One of the Indianapolis Museum of Art's most popular summer events -- AfricaFest -- won't be held this year. Or next. Or maybe even the year after that.

The IMA, which has sponsored the annual celebration of African and African-American art and culture since its inception in 1994, has suspended operation of the festival until the museum's current $74 million expansion project is complete. That means the earliest that AfricaFest will return will be 2005, though it's more likely to be 2006.

"We had a lot of questions about trying to present AfricaFest in the midst of construction," said Anthony Hirschel, the IMA's director and CEO. "We talked about what the effects would be of carrying on and what the effects would be of putting it on hiatus. Ultimately we decided that since we couldn't ensure the quality of the event, we wouldn't do it."

According to Hirschel, two factors would compromise AfricaFest's quality. First, its traditional outdoor staging area in front of the museum is gone -- destroyed to make way for new additions to the building, as well as for an underground parking garage.

Second, a large section of the museum's African galleries will close for two years, beginning in June. The art and artifacts are being stored to protect them during construction.

"AfricaFest has always been an event that was linked to our African galleries," said Hirschel. "Not being able to provide people with access to the galleries would have significantly weakened the event."

In lieu of the August festival, the IMA is working with the African and African American Studies Committee at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis to develop other programs, including a film series, designed to appeal to black residents.

It's also working independently on a discussion series that will focus on topics of interest to black artists, collectors and historians. Both initiatives are still in the planning stage.

AfricaFest will be missed, said William Taylor. A lecturer in African-American visual art history at IUPUI and in the African American Studies program at IU Bloomington, Taylor helped organize "A Shared Heritage," an exhibition of works by four local black artists at the IMA in 1996.

"It's the major activity that the museum puts on for the black community every year," he said. "But if this means that it will come back bigger and better than ever in the future, then it's something we can live with."

The IMA's expansion, however, will not affect the other major festival held on museum grounds: The Penrod Arts Fair will go on as usual on Labor Day weekend.

Hirschel said Penrod has traditionally been held on the grounds surrounding Lilly House, which are mostly unaffected by the current construction. And unlike AfricaFest, Penrod is not linked to any of the museum's galleries or collections.

What's more, said Hirschel, Penrod is organized and operated by the Penrod Society, a private group dedicated to raising money for local arts organizations.

In 2002, the society paid the IMA $25,000 for the use of its grounds, said Penrod President Shawn Mulholland. Additionally, it paid for the costs of security, traffic control, tent rentals and utilities. "The IMA incurs no costs associated with having the festival on its grounds," he said.

The museum and other arts organizations share in Penrod proceeds; the museum traditionally receives the most, though Mulholland would not say exactly how much that is. Total proceeds from the Penrod Arts Fair amounted to $100,000 last year.

In contrast, last year's AfricaFest, which cost the museum $66,700 to host, attracted 2,500 people and generated approximately $13,000 in revenue.

Call Star reporter S. L. Berry at 1-317-444-6437.