity that helped me publish my first book and start my second." Margaret Kimball MARGARETKIMBALL.COM

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sandy lomax vocalist

With many personal and professional circumstances requiring her attention, Sandy knew she needed to find a meaningful way to prioritize her own well-being. She traveled to California to meet with specialists and learn powerful tools to improve her physical and mental health. She was seeking a lifestyle change of a vegetarian diet, daily exercise, mindfulness, meditation, and relaxation. But there were professional benefits from her Creative Renewal experience, too. After years of hustling in the music business, receiving this award has allowed my creativity to flow more easily. For so many years I've always had multiple projects on my plate to finish at any given time, and that's never been a problem, but after receiving this thought-provoking and inspiring award of achievement I can relax a bit and enjoy the fruits of my labor. Sandy came away with a new, healthier foundation and rituals for her life. She starts her mornings with meditation and prayer to help focus and center herself. The effects are already noticeable; she can concentrate more on the tasks at hand, and relax in between.

" This is a great launching pad for artists to make Central Indiana a more artistic, colorful, welcoming place to live." Sandy Lomax FACEBOOK .COM/S A NDY LOMA X

I came to the conclusion that I had to save myself and continue enjoying my golden years and the opportunities presented to me. My well-being was worth protecting.

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brian mancuso

vice president of experience indiana state museum

Travel has always offered a creative reset for Brian. To discover new ideas, he set out to visit immersive art experiences, museums, and visionary art sites in highly recommended “ought to experience” cities including Denver, Santa Fe, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles. Oh, and Orlando’s Disney World, too. The theme of all of these places is “what hath man wrought,” except in a more positive way. Each showcases the creative choices and drive that go into experience-rich environments. He kicked off his trip at Joshua Tree National Park in California, then visited the surreal landscape of Salvation Mountain just east of the Salton Sea, along with East Jesus, which features a sculpture garden of pieces made from junk and waste. It’s always good to “get out there” and experience things like the intended audience. My takeaways are often deeper than if I would have experienced the same thing with a staff member explaining their design choices. At the time of this writing, Brian wasn’t able to complete his itinerary. But he was able to visit Meow Wolf and the “Yōkai: Ghosts & Demons of Japan" exhibition at the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe; and Omega Mart, Lost Spirits Distillery and the Office of Collecting and Design in Las Vegas. When he was growing up in Tampa., Fla., Disney World was seen as a “ day trip,” and as a kid he often fantasized about staying in the hotels there. So he’ ll end his renewal experience with an indulgent extended stay. The pressures of COVID left me very drained. The tank was dry and I have been retreading ideas and patterns. It’s my hope that, by visiting these places with such intensity, I will be able to tap into a refilled well of inspiration.

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" During the past few years, my personal creative efforts have tapered off. I’m inspired to tinker more just for the sake of tinkering." Brian Mancuso INDIANAMUSEUM.ORG

shauta marsh social practice artist & writer co-founder, big car collaborative

Shauta traveled to New Lanark and Iona in Scotland to research Robert Owen, founder of the art and spiritual haven known as New Harmony, Indiana, and Jane Owen, who helped resettle the eclectic community. Shauta also studied one of a triptych of sculptures that Jane commissioned from artist Jacquest Lipschitz, called “The Descent of the Spirit.” I didn’t think I could appreciate or love Jane Owen more. She made visible to the world how a town can have a soul. That’s why I am attracted and dedicated to the arts. I can make the world a more beautiful place. Beauty is meaning, it’s respect, it’s truth, it’s stories. I feel humanity’s greatest transgression has been to make the world an uglier place.

" I feel more confident, more relaxed, stronger in my sense of self. I feel more certain of the steps ahead of me on my journey." Shauta Marsh

In Germany, Shauta took a month-long language course at the Goethe Institute. She also researched post-industrial spaces that are being used for large and small cultural experiences. This gave her ideas on how to creatively use the 40,000-square-foot building that Big Car owns next to the Tube Factory artspace. An artist I’m working with, Docey Lewis, calls the pandemic, “The Great Pause.” It’s not an easy thing to do, to pause. It makes you think, “Who am I? What does it matter what I do?” It has always been my role to support artists, to translate to the world why their work matters, to defend artists who challenge norms…but now I understand exactly how important what I do is.

B I GC A RCO L L EC T I V E .O RG / @S H AU TA M A R S H

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daniel martin actor

Daniel flew to New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago to interview actors and ask how they were staying creative during the pandemic. Originally, he’ d planned to take classes and see shows (Las Vegas was also on his original itinerary), but the pandemic had shuttered performing arts spaces and live shows. Like so many other artists, I was in a low place. I was isolated and didn’t know if live theater was ever going to be a thing again. Listening to stories of pain and triumph gave me a sense of togetherness. The artists took Daniel around their cities and showed him the closed theaters and movie studios. But there were bright spots: In New York, he joined a Zoom call with a television actress and asked her questions. In L.A., a movie studio security guard gave him an unexpected solo tour. The guard was just happy to see a person in real life. Learning how things are made for props, seeing amazing costumes, and standing where famous actors have quoted their most memorable lines will be a memory that will last through the ages.

