Join us in February as we kick off Black History Month in Indianapolis and mark 25 years of celebrating African-American art and music in Indiana. Art & Soul, traditionally hosted at the Indianapolis Artsgarden, will move online due to ongoing COVID-19 health and safety concerns.
The Arts Council is partnering with WISH-TV to present a special, virtual, month-long 25th-anniversary edition of the community program. Highlights will include shows by the four Featured Artists, performances by 12 musical acts, and special programming. We'll announce more details, including a schedule of events, later this month! Please follow @indyartscouncil and #ArtSoulIndy on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for the latest information. We also invite you to share your memories of Art & Soul with us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for a special "flashback" feature we are creating.
MEET THE 2021 FEATURED ARTISTS
Christopher Pitts
Christopher Pitts is a pianist who connects jazz piano traditions with the modern ear through energetic performance, thoughtful collaboration, and aesthetic compositions. Read his full bio here.
AshLee Baskin
AshLee"PsyWrn
Simone" Baskin is a vocalist, songwriter, lyricist, poet/spoken word artist, actress, and teaching artist who is guided by Nina Simone’s words, “An artist’s duty…is to reflect the times.” Read her full bio here.
Matthew Cooper
Matthew Cooper is a self-taught visual artist who studied drawing and Africana studies at the IUPUI Herron School of Art and Design. He reads as much as he can about a subject before he re-creates it on canvas: “I want to give life once again to our untold history.” Read his full bio here.
Yadin Kol
Yadin Kol is a self-taught guitarist, singer, and songwriter whose conscious-stirring lyrics come from his southern roots and urban life experiences. His debut EP will be released this year. Read his full bio here.
Featured artist photos by Wildstyle Paschall.
2021 MUSICAL PERFORMERS
Bashiri Asad Band
Bullet Proof Soul
Brenda Williams Trio
Clint Breeze and the Groove Quartet
Goldie & Friends
Marrialle Sellars, singer and former “American Idol” contestant
Megan Simonton Group
Native Sun
Rob Dixon & Triology
Staci McCrackin
Teresa Reynolds Group
The Phelps Connection
The Arts Council would like to thank Lilly Endowment Inc. for its generous annual support of the Art & Soul series, as well as our 2021 programming partners, Asante Children’s Theatre and Indy Jazz Fest.
Thank you to our funders
