If you have not been to Winterset, you need to, and not just to see this gorgeous mural by our very own
James (Jimmy) Navarro! His work is outstanding and we love working with him, and this has to be one of my favorite murals he has done to date.
Jimmy's work spans from small
Plein Air
paintings to large murals that cover and entire wall, and in this mural he was able to embody both of those styles. He has small details in the letters making up
Winterset but overall it takes up a large wall. Winterset is Iowas very own
Stars Hollow and has absolutely beautiful rolling hills on the drive from Des Moines. If you have seen the movie
Bridges of Madison County, it takes place in this beautiful small town.
Kinship Brewing has a whole collection of murals, both indoor and outdoor.
Jenna Brownlee has beautiful pieces tucked into the bathroom.
Curtis Poortinga
has a beautiful piece that was made to look like a paint by number greeting you right when you enter the doors. Curtis says "
I hope this mural provides viewers a moment of joy but also a lasting sense of the calm and peace that being out in nature provides." Both of these amazing artists are local to Des Moines and we are honored to have our artwork next to theirs, because the LLG team painted and designed ( by our very own
Tina Ehrlich
) the mural on the outside of the building! In fact, there is only one mural in the restaurant that wasn't facilitated by the LLG team.
North East from Des Moines about three and a half hours, Dubuque is absolutely full of beautiful public art. It is worth the trip to tour all of the stunning murals and sculptures throughout the city, but I am only going to mention one.
Voices Production has been busy at work making Dubuque an art filled community since 2006 and have a
map of all the murals
you need to see on your next visit. The piece I chose to highlight is titled
America Needs A Hug by artist
Gera Lozano who is actually based out of Brooklyn, New York. She collaborated with
WERC for this project, and together their statement on the piece is as follows "
Goddess of Lighting Astrape brings forth the light, enlightenment on the wings of an eagle, the icon and symbol of higher perspective & prosperity. Her background is a native pattern inspired by art of the Meswaki people. The wild rose, Iowa’s state flower, is also present as a symbol of beauty & nature."
This really does not even begin to scratch the surface of amazing public art in Iowa, we didn't even go west in the state, but these are three to get you started. Explore the place you live and search for art every where you go!
