Here is a description of architectural sites I wrote up for someone coming to see. Please note this was a Thursday, and most of the buildings I reference the interior of will be closed on weekends. It is a must to see the inside of the Indiana World War Memorial if you can though.
Here are some of the sites I can suggest. Call it my downtown walking tour if you'd like. You might not want to do all of them, but I figured I'd throw them out. Google is your friend on finding these, but I've got them laid out more or less as a walking tour (in a couple months, I might have a real walking tour for you, as this is something I've been working on in the background, but alas, nothing yet).
Union Station - 39. Jackson Place. Romanesque Revival train station. (Similar to Louisville's Union Station, btw)
Indianapolis Artsgarden - Hemispherical dome suspended over the intersection of Illinois and Washington St.
Indiana Theater - Spanish-Moorish movie palace and ballroom, now a live production theater. The sixth floor Indiana Roof Ballroom, if accessible, is like a smaller version of the Aragon and is widely used for upscale receptions.
Indiana State House (Market/Capitol) - what it says. Worth a walk inside
*Monument Circle - a must see. One of America's great urban spaces. Awesome in the summer, probably a bit dead Thursday.
Circle Theater - another movie palace on the Circle, now home to the ISO
Circle Tower - a grandiose name for a 12 or so story art deco midrise on the Circle next to the Circle Theater.
Columbia Club - Indy's answer to the Union League Club, also on the Circle
Christ Church Cathedral - Indy's oldest church, also on the Circle
North of the Circle between Meridian and Penn is a 7 1/2 block area that is one of America's great City Beautiful spaces, the war memorial mall. From north to south, the facilities are:
Federal Court House (worth a look inside - don't let the metal detectors scare you)
University Park
*Indiana World War Memorial - It is an absolute must to go inside. I think it is open on Thursday afternoon. The entrance is on the north side. It will probably be deserted, which adds to the charm. The entrance lobby is stunning. But don't forget to take the stairs from the lobby up to the huge shrine room.
Veterans Memorial Plaza - contains an obelisk and other various items.
American Legion Mall - Headquarters of the American Legion is here, along with the sunken gardens and cenotaph
Central Library - the neoclassical original building, with the modern addition behind it. If you look on the sidebar of my blog under Best Of - Project Reviews, I've got a three part review of this. Let's just say, I like the interior better than the exterior, though you'll certainly notice the fit and finish problems. This is a heckuva interior space to enjoy - much better than the horrible Harold Washington Library, that's for sure.
Flanking the mall on the west you'll find the Scottish Rite Cathedral. On the east you'll see the Minton-Capehart Federal Building in all its Brutalist glory. Of all the architecture to copy, they had to pick Boston City Hall, but I think the Indy version is better, frankly.
If you're willing to hoof it in the cold, you can see three other architecturally interesting buildings. The first is the Murat Temple, a shrine temple that looks like an Egyptian mosque. Across the street from that is the Atheneaum, designed by Kurt Vonnegut's grandfather. These aren't too far out the avenue. The other attraction at the end is the art deco Coca Cola Bottling Company - now a bus depot
On Alabama St. north of Market (just east of the City Market, another place you might want to check out, though I don't find it terribly exciting) is a small fragment of the future Indy Cultural Trail (
http://www.indyculturaltrail.org), a very innovative urban trail project with off street protected bike lanes and pedestrian paths, public art, etc., designed to link the various dispersed downtown cultural attractions.
You may notice various pieces of public art on exhibit around downtown that are made out of shredded tires. This is an exhibit of specially commissioned works by Chakaia Booker. Every year the city does a temporary exhibit like this.
If you're still looking to kill time, you can walk over to Lockerbie Square, an area of quaint Victorian cottages - and the James Whitcomb Riley Home. This Italiante victorian era home is an actual interior preservation, not a restoration - one of the best in the country - if that's your thing.