" My love for theater returned quickly. I was ready for it to come back." Daniel Martin

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Before traveling the country, Daniel had felt physically, emotionally, and creatively defeated. He was questioning everything he knew to be true before the pandemic, including his love of the theater. I didn’t know if I was good enough, creative enough, smart enough to continue this path. Using that time to listen to stories and uplift one another helped me in ways I could never properly express.

craig mcdaniel visual artist

When the airline canceled his flight to Scotland early in the pandemic, Craig looked for closer-to-home ways to immerse himself in culture and nature. He took two fall hiking trips to West Virginia. In summer 2021, he visited the Shelburne Museum near Burlington, Vermont, to see its well-known folk and American art collections, and took the ferry across Lake Champlain to New York. But his greatest creative breakthroughs came from sessions with an art therapist. Together, they explored topics that included sorrow and loss, aging and death, and joy and creativity. These sessions gave me fresh insights into what makes me who I am, and what I need to seek for fulfillment, personally and artistically.

P H O T O C R E D I T: I N D I A N A P O L I S A R T C E N T E R

" My renewal experience gave me a heightened sense of purpose and a huge boost in momentum." Craig McDaniel C R A I G - M C D A N I E L- A R T. C O M

Craig took classes at the Indiana Writers Center, and also began reading plays by Shakespeare. He’s reading more books than he did when he was in college, and began getting excited again about reading for pleasure. As I enter a new chapter—retired from my faculty position at Herron School of Art + Design—I look forward to reading to broaden my perspective on so many subjects. One unexpected outcome of his Creative Renewal experience? Craig’s work was the focus of a solo exhibition last winter at the Indianapolis Art Center, where he had begun taking observational painting classes. I was surprised at how energized I felt. I feel more committed than I’ve felt in decades to following my journey as a creative artist.

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christian moody writer

franklin college creative writing professor

Christian was scheduled to attend a writing conference in Mexico, but the pandemic derailed those plans. In what he calls “a stroke of good fortune,” he discovered the prestigious Bread Loaf Writers Conference at Middlebury College was being presented via Zoom. The conference has attracted legendary writers such as Robert Frost and Toni Morrison. Christian attended workshops and master classes. While I am often a teacher, it was refreshing to be in the mindset of a student receiving feedback again. Being able to talk shop with other writers was invigorating. His favorite part was talking one-on-one about the business side of writing with two editors from prominent publishing houses—a rare opportunity. He discussed his novel-in-progress with them, and one asked him to send his manuscript to her. I now have more insight into how editors from major publishing houses think about novels and how they make decisions when buying manuscripts. I was so surprised that I was able to pitch a novel to a major editor and get a positive response. I actually got a, "That was a really good pitch." I thought I was going to flub it hard. Christian plans to pass what he’s learned onto his students at Franklin College, and is inspired by the idea that he could earn national recognition as a novelist while living in Indianapolis. His Creative Renewal experience also served as a bit of a personal mood boost as well. I see a route to artistic and career success that wasn’t as clear before, and that makes me a more fulfilled person who is probably more pleasant to be around.

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FROM MIDDLE WOOD, CHRISTIAN MOODY 'S NE W NOVEL

" I was renewed through fellowship and community with other writers." Christian Moody C H R I S T I A N M O O DY.CO M

katrina murray mixed-media artist

Katrina, whose professional experience is in oil painting, decided to learn about ceramics. She planned a trip to Greece to take a workshop and travel to another island in the Aegean Sea. But pandemic restrictions led her to reimagine her Creative Renewal experience. She took Peggy Breidenbach’s 15-week class, Finding Your Way with Clay, at the Indianapolis Art Center.

"Art making has always been a catalyst for healing for me." Katrina Murray @K ATR INA JMUR R AY

Knowing a talented ceramicist such as Peggy provided an opportunity to pick her brain as I set up my own kiln and ceramic studio. She did an on-site visit where she helped me test-fire my kiln and reviewed my studio workflow. We had a fine lunch where we toasted to the success of my ceramic studio and our new friendship. A visit to the "Future Retrieval: Close Parallel" exhibition at the Cincinnati Art Museum became a turning point for Katrina. The curators, artist-duo Katie Parker and Guy Michael Davis, juxtaposed an eclectic array of objects from the CAM’s decorative arts collection with startling pieces of newly created art. It illustrated an interdisciplinary approach to collage and ceramic mixed-media works—a practice I have been working through for some three years now. I did not see a way forward for my work until seeing the work by that artist duo. It was after this trip that Katrina began reconfiguring space in her own home for a 350-square-foot ceramics studio, with new equipment purchased through her Creative Renewal grant. The home studio allows for breaks, like tea and lunch, in my garden where I cultivate flowers, fruits, and vegetables. I am creatively inspired, and now self-reliant with my own equipment and have a sense of wonder from this new medium.

