Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites

NASHVILLE, Indiana (May 1, 2019) — A whole new experience will greet visitors to the T.C. Steele State Historic Site this summer, beginning June 15.

The new, 4,600-square-foot Singing Winds Visitor Center is included in the changes, featuring indoor restrooms, programming space, a gift shop and a video introduction to the site’s history, among other amenities.

Along with the new visitor center, visitors will also find new experiences to enjoy around the site. Families can visit T.C.’s Outdoor Studio, featuring a wagon modeled after Steele’s own traveling studio. There, adults and children alike can create their own art, play games together, put themselves into famous works of art and more.

At various locations around the site, visitors can explore the real locations that inspired specific Steele paintings, and interactive activities will highlight Steele’s artistic process. Plus, new sounds and scents will enhance the tour through the House of the Singing Winds, along with a newly restored kitchen space.

The large studio will feature a new rotation of Steele’s original work in an updated gallery space, as well as activities for families, a chance to see how a plein air painting comes together and more.

“With the new visitor center and activities, we’re providing an improved visitor experience for everyone who comes to the site,” said Cathy Ferree, president and CEO of the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites. “We want families to spend time together at all of our locations, learning new things and connecting with one another, and these updates help facilitate that.”

Along with these site additions, a Motus station will also be opening at the site this spring, which will allow researchers with Indiana University’s Environmental Resilience Institute (ERI), founded as part of IU’s Prepared for Environmental Grand Challenge initiative, to track wildlife movement in the area. It is the third station to operate in Indiana.

The new visitor center will open to the public at 2 p.m. on June 15, following a private reception at 1 p.m.

The visitor center and new site activities were funded by private individuals, support from the State of Indiana, the Friends of T.C. Steele and various grant funders.

FOR MEDIA: If you would like to attend the opening or schedule a media preview, please contact Hannah Kiefer, director of communication for the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites, at [email protected] or 317-234-8146, or Renee Bruck, manager of communication for the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites, at [email protected] or 317-260-3506.

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T.C. Steele State Historic Site is part of the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites. The Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites is located in White River State Park in the heart of downtown Indianapolis. It is Indiana’s museum for science, art and culture, offering a place where you can celebrate, investigate, remember, learn and take pride in Indiana’s story in the context of the broader world. Even the building is a showcase of the best Indiana has to offer in architecture, materials and sculpture. Easy and convenient parking is available in the attached underground garage.