Nickel Plate Arts to highlight architect

A retired architect from Indianapolis who now spends his time as an artist is among four artists being highlighted by Nickel Plate Arts this month.

Craig Mullins’ art will be featured in the Stephenson House on the Nickel Plate Arts campus and said he was encouraged by his friends, teachers and family to pursue his passion for drawing after discovering his abilities at an early age. Mullins, who was a partner and officer at Browning Day Mullins Dierdorf Architects in Indianapolis and is now retired, uses his architectural skills in his work as an artist.

He identifies as an architect-artist, he said.

“One of the goals in my work is to capture the memory of a place, then creatively enhance it to inspire the viewer to see more than the original experience,” Mullins said. “My paintings are not a literal or impressionistic translation of what I see, but more of a composition that explores and enhances an image through my personal artistic style and color.”Mullins’ attention to detail can be found in his work within landscapes, barnscapes, floral and wildlife images that he paints with acrylic and pastel mediums on canvas.

“Many of the elements in my paintings become architecture, literally and figuratively,” Mullins says. “My landscape paintings become spaces that direct your eyes through the composition of the space. Colors in the paintings are bold and complementary; buildings, barns, canoes and animals are focal points that draw your attention.”

Mullins’ exhibit, “Favorite Subjects and Special Places,” features pieces that are predominantly landscape paintings. He said many of his works are large pieces that can serve as a strong focal point in a room. Anyone who loves to hike and travel or has a strong affinity for striking landscapes should check out the exhibit, he said.

“Even if there is not a particular landscape painting in the show that you are drawn to, maybe you have a special place that you are drawn to or that you remember in recent travels that you would like to have painted as a commissioned work,” Mullins said.

The exhibit, which will be available through Aug. 26, can be seen from noon to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Friday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday at the Stephen House on the Nickel Plate Arts campus, 107 S. 8th St., Noblesville. Meanwhile, Nickel Plate Arts is also highlighting other artists this month.

John Dierdorf, whose exhibit “Floral Celebration,” can be found in the second-floor gallery at Meyer Najem, 11787 Lantern Rd., Fishers. The exhibit is available for the public to see from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and runs through Sept. 29.

Chris and Amie Knuckles’ exhibit, “The Artwork of Vintage Adventure,” can be found at Four Day Ray Brewing, 11671 Lantern Rd., Fishers, from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday and Monday; 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday; and from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday through Saturday. The exhibit also runs through Sept. 29.

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