Photo by Hadley Fruits for Landmark Columbus The Steel Horsie,” which will be installed at the Bartholomew County Historical Society, takes inspiration from an old railroad that passed through downtown.
A celebration of community and creativity will come to life this August, and everyone is invited to join in on the fun and conversation. To commemorate the opening of Exhibit Columbus’s fifth exhibition “Yes And,” five free events will be held downtown across Aug. 15 and 16.
Taking its name from an improv theatre technique of affirming and building upon an idea to create a shared narrative, “Yes And” explores the legacy of Columbus by adding on to the multiple and overlapping lives of buildings and spaces, according to Exhibit Columbus.
This latest exhibition will see 13 art installations placed throughout downtown, which are in the process of being installed. These installations have been created by four J. Irwin and Xenia S. Miller Prize recipients, six University Design Research Fellowship teams, the High School Design Team consisting of students from across Bartholomew County and Communication Designer Sing-Sing.
Fifth and sixth graders from Bartholomew County School Corporation STEM were also tasked with answering the question of “how could your favorite downtown Columbus building be re-envisioned for the future?”
“I hope what they take away (from the installations) is a lot of pride and they tell their family and friends to come visit them and to come visit Columbus this fall,” Landmark Columbus Executive Director Richard McCoy said. “This is only up for three months and if you look at it, you can start to get cold by October and November. So get your friends and family to come visit you, stay in a hotel, stay in your house and come enjoy downtown. It’s the coolest city in Indiana.”
The opening weekend of “Yes And” will feature five events on Aug. 15 and Aug. 16. Registration is asked for all events and can be found at exhibitcolumbus.org/yes-and-opening-weekend.
Rooftop Happy Hour
8 to 11 p.m. Aug. 15
Opening Weekend will hit the ground running at Rooftop Happy Hour, on the top floor of the Jackson Street Parking Garage. Set against a sunset backdrop, this party will feature food and drink from local vendors in addition to Rasul Mowatt serving as DJ. Mowatt, Landmark Columbus Operations and Communications Manager Abigail Flout said.
“Rasul just wrote a major monograph about the city of hip-hop,” McCoy said. “So Rasul’s one of these rare guys who is as intellectually consistent as he is performative, and so Rasul’s been a DJ for about 30 years, but also understands the history of hip-hop and DJ in an intellectual way, just published a major book about it, and so this is a special chance to have Rasul play a set for us on the parking garage.”
The evening will also give partygoers a chance to preview the “Joy Riding” installation, a large transforming device that allows people to play music, from Studio Barnes in Miami. Joining in the party will be Xin Ying, a prolific dancer based in New York City, who will be presenting what McCoy calls a “site-responsive performance.”
“This is a world-class performer who is going to really make the rooftop event just that much more special,” McCoy said. “Her dance is going to respond to Studio Barnes’ installation.”
Installation Activations
All day, Aug. 16
To celebrate the kick off of the “Yes And” cycle, community members are invited to see how to activate the installations themselves through fun activities, events and performances all throughout Saturday afternoon.
“We have one that will be in the very early morning just to kind of beat the heat on that activity,” Flout said. “But it’s just a way to show the community that these installations were designed and made to be used by them.”
McCoy said they have worked with all of their partners to make something that is exciting for them. The day will feature a wide range of activities, from a stained glass activity to a dance activity, live musical performances to a bubble performance and many more. A full schedule with times and locations will be published at a later date.
“Popcorn from YES Cinema will be at University Design Research Fellows Michael Jefferson and Suzanne Lettieri at ‘Apart, Together’ on Ovation Plaza,” Flout said. “So we have a lot of fun activities that will be for kids to adults. We want everyone there and engaging with these.”
Exhibition Walking Tour
9 to 11:30 a.m. Aug. 16
The Exhibition Walking Tour is a chance to see every installation while hearing about them directly from the artists and architects. Starting at 9 a.m., the tour will set off from the Columbus Area Visitors Center following a breakfast provided by Lucabe Coffee Co.
“… if people want to learn about what Exhibit Columbus is, what each of the installations are, this is an awesome time to do it,” McCoy said. “We’re expecting a big turnout, we’ve worked with the city to make sure we’re going to cross all the streets safely…”
The tour will start with “Motions” outside the Visitors Center and will conclude with a special site activation at “Accessing Nostalgia” at the Crump Theatre. Police will be stationed throughout the tour and water stations will also be present.
“It’ll be the kick off to Exhibit Columbus being open,” McCoy said. “So we celebrate the opening of each installation as we go by them as a community.”
Curatorial Conversation
1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Aug. 16
Curatorial Conversation offers community members a chance to listen to the artists and architects behind the installations, McCoy said.
After activating the installations throughout the day, visitors can then come and hear what the curators think, McCoy said. The conversation will be led by Joseph Altshuler and Zack Morrison of Could Be Design, Elizabeath Blasius and Jonathan Solomon of Preservation Futures, Mila Lipinski, Rasul Mowatt and Too Black, the seven curatorial partners of this cycle.
“So we have very thoughtful, smart, engaged curators, and so this will be a very cool time to hear from them,” McCoy said.
Light refreshments and drinks will be provided at 1:30 p.m. by Lucabe Coffee Co., and the conversation will then start at 2 p.m. The conversation will take place in First Christian Church’s sanctuary.
“This is the amazing thing about Columbus,” McCoy said. “Not only are you going to have new exceptional art and architecture, but also you get to see these amazing national historic landmarks and extraordinary buildings and get to go in them. So we’re excited about going, the sanctuary of First Christian Church and having a thoughtful conversation.”
Avenue of Architects Celebration
5:30 to 10:30 p.m. Aug. 16
The Opening Weekend will culminate in an ultimate celebration of “Yes And” on Fifth Street at the Library Plaza. This event includes a Variety Show and Participant Ceremony.
“One of the things that we’re trying to with the Opening Weekend of Exhibit Columbus is build off the momentum the city has created with its Downtown 2030 plan, which specifically calls for people to activate the Avenue of the Architects,” McCoy said.
The evening will include local food and drink vendors including Lemonade Bros., Stunna’s, Sno Biz and more, in addition to a DJ and musical performances. Then at 7 p.m., each participant of Exhibit Columbus will be recognized and acknowledged with an award, and the night will conclude with a special dance performance from Peyton Womack and his band.
“We’re trying to throw the best free party in the history of Columbus on Saturday, Aug. 16,” McCoy said.
