The Real Silk Hosiery Historic Mural Project is quickly becoming a reality. Organized by homeowners in the Real Silk/Mill No 9 complex and supported by Chatham Arch Neighborhood Association and Foundation, the project has advanced to the next stage.
Eric Fernung, an Indianapolis-based artist/muralist, was commissioned after an open call through the Indy Arts Council website garnered interest from more than 20 central Indiana artists.
Fernung began his work on the north facing wall of the Real Silk Lofts garage at the end of May. After a projection and line drawing process of the five images taken from vintage 1920s Real Silk Hosiery advertisements, the artist has begun to paint and bring these images to life in a vibrant and cohesive installation that will be visible from the Indianapolis Cultural Trail and Mass Ave.
Fernung was attracted to this project, which he describes as “in his wheelhouse,” because of his interest in the era – 1920s art deco and flapper images – and the area – the Mass Ave corridor with its thriving arts and culture focus. He can be found at Fernung Studio (formerly Fernung Artistry): fernungartistry.com and @fernung studio. And in the coming weeks he can be found plying his craft outside Real Silk Lofts.
The Real Silk Lofts/Mill No 9 community formed a committee in 2025 to create outdoor murals of historic Real Silk Hosiery advertisements on five panels of the Real Silk Lofts building. Following approval of the concept from Indianapolis Historic Preservation Commission, fundraising was initiated and a generous 2:1 matching grant was awarded by the Efroymson Family Fund to support the project.
With the assistance of the Chatham Arch Neighborhood Foundation, the committee quickly raised more than $69,000. The committee is grateful to the following 38 supporting households, three entities and one foundation:
Batuhan Ak, Aaron Bauer, Pam Beutler, Tim Birky, Julie & Bruce Buchanan, Charles Chamness & Briget Polichene, Chatham Arch Neighborhood Association, Chatham Arch Neighborhood Foundation, Rosemary Dorsa, Rod & Sandy Duncan, Efroymson Family Fund, Christie Gillespie.
Denise Goffinet, Bob Healey, Jane Henegar & Matt Gutwein, Philip & Nancy Hexamer, Lynne Hulbert, Kate Hursh & Matt Whitlock, Shilpa Kaushik, Katherine Kendrick, Samuel Knight, Betsy & Tom Laskey, Robert Levy & Kathy Alexander, Bobbie Lyons, Bryce & Katherine Mauro, Evan Maxwell, Laurel Mikalouski, Donald Miller Jr.
Dan & Diana Mullendore, Reid Nahmias, Omni Management Services, Yogesh Patel, Teresa & David Powell, Nelson Price, Tom & Nancy Schaefer, Madrean Schober, Joe Smoker, Thomas Stemlar, Laura Stocum, Jason Trusty & Adriano Zachariadhes, Patrick Wade, Ellen & Robert Whitt.
