Creative Convergence

The two-day 2024 Spring Creative Convergence workshop was held on April 17^th and 18^th in Lebanon, IN.  View photos of the training.

Following the training, communities had the opportunity to apply for an Early Action grant of $10,000 to employ the lessons of the training. The eleven Spring 2024 Creative Convergence communities, and their projects, are as follows:

• Brookville (Franklin County),  Small Town Pics:  Many historic buildings and businesses in the Town of Brookville are undergoing major renovations and facade updates. Now, the small structures need attention to improve the overall aesthetic of the area. "Small Town Pics" will update five outdoor Brookville areas with an artistic flair providing an enhanced quality of place for both residents and visitors. Each of these areas will also provide a great photo opportunity - hence, the name "Small Town Pics"!
• Gas City (Grant County),  Historical Main Street Tour: A brainchild of Main Street Gas City, this is a project that aims to utilize the power of visual arts and written history to educate the community about the city's rich heritage. With the funding, they will commission local artists to design art for window graphics and street pole banners and will include Main Street businesses to participate by displaying the visuals.
• LaGrange (LaGrange County), LaGrange, INspired: The LaGrange, INspired project will raise awareness of local artists/makers in the community. This project will comprise of artwork/photos printed on signage and placed on buildings across LaGrange and include smaller versions to be placed in local businesses. The signage would have a specific QR code that leads to a video interview of artist discussing their creative process and how to purchase work or interact with artist. Grant funds will be used to pay artists, printing and kick-off event.
• Lebanon (Boone County), The Lebanon Story Booth:  The Lebanon Story Booth aims to help connect and unite the people of Lebanon. The city has undergone growth in a variety of different sectors and a community fracturing of sorts has taken place. The Lebanon Story Booth will repurpose an old phone booth to help residents from various neighborhoods share their respective stories, creating synergy from the city's past and aligning it to Lebanon's future.
• Martinsville (Morgan County), Martinsville Public Bench Mural Art: The City of Martinsville is undertaking a new perspective on interactive public art with twelve existing benches that are spread around the city. The city is working to improve its inclusivity and simultaneously elevate local artists by creating murals on these public benches. This initiative is a response to community surveys for interactive, free art in already publicly accessible green spaces.
• Rockport (Spencer County), The Main Attraction: The City of Rockport will to enhance two green spaces on Main Street. These green spaces will be used for concerts, art fairs, city events, and also open gathering spaces for games, activities, and photo opportunities. They will gather community input on various aspects of the project as a way to involve the community and gather contact information to start an arts organization for Rockport. This organization would bring creatives together to plan and execute future art projects.
• Rockville (Parke County),  MainStreet Mural on Jefferson:  MainStreet Rockville aims to celebrate the area's historical significance and increase foot traffic along High Street by creating a visually captivating mural. Through community engagement and collaboration with a commissioned artist, MainStreet will create a design that reflects the identity and history of Rockville. By supporting one of their long-standing businesses, they seek to enhance community pride and downtown revitalization.
• Shoals (Martin County), Re-CREATE-ing Overlook Park: Overlook Park on US Highway 50 in Shoals is the last roadside park in Martin County and offers a scenic view of the White River. This park will be used as a welcome center for the town of Shoals by adding a mural, a creative walkway to the shelter house, an information center, and an observation deck. By using local creatives to help execute the projects, the Overlook roadside park will help bring awareness to the arts and serve as an outdoor recreational space for residents and visitors.
• Spencer (Owen County),  Sweet Owen River Arts Park:  Creative, economic development, and natural resource communities are working together to convene artists and arts organizations in Spencer/Owen County to create an arts collaborative. The first activity of the new Arts Alliance will be updating and upgrading plans for a current public works project, turning a stormwater utility into an artistic utility. The new Arts Alliance’s will become an official 501c3 organization for future success of the community.
• Union City (Randolph County, Union City Arts Project Pitch Competition and Delivery: Union City, Indiana is a community of new growth and excitement. The community will run a pitch competition for arts (visual, performance, literary, and culinary) projects in the community. They will promote the competition and run workshops to help interested artists develop project ideas, budgets, schedules, and presentations. The community will be involved in selecting the winning pitches, and the winners will receive additional mentoring to create their project and present it to the community.
• Washington (Daviess County),  Building Deeper Appreciation for the Arts in Daviess County:  Daviess County will deepen appreciation for the arts by providing local schools and the community with professional display materials to exhibit art in a dignified and meaningful way. In addition, a 10-acre Wall Art Park will be established in an under-served area of Washington, to elevate pride and increase engagement in public art. Lastly, as a result of the IAC Creative Convergence process, Washington’s goal will be the establishment of an Arts Organization (Arts Commission) in Daviess County.

The five pilot Creative Convergence communities and their projects are as follows: