Octagon Center for the Arts

Catching My Breath CAMERON GRAY
2022-02-05 - 2022-02-19 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Community Gallery — View from the Sidewalk

Show Statement

Do we have time to slow down? And I don’t mean that Only in the sense of physically, but mentality. Though we are living in a pandemic and things are to supposed to me moving much slower, I feel that is far from the truth. From the multiple Deaths to trials, when have we had time to be at Peace!

Catching my Breath is the visual representation of me finding (or trying to find) that peaceful state through the trauma and chaos. We live in a society where it is not hard to be wrapped up in the sensationalism of the media with Black death being the tagline. That you can get lost in it all. This installation is all about taking and making space/room to breathe.

The gallery space will not be entered after install to allow the Black Spirit to be able to flow and breathe uninterrupted! I truly believe that is what Every Black person deserves and needs!

Bio

Cameron Gray was born in Birmingham, Alabama in 1991. It was growing up in Birmingham when he started to see the effects of racism. He focused on feelings stemming from these effects when he entered his first art class at Auburn University. He graduated from Auburn University in December of 2013 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a concentration in Printmaking. In 2014, he moved to St. Louis, Missouri to work as a press assistant with a printmaker. In 2020, he graduated from Iowa State University with a Master of Fine Arts.

Gray has shown his artwork in solo and collaborative shows, nationally and internationally, including in Cortona, Italy, Oklahoma, Alabama, Texas, Iowa, North Carolina, California, and New York. In 2020, he founded a community-based initiative called The Buxton Initiative where he conceives community-based projects that celebrate Blackness in art, literature, music, and film. His first major project is the Black’d Out Book Library where he is providing space where only Black voices are being heard and felt.

2022 Octagonal: The All Media Show
2022-03-04 - 2022-04-09 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Located in the Community Gallery
Octagonal: The All-Media Show is the annual, juried all-media exhibition at the Octagon Center for the Arts in Ames, Iowa. Originally titled the Clay and Paper Show, the exhibit opened in 1968 to provide an opportunity to the central Iowa arts community. Over the past 53 years, the exhibit morphed over the decades to become the Clay, Fiber, Paper, Glass, Metal, Wood Exhibit that has featured hundreds of artists from dozens of states. The newest version of the exhibit, Octagonal: The All-Media Show, launched in 2018 taking a note from the past while moving forward to continue to provide an exciting opportunity for artists across Iowa, the Midwest, and the nation. This exhibit features a regionally-recognized juror each year, attracts artists from across the United States, and provides significant cash awards.
Join the Octagon staff, exhibit artists, and exhibit juror for the 54th annual Octagonal: The All-Media Show’s opening night reception on Friday, March 4th at 6:00 p.m.! Juror Akwi Nji will announce Octagonal 2022 award winners and share juror comments. Then, join four Octagonal artists in a panel discussion on “Identity and Connection: Art as a Reflection of our Environments.” Featured artists are Natalie Deam, Jennifer Gauerke, Kimberlee Rocca, and Anda Tanaka, who will discuss how connections to their environments – social, ecological, occupational – shape their identities and their artwork.
Octagonal 2022 will be open for viewing in the Community Gallery, starting March 4th at 6:00 p.m. and until April 9, 2022. The Octagon requires proper mask wearing and physical distancing while in all parts of the building.
This event is in partnership with the Ames Community Arts Council. A big thank you to the 2022 sponsors: 10Fold Architecture + Engineering, Cook’s Emporium, Dog-Eared Books, Gilger Designs, Nook & Nest, Sherwin Williams, Z.W. Mercantile, Brown Family Endowment Fund, Huff Endowment Fund, Iowa Arts Council, City of Ames Commission on the Arts.

Awards
Winifred V. Brown Best of Show award: $1000
Media award for each category: $250
Priscilla Sage Fiber Award
Sponsored by: Z. W. Mercantile
“Siphonophore” by Betty Busby
Janet Harris Squires Clay Award
Sponsored by: Cooks’ Emporium
“Socially Distanced” by Hank Hall

Martha Benson Metal Media Award
Sponsored by: Gilger Designs
“Exhale” by Katie DuVal Mihelich

Veronika Ruedenberg Mixed Media Award
Sponsored by: Nook & Nest Ames
“Forces of Change” by Maggie Douglas

Paper Media Award
Sponsored by: Dog-Eared Books
“Stink Eye” by Mattea Whetstone

Glass Media Award
Sponsored by: 10Fold Architecture + Engineering
“Highland Meadow” by Jerene Kruse

Wood Media Award
Sponsored by: 10Fold Architecture + Engineering
“Carousel” by Amelia Currier

Painting Media Award
Sponsored by: The Sherwin-Williams Company
“Beautiful Nymph” by Jess Quinn

Emerging Artist Award
Sponsored by: The Octagon Center for the Arts and Brown Family Endowment Fund
“Untitled (For Nona)” by Anda Tanaka
Winifred V. Brown Best of Show Award
Sponsored by: Brown Family Endowment Fund
“We’re all under the same sky” by Linda Lewis

