nap town for those who don't sleep

I've been meaning to post about 1st Friday in Indianapolis since... well, almost three weeks ago.

Our first stop was at the Indianapolis Museum of Art for the Project IMA fashion show.  It's part of their show Breaking the Mode that features pieces from the LACMA permanent collection.  Project IMA showed the work of 16 local designers, and a lot of it was pretty out there. They advertised it as a collection of "outrageous / beautiful / irreverent / glamorous " pieces.  I guess some were avant-garde, but a whole bunch of the concepts were just riding the edge of hideous instead of genius.  To illustrate, Project IMA on the left, Issey Miyake on the right. See what I mean? 

The place was packed out for the show, and there wasn't anywhere to park.  It seemed as if it was the event of the decade in Indianapolis.  They had a dj, a handful of gorgeous models, and a couple who were walking in heels for the first time.  Everyone, including myself, seemed to really enjoy the affair despite any of the not-so-nice things I mentioned above.  I'd do it again.

Next we headed to Fountain Square to check out the Murphy Building.  It's filled with artist's studios and galleries.  I wanted to pop into Alias Gallery to see what street art PEEL Magazine had to display. The opening was also the first book signing party for PEEL: The Art of the Sticker. A lot more of the work was familiar than I expected.  So many of these artists have done commercial work or products. Some pieces were quirky with a humorous edge.  There was also the Obama piece by Shepard Fairey, and the letter from Obama next to it.  There was an interesting mix of people, from the street art kids with big backpacks to the artsy intellectual types.  

I was into what Indianapolis had to offer.  I felt I could get along just fine there for about 4 months without going insane.  

The most exciting work of the night was in the hall upstairs at Big Car Gallery.  The work was called Us By Numbers, a project by Doug Arnholter.   Everyone was invited to pick up some paint and be a part.  I LOVED THIS! I had to get in on the fun.  

We ended the evening with some beer at Rock Bottom Brewery and then some live jazz at the Chatterbox.  This place was a funky little dive bar that reminded me of Philly, in that cozy dirty kind of way.

People in the midwest are so nice.  Everyone was up for having a conversation, then again maybe it's just the company I like to keep.  I don't know.  But all in all Nap town wasn't as sleepy as I expected.  There are some fabulous little places to eat, a thriving art scene, plenty of bars and chill people to share good times with... I break out in hives at the thought of going to "the middle" (unless we're talking about like Chicago), but as it turns out I'm not allergic to Indianapolis, at all.