Damien Center Invites Community Volunteers to Create Art Installation for New Headquarters

Damien Center will hold nine public workshops in June and July for community members who want to help create artwork that will be prominently displayed in the nonprofit’s new building that is currently under construction in the Near East Side of Indianapolis.

Damien Center has contracted with seven local and national artists to design four pieces of artwork using a $150,000 grant from the Allen Whitehill Clowes Charitable Foundation. The nine workshops in June and July will focus on creating a 1,700-square foot mosaic designed by nationally renowned artists Ali Mirsky and Christopher Duffy, co-founders of Empact Art, an initiative aimed at fostering community through art. The mosaic was inspired by the AIDS Memorial Quilt and will be installed surrounding the three-story elevator core of the new facility.

Three additional pieces of artwork at the new building will include a 190-square-foot mural designed by Matthew Cooper, an emerging visual artist from Indianapolis; a 670-square foot mural designed by local artist Koda Witsken; and a 180-square-foot paint-by-numbers mural that will be designed by Indianapolis-based artists Tiffany Black and Qahar Behzad in collaboration with Damien Center clients. Future community workshops will be announced for these three projects.

“We’re excited to welcome everyone to these sessions where they can collaborate and create artwork that will offer healing and inspiration for those impacted by the HIV/AIDS epidemic and make our headquarters a beacon for HIV wellness,” said Alan Witchey, president and CEO at Damien Center. “The artists selected for these projects have spent months engaging with the Damien Center community – speaking to staff, clients, and community partners alike – all in the name of capturing the unique, diverse, and special nature of the communities that make up Damien Center.”

Workshops will be held on the following dates:

June 7 from 6-8 p.m., Alley Cat Ceramics, 2209 E. Michigan St., Indianapolis

June 8 – Indy Pride Festival at the Damien Center booth

June 10 from 6 - 8 p.m., Damien Center, 26 N. Arsenal Ave., Indianapolis

June 11 and 12 from 1 – 5 p.m., Ten East Arts Center, 3137 E. 10th St., Indianapolis

June 13 from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m., Alley Cat Ceramics, 2209 E. Michigan St., Indianapolis

July 9 and 10 from 1 – 5 p.m., Ten East Arts Center, 3137 E. 10th St., Indianapolis

All materials will be provided for the volunteers and activities will include, clay making, mosaic making, and storytelling.

The planned 56,000 square foot three-story building will be located at the corner of East Washington St. and Oriental Ave., adjacent to the Damien Center’s existing building at 26 N. Arsenal Ave., Indianapolis, and is expected to open in the first half of 2025.

About Damien Center:

Damien Center is Indiana’s oldest and largest AIDS service organization and leads the effort to prevent the spread of HIV. The Center opened in 1987 and offers a one-stop-shop model of care that includes preventive, supportive, and medical services that empowers people in Central Indiana affected by HIV/AIDS to move forward each day with dignity so they may live abundant and productive lives. Damien Center believes passionately in the dignity and worth of every person who seeks their services and strives to be a safe and welcoming place so that no barriers separate people from the services they need to prolong and enhance their lives. For more information visit: http://www.damien.org or follow them on Twitter at @DamienCenter or like them on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/theda....