Art Gallery Expansion photos by Cindy Steele
~ by Paul Minnis
Have you seen what is happening to the Brown County Art Gallery? The building at 1 Artist Drive is doubling in size from about 6,400 square feet to nearly 15,000 square feet.
Established in 1926, the Brown County Art Gallery originally was housed in a former grocery store but moved in 1968 to its current site on Artist Drive. It survived wars, depressions, recessions, fire, and relocation, making it one of the oldest galleries in the United States.
The Brown County Art Gallery is an asset poised to assume a greater role in the community. New features like the Art Education Center will provide aspiring artists encouragement and training to fulfill their potential, while the county itself should benefit economically from increased tourism.
More square footage means more room to display the art currently sitting in storage. More art on display will encourage artists to show and sell their works. More artists showing their works will inspire a new generation of artists to carry forward Brown County’ s traditions.
Chris Newlund, a Columbus artist who has paintings on display at the gallery, said the capacity to feature more art is a major plus. She said the real benefit of expansion, though, is that tourism is sure to follow.“ There will be more exposure for my work and the work of other artists,” she said.“ There is no more beautiful place than Brown County, and these improvements mean more people will be getting the chance to see it.”
The $ 1.7 million expansion project is being funded through monetary and in-kind donations. Contributions from area trusts include the Howard F. Hughes fund, the Brown County Community Foundation, Efroymson trust, and the Heritage Trust of Bartholomew County.
The project managers are Bob Stevens, Expansion Chair, Steve Miller, the architect; and Jim Schulz, electrician. Local contractors include Star Electric; Dunham Plumbing; Richard Sapp, stone mason; Steve Miller, the builder; Dave Freshour, carpenter; and Bern Waldhier / Designscape, landscaping.
The Brown County Art Gallery Foundation owns the building and the permanent art collection. It leases space to the Brown County Art Gallery Artists Association, which in turn releases some of that space for use by Indiana Heritage Arts( IHA). The IHA sponsors a juried art competition each June that awards
The back of the building addition.
44 Our Brown County • Sept./ Oct. 2015