Murphy Art Centre

1043 Virginia Avenue,
Indianapolis, IN 46203

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Additional Info

Previously operated by: Universal Chain Theatrical Enterprises Inc.

Architects: Donald Graham

Functions: Art Gallery, Retail

Styles: Atmospheric, Neo-Classical, Spanish Colonial

Previous Names: Granada Theatre

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Murphy Art Centre

Opened on April 8, 1928, the Granada Theatre, in the heart of Indianapolis' Fountain Square neighborhood. It was built for the Universal Pictures chain.

It featured a facade of reddish-orange brick trimmed in cream-colored terra cotta in austere Neo-Classical style, with a trio of arched windows above the main entrance.

It was the first theater in Indianapolis to screen a foreign sound film, “Tierra Madre”, in 1932.

The Granada Theatre was closed as a movie house on March 11, 1951, and was taken over by the G.C. Murphy Company soon afterwards.

After the Murphy Company closed, the building sat vacant for a while before being acquired by a group of artisans in the 1990’s, who were seeking a place to set up their galleries after moving from the south side of the city.

Since then, the Murphy Art Centre, as the one-time theater is now called, has become a home for both art galleries and retail stores, a thriving example of urban reuse in a once dying area of Indianapolis.

Contributed by Bryan Krefft

Recent comments (view all 4 comments)

Sandra Jarvis
Sandra Jarvis on July 14, 2009 at 11:22 pm

Check out http://www.fountainsquareindy.com/

This building is in the center of a historic area near downtown Indianapolis.

CSWalczak
CSWalczak on May 6, 2011 at 6:28 pm

A film organization is moving into the former Granada Theater building now known as the Murphy Arts Center and will build a small screening roon within the facility: View link.

DavidAE
DavidAE on June 7, 2014 at 10:28 am

Historic Indianapolis article here

rivest266
rivest266 on October 25, 2015 at 4:56 pm

April 8th, 1928 grand opening ad in photo section as well as

http://indystar.newspapers.com/clip/3483072/granada_opening/

http://indystar.newspapers.com/clip/3483076/granada_opening/

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