2022 Juror: Akwi Nji

Akwi is an award-winning artist creating in words, performance, and visual art. She specializes in creative personal narrative storytelling across artistic mediums. Her work and words have appeared on stage from California’s Wine Country to New York’s Fashion Week.
She is owner of Threshold Gallery, an artist-run gallery and micro venue with a mission to support women artists and artists of color in the Midwest; creator of The Remoir Project, a nationwide audio and visual storytelling arts initiative, and a champion of the artist and the arts through her role as producer of multi-media arts events in the Midwest.
Akwi has served as an arts ambassador in multiple roles including as founding executive director of The Hook, an Iowa Arts Council board member, producer of nearly 100 events in recent years, involving more than 300 writers and performers; and advisor of Arts Midwest initiatives.
Her art serves as manifestations of her exploration of race, gender, Black history as American history, and a parallelism of current social issues with their historical and cultural counterparts, tensions between the ‘outsider’ and ‘insider’, and concepts of spiritual and geographic home. As a writer, voice artist, performer, and producer her collaborative partners include Emmy-award winning composers and nationally-renowned dancers and choreographers. She has been an Iowa Arts Council Fellow and, for her efforts in the business community, she was named one of Corridor Business Journal’s Forty Under 40.
Akwi was born in Iowa City, Iowa, and raised in Cameroon, Africa. Her experiences as a Cameroonian and Cameroonian American inform her work as artist and advocate. She lives in the Midwest with her two daughters, the family dog, and her daughters’ cats.
PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND
Akwi’s professional background is in nonprofit leadership, public education, journalism, and strategic communications. Prior to launching her businesses, she was most recently Director of Communications at the fourth largest employer in her county and serving more than 20,000 stakeholders. Her professional expertise uniquely spans the corporate and creative world, positioning her as a sought-after voice on strategic creative communications in the Midwest region.

We would like to thank everyone who submitted work to be juried for Octagonal 2022: The All Media Show. The following artworks have been accepted by juror, Awki Ngi. Congratulations!
2022 Accepted Artworks

Last Name

First Name

Title

Adam

Penny

Sunny Day Window

Alberda

Joanne

Woven Toss

Bauerle

Marcia

Saint Analogous

Brown

Sara Slee

Souls Ascending Green Gate

Busby

Betty

Siphonophore

Courter

Cherie

Buck Run #2

Currier

Amelia

Carousel

Dayton

A K

Larch Creek

Deam

Natalie

Bloom (Invasive)

Douglas

Maggie

Forces of Change

Douglas

Maggie

Where does the time go?

DuVal Mihelich

Katie

Exhale

Eastburn

Judith

Golden Hills #2

Ellis

Amee

Laundry Day

Elshout

Karen

Wild Hair

Flynn

Meghan

Tiger (Lily) Queen

Gauerke

Jennifer

Sister Earth

Guffy

Jill

Mini quilt Aerial Blocks

Hall

Hank

Socially Distanced

Harris

Amy

Ebb and Flow 2

Hensley

Katharine

Seawall

Herren

Kenneth

Shofukan

Joffe-Bouska

Marcia

Rio De Memoria (River of Memory)

Kruse

Jerene

Highland Meadow

Laursen

Annie

Landscape Nesting Bowls

Lehmkuhl

Gayle

Gus, Mike and me: we are from the land

Lewis

Linda

We’re all under the same sky

Lopez

Ana

London Wall

Pasutti

Lynsi

Coil Vessel Part 1: Wave

Piippo

Mariah

Untitled Textural Painting (Size: 16Hx20Wx2D)

Quinn

Jess

Beautiful Nymph

Rocca

Kimberlee

Fish Out of Water

Schnitzer

Amy

The Quest

Shook

Richard

The Magician

Sorrell

Josh

Erupt

Stewart

Lori

Maintaining Equilibrium

Tanaka

Anda

Untitled (For Nona)

Tanaka

Anda

Walking With Amira

Whetstone

Mattea

Stink Eye

Whetstone

Mattea

Tomorrow

Wilkinson

Alicia

Healing Landscapes Series: From Mexico City to the Midwest, USA

Yavorskaya

Irina

Dancing Penguins ’19

Zeitler

Deborah

Three Bowls in a Bowl

Cherish LIZ MOYER
2022-03-22 10:00 - 2022-03-24 17:00 (America/Chicago) | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Located in the Reading Room (Small Wall Gallery).
Show Statement
Cherish (2022) is a collection of interactive soft sculptures that seek to ask “How do we view end-of-life planning?” Death is a universal experience, and yet remains in many ways a taboo conversation topic. These works are derived from questions of why we collectively struggle to talk openly about death and dying, and how that impacts the quality of our death. By shifting the lens of how we have these conversations, from one of discomfort and foreboding to instead an act of love for those around us, these pieces consider what a more communal, open approach might look like. Combining circuit driven interactive elements with traditional quilting aesthetics, these pieces are driven by human touch and exploration. Quilting becomes a metaphor in these works for what end-of-life could be. Life is in some ways like a quilt, made up of pieces or moments that combine to create a whole mosaic of experience; why not treat death the same way? By planning for end-of-life you are creating a warm, comforting legacy to be there when you are no longer able to be.

Artist Bio
Liz Moyer is a graphic designer living in Ames, IA. Born in South Dakota in 1990, she perused a degree in Printmaking from the University of South Dakota, before resettling in Seattle, WA. After several years working in the arts in Washington state, she returned to school to pursue a Master’s degree in Graphic Design. Liz is currently an MFA candidate set to complete her degree in the spring of 2022.

Apricity ISU BFA ISA STUDENTS
2022-04-16 - 2022-04-23 | IA
Located in the Community Gallery

Seventeen Integrated Studio Arts seniors from ISU’s department of art & visual culture will be exhibiting artwork in Apricity, their BFA exhibition, with media ranging from ceramics, painting, metalwork. wood, drawing, textiles, printmaking, photography, and digital media. Students designed the exhibition and decided on Apricity as their exhibition title, which means the warmth of the sun on a cold day.

The Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Integrated Studio Arts focuses on in-depth studio work with an emphasis on crossing conceptual and media boundaries. It is designed for students intending to become professional artists and those planning to continue their studies in a graduate program in studio art.

The show runs Saturday, April 16 to Saturday, April 23, in the Octagon’s Community Gallery. Gallery hours are M-W 10 a.m. – 5:30 p.m., Thurs. 10 – 8 p.m., Fri. 10 a.m. – 5:30 p.m., and Saturday 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. A public reception will be held on Thursday, April 21, from 5 – 8 p.m.

