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Oct 20, 2019
January 17, 2020 | By Zach Horrall, Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Artists, start your vision! Submissions for Welcome Race Fans 2020 is open now through Monday, Jan. 27! Welcome Race Fans is an annual collaboration between the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Arts Council of Indianapolis to incorporate Indiana artists and their original artwork into the celebration of motorsports in Indianapolis. This year, IMS and the Arts Council are excited to announce that the program will be expanding to include the Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard NASCAR weekend July 1-5 and offer artists more representation throughout the city than ever before. Welcome Race Fans 2020 will consist of five artists creating their version of one of the most visible and iconic visuals associated with May in Indianapolis – the blanketing of the city with “Welcome Race Fans” signs. Artists will be tasked with creating a “Welcome Race Fans” sign with their own unique materials, process and style that will be displayed across the city. Racing imagery need not be included. However, if the artist chooses to include racing imagery, it should not be specific to any particular race. It should reflect the racing culture that is so prevalent in Indianapolis that celebrates motorsports and its significant impact on our city. Welcome Race Fans prides itself on displaying the original artworks across the city, including at locations like the Artsgarden, the Allison Building on Main Street, and other buildings, billboards and banners throughout Indianapolis. Also, limited edition commemorative posters will be created and shared with the community as a visual reminder of the highly visible collaboration of art and motorsports. During key race events, the original artworks will be located at the iconic IMS Pagoda. All participating artists will retain ownership and copyright of their work. Welcome Race Fans is an incredibly successful program that launched with the 100th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge in 2016. Since then, five artists have been commissioned each year to highlight “Welcome Race Fans.” Over the last four years, 48 original artworks were sold to new patrons with 100% of the proceeds from the sale going directly to the artists. To learn more about artwork details and requirements, and to make a submission, visit IndyArtsGuide.org. To learn more about the program and to see past artworks, visit WelcomeRaceFansIndy.org.