IMA Offers Artists' Forum

The Virginia B. Fairbanks Art and Nature Park opens June 20, and the IMA has scheduled a bazillion grand-opening events to celebrate the 100-acre project. Among them is the 100 Acres Artists' Forum, featuring the eight artists who created outdoor art installations for the park.

At 11 a.m., Saturday, June 19, the artists will discuss their work with the museum's CEO, curators of contemporary art, and other IMA staff involved in the park's development. The forum is free, but tickets are required.

Upcoming IMA Lectures

During the summer doldrums, when other educational venues slow down, the Indianapolis Museum of Art gears up for a busy season. The big news, of course, is the hundred-acre Virginia B. Fairbanks Art and Nature Park, which opens June 20. (Isn't it too bad they didn't name it the Hundred Acre Wood?) In the meantime, the museum has several upcoming events.

Next week, landscape architect Richard Bisgrove will discuss Gertrude Jekyll and William Robinson, two English garden designers who were active in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The event is free, but registration is required (7:30 p.m., Thursday, May 13).

The following week, architect and author Sarah Susanka will discuss urban architecture -- essentially, the idea that larger houses are not only enlarging our carbon footprints and also weakening our families (7 p.m., May 20, $7). Click here to buy tickets.

And, although it's not really educational, don't forget the museum's wonderful Summer Nights film series, featuring movies on the terrace each Friday evening. Highlights include "Rebel Without a Cause," "A Fish Called Wanda," "The Muppets Take Manhattan" and two midnight shows, "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" and "Monty Python and the Holy Grail."

Tree Identification Class

The Indianapolis Museum of Art offers a wealth of horticulture classes, but they're usually a bit beyond my skill level. ("Luscious Landscaping with Fruiting Plants"? I'm lucky if I remember to water my house plants.)

On Sept. 26, however, the museum will offer a class that's more my speed: "Tree Identification." According to the museum's class description, you'll learn to "distinguish an oak from a maple, or a pine from a spruce." I spend enough time in Canada to know what a maple leaf looks like, but that's where my tree knowledge ends.

The three-hour class includes a lecture and a tour of the IMA gardens. Cost is $50, and registration is requested by Sept. 12.

IMA Summer Nights Film Series

All right, I'm cheating a little bit, because this isn't technically an educational opportunity. But the IMA Summer Nights Film Series is one of my favorite things about Indianapolis -- a yummy picnic, a great movie, a beautiful setting. What more could you want from a Friday night?

The 2009 schedule is now posted, and it's a good one. The series starts June 5 with "The Bourne Identity" and ends Aug. 28 with "High Fidelity." Other films on the schedule include "Roman Holiday," "Plan 9 from Outer Space," "The Goonies," "Fight Club" and "Dazed and Confused."

Doors open at 6 p.m., and the movies begin at dusk. It's not uncommon for these movies to sell out, so come earlier rather than later. Tickets are $5 for IMA members and $9 for the general public.

Film Screening: Product Design

How does product design influence our behaviors, identities and relationships? That's the question asked by "Objectified," a new documentary coming to the IMA. The film explores the creative process of some of the world's most influential product designers -- including the masterminds behind IKEA furniture and the iPod.

And, on May 14, you can also meet the mastermind behind the documentary itself. After the screening, stay for a Q&A session with the film's director, Gary Hustwit (who also directed "Helvetica," a documentary about the popular typeface).

The event is at 7 p.m., Thursday, May 14, in the IMA's Tobias Theater. Tickets are $9.

IMA: Spring Calendar

The Indianapolis Museum of Art is a colorful place, but these days it's going green! (I know. I couldn't help myself.) Starting with the current issue, the museum's Art For You events brochure will be available online only, so here's a link to the new February - April edition.

This season's highlights include several events at "The Toby," the museum's new Tobias Theater. For example:

• Lectures by museum directors from MoMA (April 9) and the Guggenheim (April 30). Both lectures are free, but reservations are required.
  
• "After Love, After Punk," a free lecture about punk culture and the Japanese artist Takashi Murakami (March 19).

This season's adult classes include 2-D and 3-D design, painting and pinhole photography. The museum also offers a series of eco-friendly art classes, where you can learn to make paper jewelry and create tote bags with plastic shopping bags.

Another highlight: the museum's Art Jolt program. This season, it's a two-part class focusing on modernism and post-modernism -- with some time spent in the "European Design Since 1985" exhibit.

Finally, if you have a green thumb, try a class in the museum's horticulture series, such as "A Year in the Garden," "Step Away from the Power Shears" and "Myth Busters: The Only Good Bug is a Dead Bug." There's also a free lecture coming up: "Tried and True! Proven Perennials from the Chicago Botanic Garden's Trails" (April 2).