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christy o’grady conservation manager

archaeology lab at the children's museum of indianapolis Christy spent four days hiking along Hadrian’s Wall Path in northern England, immersing herself in ancient Roman history and taking in views of rolling farmland, rocky hillsides, and streams and rivers. She studied archaeological sites along the 1,900-year-old wall, visited nearby museums, and “camped” nightly at a farmhouse outside the village of Haltwhistle. The most impressive archaeological sites were the forts at Housesteads and Vindolanda. Both have on-going excavations uncovering and interpreting details of life in Roman Britain. The conservation done to preserve the writing tablets discovered at Vindolanda is incredible. I felt a great connection to the people who lived and worked there many centuries ago. Christy originally wanted to hike a section of the Via Francigena from Oivieto to Rome, but wasn’t able to because of the complexities of COVID-19 testing and quarantine requirements. Hiking 8-12 miles a day in the English countryside was energizing, though, and helped allay the worries brought on by the pandemic. And it reaffirmed her belief in the value of her work as a conservator. I love how historic objects, art, and architecture can provide a visceral connection to people and cultures in a way that no amount of written words or pictures can deliver. While I don’t sign my name to every object or specimen that I treat, my work is on display for every one of the more than 1 million visitors who come to the museum each year.

" The trip put me back in connection with an unwavering truth–I love finding and preserving the stories inherent in objects." Christy O'Grady CHILDRENSMUSEUM.ORG

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polina osherov executive director pattern

Polina and a six-person photography crew from PATTERN, a cultural growth accelerator for creatives, had booked an April 2020 trip to Paris, where they planned to do a fashion editorial shoot on the beautiful streets and in the Gardens of Versailles. That was canceled due to COVID-19; meanwhile, PATTERN’s new cut-and-sew facility, StitchWorks, was busy creating thousands of protective gowns for local healthcare workers. Ultimately, finding the right time, place and opportunity to make the most of this grant proved to be a greater challenge than I anticipated, so I got creative. I decided to take my team not to Paris, France, but to Gary, Indiana. Why Gary? PATTERN’s spring 2022 issue was broadly themed “Pride”: Hoosier pride, rainbow pride, live-yourbest-life pride, cultural heritage pride. Polina, who was born in Russia, and who has lived in Melbourne, Australia, and in Chicago, became intrigued by the history and heritage of Gary, particularly the city’s old buildings.

" The ultimate lesson is that one can be creative and create anywhere." Polina Osherov PAT T E R N I N DY.O RG / @ P O S H E RO V

Taking photographs in Gary brought its own unique joy and beautiful imagery. The biggest opportunity was being able to travel to a place I’ve never been before, and to learn about such an interesting community. Doing fashion photography in Europe had been a long-time dream of Polina’s; she wanted to travel to Paris with a purpose beyond being a tourist. But she concluded that her time spent in Gary was just as satisfying as, though very different from, the experience she’ d anticipated to have abroad. It feels good to see one's own resiliency in action, and appreciate that challenging times do not put an end to creativity or community. CR E AT I V E R EN EWA L A RTS F ELLOWSH I P

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nicole powell painter

At an early age, Nicole, a realism painter, took an interest in the Old Masters. Over the past two years, she’s developed her skills in painting in a classical style, and she began her Creative Renewal experience by purchasing art supplies, art books, and magazines including "American Art Collector", and a membership to Newfields. A lot of my time was spent working with my mentor Mason Archie in his studio. We talked a lot about art and how that creativity happens. We painted together. Where I had difficulty, he was a guide and resource to help me get back on track. Nicole had planned to travel to Queens, N.Y., to take an Alla Prima Still Life Painting course through Grand Central Atelier, and while she was disappointed that in-person classes were canceled due to COVID, she was grateful that the school offered the five-week course online. She connected with other students across the country. Alla prima refers to an approach where paint is applied wet on wet, without letting earlier layers dry. I had never painted in this style before. Doing alla prima requires more patience. I learned a lot about myself—and painted about six new paintings with different techniques. I was truly renewed by all the things I learned.

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" This time has made me more creative, and has made me think on a deeper level about wanting to be my highest self." Nicole Powell NI CO L EP OW EL L FINE A RT.CO M

tatjana rebelle

spoken word artist and activist director of youth programming, earth charter indiana

Tatjana wanted to tap into who they are as a biracial, binational child of an immigrant and sought to visit three locations: the Grand Canyon, Berlin, and Cape Town. During the Covid lockdown, they did some deeper exploration into their family history and used their Creative Renewal project as a means to get in touch with their heritage within U.S. borders. I am still amazed to this day that I was able to purchase a 95 GMC van that I named Sister Rosetta. I know for a fact this trip would not have happened without her. I wouldn’t have had the sense of accomplishment that came with converting Rosetta by myself. The insurgency on January 6, 2021, brought another shift for Tatjana’s travels, and they focused on heading West. They discovered the stunning backroads of Kansas and witnessed the changing landscape of the country, and were thankful for the safety the van brought them.

" I’ve spent my career centering trauma through my art or hiding it while advocating for others. My goal was to learn how to write from a place of centering my own joy without guilt and learn who I am outside of my roles."

