Reports on the exhibits in the Schwitzer Gallery and Full Circle Nine Gallery are featured in the October edition of Urban Times. The following press release from the Circle City Industrial Complex details the other artists at the Near Eastside complex.
The Circle City Industrial Complex will host an in-person First Friday from 6 to 9 p.m. Oct. 1. As the CCIC follows state and county regulations, masks are no longer required for vaccinated visitors but are highly encouraged, and individual artist studios may continue to require masks within their space. The CCIC is a 500,000 square foot building, making social distancing somewhat easier than other venues, but the smaller studios may also maintain limitations on visitor numbers at times.
Various artists and galleries will have open doors during the evening, in accordance with their own schedules and comfort levels. The Schwitzer Gallery, on the second floor of the North Studios, will host “No Rainbows Without Clouds,” by Michal Lile, a conceptual painter, in partnership with Maria Behringer. Lile challenges his audience to adopt unwarranted and unrealistic optimism with his new modular artwork, with the title piece acting as the signature of the exhibit. The show is supported by additional pieces that share Lile’s philosophy of embracing negativity by understanding its unbreakable connection to positivity.
Open Studios and Galleries. Several studios and gallery spaces will be open throughout the building. This list is not all-encompassing; some artists may decide to open that night based on current information and comfort levels.
Arts & Images by Anthony Armstrong. Armstrong presents a blend of new abstract painting highlighting bold colors and deep texture. Armstrong is a self-taught abstract painter and photographer. “Often times, we are moving through the day so quickly, we forget to look at our surroundings and how every beat creates the pulse of the city,” Armstrong said. Studio B11 of the South Studios.
Roberta Avidor. A graduate of Parsons School of Design (NYC) in illustration, Avidor has been working as an illustrator for the last 40 or so years. Now semi-retired, she focuses on painting scenes in and around Indianapolis. Also featured is the “Art Clothesline”, where random quick sketches are pinned up and suitable for framing. “As always, I like to draw and paint the world around me with focus on the often-familiar places and the people that are moving through those spaces,” Avidor said. “Hopefully, visitors will recognize and appreciate the value of the subject matter as much as I do.” On the second floor of the North Studios.
Bebito. Rachel Hedges creates cute and quirky plush toys and soft sculptures from repurposed and upcycled textiles. Bebito Toys are adorable plush characters made from recycled materials. They are soft and squishy, and totally unique! On the second floor, right outside the Schwitzer Gallery.
Kent Brinkley. Brinkley will present new works, both in oil paint and mixed media, as an exploration of changing times. On the second floor of the North Studios.
Circle City Metalworks. This studiois helmed by Dan Jones, who will be displaying a small sampling of products for sale from their large product line. “We offer over 300 different unique and artistic items on our website. We also do design and custom work. If you can dream it we can make it,” Jones said. In the back corridor, near the South Studios, on the first floor.
Daily Epiphany Studio: Michele Burns and Kurt Kriese. Kurt works with oils, acrylics, cold wax and mixed media to make rich-color abstract art and landscapes, and he is also a stained glass artist. Michele makes “Night Light Art” paintings and mobile sculptures, with child-safe naturally luminous/glowing pigments. In the South Studios.
Glass Arts Indiana, Inc. Glass Arts Creating a collaborative glass community to support emerging and established artists; host fun, interesting and educational events; increase appreciation and understanding of the glass arts; and promote glass-related opportunities in Indiana and the U.S. Finished works are available and visitors will get to see glass-blowing in action. On the first floor, in the corridor.
HI Print Gallery. James Hubbard & Kurt Ihrig, Indianapolis print artists, will open up HI Print Gallery for the evening with plenty to see. On the second floor of the North Studios.
Matt Hurdle Fine Art. Hurdle will be have new contemporary landscapes on display as part of his show “In Another World,” and always enjoys visitors. On the second floor of the North Studios.
LadArt. Larry Lad is a self-taught painter experimenting with a variety of media and surfaces, such as cigar boxes, recycled material, and unique surfaces. “While I start with a general idea of what I would like to create, I am learning to listen, to see, and to let the art tell me where to go next,” Lad said. “With COVID, we have been given the gift of time. It has allowed us to produce some new art and new poetry. It has also taught us patience.” In the corridor on the first floor.
Nancy Lee Designs Studio. Lee is known for her handmade sterling silver jewelry and will feature new silver and gold jewelry designs in her freshly updated gallery space. She has made custom work for clients in gold and silver for over a decade. She specializes in alternative wedding and engagement rings in a warm and inclusive environment. Her offerings also include kiln-fired enamel landscapes on copper substrates. These paintings show the same attention to detail with which Lee touches all of her work. “Details delight me, and I can easily get lost in them, whether in gold, silver, or enamel. You might say tiny things are my superpower!” Lee said. Nancy Lee is one of the original three artist pioneers who brought First Friday art openings to the Circle City Industrial Complex. On the first floor of the North Studios.
Wendell Lowe Fine Art. Lowe has a unique style of abstract expressionism finger painting. Since being diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in 2009, Lowe’s style has evolved from detailed chalk pastel landscapes and photography to his current work. His work evolves from deep in his soul and documents his Parkinson’s journey. “My finger paintings deal with my Parkinson’s and my Parkinson’s Psychosis,” Lowe said of his work that sometimes combines his finger painting techniques with prints of his own photography. On the second floor of the North Studios.
Katrina J. Murray Studio and Gallery. Murray will feature ceramic sculpture and collage work. She considers all of her works to be a form of collage. Educated at the Herron School of Art and Design and Ivy Tech, Katrina Murray studied art history in Italy and lived for a time in Germany. A native of Brown County, Murray now makes her home in Indianapolis and has held a longtime studio at the CCIC. On the second floor of the North Studios.
Soundspace Open Mic is a free First Friday event held monthly in the CCIC Suite B3. Come check out the space, or join the artists! Bring a finished OR unfinished song to share with the group and get feedback from other artists. Sound system provided. Share a poem or song, or improvise one! Finished, unfinished, conceptual, share your art with other artists in a music focused safe space. Soundspace exists to erase the barriers to a professional music career, so artists can afford to be a musician. They do that by providing unlimited access to fully equipped rehearsal and recording space, cultivating growth through collaboration, and empowering the artist through industrial innovation. On the south end of the CCIC, next to Centerpoint Brewing.
The CCIC is also open during regular business hours, with the Schwitzer Gallery accessible throughout the week. Several artists and galleries will remain open for their regular ‘retail’ hours, usually on weekends, and posted on their own websites and social media. Some studios will also be open by appointment.
The Main Entrance of the building (identified by its black marble façade) provides easy access to both the South Studios and the North Studios (with a wheelchair accessible ramp and elevator). Maps of the building are also available in several locations to help visitors find all that the building has to offer.
For more listings and event updates please visit https://ccicindyartists.wordpress.com, or the CCIC Artists Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/ccicartists.
artwork above: This work by Michael Lile is among those to be found in the Schwitzer Gallery exhibit, No Rainbows Without Clouds.
