This rendering of the Indiana Fever Sports Performance Center shows the west and south sides of the building at the intersection of Maryland and Delaware streets. A mural is planned for the north side of the building. (Image courtesy of Indiana Fever)
Recent downtown murals
- “Tamika Catchings,” by South Bend-based artist Nate Baranowski, 2025, 459 Massachusetts Ave.
- “Tyrese Haliburton,” by Indianapolis-based artist William Minion, 2025, 417 E. Ohio St.
- “Legendary,” by Chicago-based artist Anna Murphy, 2023, 107 S. Pennsylvania St.
- “Legacy Written in Truth” (Etheridge Knight), by Florida-based artist Elio Mercado, 2023, 435 Massachusetts Ave.
- “Entrepreneurs Rising” (Madam C.J. Walker), by Indianapolis-based artist Tasha Beckwith, 2022, 315 N. Senate Ave.
- “World’s Fastest” (Major Taylor), by Chicago-based artist Shawn Michael Warren, 2021, 11 S. Meridian St.
An Indiana-based artist selected to paint a 2,400-square-foot mural on the exterior of the future Indiana Fever Sports Performance Center will receive $100,000 to execute their vision.
Julia Muney Moore, director of public art for the Indy Arts Council, said the six-figure commission exceeds what was paid to individual artists who painted this year’s Tamika Catchings mural downtown and four Bicentennial Legends murals installed from 2021 to 2023.
Pacers Sports & Entertainment, the parent company of the Indiana Pacers and Indiana Fever, is paying for the artwork that will adorn the $78 million facility presently under construction at the intersection of Maryland and Delaware streets.
“They are building this new building, and they are committed to art,” Moore said of Pacers Sports & Entertainment. “The mural is big. It’s a serious, serious project.”
Indy Arts Council is administering the request-for-proposals process. Applications for artists and their concepts are open until 11:59 p.m. Feb. 1.
Artists who live in Indiana or maintain a studio in the state are eligible to apply.
Specifications for the mural indicate that Fever players and the team logo are not to be included in the image. The team’s colors of red, blue and gold are expected to be present in an image that conveys “the excitement and high skill level” of women’s professional sports.
Moore said the size of the mural—planned to be 40 feet by 60 feet—is comparable to the fourth installment of the Bicentennial Legends series, which depicts more than 40 Indiana icons in portraits painted on the east wall of the Steak ’n Shake building adjacent to Morris Bicentennial Plaza.
Chicago-based artist Anna Murphy painted the mural, titled “Legendary.” Without disclosing what Murphy was paid for the project, Moore said the artist deserved more compensation.
“On that piece, we learned that we underpaid her based on the amount of time it would take,” Moore said. “We’re not doing portraits on this one, but the artist is still going to be up in the air [using an elevated work platform] for three weeks. That does take a toll on you and it’s worth a certain amount of money.”
The commission of $100,000 includes artist fees, labor and materials. An apprentice role also is available to an Indiana-based artist, who would receive $5,000 if selected.
The mural will be painted on the north side of the Indiana Fever Sports Performance Center, which faces the the Julia M. Carson Transit Center and City-County Building.
“It’s also the best view from the tall buildings downtown,” Moore said.
A free online workshop for artists interested in applying to create the mural is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Jan. 7. Following the application deadline of Feb. 1, finalists will be notified of their status by Feb. 28. The artist who will paint the mural is expected to be selected by April 30.
For more information, visit indyarts.org.
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