On the west end of the Columbus Art District is a small park called the Firefighters and Police…read moreMemorial Park. In the center of the park is bronze sculpture of four children playing "Crack the Whip", a popular game dating back to the 1880's. Oklahoma artist Jo Saylors completed the piece in 1998 as a gift for the employees of Arvin Industries. After Arvin moved its headquarters, this piece was moved to this location so that it could be appreciated by the residents of Columbus as well as visitors who drive by on SR46 into town. The sculpture stands about four feet tall and shows four children playing. Each holds the hand of the child/children that is nearby. The last child in the line gets the greatest effect of the whipping action (centrifugal force) as the line moves in unison in a whipping pattern. True to real life, the last figure is losing her balance as she is being tugged faster than her feet can keep up. Sure, it may seem like a "dangerous" game for kids to play by today's standards, but as someone who played this frequently as a child, it was a lot of fun and worth the occasional bump or bruise. Side note: during the winter, I have seen the pieces become adorned with stocking caps and scarves to dress up the children for the season's chill. Review #1313

Back in 2017, international artist Kelsey Montague created her signature "What Lifts You" angel…read morewing murals a block north of the county court house. Though looking like simple silhouettes in white on a black background, the pair of angel wings have the detail of landmark Greensburg buildings built into the wing patterns. There are two pairs of wings: One is large enough for adults to stand in front of for taking selfies; the other is much smaller and lower to the ground for taking pictures of pets. The artist hopes that when visitors post their photos, they include their ideas about what personally lifts them up. For me, one of the things that "Lifts me up" is finding new art in unexpected places. This fit the bill quite nicely! Review #2461

Greetings from Greensburg from Michelle and Tony. Greensburg is our favorite place to dine and…read moreexplore. It has beautiful old houses and buildings. The park is one of the best we've ever seen.

You will find this mural near Taxman Brewery, right across Johnson BBQ. It was painted in 2020…read moreJohnson County Community Foundation Mural Program. The project was headed artist Stacie Drane. The mural was completed as part of a community day, bringing in community members of all ages and abilities to paint the mural. It was a large paint by numbers deal. Sadly the front side of the mural is used as parking spaces. While I was there there were cars parked in front of the mural pretty much blocking the view of the entire bottom of the mural. It is a basic abstract mural. I can see the image of a dove, hands with arms, a heart, partial faces, flowers, plants, buildings, and random shapes. They were all very abstract and colorful, with overlapping and interesting colors. The mural is in great shape. I will admit though, I am not a fan of abstract art, but love community involved projects. Parking to get a closer look here is very easy. You can park in front of the mural directly, right next to it or across the street at Johnsons BBQ. I parked right next to it and had no issues. As with most murals that I have visited and reviewed, this is not a very long stop. I was there less than 5 minutes. So, you may want to consider planning out additional stops at many of the other attractions in the area, getting a drink from Taxman, grabbing a bite at Johnson's or making this stop part of a larger itinerary to maximize your time and trip.

In the fifth year of its Color the County mural program, the Johnson County Community Foundation…read morehas sponsored a local artist to create a community "paint day" where the artist would create a full sized wall mural in a paint by number scheme that allowed volunteers to come and participate in the painting of a new community piece. In 2020, the town of Bargersville got its second mural (in 2016, they added one I call Bargersville Sunrise by Amber Berninger. See separate review #1261). The new mural was designed by Nineveh artist Stacie Drane and the mural was painted in August. The mural is a mixture of city and county scenes which come together as the small town is now one of the most rapidly growing areas in the Indy metro area. The mural shows different people along with crops and buildings all coming together in one place. The colorful mural uses solid colors and has a cool tone of colors which is very pleasing to the eye. Although the piece is painted on one of TaxMan's southern buildings, it is directly across from the patio of Johnson Barbecue. I appreciate that the artist has to simply the project so that community members can participate in the painting. Still, the final product is pleasing and some attention to clean up left the lines solid and the filled in blocks of color complete. Review #3803

Some call this a mural, while others call this a sculpture. Most importantly, the town considers…read morethis piece a sculpture, and thus exempting it from ordinances that regulate size and type and frequency of signage, whether commercial or artistic (cue the controversy). However, it is considered a mural as it is part of the 2016 "Color the County" mural program. It was painted in conjunction with the 25th Anniversary of the Johnson County Community Foundation. The mural was sponsored by and is the brainchild of the Johnson County Community Foundation [JCCF]. I will just call it a mulpture. It is a very attractive mural that attracts your attention. This was a community project, with members of the local community coming together to put the piece together under the direction of Gordon Strain. It is painted on the west wall of the Johnson County Court Annex Building and overlooks some free street parking and a free parking lot from across a road. So, that makes stopping to get a closer look relatively easy. I was able to park on the street and hop out to get a closer look at the piece. The piece is made of aluminum panels cut to represent children blowing a bunch bubble of varying size. It actually depicts the outline of Strain's daughters, Lexi and Josephine, as they are playing among a bunch of bubbles. I love the use of blended colors in the piece. If bubbles actually had a real color, that would be it. It is very attractive and well done. It is as complex as it is simple, allowing for the members of the community of varying artistic abilities to participate in the project. This piece is definitely a must see, but I am sure that it is not a large consumer of time, nor a destination piece. I was just there briefly. I would say about 5 minutes. I highly recommend visiting here on your way to somewhere else or making this part of a larger itinerary. The Franklin Art Garden and Young's Creek Park are very close by.