The most surprising aspect that shifted for me was how I relate to Indianapolis. I knew I was going to be in mostly white spaces and it’s not something I’m unfamiliar with. However, what I ended up missing almost instantly was being in places that were impacted by Black, Queer and Brown culture. I underestimated how deep the roots of Blackness are in the very fabric of this city. It helped me to appreciate just how Black and Brown and Queer this city really is.

Tatjana Rebelle TAT J A N A R EB EL L E .CO M

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crystal v. rhodes playwright

The pandemic changed Crystal’s plans to travel to Canada to learn about the descendants of the slaves who escaped from America. Instead, she visited Black history museums in three cities within driving distance: St. Louis, Cincinnati, and Louisville. It was in the Griot Museum of Black History in St. Louis that I experienced the sting of slavery. The statues of historical figures were hand-carved by the museum’s female founder. Most poignant was the recreation of the belly of a slave ship. I stepped, alone, into the darkened exhibit, among the shackled men, women, and children reaching out to me from wooden planks. It was a traumatic experience I won’t forget. In Louisville, she began to realize that the museums she was visiting–the Muhammad Ali Center and Roots 101–were taking her on a progressive journey into the lives of African-Americans in the U.S., from the ravages of slavery to the contemporary Black Lives Matter movement.

" One of my historical plays is being produced in Indianapolis, and I was able to use my Creative Renewal experience to enhance the play." Crystal V. Rhodes CRY S TA L R H OD E S .CO M

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Nowhere was that more evident than in Roots 101. Founder Lamont Collins wanted the museum to be a healing place. Most significant was the exhibit of the items carried in marches that protested the death of Breonna Taylor. In Cincinnati, at the Harriet Beecher Stowe House, she learned that in the 1930s, the house had been converted to a Green Book hotel called the Edgemont Inn. The Green Book, published by postal worker Victor Hugo Greek, listed safe havens for Black people who were traveling during a time of segregation. I was stunned. At the time I was working on a play about traveling with the Green Book during the 1940s and here I was standing in an actual site. That moment of discovery remains one of the highlights of my trip to Cincinnati.

ashley robinson visual artist

Ashley planned to meet and network with Black artists at The Black Artist Retreat (B.A.R.), but the event was canceled due to COVID-19. Instead, she went to Chicago’s south side, where Theaster Gates, the founder of B.A.R, has revitalized a community. She visited the Stoney Island Arts Bank, a community bank that has been repurposed into a place for Black artistic expression, and Dorchester Projects, which was created to build community and elevate artists of color in the neighborhood. The Stoney Island Arts Bank is truly a gem. I saw art by Fred Wilson, Kara Walker, and Kerry James Marshall. My heart was broken when I was allowed to view the Edward J. Williams Collection. Normally not for public viewing, the 4,000 objects of “negrobilia” serve as a reminder of the past. Outside the Art Bank was the gazebo where Tamar Rice was murdered. Ashley’s Creative Renewal experience came at a time when a health crisis shattered her confidence and led to a deep depression. But she said her travels and the connections she made with Black artists in Chicago helped her believe that her work as an artist was “sufficient.”

" I would like to plan dinners with Black artists and professionals to brainstorm action steps regarding art, culture, and politics. Maybe I can help recreate Indianapolis’ version of the Harlem Renaissance." Ashley Robinson @ASHKROBINSON

For a long time, I have been worried if my work was too Black or not Black enough. I feared the mostly white art community of Indianapolis wouldn’t understand the complexities of my Black experience. Theaster Gates’ Stoney Island Art Bank and Dorchester Projects are unapologetically Black…and this has pushed my work to be more assertive in expressing my Black experience.

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scott shoemaker curator

As a citizen of the Miami tribe of Oklahoma, I have always admired the revitalization work of Maori language activists and artists. My original Creative Renewal activities were centered around traveling to Aotearoa (New Zealand) to meet with indigenous Maori artists, curators, language activists, and teachers on the north and south islands. During the pandemic, New Zealand halted all travel to and from the country. Fortunately, Scott was able to connect virtually with some of those Maori contacts. In keeping with the spirit of his project, he also made frequent visits to his ancestral village location (Mihtohseenia's Village) near Jalapa, Indiana, along the Mississinewa River. My ancestors established this site in the aftermath of the French and Indian War. It had been attacked by American troops during the War of 1812 and had suffered devastating deaths during a tuberculosis outbreak in 1879. The other area I visited was near Wildcat Creek in Howard County. We know from oral histories that my family was living in a log cabin in this area in the 1830s when it was part of the much larger "Great Miami Reserve.” During his visits, Scott discovered the trees there were the descendants of those that provided for his ancestors, including oonseentia (tulip poplar) and mihšiinkweemiša (bur oak). This inspired him to make commemorative art, in the form of wearing cuffs with beaded abstract leaves. As I connected with others, the same things came up: art and language connect us to the past, give us the strength to adapt to change in the present, and imagine a better future.

