Big Car began as a collective of creative thinkers, many of us inuenced by the philosophies of Dada and Surrealism.

We began with a focus on collaboration and building a group of artists who work in different ways but work together on projects.

We put on art monthly art shows, poetry readings, music shows, dance performances and plays bringing all kinds of creative people together through collaboration.

Empathy = Audience Early on, we gured out that creative work about other people (besides the person making it) is far easier for other people to enjoy. And everybody really enjoys things they get to help make.

above: Thrift Store Music left: Seven Simultaneous Lectures

big foot sightings project at Big Car Gallery in 2008

who are you and what do you want Big Car, 2008

collage party at Big Car 2009

musical performance inside a sculpture at Big Car, 2010

playing Andy Goldsworthy

After four years of programing a gallery space bringing thousands of people to a struggling neighborhood for the rst time, we could see we were helping lead an economic turnaround for this place. We gured out we could accomplish a lot if we took some of those ideas and set out to make a broader difference in our city.

And we knew we wanted to help make our city a more livable place for everyone, not just art students, hipsters and creatives.

So we began guring out ways to use our skills to connect with people who werent part of the existing arts scene.

Made for Each Other

In 2008, we began working on community art projects in seven neighborhoods across Indianapolis. These varied, but all involved, engaged and assisted people in ways they requested. MFEO projects are about people and place versus the creation of traditional art products. This is the project that received the $50,000 grant from a community development organization, not an arts funder.

Kountry Kitchen with The Project School

MFEO was all about exploring a real love for our city and our neighbors and making things together while helping the community in small ways.

Near East house drawing project

the process
start with gathering ideas and talking invest real time in a place, in people team up to form a great idea for a project work with neighbors to make things happen bring all together to experience and celebrate it document things along the way

As an adaptive and exible cultural organization, Big Car brings people of all backgrounds together to spark creativity in lives, invigorate public places, and support neighborhoods. Big Car is a creative community builder.

Our work tends to be politically neutral. But we allow space for people to make statements of their own. The central issue we address is the importance of everybody being creative, encouraging people to take risks and be active in being part of making the world.

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Project at Saraga International Market with Harrell Fletcher

service center for culture and community - April 2011

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service center for culture and community - today

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<-- part of the mall

<-- service center

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square share march-may, 2012

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In 1 neighborhood in a little over 2 months we gathered 507 stories about wishes or objects from 353 kids and 154 adults. We set up storygathering sites in 6 neighborhood story sites, engaged 4 schools and partnered with 3 organizations. 10 paid facilitators engaged 44 volunteer artists, including 3 photographers, 3 writers, 3 designers, and 38 illustrators who together completed 453 volunteer hours. This breaks down to 102 hours gathering stories, 215 hours drawing, 76 hours scanning, typing, and ling, and 60 hours designing.

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nadia ABELTAH
hat is free, beautiful, healthy and good for everybody? Garden-grown vegetables. As a grandmother, I grow tomatoes, peppers, broccoli, green beans, sage, and thyme in the garden at home near Clermont. My grandson Jeremiah waters them. Jeremiahs favorite veggie is broccoli, which he likes even without cheese. Why broccoli? Because its juicy! he cries. I steam it for him. No chemicals touch my veggies. I cook them with ginger and turmeric, and mix them with veal, lamb or couscous, Moroccan style. Sometimes, I slip raw spinach on Jeremiahs sandwich, and hes learning its good. Until the garden is growing, Jeremiah & I buy pretty peppers together. Our eyes are full of light.

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next: public places/spaces

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wishard hospital