Featured Artists:
Mali Bilstad
Emma Bolles
Kalie Callison
Helen Chandler
Maddison Edwards
Nicole Eppens
Kalli Goerdt
Jacob Graeber
Carolyn Henry
Alyssa Mendoza
Clara Mikovec
Khue Nguyen
Nur Sachleben
Marilyn Schuling
Elynn Tan
Ashley Vance
Nikole Vollmer

2022 Elementary/Middle/High School Annual Student Show
2022-04-30 - 2022-05-14 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Located in the Community Gallery/Virtual
The Octagon Center for the Arts highlights artwork by local elementary, middle, and high school students annually.

2022 Kindergarten – 8th Grade Student Show
See the K – 8th Grade Show virtually! Visit our YouTube channel to see the Show: https://youtu.be/l_N0KeDsDNI

2022 High School Student Show
See the High School Show in the Community Gallery April 30 – May 14, 2022. The reception for High School Show was held on Thursday, May 5, 2022, 6:00 – 7:30pm in the Community Gallery. Our juror announced high school awards and share comments on the show. The award presentation and comments can be viewed on the Octagon Facebook page.
2022 High School Show Juror: JAMIE MALONE
Jamie Malone (they/them) is an Iowan traditional and graphic illustrator who graduated with a B.A. in Biological/Pre-Medical Illustration in 2019 from Iowa State University. They have been working as a freelance illustrator for many non-profits, authors, and schools in the central Iowa area. Their art is heavily influenced by celestial bodies, music, mysticism, and the natural world.
Jamie worked at the Octagon Center for the Arts as the 2021 Curator in Residence.

2022 High School Show Award Winners
Jeffrey L. Brown Memorial Photography Award: “Cue!” by Derek Peng, Senior, Ames High School (Art Instructor: Lindsay Wede)
David Burton Stone Memorial Painting/Drawing Award: “Self Portrait” by Cecilia Moyer, Senior, Nevada High School (Art Instructor: Mark Beauchene)
Juror’s Choice (Sponsored by Ames Silversmithing): “Beautiful Wonders” by Emma Brockman, Freshman, Ames High School (Art Instructor: Lindsay Wede)
Juror’s Choice (Sponsored by Ames Silversmithing): “Starlights” by Emma Hudnell, Freshman, Madrid High School (Art Instructor: Danielle Dalluge)
Juror’s Choice (Sponsored by Ames Silversmithing): “First Night” by Carter Wolfe, Junior, Ballard High School (Art Instructor: Lisa Bell)
Jeffrey L. Brown Best of Show Award: “Ancestry Nesting Dolls” by Lorna Schuckert, Senior, Ames High School (Art Instructor: Lindsay Wede)

THANK YOU TO OUR GENEROUS 2022 SPONSORS:

The Brown Family Endowment Fund
The Stone Family Endowment Fund

Place and Memory CINDY LESPERANCE, CAROLYN ALBRACHT, & JEANINE COUPE RYDING
2022-05-21 - 2022-07-02 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Located in the Community Gallery
Exhibit Reception: Join us at our exhibit reception on June 9, 6-8pm at the Octagon! Come meet some of the artists, see the show, listen to our crowdsourced exhibit playlist, and if weather permits, hang out on the patio and enjoy some light refreshments! Masks are required for events.
Artist Panel: Register here to join a virtual panel event featuring the artists of Place and Memory! Carolyn Albracht, Jeanine Coupe Ryding, and Cindy Lesperance will discuss their artistic process, their artwork that is currently exhibiting at the Octagon Center for the Arts, and how their work reflects on place and memory. Tuesday, June 14th, 6:00-7:00 p.m. CT, Zoom.
Gallery Show Statement: Place and Memory
Sometimes a place is experienced from the ground. Sitting in the window of a rural coffee shop, imagining the lives of passersby. Or walking through the prairie as birds flit from one tall stem of grass to another as the sun beats down overhead. Place is made from the detailed goings on, the minutia, of everyday life within local communities and ecosystems.
Sometimes a place is viewed from above, distilled down into forms, colors, and textures. As the scale expands, the intricacies of place become less important. The composition of the geographies and tone of the topographies as the sun casts shadows across the landscape take precedence over the experiences of the people who live there or the ecosystems those people exist within.
Sometimes a place is built from the experiences had, the relationships created, and the opportunities taken by those who lived there or perhaps those who passed through. Humans bestow emotional meaning. Meaning creates place. Over time, the place is remembered and re-remembered. The remembering is reflective and performative. As memories are made and re-made, the place changes.
The concept of place, or the historical progression of place as an idea, traces back to Aristotle and Plato in Ancient Greece. Plato wrote of place as simply a location, and Aristotle defined place as a container 1. Place can be a physical environment such as a city, town, or neighborhood; a complicated interplay between people and the environment; or, more obscurely, a way of knowing 2. Place is as much a way of knowing as it is a thing in the world 3. With the addition of meaningfulness through experience and memories, a geographical place has a sense of place, or essence, formed by the subjective and emotional attachment that people have to place as profound centers of human existence. 4
Place and Memory is a compilation of three artists. Who come from different backgrounds. Who have different lived experiences. Who, using different media, share their conception of place, and the importance of memory, through their artwork.

[1] Tim Cresswell, Place: An Introduction (Chichester, United Kingdom: John Wiley & Sons Ltd, 2015), p. 25.
[2] Ibid., p. 18.
[3] Ibid., p. 18.
[4] John A. Agnew, Place and Politics: The Geographical Mediation of State and Society (Boston, MA: Allen & Unwin, 1987). Also Edward Relph, Place and Placelessness (London, United Kingdom: Pion, 1976), p. 43.