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" My experience reinvigorated my curatorial work and infused it with renewed focus." Scott Shoemaker

ronne stone

founder of epiphany dance collective dance choreographer

In 2021, Ronne spent three weeks in Nigeria, visiting Abuja, the capital city, and Lagos, the country’s largest city, to learn traditional dances in the region that she plans to teach her students. She attended three dance classes a day, saw local dance companies perform, and visited the five-story Nike Art Center, which has a collection of about 8,000 works by Nigerian artists. I went to the Utako market and was able to purchase beautiful fabrics that I will be able to use for costumes for my company. I also visited two different mosques. I ventured into nature at Jabi Lake to see the beautiful waterfalls.

" I was humbled to my core. I had a spiritual awakening to be at the origin of my greatest passion." Ronne Stone EPIPHANYDANCECOLLECTIVE.COM

Before her travels, Ronne based her teachings on what she’d heard, read, or been taught. Having this authentic experience that combined history and tradition will add an additional layer to her teaching when speaking about the African diaspora. She felt love and respect the entire time she was there, and was particularly inspired by her cultural exchanges with children in Nigeria. I was so in awe of their culture and way of life but they felt the same way about mine. They knew every Tik Tok dance, rap song, and slang word. They had to teach me!

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suzanne sweeney managing director

indiana repertory theatre Suzanne’s original plan was to train for and run in a race in Europe. She couldn’t travel abroad because of the COVID lockdown, but was still able to run several virtual races. Her new plan also included making her home a sanctuary by improving her landscape and planting a vegetable garden. The pandemic forced me to re-think what home/sanctuary meant. Taking the time to focus on exercise has made the long work hours and stress easier to bear, and has improved my health–physical and mental. Suzanne and her family designed and built a firepit in their front yard, using granite pieces that a local granite company planned to discard. It was the perfect place to meet and greet neighbors who were out walking. I learned about plants indigenous to our area. With my partner and son, we worked to landscape the front and side of my house and transformed the back with a rock garden, hot tub, and vegetable garden. This work was therapeutic during a difficult time.

" T he bright spots reminded me why I have made a career in the arts, and have made me understand how strong I can be, and how strong our theater industry can be." Suzanne Sweeney @SUZININDY

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susan tennant visual artist

My renewal time took shape about three months into 2020. This was when the world shut down due to COVID and it became apparent that I would not be sailing through the Azores, Portugal. My project was to be a working crew member of a threemasted sailing schooner, “The Blue Clipper.” My purpose was to learn how to work in a team towards a common goal. Susan believed sailing a tall ship would prepare her for the challenges of working someday with professionals in different fields to plan, fabricate, and install a large public artwork. Then one day, she ran into the father of one of her son’s friends at the Eagle Creek Sailing Club. She began taking sailing lessons from him, and purchased an 18-foot sailboat, “Jersey Girl.” I thought about how sailing influenced my work. I thought about the knots I learned how to tie and ways to include this technique into my work. Using rubber tubing, fiberglass rods, and wood, she created work that she describes as a “visual energy of constructed materials generated from the sailing experience.” When her granddaughters’ school shifted to remote learning, she invited them for virtual visits to her studio and had art classes. I also began taking my 12-year-old granddaughter with me sailing. If there was no wind, we would drop anchor and sketch or read and just be immersed in the moment.

"I had the luxury of escaping most days to my studio and sailing my boat. These times proved to be peaceful and sometimes inspiring." Susan Tennant S US A N T ENN A N T.CO M

Artistically, Susan began to challenge herself with pairing her sailing experiences with her art. As a result of COVID halting any exhibition plans, Susan began a practice of construction and deconstruction, creating multiple wall-mounted installations, photographing them and tearing them apart. She used this new practice to think about sustainability and changing perspectives within her craft. The best part of adding sailing into my life was that I could spend half a day on the boat and the rest in my studio.

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dan wakefield author

P H O T O C R E D I T: I N D I A N A H U M A N I T I E S

A month before Dan’s December 1985 article, Returning to Church, was published in the New York Times Magazine, he went to his first private retreat at Glastonbury Abbey in Hingham, Mass. Over the years, Dan, who lived in Boston and is a member of King’s Chapel, returned often to the Benedictine monastery. In October 2021, he spent a week there in prayer and quiet reflection. Prayer was a thread throughout his Creative Renewal experience. In Indianapolis, he and another member of a prayer group at St. Thomas Aquinas Church spent six weeks contemplating passages from the Bible–including verses from Luke, Isaiah, Psalm, and others. A brief excerpt from Dan’s notes: Week 6: God’s call to me Day 3: Jeremiah 29: 11-14 “I know the plans I have for you.” Good! What are they??? During his visit to Boston, Dan caught up with friends and found spiritual refreshment in a surprising way. Theresa Mackin, a member of the L Street Brownies, a 120-year-old swimming club in South Boston, invited him to join the club for a cold-water plunge at M Street Beach. She said that when you get out of that cold water, it’s a feeling that’s like being high. So I felt that, too–this great elation. It’s the last thing I expected, but it was one of the great things of my whole experience. Last November, Dan finished a book, Kurt Vonnegut: The Making of a Writer, that will be published in October by Triangle Square Books for Young Readers/Seven Stories Press. Written for young adults (Dan invited feedback from students at Shortridge High School, his alma mater), the book traces Vonnegut’s life from childhood to when he sold his first short story. Dan introduces readers to Ida Young, a Black woman who served as the cook and housekeeper for the Vonnegut family. Vonnegut had called her a “great influence”; she read stories to him and taught him to read. Young died in 1963. She’s buried in Crown Hill Cemetery without any marker so I hope when the book comes out, maybe something can be done about that, so everyone can see what a contribution she made. 50