In the 25th year of the Johnson County Community Foundation (JCCF), it was decided to try something…read morenew to celebrate the sense of community and cause. So, in 2016, the first annual mural program, "Color the County" began. One of the inaugural murals was placed on the west side of the Courthouse Annex building in Franklin. Titled "Summer Days", the playful mural of kids blowing bubbles in the wind was done by Gordon Strain. Strain is an instructor/artist at Franklin College. He has been a "TED Talk" lecturer. The mural appears to contain silhouettes of bubbles of various sizes floating on the wind. The people and bubbles are cutouts attached to the brick background and are the color that one often sees when oil floats on water, or the colors when a bubble floats passed the sun. The placement of the mural/building is elevated from the street with a patch of green lawn suggesting the mural is at the top of a hill. It lends a sense of scale as the bubbles float skyward and hopefully, will bring a smile to all who see it. Review #1259

The mural is very vivid and colorful. It is the work of Greensburg born artist, Nicole Ponsler,…read morewhose inspiration for the piece was the 2021 harsh winter. She said that she "wanted to make something that was bright and cheery for an Indiana winter. It's going to be really cool to see it with snow all around it." She dedicated the large piece to her first art teacher, Judy Ritchie, who taught at Greensburg High School and recently passed away. The mural was commissioned by the Decatur County Community Foundation, Visit Greensburg, Main Street Greensburg and Arts & Cultural Council of Decatur County. The two story (50 feet x 17 Feet) piece demands your attention. It is in wonderful shape. It depicts two cardinals (Indiana's State Bird), a green/blue humming bird, and a blue butterfly among a colorful string of flowers. The mural's denim blue background really makes the orange and red of the flowers really pop. Visually, it is a nice mural Ponsler talent is on full display. I am digging it. Anyway, as with most murals that I have visited and reviewed, this is not a very long stop. I was there less than 5 minutes. You may want to consider planning out additional stops at many of the other attractions in the area, such as the All-Wars Memorial, or making this stop part of a larger itinerary to maximize your time and trip.

On the west side of Columbus Regional Health, a limestone sculpture called "Halcyon" was installed…read morein 2011. The piece was carved by Todd Frahm (from Solsberry, Ind). The sculpture shows a hand rising from the water holding a bird. Halcyon is a genus of bird and according to Greek mythology, has the power to "calm the waves". Halcyon also means joyful, peaceful, and prosperous. After the Great Flood of 2008 when the hospital was damaged and surrounded by flood waters, it was decided that a commemorative piece be commissioned to honor the physicians, staff, and volunteers who worked through the horrible conditions and helped restore the hospital to working order. Review #1311

Downtown Columbus is filled with public art. The Commons is the site of some wonderful pieces,…read moreboth inside and out. 2 Arcs de 212.5 is one of those on the outside. In 1987, artist Bernar Venet created this minimalist work by bending two 4.5" beams to form parts of a circular shape to precisely 212.5 degrees of the 360 needed for a completed shape. According to the artist, it is physically demanding to bend such thick pieces precisely to maintain the shape along the entire length. The pieces were then rotated so that they weren't balanced at the same point on the arcs. They were then mounted to a base and painted a vibrant red color. In 1998, the piece was moved from the Irwin home and donated to the Columbus Area Arts Council in honor of the council's 25th anniversary. The piece is commonly referred to as "The Red C" in honor of Columbus. Review #1275

This mural is painted on an underpass on the Franklin Greenway Trail right near Franklin's new…read morepark, Youngs Creek Park. The city has really invested in beautification and has been an active participant in the Color the County Mural Program, which this mural is a part of. This mural was a community effort, led by artist Erin Davis in 2018. As with most community murals, this is a pretty basic design that allowed community members of all artistic abilities to participate. Even though a lot of it luster is now gone, the mural consists of bright colored geometric shapes and figures. It resembles a quilt pattern of shorts. The mural also has two colorful abstract birds flying away on one end and a bird flying solo on the opposite end. Parking to get a closer look at this mural is easy. You can either park in the Youngs Creek Park parking lot or the Extreme Skate Park lot and walkover. It is a bit of a walk but you can park at Province Park at walk the trail over. The mural is pretty weathered and has seen better days. I normally love community projects that bring communities together like this one, but this mural is in need of a serious refresh. Anyway, as with most murals that I have visited and reviewed, this is not a long stop. I was there less than 5 minutes. So, you may want to consider planning out additional stops at many of the other attractions in the area, such as one of Franklin's wonderful parks or making this stop part of a larger itinerary to maximize your time and trip.

In 2018, the Johnson County Community Foundation continued its annual celebration of the arts with…read moreanother "Color the County" mural in Franklin. A community day was scheduled as friends and neighbors gathered to paint a mural designed and coordinated by artist Erin Davis. Following a paint by number template, the community transformed a blank wall underneath the Main Street Bridge (where Young's Creek and the Franklin Greenway Trail pass) into a colorful arrangement of repeating triangles in layers. The ends of the underpass also have silhouettes of flying herons/cranes. This was the third Franklin mural in this program that started in 2016 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the foundation. Review #2942