Biography: Carolyn Albracht
Carolyn Albracht is Associate Professor of Art Education in the department of Art and Design at Wayne State College. She is also owner and director of Blue Cat Gallery & Studio in downtown Wayne, NE. She formerly owned and operated L’eglise Art Center & Gallery in Aurora, NE and taught K-12 art at Hampton Public School in Hampton, NE. Carolyn served as the Visual Arts Coordinator for the Fall Arts & Music Festival in Aurora from 2004-2007, and served on the Fine Arts Board of the Hamilton Community Foundation for ten years. She has been a member of the Nebraska Art Teachers Association since 2008, has served as the organization’s secretary since 2016, and served as the organization’s 2014 Fall Conference Chair in Aurora. Carolyn studied Studio Art and Psychology at the University of Nebraska at Kearney where she earned a BA in 1999. She continued her studies at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, earning an MA in Museum Studies in 2003. She completed a K-12 Art Education teaching endorsement in 2009. And finally, she earned a PhD in Education Studies at UNL in August 2016. Carolyn’s personal artistic and teaching philosophy includes the idea that the arts are a necessity and not a luxury, and so she strives to make the visual arts as accessible as possible to people in her corner of the world.
Find Carolyn at https://bluecatgalle
Biography: Jeanine Coupe Ryding
Jeanine Coupe Ryding’s prints, collages and artists books are in museum and private collections in the U.S, Europe and Japan. Her work focuses primarily on woodcut prints, etchings, artist’s books, collage and most recently, painting. She founded both Shadow Press and Press 928 in Evanston, Illinois for fine art printing and publishing. She received her BA degree from The University of Iowa and her MFA from the Universitat der Kunste, in Berlin, Germany. Jeanine has received various awards and residencies including Illinois Arts Council Award, Arts Midwest Grant, Frans Masereel Center residencies in Belgium and Anchor Graphics residency in Chicago. She taught in the PrintMedia Department at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago from 1991 to 2019.
Find Jeanine at www.jeaninecouperyding.com

Biography: Cindy Lesperance
Cindy Lesperance is an award-winning Chicago based artist who works out of her private studio in the NW suburbs.
Her art has been exhibited in many galleries and museums including: Zhou B Art Center–Chicago, IL, Bridgeport Art Center, 4th Floor Gallery–Chicago, IL, RMU-State Street Gallery–Chicago, IL , Atlantic Gallery–New York, NY, Niza Knoll Gallery–Denver CO, Rockford Art Museum, Quad Cities International Airport Gallery, Freeport Art Museum and has been chosen by prominent jurors such as: Joanne Materra, Kaveh Mojtabai, Fred Camper, James Yood, Aron Packer, Dan Addington, Sarah Krepp, Jerry McLaughlin, Lisa Pressman and Sergio Gomez to participate and earn awards in many juried shows. She has been featured in publications including: EA Magazine, ACS Magazine, Cover or the Journal of Financial Service Professionals and Featured Artist of the Red Dot Blog. Her work is displayed in private and public collections throughout the nation and is on view as part of the permanent collection of the Encaustic Art Institute in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
She is member and Past President of FUSEDChicago (2018-2021), a Chicago Based group of Midwest artists who work in Encaustic and a member of the Northwest Area Arts Council.
Cindy has evolved a personal style that is highly sophisticated and meticulous in attention to craftsmanship. Her process incorporates a technique she developed of applying small droplets of encaustic, a combination of beeswax, resin and pigment, one-by-one to the surface of the painting and exploring the relationship of these drips to the spaces in between them. The overall effect produces a tactile quality that when viewed in person, engages those who encounter it.
Find Cindy at www.CindyLesperance.com

Second Annual Member Show
2022-07-09 - 2022-08-13 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Located in the Community Gallery
This unjuried show celebrates the skills, creativity, and lived experiences of the Octagon community! Let’s fill the gallery and surround ourselves with our own amazing work — established artists next to emerging artists, all media.

The Octagon’s Member Show 2022: Participating Artists

Carolyn

Abbott

carolyntabbott.smugmug.com

Penny

Adam

Robert

Anders

Instagram: @bobsretirementhut

Deb

Anders-Bond

Tiffany

Antone

Instagram: @My_Lil_Weirdlings

Carol

Barrick

Layna

Bentley

Terry

Brigman

Ruthellen

Cunnally

Instagram: @CutandPasteMosaics

Susan

Cunningham

Instagram: @susanacunninghamart

Linda

Emmerson

Google Sites: Linda Emmerson papercutting

Kristy

Evans

Instagram: @kristys_abstract_art

Naomi

Friend

www.naomifriend.com

Cathie

Gebhart

danthefishpublishing.weebly.com/

Lydia

Gebhart

JIll

Guffy

Facebook: Jill Guffy

Rex

Heer

rexheer.com

Jim

Hellemn

jimhellemn.com

Katharine

Hensley

Laurie

Hoifeldt

www.etsy.com/shop/LaurieJaneArt Facebook: Laurie Hoifeldt

Julie

Hughes

Instagram: @juliehughesart

Linda Cather

Johnson

Catherjohnson.myportfolio.com

Connie

Johnson

Letitia

Kenemer

Svetlana

Lubota

Emily

Lupita

emilylupita.com/

Joshua

McCunn

thumbsphotography.squarespace.com/

Sara

Merritt

Instagram: @papercranesara

Jon

Muller

Nicole

Nevels

Facebook.com/Nicole.Tolson.7

Christopher

Norris

Instagram: @hedrawsgood

Susan

Norris

Instagram: @eccentricoldwoman

Hailey

Nyman

Etsy: CourageXConfidence Instagram: CourageXconfidence23

Sasha

Phillips

Instagram: @SashaBlu_Art

Joseph

Plum

emilylupita.com/joeplum

Timothy

Pross

www.ProssWildlifeArt.com

Kyle

Renell

www.kylerenell.com

Kimberlee

Rocca

www.kimberleerocca.com/

Sam

Senti

Skunkriverburls@gmail.com

Richard

Shook

www.dickshook.com

Jill

Sneed

josh

sorrell

www.joshsorrell.com

Kevin

Stow

Robert

Sunderman

www.facebook.com/RobSundermanArt

Kathy

Svec

Barb

Thompson

www.bthompson.studio Facebook/Instagram: @bthompson.artwork

Sean

Thornton

Theresa

Warren

Alicia

Wilkinson

aliciawilkinson.com

Kelsey

Wilson

www.kelseywilsonstudio.com

Norma

Wolff

Irina

Yavorskaya

ArtPal.com/impressionsByIsy

Tom

Zimmerman

Member Show artists respond to the question,
“What does Octagon membership mean to you?”
“The Octagon thanks each of its members and patrons when we all should be thanking them for being here! In my opinion, The Octagon has become the cornerstone of the art world in Ames, Iowa. Through their hard work they have moved the arts forward in such a way that the lives of the community members has become enriched in many ways.” – Penny Adam