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P H O T O C R E D I T: T H E R E S A M A C K I N

" None of (my Creative Renewal experience) turned out like I had planned, but it turned out in the same ballpark." Dan Wakefield

When I was growing up in Indianapolis, the name Vonnegut referred to the hardware store. The headquarters of the Vonnegut Hardware Company was in a handsome six-story building downtown, while most neighborhoods in town, like my own small world of Broad Ripple, had its own branch. How else would your father get nails or your mother a can opener? It was not until the spring semester of my senior year at Shortridge High School that I heard that one of our graduates, “the Vonnegut boy” (Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.), had published a story in Collier’s, one of the leading weeklies in that golden age of magazines. (This was before most Americans had a TV, before the internet was even a dream of the future, and when reading stories was one of the three major forms of entertainment, along with watching movies and listening to the radio). Those of us who wrote for the Shortridge Daily Echo, one of the only two daily high school papers in the US at the time, were inspired to learn that one of our own graduates, himself a former writer and editor for the Echo, had “made it” as a writer. Even after I got to know Kurt Vonnegut as a writer and a friend, it didn’t dawn on me for a couple of years that he was from “the hardware store family.” His only connection with the store had been brief: after his freshman year in high school, his uncle Franklin had given him a summer job working at the downtown hardware company headquarters. He had operated the freight elevator, running it up and down the six floors every day, and he had sometimes wrapped packages in the shipping department. Going up and down six floors every day was the opposite of inspirational, but Kurt felt a little sentimental about the business in later years. “I like what we sold,” he once said. “It was all so honest and practical.” You could say the same for his stories, novels, and memoirs. And for the way he spoke. He said things that other people thought but didn’t say or hadn’t dared to think but recognized as true when they heard them. “The truth is often shocking,” he wrote, “because we hear it so seldom.” He knew, before I did, that I would move back to our hometown of Indianapolis. I think that’s why he told me one day in New York, seemingly out of the blue as we walked back to his house after lunch: “We never had to leave Indianapolis to be writers, because there are people there who are just as kind and just as mean, just as smart and just as dumb, as people anywhere else in the world.” I often have occasion to remember his words. —Dan Wakefield

From the Introduction to Kurt Vonnegut: The Making of a Writer by Dan Wakefield, to be published by Triangle Square Books for Young Readers/Seven Stories Press in October 2022.

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program eligibility & guidelines Applications for the next round of Creative Renewal Arts Fellowships are open June 3 to July 15, 2022, and eligibility guidelines will be updated. Learn more at indyarts.org. Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship Eligibility & Guidelines To be eligible, the 2020-2021 applicants had to be employed by a nonprofit organization and have met this criteria: – At least three years of consecutive residence and/or work in one of these Indiana counties: Marion, Boone, Hamilton, Hendricks, Hancock, Johnson, Morgan, or Shelby. – Primary source of income derived from work in dance, theater, media arts, music, literature, visual arts, or multidisciplinary art. – At least 10 years of experience in the arts and at least three years in which the applicant’s primary source of income was employment in the arts.

How Fellowship Applications Were Evaluated The 2020-2021 Creative Renewal Arts Fellows were chosen from 175 applicants. An impartial panel of five national arts professionals met in October 2019 to review the applications and make recommendations to the Arts Council’s Board of Directors for final approval. The panel paid special attention to how each applicant’s proposed fellowship experience would enhance their creativity while also enriching central Indiana’s artistic and cultural community.

2019 Creative Renewal Panelists Chanda Feldman | Oberlin, Ohio Assistant Professor of Creative Writing, Oberlin College Sally Gaskill | Bloomington, Indiana Director, Strategic National Arts Alumni Project at Indiana University Luther Goins | Chicago, Illinois Managing Director, ShawChicago Theater Company Imani Gonzalez | Washington D.C. World/jazz vocalist, author, National Kennedy Center teaching artist Andrew Kosorok | Provo, Utah Special Projects Manager and Head Designer, Glass Images and Creations / Adjunct Sculpture Professor at Utah Valley University

