INDIANAPOLIS, IN.- The Indianapolis Cultural Development Commission and the Arts Council of Indianapolis are pleased to announce Julian Opie: Signs, a public art exhibition featuring ten installations by the internationally recognized artist, Julian Opie. Julian Opie: Signs will open in late-September and the artworks will remain in Indianapolis for one year. Several new works by the artist will be premiered in the exhibition, which also marks Opie’s largest exhibition ever.

In addition to Indianapolis, Opie’s work will be displayed concurrently around the world in Shanghai, China; Zurich, Switzerland; Malaga, Spain; London, England; Toronto and Ontario, Canada and Boston, Massachusetts.

“We’re excited to bring Julian Opie, an internationally acclaimed artist to our city and expect his exhibition to build on Indianapolis’ reputation as a leader in public art in the Midwest,” said Greg Charleston, President of the Arts Council of Indianapolis.
“Indianapolis has offered me a great opportunity to make an outdoor exhibition in the downtown area.” said Julian Opie. “I will be showing some older works and a lot of new projects especially made for this venue. While I am familiar with the East and West coasts of the United States, the Midwest has remained a mythical unknown territory for me. It’s a classic America only known to me through film and TV - a big sky, long rivers, basketball, rock stadiums, corn fields and pioneers. I feel I come to Indianapolis as a welcome stranger driving into town where both my work and I are still anonymous and undefined. I hope this will allow the art to take on new meanings brought to them from the particular character of Indianapolis and the reactions of the people who live and visit there.”

Opie creates drawings from his photographic portraits of fashion, music, and racing icons, as well as people and landscapes from everyday life. His use of stylized and standardized forms, such as the shapes and colors used in children’s wooden animal blocks, provide the viewer with an opportunity to access their own imagination and memories. The drawings are brought to life using advertising technology and sign making techniques.

“I fell in love with Julian’s work a few years ago at the Art Basel – Miami Beach art fair and have enjoyed working with him,” said Mindy Ross, director of public art for the Arts Council of Indianapolis. “Underneath what appears to be a straightforward use of line and color, lies an exploration of the role of the individual in an era of mass production and an alluring visual language that marries the banality of street-signs with the slickness of high culture.”

Opie’s art promises to create a bold visual contrast to the Indianapolis cityscape. An electrically lit, towering image of Canadian rocker Bryan Adams will rise 16 1/2 feet high in White River State Park, while the city center will host a series of glass and metal sculptures of fashion models. A sky bridge over a busy thoroughfare will be wrapped with the vinyl artwork entitled “Christine Swam Amongst the Fishes”, while two LED sculptures – one of a man, one of a woman – will be walking with pedestrians on two well-traveled city corners and a four-sided LED entitled “Sara Dancing” debuts on a busy intersection.

Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson said, “After our success last year with Tom Otterness in Indianapolis, city officials and civic leaders embraced a plan of continuing a unique and dynamic program of public art exhibitions. We are attracting attention nationwide for our city’s commitment to providing high quality opportunities for artists and universal access to the arts.”

Julian Opie: Signs is presented by the Indianapolis Cultural Development Commission and the Arts Council of Indianapolis and is a continuation of Public Art Indianapolis, a program sponsored by both organizations. Public Art Indianapolis was initiated in 2004 and encourages the presentation of art by local, national and international artists in public spaces throughout the city. The Indianapolis Museum of Art, the Indianapolis Museum of Contemporary Art, the Herron School of Art & Design at IUPUI, the Indianapolis Art Center, and Young Audiences will provide additional exhibition venues and educational resources.