“Art is important, it feeds our souls and helps us find our place in the world. The Octagon, by nurturing artists all ages, enriches the fabric of life in Ames.” – Ruthellen Cunnally

“Octagon membership is an intentional way to participate in our local creative community, which is invaluable.” – Naomi Friend

“The Octagon has been my safe space to think and create, teach and be taught.” – Cathie Gebhart

“Octagon membership is mutually beneficial: It is gratifying to support the arts in Ames, thereby enriching the broader community. And it is rewarding that the Octagon encourages and supports individual artists and engages those who appreciate art.” – Rex Heer

“My membership means that I have a place to belong in the community. Where I can experience art and create art.” – Katharine Hensley

“The arts are essential to the human experience, and membership is just a tiny way to show support for local art and artists. The Octagon has made dramatic, intentional changes over the past few years and is now I think the most relevant and necessary it has ever been – it is often art that builds empathy within a community, creates space for dialogue, and elevates expression so we can connect to each other in meaningful and transformative ways. I am proud to be a member, and hope to see the arts in Ames expand even more with the Octagon leading the way.” – Sara Merritt

“Octagon membership means that I can partner with and learn from the greater art community here in Ames and beyond in an accessible and accepting space.” – Sasha Phillips

“I get to be a part of a great art organization that I can help support, while it also supports me.” – Josh Sorrell

The Details

Each current member may submit one of their own original works, any media. This is work created by the member.
A simple form must be completed (form coming soon!). Let us know if you need a little help signing up.
This is an unjuried, all media show; all submissions will be accepted (one per member) as long as the instructions, including hanging requirements, are followed.
Traditional hanging requirements must be followed; full instructions for accepted works are here. Let us know if you need to talk about this.
Please label your work carefully with your name, e.g., the back bottom right corner for a 2D piece.
Drop off June 11 – July 2, 2022
The Octagon will not take a commission on any work sold in the Member Show, as a benefit to members. Work may also be submitted as “not for sale.” Work must be picked up August 16 – 20, 2022.
Keep in mind , any artwork that is shown in the Octagon galleries will not be eligible for future Octagonal or other Octagon juried exhibits.

If you want to join next year’s show by signing up for a membership, visit https://octagonarts.org/home/membership/
For further information, please contact us at exhibits@octagonarts.org

Work-In-Progress: Jordan Brooks, Susan Norris, & Lindsay Wede
2022-08-20 08:00 - 2022-10-01 17:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Exhibit Title: Work-In-Progress
Exhibit Location and Dates: Octagon Community Gallery, August 20 – October 1, 2022
Exhibit Description: The Octagon’s Work-In-Progress exhibit will display the behind-the-scenes work of an artist. Artists Jordan Brooks, Susan Norris, and Lindsay Wede will use the Octagon’s Community Gallery as their studio space for the duration of the show. The three artists represent varied media, local artists, and art educators. Through making visible the process of creation, in a public and collaborative space that considers the value of intergenerational dialogue, Work-In-Progress seeks to celebrate art as a dialogic, community-informed, and collaborative professional practice.
Artist Bios and Statements:
Jordan Brooks
Jordan Brooks is a creator and educator. His primary mediums are performance art, pen and ink, and painting both digitally and traditionally. His artistic practice and research explore the development of and commitment to identity, specifically Black identity. Guided by the affirmation, “See yourself, know yourself, be yourself.” Jordan’s creative practice seeks to understand self in relation to the social and physical world. Jordan created KNWSLF (Know Self) to bring his passion for creativity and identity development together. KNWSLF stands for Knowledge, Wisdom, Self Love, and Fellowship. Through all forms of creativity, he explores these four concepts in hopes to better know self.
Artist Statement: Developing imagination creates capacity to imagine and develop a nation!

Susan Norris
Susan Norris, an Ames artist, is a human magpie. Walk with her and you’ll witness her exclaim as she picks up a bit of rusty metal or a shard of plastic. Variety is the spice of Norris’ life from the colors, patterns and textures of her thrifted clothing and garden to the way she sets a table.
She is a scrappy collector and determined connector who can stitch Humpty-Dumpty back together again in a variety of imaginative ways. During the 2021 Ames Artist Studio tour folks asked, “How did you think of so many different ways to put things together?”
Norris is passionate about rescuing discarded objects, likening them to discarded people. The process of finding, sorting and grouping objects inspires ideas for expression through assemblage. Norris is currently experimenting with ways to combine her lifelong love of hand stitching and her newfound interest in mending with found object art.

