Main Street Brookvillle Selected to Partner with IU on Creative Placemaking Initiative

The initiative will see two murals installed in Brookville.

(Bloomington, Ind.) - Sixteen rural Indiana organizations will partner with Indiana University this year for the next round of the Rural Placemaking Studio. 

The initiative links Indiana University faculty and students with rural Indiana residents to enrich their communities through innovate public art and design. 

Launched in 2024, the Rural Placemaking Studio is a collaborative initiative between the IU ServeDesign Center at the Eskenazi School of Art, Architecture + Design and the IU Center for Rural Engagement. The studio collaborates with rural Indiana communities to create vibrant, inclusive and sustainable public spaces that strengthen local identity and community ties through art.

Locally, Main Street Brookville in Franklin County has been selected to design two murals to help activate Printers Alley located off Main Street. One mural will honor the philanthropy of the Franklin County Community Foundation, and the other will celebrate 200 years of local journalism.

"The IU Rural Placemaking Studio makes community heritage, hopes and dreams visual and tangible,” said IU Center for Rural Engagement Executive Director Denny Spinner. “All rural communities have something that makes them special, and the IU Rural Placemaking Studio helps residents create connection around their unique assets.”

The selection process for the 2025 Rural Placemaking Studio sought applications from rural communities of 50,000 people or fewer and located within an approximately 90-mile radius of Bloomington.