Blog Post

Love blooms in Des Moines

  • By Tina Ehrlich
  • 10 Nov, 2020
RoCA, Des Moines featuring Jenna Brownlee's new mural, Love Blooms
RoCA, Des Moines featuring Jenna Brownlee's new mural, Love Blooms

The next time you’re driving down Court Ave you’ll see a new splash of color on the side of the RoCA building!

Up-close at Love Blooms by Jenna Brownlee
Up-close at Love Blooms by Jenna Brownlee

Local artist, Jenna Brownlee, completed this design in just 2.5 days and it’s a special piece celebrating diversity and inclusion with vibrant bursting florals collaged with symbolic typography for an impactful message of global love and peace. In partnership with Des Moines' World Food & Music Festival, her floral selection was intentional to represent the global diversity throughout the state of Iowa with national flowers:

  • Plum Blossom, China
  • Bunchberry, Canada
  • Dahlia, Mexico
  • Lotus, India
  • Protea, South Africa
  • Bosnian Lily, Bosnia
  • Rose, United States
  • Prairie Rose, State of Iowa
The mural is funded from an anonymous donor connected with the project through the Community Foundation of Greater Des Moines.

Finished mural, Love Blooms by Jenna Brownlee
Finished mural, Love Blooms by Jenna Brownlee
Jenna has been busy this year continuing to color the state—in the last few months, she’s created a mural in Marshalltown, Des Moines, Waukee and more. We’ve worked with Jenna since the beginning of our art advisory business in 2012 and it’s been a privilege seeing her mural portfolio expand so rapidly. Her most recognized murals include vibrant florals and beautiful lettering—including the Parker Apartments on 7th street and The District in Ankeny!
Parker Apartments, Des Moines
Parker Apartments, Des Moines

We also now represent Jenna Brownlee at the gallery and her canvas florals are just as stunning. From 10 inch to 10 foot flowers, it’s interesting to learn more about her process!

Jenna Brownlee, Lush, Acrylic on canvas, 30 x 40 in, $1200 ($120/mo)
Jenna Brownlee, Lush, Acrylic on canvas, 30 x 40 in, $1200 ($120/mo)

How do you capture all the inspiration you come across on a daily basis?

I love to paint flowers, so I get most inspiration from things I see in nature. If I stumble upon the perfect flower-form in-person, I make sure to snap a pic on my phone and keep a digital catalogue. I also scroll online and have books on flower arrangements to search for the right shape or composition of the subject I am looking for.
Jenna's sketch process
Jenna's sketch process

Do you do a lot of preliminary work in your sketchbook, or do you allow the piece to take shape while you're working on it? 

Having a reference and mockup works well for me. I primarily sketch as a part of the creative process for a specific project and have different methods depending on the concept and how flushed out it is in my mind—with pencil on paper, a digital sketch or a collage in Photoshop whether it's a graphic design piece, watercolor, canvas or mural.
Jenna's sketch process using digital mock-ups
Jenna's sketch process using digital mock-ups

How have the contents of your sketchbooks changed throughout time? 

My methods, subject matter and mediums have evolved a lot over the last 5 years but there's still continuity with how I bring an idea to life with pencil on paper. There's beauty in the simplicity of it ... it feels the most free and flexible.
Jenna's digital mock-up come to life on an interior mural wall
Jenna's digital mock-up come to life on an interior mural wall
Always up to something creative, you’re bound to run into one of Jenna’s murals throughout the Des Moines metro—if you haven’t already! And, when you do—we hope you'll snap a picture, because they make the most perfect Instagram moment.
Wish You Were Here, The District in Ankeny by Jenna Brownlee
Wish You Were Here, The District in Ankeny by Jenna Brownlee
Tina Ehrlich, author
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