Exhibit Columbus to feature new J. Irwin and Xenia Miller Prize

A new initiative called Exhibit Columbus will hold a citywide art and design festival including a new architecture and design contest to honor the legacy of J. Irwin and Xenia Miller.

The biennial event will start with a symposium to be held later this year with a first exhibition in the fall of 2017.

According to Landmark Columbus, the goal is to create an event similar to the Chicago Architectural Biennial.

The inaugural symposium for Exhibit Columbus, called “Foundations and Futures,” will be held Sept. 29 through Oct. 1. A keynote session will feature Deborah Berke, Will Miller, Robert A. M. Stern, and Michael Van Valkenburgh.

The Miller Prize will be awarded to five designers and design teams who will design, build, and install temporary projects at one of five sites, each a Columbus icon. A committee has invited 10 architects, artists, and furniture designers to compete for the award.

Exhibit Columbus will also include projects with Columbus school children and Indiana University Center for Art+Design students.

Founding support for Exhibit Columbus comes from the Columbus Area Visitors Center, Columbus Museum of Art Design, Cummins Inc., Efroymson Family Fund, Haddad Foundation, Heritage Fund – The Community Foundation of Bartholomew County, Irwin-Sweeney-Miller Foundation, Johnson Ventures, Schumaker Family and SIHO Insurance Services.

A kickoff event will be held at 5 p.m. today at the Bartholomew County Public Library plaza.