INDIANAPOLIS — Art lovers will find a new tab on the Indianapolis Art Center's website this holiday season.
The "Art Center Market" is a new online marketplace for those seeking to buy artwork created by local artists.
The market is the Art Center's latest attempt at helping local independent artists recover the devastating financial losses during the pandemic.
Nearly every single artist in central Indiana has reported severe income losses, according to survey results by the Arts Council of Indianapolis. The survey further found that the local art and culture community has lost on average $8.6 million per month since March.
Typically, central Indiana artists would have their chance of showcasing their creative work at shows like the Indianapolis Art Center’s annual Winter Sale or Gallery 924's annual TINY Show ahead of holiday shopping time. But, much like every other event this year, the art shows were canceled.
“The pandemic shut down art shows but gave many artists more time to create, so there is a much larger array of art available than art shoppers may be expecting,” Mark Williams, executive director of the Art Center, said.
“This is an example of how we are going to support our local artist community, and we’re inviting the greater community to take full advantage of it.”
The artwork available for purchase includes pieces by the 18 Indy-based Black artists that created the city’s Black Lives Matter mural on Indiana Avenue. The market also features work from Taylor Bamgbose's poetry inspired collection and the work of over two-dozen Indy artists for a stay-at-home-mandate-inspired collection called Homebound: Indy Creates.
Buyers can choose to have the work shipped directly to them from the artist or arrange for local pickup. According to the Art Center, the artists price their own work and receive majority of the revenue from sales.
"TINY is Gallery 924’s biggest show and sale of the year," Shannon Linker, vice president of the Arts Council and director of Gallery 924. "It’s not just disappointing to the many artists who count on being a part of the huge group show each year, but equally for our patrons and gallery staff. The TINY tradition is strong and creates not only an opportunity to sell artwork and connect artists to a larger audience, but also creates a celebratory vibe to kick off the holidays. We are fortunate to have the IAC partnership to allow the TINY tradition to continue virtually."
Those interested in purchasing new and local art can visit the artcentermarket.com, where there are already 114 pieces of art listed by 33 artists. More is to come in December.
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