If you frequent the Indianapolis Museum of Art, you know outdoor sculpture is just as much a part of the museum as everything inside their doors. From Robert Indiana’s sculptures to everything found inside the beautiful 100 Acres: Art and Nature Park, the IMA features significant collections of art spanning 5,000 years of history. Now, they are bringing you art that has never been seen before.
Five Brushstrokes is a monumental work from Roy Lichtenstein and the newest outdoor sculpture for the IMA. Lichtenstein is famous for pioneering American pop art in the late 1960s, most notably the comic book-like style of primary colors, bold lines and dotted appearance, ultimately altering and revolutionizing our idea of what a painting could be.
What’s especially unique about Five Brushstrokes is how it came to be installed at the IMA. While it was originally commissioned by the Stuart Collection at the University of Southern California San Diego in the earl 1980s, Lichtenstein sadly did not finish the piece before his death in 1997 due to difficulties in fabricating the piece on such a large scale. The Roy Lichtenstein Foundation was established with the purpose of increasing the world’s exposure to his art and the Foundation decided to fund two fabrications of Five Brushtrokes, one which was acquired by the IMA and one still owned by the Foundation.
The tallest point on Five Brushstrokes is 40 feet tall and cannot be ignored upon walking up to the museum. It took over 48 hours to install the five elements, lots of manpower and heavy machinery to complete the process, all done with the upmost care and attention to detail. Watch this time lapse of the installation to get an idea of the work involved:
Founded in 1883, The Indianapolis Museum of Art is free and open to the public Tuesday through Sunday. 100 Acres: Art and Nature Park and the Oldfields Lilly House and Gardens are open daily from dawn to dusk.
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