Upcoming Lecture: Alice Waters

Local foodie blogs are atwitter about an upcoming speaker at the IMA: Alice Waters, a chef and one of the nation's foremost "eat local" advocates. Tickets for her talk, "Delicious Revolution," go on sale today and are expected to sell out quickly. (If it's going to be as popular as Michael Pollan's recent lecture, I'd suggest buying tickets today.)

Here's the event description:

"World-class chef, 'eat local' advocate, and food educator Alice Waters visits the IMA to ignite a conversation about learning, creative living, health and sustainability. As the founder of the Edible Schoolyard garden project in which students grow and prepare their own food, Waters shares her vision for 'a revolution in public education…When sustainability becomes the lens through which they see the world.' Savor Alice’s message of the pleasure, beauty and power of food. Before and after the talk, browse informational booths and enjoy tastes of local food provided by the students of Ivy Tech Community College."

The lecture takes place at 6:30 p.m., Dec. 2. Tickets are $10 for museum members and $15 for non-members. For tickets, visit the IMA Web site or call (317) 955-2339.

Week in Review

How much adult continuing education is too much? I might have hit the upper limit this week, but it sure was fun!

On Monday, I started my new flower-arranging class, "Centerpieces," offered by the IUPUI Community Learning Network. I'm once again with my favorite instructor, Sara Thompson, and the class is collaborative and fun. Our project: a tall, spiral arrangement with a dozen carnations. We also discussed other clever ways to use carnations, in case we're ever decorating on a budget (and who isn't?).

On Wednesday, I stopped by the Knit Stop for an introductory knitting lesson ($10 plus materials). My instructor, Kate, was pleasant and patient. Now I'm supposed to practice at home until I feel ready for my next lesson.

On Thursday evening, it was off to Frasier's for pastry chef Joseph Allford's class about vanilla beans. What a fascinating little ingredient! We watched Allford prepare pound cake, ice cream and shortbread cookies, all with heavy doses of vanilla. We also discussed the differences among types of vanilla and vanilla extracts. Very educational -- and delicious!

Finally, I attended the Saturday morning Art Jolt program at the Indianapolis Museum of Art. The program offers a series of two-hour art-history classes, and this week's class focused on the Beat poets. It was almost too much information to cram into a two-hour period, but it did spark my memories of reading "On the Road" and "The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test" years ago. Even better, it inspired me to read them again. I think that counts as success.

Up next week: another trip to my flower-arranging class, a chocolate class at Frasier's and a meditation retreat at the Dromtonpa Buddhist Center in Fountain Square.

Upcoming Classes at the IMA

One more quick post about the IMA. In addition to the lectures and programs we've already discussed, there are a few upcoming classes:

• Introduction to Printmaking (Thursday evenings in September).
• Advanced Digital Photo: World Views (Saturday mornings in September).
• From Idea to Sketchbook to Painting (Thursday evenings in October).
• Beyond Glass and Clay: Introduction to Mosaics (Friday evenings in October).
• Getting Started with Hypertufa (a lightweight material used to simulate natural stone) (Saturday, Oct. 18).

Finally, the next two-hour Art Jolt program focuses on the Beat Generation. Learn about the poetry, art and film of this period ($30, Sept. 13).

Review: Egyptian Lecture at IMA

I'm always impressed when someone can teach me something I don't know about ancient Egyptian culture, and that's exactly what happened at yesterday's lecture at the IMA. The sold-out lecture coincided with the opening of the IMA's new temporary exhibit, "To Live Forever."

The focus of the lecture was on the common man in ancient Egypt. How did he afford the numerous trappings of an ancient Egyptian burial? It turns out that some "recycled" old burial items, while others found clever ways to make fakes or repaired broken cast-offs from the wealthy. With so much focus on the treasures of royal burials, it was nice to see a different perspective.

"To Live Forever" is at the IMA through Sept. 7 (admission $12), and there are several other upcoming programs associated with the exhibit. There's a "Deciphering Egyptian Art" lecture Aug. 28 and a class on making your own Egyptian reliquary Aug. 7.

And, here's something clever: On Aug. 16 and 23, the IMA is offering a bus tour of Indianapolis focusing on Egyptian architectural influences. Highlights include the Murat's Egyptian Room and the Madame Walker Theater (cost: $60). Registration required.

Lectures at the Indianapolis Museum of Art

If you've been paying attention, you know where to find me this coming Sunday afternoon: the Indianapolis Museum of Art's "Living Forever in Ancient Egypt" lecture. (Tickets for the lecture are free, but registration is required.) As the fall lecture season gets underway, that's not the only IMA event that looks intriguing.