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creative renewal arts fellows through the years 1999 / 2000

arts administration Carey Collins Cathleen Donnelly Brian Payne Ron Spencer Rod Trabue Ophelia Umar Wellington dance Eldar Aliev Gregory Glade Hancock David Hochoy U. Tamara Loewenthal Iris Rosa Preeti Vasudevan Roberta Wong literature Alice Friman Sharon Jean Hamilton Bonnie Maurer Jean Robertson, Ph. D. Barbara Shoup music Anthony J. Artis Christine Barton Cecilia C. Cho Jack Gilfoy Cathy Morris Janice Lowenstein Roger Michael Schelle Steven Stolen theatre Deborah Asante Bryan Douglas Fonseca Robert Koharchik Lynne Perkins Daniel W. Pugh visual art Edward Boilini Darlene Delbecq Debra Jane Delbecq Jean Marie Easter Drew Endicott John Essex II Ed Francis Walter Knabe Sara Love Caroline M. Mecklin

Leah Orr Carl Robert Pope, Jr. William A. Rasdell Timothy J. Ryan Betty J. Scarpino Bonnie Stahlecker D. Scott Thomas Nhat Tran Klaas Weert

2001 / 2002

arts administration Robert MacPherson Julia Muney Moore Ellen H. Munds John C. Pickett dance Marek Cholewa Rosanna Ruffo Stephanie Scopelitis literature Valiska Gregory Alison Jester Elizabeth Krajeck Julianne Thibodeaux Shari Wagner music Prince Julius Akanbi Adeniyi Mac Bellner Lisa Evans Brooks Donna Lively Clark James Adair Gans Frank Glover theatre Nancy Eddy Laura E. Glover Edward Grogan Rose Kleiman Robert Warren Sander Bill Simmons Diane Timmerman visual art Cynthia Blasingham Karen Chevalier-Smith Terry A. Clark John J. Domont Andrea Eberbach Jackson Richard Faber

Daniel M. Francis Greg Hull Marc Jacobson Joe LaMantia Patrick Mack David L. Morrison Anne McKenzie Nickolson Soyong Kang Partington Orlando Peláez Lisa F. Pelo Jerry Points Stephanie Lewis Robertson Ellie Siskind Lois Main Templeton Lynn Thomsen Joe Vondersaar Carol M. White Brandon Williams Sigrid Zahner

2003 / 2004

arts administration Shola Ajiboye JoEllen Bendall Cathy Anne Burton M. Travis DiNicola Jennifer Complo McNutt Jim Nulty Janice Kay Virgin dance Iveta D. Asons Christine Colquitt-Smerdel Melli Hoppe Hilary McDaniel-Douglas André Megerdichian Cynthia Pratt literature Will Allison Dan Barden Karen Kovacik Susan Neville Charles Wagner Joanna H. Woś music Larry Calland Melissa R. Gallant Daniel Golando Robert V. Goodlett, II Pamela Blevins Hinkle Chin Mi Kim

Chris Rutkowski Eric Stark Thomas Wyatt Watkins theatre Jeff Casazza Robert K. Johansen Constance Macy Richard J Roberts visual art Karen A. Baldner Dale Bernstein Matthew Davey D. Del Reverda-Jennings Minda Douglas Larry Endicott Linda Adele Goodine Katherine Harman Harding Christos Koutsouras Kathleen H. McDermott Eric Nordgulen Marilyn K. Price Rodney Reid Sam Sartorius Donna M. Stader Tom Unzicker Susan Watt Barbara Zech

2005 / 2006

arts administration Sally A. Dickson Valerie Eickmeier Richard Ferguson-Wagstaffe Sharon Gamble Ray W. Gonyea Tim Hubbard James E. May Beth Perdue Outland Steve Roberson literature Grace Farrell Hilene S. Flanzbaum Jennifer Harrison David Hoppe Sara Sanderson John Sherman Jim Walker media arts Shari Lynn Himes

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music Sam Bartlett Mark Buselli Susan C. Chan Frank Felice Barbara Kallaur Bill Lancton Chris Ludwa

literature Candace Denning Barbara Shoup David Shumate

theatre Michael Brown Catherine Fritsch Nathan Garrison Priscilla Lindsay Madeline Sobota

music Becky Archibald Anthony J. Artis Shannon Forsell Henry H. Leck Ju-Fang Liu Michael Schelle Michael Isaac Strauss José Valencia theatre David Alan Anderson James Leagre Robert Neal

visual art Julie Ball Mary Burks Janas R. Durkee Robert Eagerton Matthew Eickoff Amy Falstrom Sandi Finney Susan Fleck Jack C. Hartigan Jim Kemp Amy Zoe Kindred David Kleeman Jeffrey Martin Richard Emery Nickolson Kathleen O’Connell Jude Odell Mark S. Richardson Casey Roberts Artur Silva Paul F. Sinclair Susan Tennant

2007 / 2008

arts administration Carol U. Baker Keesha Dixon Hadley W. Fruits Christine J. Martin James H. Nottage Tom Robertson David Russick John Vanausdall Susan Zurbuchen dance Nataly North-Lowder Kenoth Shane Patton Iris Rosa

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media arts Jim Simmons Mark Williams

visual art Mason Archie Kyle Crossland Douglas David Rob Day James Wille Faust Izabela Kowalewska-Cole Tim Kennedy Judith G. Levy Caroline M. Mecklin Jay Parnell Melissa Parrott Jamie Pawlus William W. Potter Kyle Ragsdale William A. Rasdell Anne Pearce Robinson Betty J. Scarpino Dee Schaad M. Jan Schroeder Jari Sheese Phillip Tennant Dante Ventresca

