exhibition & sale june 7 through july 12, 2025
~ by Julia Pearson
The 47th Annual Exhibition and Sale of Indiana Heritage Arts, Inc. will take place June 7 through July 12, 2025 at the Brown County Art Gallery in Nashville. The IHA is a nonprofit first organized by a group of Brown County artists who painted in the tradition of the Brown County Art Colony which flourished in the early 1900s.
Fueled by determination to continue the fine arts tradition of these Impressionists, the first show was two weeks long and took place in a bowling alley north of Nashville on State Route 135, where the Quaff On! Brewing Company is now located. The annual exhibition moved to various venues in its early days.
An agreement with the Brown County Art Gallery was eventually reached to provide a home for the annual show and sale, as well as a year-round exhibit space. And when the gallery expanded in 2015, a gift from George and Peggy Rapp allowed for a permanent exhibition space in the new addition.
Today, the Indiana Heritage Arts Show is one of the largest juried competitions of fine arts in the Midwest, with prize money of $ 30,000 and sales of artwork for $ 90,000. Selections for the show are judged on-site at the Brown County Art Gallery( not submitted electronically) by an independent judge.
The judge for this year’ s show is Lori Putnam, who is known in more than 30 different countries where she has painted, taught, and exhibited. Artists eligible for submitting pieces must be at least 18 years old and a current or former resident of Indiana.
62 Our Brown County • May / June 2025