50 Years of LOVE

For half a century, Robert Indiana’s LOVE has been the he(art) of the Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields collection. And there is a whole lot to love. Newfields’ 3-ton steel sculpture is the first and the largest of the iconic series. 

The sculpture welcomed guests to the inaugural exhibition, Outside Seven, at the Indianapolis Museum of Art in 1970 before it officially was acquired on October 2, 1975.  

2025 marks 50 years of LOVE at Newfields and we invite you to celebrate with us. We would love to hear your love stories, why you love Newfields, your favorite memory with the LOVE sculpture, and much more.

The history of LOVE 

The sculpture is a beloved landmark of the Indianapolis Museum of Art, the city of Indianapolis and holds a significant place in art history. The LOVE image appeared for the first time on Robert Indiana’s personal Christmas card in 1964 and was used for the official MoMA Christmas card in 1965. Drawing inspiration from the inscription “God is Love” on a plaque in a Christian Science church here in Indianapolis, Indiana reversed the phrase to “Love is God,” to speak on themes of spiritual love.  

For the next few years, Indiana worked on a series of paintings and small sculptures, in red, blue and green. The Indianapolis Museum of Art has an original painting from this early period that will be on view beginning in September of this year. 

Completed in 1970, the Cor-Ten steel sculpture represents the beginning of Robert Indiana’s foray into large-scale works and helped establish the Hoosier native as a major player in the international pop art movement. This instantiation remains the largest sculptural version of LOVE ever produced. 

For five decades, LOVE has been the centerpiece of generations of Hoosiers’ love stories—proposals, engagement photos, family portraits, weddings, and friendships. 

If you love Newfields, consider making a gift to the annual fund today.

GIVE

Timeline of LOVE 

• 1970: LOVE was fabricated in North Haven, Connecticut by Lippincott, Inc., America’s foremost and largest maker of large-scale steel sculpture at the time  

• 1970: On view at the Indianapolis Museum of Art for the inaugural exhibition, Outside Seven, at the 38th and Michigan Road location 

• 1971: LOVE took a quick trip to the East Coast as a last hurrah before it would return to Indianapolis and eventually to the Indianapolis Museum of Art permanently  

• Exhibited in Boston City Hall Plaza as part of the exhibition Monumental Sculpture for Public Spaces 

• LOVE was shared with New York City for the 1971 holiday season, where it spread love and holiday cheer in New York City’s Central Park 

• 1972: Returned to Indiana in time for a Valentine’s Day opening of an exhibition of Robert Indiana’s work at Indiana National Bank in downtown Indianapolis 

• 1974: LOVE was loaned to Eli Lilly & Company for use in a television commercial 

• October 2, 1975: Friends of the IMA purchased LOVE in memory of chairman Henry F. DeBoest. LOVE would remain in various locations, inside and out, at the Indianapolis Museum of Art 

• October 22, 1975: The official dedication ceremony was held with Robert Indiana in attendance 

• 1988: LOVE moved from the Krannert Pavilion Plaza to the north lawn due to construction of the Hulman Pavilion and renovations of the Krannert Pavilion 

• 2002–2005: Sculpture underwent extensive conservation after many years of exposure to the elements and returned to display inside the Pulliam Family Great Hall. Restoration was made possible by Patricia J. and James E. LaCrosse 

• 2006: Underwent sandblasting before moving outside to Sutphin Mall 

• 2017: LOVE made a move from the Sutphin Mall to the Pulliam Family Great Hall where it currently resides 

About Robert Indiana

Robert Indiana was born Robert Clark in New Castle, Indiana in 1928. He spent his childhood in Indianapolis and graduated from Arsenal Tech High School before attending the Art Institute of Chicago from 1949-1954. In 1953 he received a scholarship to study at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in Maine. After 3 years in the Air Force he completed his formal art education via the George Brown Traveling Fellowship at the University of Edinburgh. Though he spent much of his adult life and career in New York and Maine, he carried Indiana with him throughout his life.  

Indiana wrote in a letter to Jeffrey R. Brown, Curator of Collections at the Indianapolis Museum of Art in 1970, “[LOVE’s] inclusion in the Indianapolis exhibition is also one of the most exciting moments for me, for I have not forgotten those first 17 years in Indianapolis.” 

LOVE Around the world 

Since its creation in 1970, Robert Indiana's iconic LOVE sculpture has been reimagined in various forms, with over 50 sculptural versions now gracing prominent locations worldwide. These include the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Tate Modern in London, and the New National Gallery (Neue Nationalgalerie) in Berlin, among others. Each version incorporates adaptations in multiple languages, such as Hebrew, Chinese, Italian, and Spanish, adding to its global appeal. 

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Robert Indiana’s LOVE displayed on the Indianapolis Museum of Art sculpture plaza, February 1974. IMA Photography Archives (PHO001), Newfields Archives. © 2025 Morgan Art Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

Tom Rummler (American), Photograph of "Love" in the making in North Haven, Conn., 1970, gelatin silver print, 14 × 9-7/8 in.  Indianapolis Museum of Art, Gift of Robert Indiana, 72.78.14 © Tom Rummler © 2025 Morgan Art Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. 

Robert Indiana (American, b. 1928) and Lippincott, LLC (American), LOVE, 1970, Cor-ten steel, 144 × 144 × 72 in. Indianapolis Museum of Art, Gift of the Friends of the Indianapolis Museum of Art in memory of Henry F. DeBoest. Restoration was made possible by Patricia J. and James E. LaCrosse, 75.174 © 2025 Morgan Art Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. 

Roy Lichtenstein (American, 1923–1997), Five Brushstrokes (detail), designed 1983–1984, fabricated 2012, painted aluminum, various dimensions. Indianapolis Museum of Art, Robert L. and Marjorie J. Mann Fund, Partial gift of the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation, 2013.443A-E.4 © Roy Lichtenstein Foundation.