On June 26th I visited the
Des Moines Arts Festival for the first time. Set on the streets surrounding the
Pappajohn Sculpture Garden, this festival has something for everyone. Hands-on art for kids, food vendors, live music and of course a sea of white artists tents. Over 1,300 artists applied for a coveted spot in the festival - only 185 were invited. The diversity of these professional artists was impressive. Paintings like I had never seen before, giant photography prints, colorful ceramics, 2-D and 3-D mixed media, and a fantastic array of jewerly. I spent an extra long time admiring Bruce Holwerda's acrylic paintings. Click
here to see my favorite pieces - what he refers to as his "road trip" category. I also enjoyed Amy Flynn's sculptures, or "Fobots" as she calls them. Amy searches flea markets, auctions and scrapyards to create fobots. Amy and her husband were a hoot and I think checking out her work
here will make you smile.
If you haven't had a chance to walk around the Pappajohn Sculpture Garden, make a date! It was a great centerpiece for the arts festival, with all the hustle and bustle, but would be enjoyable to tour anytime! I really want to see the art at night. Especially Jaume Plensa's 27-foot-tall "Nomade."
Good NY times article on the sculpture garden
here. In the words of the festival: Get your art on!