Here's a quick look at the lectures the IMA has announced so far for its fall calendar.

• Thursday, Aug. 28: Deciphering Egyptian Art.


• Friday, Sept. 19: Image as Art/Image as History (with photographer Bill Foley).


• Thursday, Oct. 2: Halston -- Making Fashion.


• Sunday, Oct. 19: The Silent Theater of Edward Hopper.


• Saturday, Oct. 25: Return to Dragon Mountain with Jonathan Spence (a look at life and art in the Ming dynasty).


• Thursday, Oct. 30: After Memphis? Design in Europe Since 1990.

Off the Beaten Track: Museums and Historic Sites

Work has been crazy, so it's been a few days since my last blog. All work and no play makes this a dull blog.

Unfortunately, we're also in the summer doldrums where classes are concerned. That means it's time to take advantage of the year-round learning opportunities in Indianapolis, such as museums and historical sites.

You already know about the Indianapolis Museum of Art, the Eiteljorg and the Indiana State Museum, of course, but here are a few you might not have considered:

• The Morris-Butler House, a historic landmark, offers guided tours on the half hour Wednesday through Saturday ($5). The 1865 home is a window on the life of the upper-middle-class Victorian family who lived there.
• Did you know there's a museum inside the Soldiers and Sailors Monument? The Col. Eli Lilly Civil War Museum highlights the war experiences of Indiana residents.
• The Children's Museum of Indianapolis has several temporary exhibits you might find interesting, including one on the history of animation and one on comic-book heroes. (And I still think the museum is one of the best date spots in the city.)
• Conner Prairie continues its series of one-day and overnight On the Farm Experiences this summer. Tend the garden, feed the livestock, make a meal the old-fashioned way ... in other words: work hard while you learn.
• The President Benjamin Harrison Home showcases the life of Indiana's only president. Tours are available on the hour and half-hour (closed Sunday); cost is $8.

Now, back to work ...

Random Learning Opportunities

Readers, I must beg your forgiveness. I spent today's blogging time watching last night's "Top Chef." Perhaps you'll forgive me if one of these tidbits piques your interest.

If you live on the north side and are interested in taking art classes, check out Artisan Masterpiece in Carmel. The gallery is home to a wide range of art classes, from painting and drawing to stained glass and jewelry design.

If you'd like to learn more about architecture and product design, check out the design film series at the Indianapolis Museum of Art. Next up: A collection of short films about designing products, including the famous Eames lounge chair (6 p.m., June 12, free).

Want to know more about going "green" in Indianapolis? Visit Green Piece Indianapolis (nope, not a typo) and sign up for its twice-weekly e-mail newsletter.

Mark your calendars for this weekend's Indiana Festival at Conner Prairie. You can learn about multicultural music and dance traditions while munching on an elephant ear.

And, finally, be watching this weekend for my review of the historic ghost walks we talked about a few weeks ago. Let's see whether they're educational or just plain cheesy.

Summer Art Opportunities

In the mood for something artsy? Check out the summer calendars at the Indianapolis Art Center and the Indianapolis Museum of Art.

The museum's "Art for You" schedule for May through July features a couple of lectures I've already added to my calendar. I'm a nut for Egyptian history, so save me a seat at "Living Forever in Ancient Egypt," about how the ancient Egyptians overcame barriers to immortality (2 p.m., Sunday, July 13). Tickets are free, but reservations are required.

The museum is also offering talks by architect Maya Lin (who designed the Vietnam War Memorial), blogger Scott Schuman (who writes a fashion column for GQ) and artist Nick Cave.

And here's something certifiably quirky: Artist Cat Chow is teaching a workshop about how to repurpose old clothes -- like your favorite out-of-style shirt -- to create new, modern fashions (noon to 5 p.m., Sunday, May 4, $15).

The Art Center's summer class catalog also arrived this week. I rejoice whenever the new catalog comes, but the summer schedule is looking a bit thin. We've seen most of the classes and workshops before, but there are a few workshops that look intriguing:

• Ukrainian egg-decorating, June 14 ($48)
• Goblet making (functional glassware), June 28-29 ($326)
• Marbling and book arts sampler, July 14-18 ($304)

Looking for a longer-term class? The Art Center is offering its usual schedule of painting, wood-working, steel and metal sculpture, glass-blowing, jewelry, photography, print-making, ceramics, etc.

There's a new weaving class on the schedule (under the fiber category) called "No More than Four" for weavers with four-harness looms, but if you're a beginner, I'd recommend waiting until the introductory weaving class comes back around in the fall. (Better yet, check out the weaving classes at Conner Prairie, which has better equipment.)