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Tuesday, March 19
The Indiana Daily Student

arts

Indiana Limestone Photograph Collection Opens Friday

After a previously unknown collection of more than 15,000 black-and-white architectural photographs were discovered in a dilapidated house owned by the Indiana Limestone Company in Bedford, Ind., the Indiana Geological Survey proposed a two-year project to preserve and bring attention to the hidden collection.

In celebration of Limestone Month, the Wylie House Museum will open an exhibit titled “Building a Nation: Indiana Limestone Photograph Exhibit” today to display these photos.

The exhibit is free and open to the public, and will run through the end of June at the museum’s education center. The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday to Friday and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. A free opening reception for the exhibit will be held from 5 to 7:30 p.m. on Friday at the Wylie House Museum Education Barn. Duncan Campbell, an IU architectural program professor, will give a presentation at ?6 p.m.

Director of the Wylie House Museum Carey Beam said she hopes visitors leave the event and exhibit with an appreciation of the art, craftsmanship, architecture and industry related to the local limestone heritage.

Sponsored by Indiana Geological Survey, Wylie House Museum, IU Libraries and Visit Bloomington, the exhibit features historical photographs of Indiana limestone quarries, mills and building sites from all around the country. The photographs showcase the legacy Indiana limestone played in building some of the nation’s most recognizable buildings and many other structures in the southern Indiana region.

Julie Warren, director of tourism for Visit Bloomington, said the photographs highlight a number of different aspects of the Indiana Limestone Heritage Trail, including geology, culture, industry and artistry.

“You see the quarry holes and surrounding landscapes, you see machinery and workers, you see carvings and the resulting structures,” she said. “The complete collection is massive, so we chose just a sampling that will showcase these various aspects of limestone quarrying, milling and construction.”

Warren said the Indiana Limestone Heritage Trail is a partnership created with Lawrence County to promote limestone tourism in the area.

“Many people are drawn to the unique landscape here to see the quarry holes, the unique buildings and learn more about the science of limestone,” she said. “We get questions about it all the time and created the trail as a way for people to experience limestone in the area.”

Stephen Nelson recently graduated IU with a degree in geology. He has participated in activities relating to the Indiana Limestone Heritage Trail, and he said he will be attending the photography exhibit.

“Limestone has a long history in Bloomington and around the world, so I’m looking forward to seeing pictures from the beginning stages before the legacy began,” he said.

Other events during Limestone Month include an IU campus architecture tour, limestone carving and a tour of Rose Hill Cemetery.

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