Joliet and Main streets: "Indiana Landscape," T.C. Steele, 1909. JOHN J. WATKINS, THE TIMES
Joliet and Main streets: "Indiana Landscape," T.C. Steele, 1909. JOHN J. WATKINS, THE TIMES
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People drive by traffic control boxes all the time, seldom noticing the anonymous background infrastructure of the modern world.

But Crown Point is capitalizing on the silver traffic signal boxes, turning them into canvases to add a bright splash of color to the landscape.

Crown Point launched a new "Wrapped in History" utility box art wrap program to beautify the city. It's now prominently displaying the work of historical Hoosier Group artists like T.C. Steele around downtown.

Other Northwest Indiana communities like Valparaiso and Munster have recently splashed colorful art on utility boxes as beautification projects. It's Crown Point's first major public art project since it displayed Seward Johnson sculptures, Crown Point Communications Director Mary Freda-Flores said.

"'Wrapped in History' transforms the ordinary into the extraordinary," she said. "We're looking to brighten and beautify traffic control boxes with the twist of informing and providing history."

Freda-Flores came up with the idea and even measured the size of utility boxes downtown after going out to dinner on the Old Lake County Courthouse Square in Crown Point, pocketing that information for more than a year before the opportunity emerged to move the project forward.

The Crown Point Community Foundation and Crown Point Redevelopment Commission funded the art wrap project for downtown.

Art wraps now on display include Steele's 1909 "Indiana Landscape" at Joliet and Main streets, Richard B. Gruelle's 1894 "Indiana Landscape" at Joliet and Court streets, J. Ottis Adams' "The Wave-Whitewater, Brookville, Indiana (Autumn on Whitewater)" at Joliet and East streets," Otto Stark's 1921 "The Sunset Glow" at Main and Clark streets and William J. Forsyth's "Indiana Landscape" at Main and North streets.

They're all members of the Hoosier Group, an art collective that achieved international renown in the late 19th century and early 20th century for painting Indiana landscapes, including in Brown County.

"It's beautiful representations of landscapes familiar to anyone growing up in the Hoosier State," Freda-Flores said.

Crown Point secured public domain images through Newfields, the cultural institution that includes the Indianapolis Museum of Art. Crown Point-based 9 Mile Branding created the wraps.

"It's snapshots of ordinary scenes that exemplifies Indiana, such as a beautiful autumnal scene of cows by Cafe Fresco. It's a fitting piece of architecture given how Indiana is rooted in agriculture and farming," she said.

The pieces showcase the varied landscapes in Indiana, with Stark's "The Sunset Glow," for instance, evoking the Indiana Dunes, Freda-Flores said.

Crown Point was looking to reintroduce public art projects after the popular exhibit of bulldogs in 2005 and the life-sized Johnson sculptures, which include Marilyn Monroe and the iconic Life magazine photo of a sailor kissing a nurse after learning World War II ended.

"We've gotten a lot of comments that it's delightful that public art is back in Crown Point. It's been very well-received," she said.

"Some cities choose to paint larger murals, but we decided to start with transforming space that we already have to improve and enhance the city. These silver industrial boxes are part of the everyday background that people don't take notice of. We're turning them into something people can enjoy and admire."

Maps of the art wrap sites with historical information about the Hoosier Group are available at Crown Point City Hall, the mayor's office, Bulldog Park and the Crown Point Public Library.

The library also has a display about the Hoosier Group in conjunction with the art wrap program.

"They really led the way for artists for generations to come and had a lasting impact," Freda-Flores said.

The project could be expanded in the future. It could be a draw like the Christmas trees on the square.

"There's a great benefit to public art. It makes the downtown even more of a destination," she said.

"People coming to eat at a restaurant downtown may sit and spend time here longer. It has the great benefit of being a wayfinding project with that map component."

It may lead more people to explore Crown Point and discover new businesses.

"You can have an adventure finding all the boxes," Freda-Flores said. "It might lead someone to Cafe Fresco to have coffee after going for dinner. They might linger longer than their original intent and enjoy the community. Public art projects like this are so important to the community."
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