2009 / 2010

arts administration Rebecca King David Kwasigroh Jaq Nigg Amy McKune Ellen H. Munds William Simmons Jeffrey L. Sparks

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dance Mariel Greenlee Gregory Glade Hancock David Hochoy Roberta Wong Alyona Yakovleva

literature Chris Forhan Lou Harry Norbert Krapf Bonnie Maurer James E. Powell

literature Joyce Brinkman Nancy Kriplen Shari Wagner

music Timothy E. Brickley Tom Duncan Heaven Fan James M. Spinazzola John Wetherill Brenda Williams

music Kate Boyd Peter Hansen Donna Lively Clark Anthony Joseph Reynolds Frank V. Smith theatre Deborah Asante Bryan D. Fonseca Chris Fretts Marti Meeker Glen Thoreson visual art John Domont Vance Farrow, Jr. Scott Grow Gayla Hodson Wug Laku Michal Lile Kipp Normand Emma Overman Amy Rheinhardt Ginny Taylor Rosner James Anders Sholly Carolyn Springer Nhat Tran Carol M. White

2011 / 2012

arts administration Pete Brown Kevin Harmon Elise Kushigan Joel Markus Richard McCoy Joanna Taft Ophelia Wellington Meg Williams dance Cynthia Pratt

theatre Mark Goetzinger Jennifer Johansen Robert Koharchik Diane Kondrat Bonnie Leigh Mill David Orr Matthew Roland Benjamin D. Tebbe Diane Timmerman Milicent Wright visual art Chris Bowman Darlene Delbecq Susan Watt Grade Greg Hull Josh Johnson Harold Mailand Lori Miles Dane N. Sauer LaShawnda Crowe Storm

2013 / 2014

arts administration Janet Allen Joel Harrison Joan Hostetler Glen Kwok Beth Perdue Outland Floranne Pagdalian Lori Raffel Craig Wetli dance Heather Helene King Sabra Logan literature Dan Barden Tasha Jones

media arts Carlos Sosa music John Alvarado Gordon Bonham Rob Dixon William Engle Geoffrey S. Lapin Cathy Morris Betty Perry theatre Constance Macy Michael Shelton Gordon Richard Strain Claire Wilcher visual art Anila Quayyum Agha Jeannine Allen Lesley Baker Philip Campbell Linda Adele Goodine Benjamin Johnson David Kleeman Philip Lamie Justin Chase Lane David Morrison Quincy Owens Constance Edwards Scopelitis Artur Silva Taylor Smith Bonnie Stahlecker Jim Walker

2015 / 2016

arts administration Keira Amstutz Keesha Dixon John Herbst Amanda Holden Paula Katz Anne Laker Pauline Moffat Michael Pettry dance Victoria Lyras Caitlin Negron literature Karen Kovacik Alessandra Lynch Allison Lynn

music Scott Deal Ju-Fang Liu Steven Rickards Doug Spaniol theatre Brent Marty visual art Susan Brewer Meredith Brickell Shawn Causey Lobyn Hamilton Robert Horvath Corey Jefferson C. Thomas Lewis Brose Partington Brian James Priest Gary Schmitt Beátriz Vasquez Lauren Zoll

2017 / 2018

arts administration Judy Byron Chad Franer Liza Hyatt Jennifer Complo McNutt Don Steffy Karen Thickstun Lisa Whitaker dance Michael Johnson Heidi Phillips literature Maurice Broaddus Kevin McKelvey Wendy Vergoz music Leela Breithaupt Dianna Davis Victoria Griswold Gregory Martin Jordan Munson Jayna Park Tad Robinson Miho Sasaki theatre James Solomon Benn

visual art D. Del Reverda-Jennings James Wille Faust Reagan Furqueron Wendell Lowe Phil O’Malley Orlando Peláez Meredith Setser Barbara Stahl Samuel E Vázquez

Mab Graves Craig McDaniel Katrina Murray Polina Osherov Nicole Powell Ashley Robinson Susan Tennant

2020-2021

arts administration Jean-Luc Howell Bryn Jackson Brian Mancuso Shauta Marsh Christy O’Grady Scott Shoemaker Suzanne Sweeney dance Lalah Hazelwood Ronne Stone literature Callista Buchen Chris Forhan Margaret Kimball Christian Moody Tatjana Rebelle Crystal V. Rhodes Dan Wakefield music Diop Adisa Becky Archibald Patrick Fata Gregory Dugan Mina Keohane Sandy Lomax theater Ryan Artzberger Claire Dana Devon Ginn Laura Glover Daniel Martin visual art Gina Baird Jeffrey Dalton Mirvia Eckert Valerie Eickmeier Amy Falstrom

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artists

" are often tasked with showing the world what it's like to "

dream.

Tatjana Rebelle Activist, writer & performer 2020-2021 Creative Renewal Arts Fellow

924 N. Pennsylvania Street Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 indyarts.org