Thriving Butter Fine Art Fair platforms local Black creatives for bigger, better 3rd year

Back for its third year, Butter Fine Art Fair is solidly on its way to becoming a city staple.

Butter 3 is set to open Sept. 1-3 with preview Aug. 31 at The Stutz in Indianapolis. The fair, featuring more than 50 artists, will expand its initiative of platforming Black Indy creatives with installations, artwork and events spread across more than 40,000 square feet of space.

This year expands significantly on previous showings, which began in 2021. Where the first event totaled 4,000 attendees, Butter projects 2023 will see 12,000 people stop by The Stutz.

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Butter Fine Art Fair 2023 focuses on 3D, immersive art

Visitors can expect plenty of new additions to this year’s lineup. Deonna Craig, Butter’s director, said the fair will focus more on 3D and immersive art than it did in its first two years, where 2D art was the predominant medium. It will also host a conversation space – where visitors can engage with artists about their work – and a performance space featuring local musicians.

A panel of local curators, art directors and members of the Indianapolis cultural landscape selected Butter’s featured artists. While the art doesn’t correspond to a specific theme, Craig said the panel was conscious of the fair’s feel and looked to artists who would match its general vibe.

With a more established presence and a reputation on the rise, Butter is finding its footing quickly, and it’s headed toward the staple status its founders at cultural development firm Ganggang envisioned at its onset.

Butter fair's history, art sales

Butter originated in response to what Craig described as gaps in the Indianapolis art scene. The resources to platform and support Black artists at the time, Craig said, were glaringly absent.

“These are things that have been missing for so long in Indianapolis,” she said. “The infrastructure just wasn’t there.”

Photos Inaugural BUTTER art fair showcases Black artists at the Stutz

Surviving and thriving on an artist’s salary can be a challenge, but events like Butter strive to make it possible. The fair’s benefits are both immediate and elongated, with 100% of profits returned to artists and lasting connections between artists and collectors opening opportunities down the line.

Butter 2 saw $250,000 in art sales with more than 8,000 visitors, including major organizations like The Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields and Eskenazi Health that purchased pieces from participating artists.

As an artist who participated in Butter 1 and Butter 2, Craig has seen firsthand what Butter can do for its participants. The fair was her first taste of that level of exposure, and after selling all her work at the preview showing that first year, Craig said her career reached new heights.

“I always knew my worth, but it was confirmed,” she said. “I felt valued.”

'Could this be the new Indianapolis?'

Now, Craig is set on extending that opportunity to others. As Butter’s first-ever director, she’ll work to ensure local artists have access to a network of collectors, patrons and other influential figures in the art world.

Ganggang and Craig’s vision for Butter extends far beyond just the fair. With a bigger platform for Black creatives than ever seen before, Craig hopes to create a more equitable art scene – one that makes Indianapolis an attractive destination for artists to stay and build their careers.

“It kind of felt like, ‘Could this be the new Indianapolis? Could this be not just an exception, but how things are?’” Craig said. “There was hope there.”

Contact Pulliam Fellow Heather Bushman at HBushman@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @hmb_1013.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Butter Fine Art Fair Indianapolis: The Stutz to host over 50 artists