Newfields again has an exhibit dedicated to its contemporary art. These favorites are back

For the past two years, questions about Newfields' permanent collection of contemporary art have been traveling around social media, in conversations, in messages to the museum.

Where is the sculpture that looks like a molecule magnified about a million times under a microscope? Or the one that appears to be a gray rectangle on the wall but is actually another room? How about the one with all the TVs?

Before it housed The Lume, the 30,000-square-foot fourth floor had built its reputation as a haven for the Indianapolis Museum of Art's permanent collection of contemporary art. And while the multisensory cinema-like installation has been popular, Newfields has still fielded a stream of questions, and sometimes complaints, about the absence of the formerly displayed art.

Now, an exhibit opening Saturday will reunite people with freshly cleaned and restored beloved contemporary works while introducing new acquisitions and more gems from the museum's collection and on loan.

Called "The Message is the Medium," it's the first time since The Lume's installation that these works have been displayed together in an exhibit labeled as contemporary art. Some popular contemporary works formerly on the fourth floor have been on display next to older art in the revamped Clowes Pavilion and elsewhere, repositioned according to themes in a dramatic reinstallation of the permanent collection that rolled out at the end of 2021.

But Michael Vetter's goal for "The Message is the Medium" isn't to replicate the old fourth floor.

"I thought that the fourth floor was a little heavy on painting and sculpture," said Vetter, who is the associate curator of contemporary art. "I also just got the sense from talking with a lot of our constituents ... there was just not as much familiarity with new media art and sometimes a little bit of, like, hostility towards it or wariness towards new media art.

"I think that that is kind of what makes contemporary art so exciting. (We're) trying to introduce some of that back. We're fortunate because the collection actually already had a lot of great time-based media."

Here are a few of the artworks you'll see in "The Message is the Medium," which will be on the second floor for the next two years.

Favorite artworks back on display

"Who's Your Tree?" by Nam June Paik. Hoosier-inspired images flash on 34 cathode-ray tube TVs in all their blurry '90s glory. Curatorial assistant Sarah Trew and Vetter estimate the tree-shaped work hasn't been shown since the early to mid-2000s, and over the past two years, the team has replaced cables and recalibrated the sets, among other maintenance.

"With works that work like this that have technological components, things fail and become obsolete very quickly," Trew said. "So you kind of have to keep on it in a way that you normally wouldn't."

What's more, the Paik piece is an example the team used for an exhibit wall devoted to explaining the preservation process for artworks that incorporate technology. Look for the opportunity to create your own time-based media piece that you can then play on the wall.

"Acton" by James Turrell. The popular work's fresh installation now hews more closely to the artist's wishes, Vetter said.

That's courtesy of black hallway that chokes out gallery light while leading viewers to a dim room with what looks like a two-dimensional gray box on the opposite wall. Except it's actually another room full of diffused light that feels discomforting when you reach your arm into it.

"Untitled (Mylar)" by Tara Donovan. The piece has undergone an extensive dusting, which is a feat considering it's numerous three-dimensional Mylar cones that are nested together. Clustered into round shapes and assembled to look like a chemical compound or natural element, the work is delightfully irregular.

New acquisitions

"Atlantican Archives: A Group of Beyoncés Founded Earth Feminism" by April Bey. The digitally printed and woven blanket tells an alternate history: that a group of Beyoncés founded feminism in the Afrofuturist community of Atlantica. The artwork's materials make a statement, too.

"She's also sewn on these fake African fabrics that are from China because she's interested in ... how different patterns and culture transmit colonialism because actually they came to China via the Netherlands," Vetter said.

"Standing Form" by Richard Hunt. Using nuts, bolts and scrap fished from junk yards, the artist created an abstracted human-like sculpture that appears to morph depending on where you're standing. Hunt is a pioneer of welded sculpture, and his work greets you at the exhibit's entrance.

More gems you'll see

Sling-shots lit #3 by Robert Rauschenberg. A face, calendar and ornate iron fence are among cool-hued screen printings that fit inside a light box. To the side is a drawstring to move the layers up and down.

“It’s meant to even look kind of like a shade in your house,” Vetter said. “He really wanted to have that kind of domestic quality.”

Staff will adjust the cords at intervals to honor Rauschenberg’s plan for art to be reconfigured.

"DIE" by Robert Indiana. The famous Hoosier artist is known for his iconic and colorful "Love." But the piece on display is an example of his darker work. Indiana's characteristic stylized numbers climb up a wheeled totem that's topped with the word "DIE" and a cow skull. It's part of a series that explores four words related to his mother's death.

Jacket by Ron Kleemann. The official artist of 1977's Indy 500 not only painted a photorealistic portrait of Johnny Rutherford's car, he created a red jacket branded with patches that dubbed the project "Team Kleemann Conceptual Art Racing Team." Thanks to sponsors, the artist had his own painting studio truck and support team parked in Gasoline Alley.

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Contact the reporter at d.bongiovanni@indystar.com or 317-444-7339.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Newfields museum: Contemporary art exhibit is back with favorite works