Lindsay Wede
Lindsay Wede sees her world as a big adventure in art. She teaches art at Ames High School and helps students with their own projects. At home, she tackles creative challenges with her son. Lindsay loves the process of creating art and wants to use it as a vehicle for making a difference in the lives of others.
Visit www.pinzprints.com for more of her work.
You can also find her books at www.lulu.com/spotlight/pinzprints
Artist Statement: Brainstorming with botany, building blocks, bookmarks, books, and more.
Making art can be both refreshing and terrifying. It gives a chance to construct meaning and to release an array of emotions. It is a means to celebrate and rejoice or grieve and offer sympathy. It also offers a framework to pose questions and search for answers.
With art, I can study and share various perspectives and stories. I like to explore all aspects of life, from early childhood to old age. My work swings from silly stories to more sophisticated themes. I constantly think about my purpose and how my work can be used to make a difference. I think about what can be learned, as I am in the process of creating.
My pieces go through constant revision, because I approach them much like I approach life. Art mimics life, after all. As I work, I discover, learn, and grow. Like my art, I am a work in progress. Recently, I broke my finger on my primary hand and had to have surgery. I have been retraining myself how to use my hand and the process has taught me a lot. I have so many different ideas and mediums that I wish to investigate more. That is one of the reasons why I love teaching kids about art- there are always so many opportunities, even with limitations.
I enjoy making bookmarks and books to encourage reading and morals. I like designing building blocks for play and making connections. With the blocks, children can see familiar faces, expressions, and interesting colors and characters. I also am interested in drawing concepts from current events and various times in history together to try to better understand and make connections that are a lot harder to make. I am continually planning and creating with natural materials, as I really see them as the best art supply and a reminder of how connected we are to the earth. I use them to inspire me and make paintings and prints. To encourage my art, I spend a lot of time outdoors, talking with others, reading, taking notes, and sketching.
I hope you enjoy my work and take some time to engage with it. There are some interactive activities and there are books, bookmarks, blocks, and prints for sale. Please write your name in the guest book and add your email address. Please share any comments and questions you may have.

Events:
Work-In-Progress: Open House
Thursday, September 1, 2022, 6:00-8:00 p.m.
Octagon Community Gallery

Join all three Work-In-Progress featured artists for an open house! Jordan Brooks, Susan Norris, and Lindsay Wede will spend the evening showcasing completed and in-progress artworks, answering questions, and engaging with the Ames community to discuss their artistic processes and current projects.

Work-In-Progress: Artist Studio Hours
Visit the Octagon Community Gallery to see the exhibit artists at work!

Jordan Brooks: Thursdays, 4:00-8:00 p.m.; Saturdays, 10:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.
Susan Norris: Mondays-Fridays, 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.
Lindsay Wede: Thursdays, 4:30-7:30 p.m.

Additional Events: TBD

OUT Exhibit
2022-09-01 08:00 - 2022-09-30 17:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
On View September 1-30, 2022
Exhibition Locations:
Ames History Museum: “Selfportrait: Flickering” by Sasha Phillips
416 Douglas Avenue; Hours: Tuesday-Friday 1-4, Saturday 10-4
Ames Public Library: “Queer Family” by Charlie Esker
515 Douglas Avenue; Hours: Sunday 1-5, Monday-Thursday 9-9, Friday-Saturday 9-6
Back Alley House Plants: “The Box” by Ashley Vance
111 Main Street; Hours: Wednesday-Sunday 11-5
Dog-Eared Books: “Social Medium” by Lane Maxson
203 Main Street; Hours: Monday-Thursday 9-7, Friday-Saturday 9-8, Sunday 10-6
Heroic Ink: “Mushroom Abduction” and “Portal” by Jennifer Leatherby
211 Main Street; Hours: Tuesday-Friday 11-9, Saturday 9-9, Sunday 12-6
Little Woods Herbal: “2424 2.0 (June 24th)” by Jameson Malone
136 Main Street; Hours: Monday-Friday 10-6, Saturday 10-4
London Underground: “a hot haven” by Piper Smith
212 Main Street; Hours: Monday-Thursday 3 pm-2 am, Friday-Sunday 2 pm-2 am

Exhibition Statement:
OUT extends an invitation to connect to the LGBTQIA+ community with authenticity. Each artwork was chosen because they bring forward key elements of community building like creation and maintenance or people and locations.
The artwork featured in OUT presents communities in a way that contains abundance, masses, and movements that are neither monolithic nor are they stagnant. A few of the artworks invite you to share specifically in the LGBTQIA+ community in hopes that you will understand and see what we know and hold dear. Other artworks invite you to see the more difficult parts of community: the loneliness, the effort, the isolation, and the need to escape.
By actively engaging in OUT, you are actively engaging in the many levels of community in and around the exhibition. You are building a community with the artwork, with the artist, with the people and places the artist calls community, with the Octagon Art Center, with Ames, and with me. Welcome.

~aj castle, Out Exhibit Juror
Juror: aj castle (they,them,theirs) is currently transitioning from full-time creator of programming and resources to support and advance gender equity in higher education to full-time scholar on the intersection of gender and technology. Their specific interests include researching, exploring, and understanding the creation and viewing of digital bodies, digital gender identities, power disparities in social media and user generated content, and the gamification of relationships. Their current multi-media works in progress include an analysis of the technologies of gender in sci-fi/horror films, a body horror short story, and various assemblages of found objects that speak on transitioning and expanding gender.
Artist Bios and Statements:
Charlie Esker – behance.net/profile/charlieesker; @charlieesker
Hello! My name is Charlie Esker (they/she), I am a nonbinary artist born and raised in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. I moved to Ames to study Integrated Studio Art at Iowa State and now work as a full-time artist!
Artist Statement: Often, queer people’s stories get told for them. Whether it be by their families or by the media, queer people hardly get a narrator role when it comes to our own struggles. My art is my way of telling my story and working to heal my trauma through the artistic process. Most of my work revolves around my experiences as a transgender person, both internal and external. Inviting the viewer into my story; whether that be to connect with other queer individuals, or allow non-queer viewers a chance to see queerness through a queer person’s perspective. I strive to depict queer people in all our diverse, divine, glory.

Jennifer Leatherby – @jenleatherbyart
Jennifer Leatherby is a queer multimedia artist who lives in Des Moines, Iowa, USA. She was adopted at a young age and grew up in a town of population 200 in rural Iowa. Her work explores themes of gender, mental illness, death, nature, and escapism. She visualizes her themes through abstract painting and fiber art and with symbolism of black holes, surveilling eyes, hands, psychedelic landscapes, celestial bodies, otherworldly plants & animals. Her work includes drawing, painting, fibers, digital, video, performance, and sculpture.
Artist Statement: My work reflects my life through a mirror of fantasy and abstraction. I am interested in every day connections and contradictions. I explore the time between our first breath and our last breath, after our breath has ended, the space between breaths, and the things that take our breath away.

