ArtsWeek began as a weekend in November 1984 and has grown into significant annual showcase for the extraordinary wealth of creative work going on at Indiana University and in Bloomington, Ind.

ArtsWeek was originally conceived by the late choreographer and dancer Fran Snygg, a professor of kinesiology and modern dance in IU's School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, in conjunction with IU's Office of the Dean of Faculties. In 1983, then-Dean of Faculties Anya Peterson Royce formed the IU Bloomington Arts Coordinating Council (see People section), whose mission was to enhance the potential for collaborative artistic activity in and around the IU Bloomington community. Snygg, who also served as an associate dean in the Office of the Dean of Faculties, chaired the Arts Coordinating Council and shepherded ArtsWeek from its beginning through 1994. She was a prime force in expanding recognition of artists in the area until her death in 1996 at age 53.

Now coordinated by the IU Office of the Vice Provost for Research, ArtsWeek is truly a collaboration between town and gown, with participation and sponsorship from various IU administrative units, the City of Bloomington, the Bloomington Area Arts Council, the Convention and Visitors Bureau, the IU Auditorium, and many more. Over its 26-year history, ArtsWeek has extended artistic expression in startling new directions, from graffiti to 3-D computer modeling, ballet to computer-enhanced dance performance, ice carvings to sound gardens, poetry to a pie-laden table sculpture in the middle of the street.