INDIANAPOLIS -- Painter Hilary Harkness will share insights into her work on March 25 at 6:00 p.m. in the Basile Auditorium at Herron School of Art and Design’s Eskenazi Hall located at 735 W. New York St. The event is free and open to the public.
Harkness is best known for paintings exploring class, sex, race, and power that reference the history of art as well as contemporary life. While Harkness employs traditional painting techniques, her work is anything but conventional and offers viewers an in-depth look into the stories of people with marginalized identities. Her ground-breaking pieces can be found in permanent collections at the Whitney Museum of American Art; the Yuz Museum, Shanghai; the Mead Art Museum; and the Seavest Collection.
Harkness’ artist talk will be a part of the student-organized LGBTQIA+ Student Forum taking place March 25-27 at Herron’s Eskenazi Hall. Funded by a gift from the Indiana University Queer Philanthropy Circle and a Pride-filled donor, the student forum is designed to bring distinguished LGBTQIA+ artists to campus to engage with students and faculty. In 2023, the student group Be Queer, Do Art organized the first forum, which featured an artist talk from Anthony Sonnenberg, an exhibition, and a panel discussion.
This year the students in the Herron Queer Artist Alliance are coordinating events that include not only Harkness’ talk on March 25, but also studio visits and opportunities for informal discussion with the artist. Another feature of this year’s student forum is an interactive workshop for Herron students with artist and storyteller Ara Tucker. Tucker’s workshop, “Storytelling in Public,” will explore how to make a meaningful impression on one’s audience and will guide students in the art of becoming confident and competent storytellers.
Associate Professor of Fine Arts Robert Horvath serves as the Herron Queer Artist Alliance organization’s faculty advisor. “Herron has a strong history of bringing internationally and nationally recognized artists to Herron,” Horvath said. “The LGBTQUIA+ Student Forum is an important addition to this legacy and will allow Herron students to make substantive connections to invited artists and professionals like Harkness and Tucker.”
Harkness’ discussion of her creative career and work on March 25 at 6 p.m. is free and open to the public. Complimentary parking (validation provided at the event) is available in the Sports Complex Garage adjacent to Eskenazi Hall or on levels 5 and 6 of the Riverwalk Garage. Thanks to The Great Frame Up, Indianapolis for providing free parking for this event.