Jameson Malone – jamiemalone.com; @artbyjmalone
Jameson Malone is a 25 year-old multidisciplinary artist who graduated from Iowa State University with a BA in Biological/Pre-Medical Illustration. They create in various mediums, most commonly known for their digital and acrylic works. Malone is heavily inspired by celestial bodies, musicians, the occult, and the natural world. While infused with themes found in traditional art, their pieces often focus on the understanding of oneself within gender, sexuality, and mental illness.
Jameson is currently located in Des Moines, IA. This is the the ancestral, unceded land of the Báxoǰe (Bah Kho-je) or Ioway, Sauk (Sac), and Meskwaki (Fox) peoples. The Meskwaki Nation settlement is located in Tama, IA, and you can read more at www.meskwaki.org/
Artist Statement: I seldom depict more than one subject at a time in the pieces I create because much of my childhood was spent in isolation. Contemplating how the loneliness of childhood isolation has impacted and informed my young adulthood, I’ve seen how the pieces I create can often reflect the feelings, passions, or subconscious rhetoric that individuals in the community often feel as well. We so often feel we go through hardships alone, but as we reach out to those we care for, often the currents of time are having us flow in the same wave.
Proceeds from this piece will be donated to the Iowa Trans Mutual Aid Fund.
Lane Maxson – maramaxson4.wixsite.com/lanemaxson
Art has been incredibly influential to Lane throughout his life, though it wasn’t until a few years ago that he really started to enjoy and grow in his art. Within the last year, Lane has been able to reflect on past traumas and experiences, which can often be reflected in his work. Through this work, Lane hopes his art can open windows to help others with their own past traumas.
Artist Statement: As a twelve year old, downloading Instagram for the first time seemed like an exciting opportunity. Five years later, my views on social media are far from exciting. From a young age, the importance of likes and followers was forced into my brain and eventually became the only thing I was focused on. With each post, I gained more likes, fueling that need for approval. Before coming out, I wanted to be “good enough” online, and I feared rejection from others if I were to come out. I thought my entire life was based on my presence and popularity on social media. After coming out, my likes dropped, and eventually I started to realize how damaging my mindset had been. Portraying the ‘real’ me opened a new window of healing for me. I learned that you shouldn’t hold back or hide yourself for the approval of others.
Sasha Phillips – @sashablu_art
Sasha Phillips (They/Them) is a Disabled, Non-binary & Queer Artist living in Iowa. They were trained in traditional art mediums under Painter Dixie Schwisher and continued to pursue art on their own over the next 20 years. Specializing in Oil, Acrylic and Graphite they prefer a surrealist approach to art, exploring how nature, the macabre and the fantastic can tell stories about the human experiences of grief, joy and reinvention.
Artist Statement: I create art that blurs the lines between realism and surrealism, between the binary of life and decay. I use acrylic in this piece for its bold opaque pigment to heighten contrast and emphasize that the light of self knowledge and community cannot fully blot out the pressure of our socialization, systemic structures and internal doubts. Freedom is a process, a sometimes ugly, exhausting process, even within a supportive community, when safety isn’t a guarantee. Light is still light, but it can easily be snuffed out.
Piper Smith – @paintdbypiper
Piper Smith is a recent graduate of Iowa State with a Bachelor’s Degree in Performing Arts. She loves to utilize the arts, especially theatre, to contribute to her community and elicit positive change. She also loves painting and the ability it gives her to express herself. She is just getting started as a professional, so she hopes this exhibit can open new doors to her future.
Artist Statement: I feel that I am my most authentic self when I am able to interact with other trans people. It’s not that I can’t be authentic with people who aren’t trans, but there is something special about connecting with people who understand me on an even deeper level. Through my art, I can bridge that gap. Having a medium and also a platform with which to express myself allows me to tell the stories of my experience as a trans woman in a way that can better connect to those who aren’t trans. I believe the greatest struggle for cisgender people understanding trans folks is simply that the stories of trans people aren’t told enough. Even when they are told, it may not always be done by trans people themselves. When trans people aren’t granted ownership of their own stories, the narrative tends to shift into one that demonizes and lies about us. It is vital for us to tell our own stories for us to find that beloved connection, belonging, and authenticity.
I chose peppers for this piece not only because I think they’re delicious, but because they show us a wide array of beautiful colors, shapes, and sizes. Peppers are spicy, yet so are the connections I find with the people in my communities. Just as I am enamored with spicy peppers, I am with the spiciness of my own relationships.
Ashley Vance – @ashleyvance.studio
My work as a printmaker and mixed media artist focuses on issues of social justice and feminism, specifically. As a queer woman I use my experience to inform the work that I put into the world for purposes of awareness and validation.
Passionate about both art and issues of human rights, I combine these to bring awareness of different social justice topics and to validate the experiences of those that are “othered” in society. I use my education in printmaking and women’s and gender studies to create a line of connection and communication from the marginalized to the privileged to further inform those who do not understand, and to stand up for those who cannot stand for themselves. By using methods of printmaking, which is the medium of communication and mass production, I can spread my message to a much larger audience.
Artist Statement: I work with printmaking and mixed media in my work to spread messages of feminism and social justice. The processes I use are primarily print media based, where I use an image to create a printing substrate to create the ability to create multiples of one piece. With my work purposefully spreading messages to the masses, the ability to create multiples is vital to my process and my goals as an artist and activist. By photocopying and resizing my works to make them more accessible, I am furthering my goals of making art for the people; all people.
Events:
Out Exhibit Walking Tour: Thursday, September 8, 2022, 5:30-6:15 p.m.
Join Dr. Ruxandra Marcu, director of ISU’s Margaret Sloss Center for Women and Gender Equity, and Dr. Susan Harper, director of ISU’s Center for LGBTQIA+ Student Success, for a walking tour of the Out exhibit. Dr. Marcu and Dr. Harper will host the tour, offering their thoughts, reflections, and interpretations of the artwork with community members.
Anyone who wishes to join the tour can meet at the Octagon Center for the Arts at 5:30 p.m. Free and open to the public.
Out Virtual Artist Talk: Monday, September 26, 2022, 7:00 p.m. CST
Join juror aj castle and exhibit artists for an informal conversation about the artwork of Out. Register here to receive the Zoom link.

