New statue at IU to honor John Mellencamp

A new statue in honor of Hoosier rocker and Seymour native John Mellencamp will be unveiled later this month at Indiana University’s Bloomington campus.

According to the school, Mellencamp plans to attend a ceremonial unveiling of the work which will be displayed at the north end of the Fine Arts Plaza on the campus. The sculpture was created by artist Michael McAuley, an IU alumnus and Bloomington resident. He is creative director at Livingston Designs Sculpture Studio. It is meant to symbolize Mellencamp’s strong connection to his southern Indiana roots.

An exhibition of Mellencamp’s paintings is on display through December 15th at the IU Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art. Called “Crossroads” the paintings were created started in 1991 and include a painting portraying Hoosier-born actor James Dean.

Last year, Mellencamp announced that he was donating an archived collection of his work to IU including creative works, photographs, instruments and significant memorabilia. The collection is available to students, faculty and the public for research and educational purposes.

Photo: John Mellencamp performs at IU homecoming in 2006. Photo courtesy of IU Archives