Gayle Karch Cook Center for Public Arts & Humanities
IU Bloomington is currently renovating historic Maxwell Hall to create a campus center for public arts & humanities, thanks to support from friends of IU and a Challenge Grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
The center is named in honor of Gayle Karch Cook, a 1956 Phi Beta Kappa graduate of IU with a B.A. in fine arts. She received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters in 1993 and, in 2015, was recognized with the College of Arts and Sciences Distinguished Alumni Award, just one of her many awards and honors from IU.
When the Cook Center is completed, Maxwell Hall will serve as a community hub, multidisciplinary research center, professional development space, and inspiring event hall. The new center will provide space for interdisciplinary exhibitions, lectures, and performances to showcase the work of faculty, students, and visiting artists and scholars. Collaborative workshop spaces will offer students opportunities to pursue professional development in creative fields and interact with campus visitors and IU faculty and staff from the College Arts & Humanities Institute, Traditional Arts Indiana, the Center for Rural Engagement, and many other campus departments.
We'll be providing periodic updates on this page as the renovations progress and the opening of the new center draws near. Check back regularly to find the latest news and learn how your support can help make the new Gayle Karch Center for Public Arts & Humanities a vibrant, welcoming space for all members of our community.
