Columbus, Indiana is an architectural destination that continues to reinvent itself. A major infusion of modernist structures in the mid-20th Century established a precedent for place building that continues today.
Most people who know and love Columbus, Indiana have moved beyond its story of unlikeliness. Still, a great deal of what’s written about Columbus plays up the improbability angle: how does a city like this, with more than 70 modernist masterpieces designed by internationally-acclaimed architects and artists, spring out of soybean fields? Unlike the obvious architectural hubs in the United States, such as Chicago, New York, Boston, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., Columbus has a ‘have-to-see-it-to-believe-it’ quality. But it has earned its stripes: the American Institute of Architects rated it sixth in the U.S. for architectural innovation and design— next in line after the aforementioned cities.