Indianapolis Museum of Art

I'm roadtripping to Indy today to experience the Indianapolis Museum of Art, and I LOVED everything about IMA!!

I'll start with the awesome gardens. Twenty-six acres of plants including these Dr. Seuss-ish purple balls. I will have outdoor space in my new place, so I am paying attention to the floral opportunities.

And, in one greenhouse, Drawn to Pink? or Drawn to Green?, Orange?, Purple?, Blue?, White?, and Yellow? sections will entice a run to the garden center for foliage. I am leaning to pollinator plants, so I definitely want some color.

And I love this high/low color spill!

And the best gift of all is a late-season gorgeous iris! I will definitely have some of those planted for next year.

Inside the Museum, there was also the terrific Audubon: Drawn to Nature exhibition. I lucked out and tagged along with a docent tour and found out some amazing things.

I didn't know the Audubon prints were a subscription service, and I certainly didn't know the process.

The six steps are 1) observation and collection specimens, 2) pinning into position, 3) drawing and painting, 4) engraving or turning watercolors into prints, 5) hand coloring of prints, and 6) distribution. Each stage had examples and explanations.

Audubon: Drawn to Nature closes July 30, then the images go back to the private collector, per the docent. This is one of the nuggets I heard during the tour. There are no plans to travel the exhibition, so see it while you can!

And I couldn't sign off without posting a pic of Robert Indiana's LOVE sculpture in the Museum's lobby. What a great trip, indeed!

Click here for IMA's website.