This exhibition is sponsored by the Octagon Center for the Arts, the Center for LGBTQIA+ Student Success, Margaret Sloss Center for Women and Gender Equity, Wheatsfield Cooperative, London Underground, Amy and Jason Popillion, The Women’s and Gender Studies Program at Iowa State University, Tara Fisher and Dave Svoboda, and Dawn Budd.

LAYERS OF REALITY: ANDREW CLARRIDGE AND MATTHEW TERRY
2022-10-08 - 2022-11-12 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Artist Statements
Andrew Clarridge

“My work is an endeavored process culminating out of experiences many or all of us have had in our lives. I like to focus on an array of issues such as technology and its psychological effects, enslavement, love, loss, death, renewal, enlightenment and empowerment. These are broad topics that have deep historic layers from which to sift through. The “layers” of inspiration are ambiguously related to the layers I build up in each piece. The digital work incorporates up to 50 layers or more of blending, mirroring, breaking apart, color correction etc. This work is derived from hand made pieces involving wildly vivid and bright colors, wood burned matrices and geometric form interplayed with organic counterparts. In both computer generated and hand-made pieces (sometimes both in one) the colors and forms are created to coexist with each other in a harmonious dance that often resonates with music I may be listening to at the same time.”

Matthew Terry
Life is expression; and from a young age Matthew has fully embraced this expression. Lost within his surroundings, at 16 he found photography, and through this medium he developed a way to connect with other individuals who also felt a similar level of detachment. By combining subjective perspective with universal appeal Matthew has found unique ways of questioning not only the identity of who we are, but also how we interact & relate to that which surrounds us. Whether he’s capturing a Landscape, Architecture, or the Human Form, his work challenges the relation of inherent truths & fiction that occur in our existence. Utilizing contrasting tones, and a distinctly deliberate perspective influenced by combining the conscious and subconscious as a means to question reality, Matthew showcases conceptual photos which evoke a level of detachment subtle enough for most people to connect with. It is through this connection that Matthew proves on a perceptual level just how related we actually are.
About the Artists
Andrew Clarridge is from Story City, and graduated with a BFA in 2009 from Iowa State University. Andrew has exhibited work with the artist group Paintpushers and also independently around central Iowa since 2010. Currently, Andrew creates work out of Mainframe Studios in Des Moines, and has an open studio where he demonstrates and discusses his work every first Friday of the month.

Matthew Terry is a Fine Art Photographer and graduate of the Academy of Art University, where he attained his BFA-Photography with a focus in Fine Art Photography in December of 2014. Currently located in the Davenport Iowa/Quad City area, Matthew picked up his first film camera in 2004 at age 16, and since has exhibited and sold work at galleries in Rome, San Francisco, and Minneapolis, among others. Additionally seeing work published both Nationally (Iowa, Vermont, New York, Atlanta) and Internationally (Italy, England). Growing up in the Midwest, he long felt alienated in both a physical and mental sense. Lost within his surroundings he found photography, and through this medium he found a way to connect with other individuals who also felt a similar level of detachment.
Recently featured in the Iowa 175th Anniversary edition of The Annals of Iowa and a featured guest at the 2021 Celebrate Iowa Gala, Matthew is a quickly emerging talent from the Eastern edge of Iowa attempting to change up the perception of what Midwestern/Iowa art has traditionally represented.
Exhibit Event
Layers of Reality Artist Talk with ISU Alum, Andrew Clarridge
Wednesday, November 2, 4:30-5:30 p.m.
Octagon Center for the Arts Community Gallery
Free and Open to the Public
Masks Required
Join artist Andrew Clarridge, an alum of ISU College of Design and a featured artist in the Octagon Center for the Arts’ Layers of Reality exhibit, for an artist talk on November 2nd. Andrew will talk about his exhibit artwork and artistic process, as well as answer questions from students and community members.

Layers of Reality: Andrew Clarridge and Matthew Terry is sponsored by the Department of Art and Visual Culture at Iowa State University and PhotoSynthesis.

WHAT'S THE BUZZ? [explorations in handmade paper]: Dawn Wohlford
2022-11-19 - 2022-12-24 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Artist Statement:
I could be the Poster Child for the slogan “Reuse, Reduce, Recycle.” Handmade paper is the basis for the majority of my artwork, but I often incorporate, weave or build using other found materials. I use old clothes, dead plants, shredded money, and items such as old doormats (made of natural fibers) to make paper pulp. I cast or incorporate pieces of rusty metal, vintage glass, bicycle inner tubes, leather and anything else that catches my eye. Pieces are often finished with pigment to achieve the appearance of metal.
My approach to art making is methodical. Each piece is carefully planned and goes through several time intensive processes before reaching its final state. Each stage informs and alters the finished piece. The finished piece aspires to be both a beautiful object and a thought provoking or humorous reflection.
Most recently, the plight of bees, as well as the construction of their hives (which is a form of papermaking) has captured my interest. Recent pieces reflect thoughts about the structure of beehives and how they are similar to human homes as not only a supposedly safe haven, but a place to work and create.
About the Artist:
Sculptural paper artist Dawn Wohlford discovered handmade paper during a National Art Educators conference in 1983, while she was a junior at Truman State University. She returned to college and read everything she could find about making paper, then began experimenting with handmade screens, an old blender and recycled paper, using her bathtub as a vat. Using these crude supplies, she was able to create art for her Senior Show and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree. Still obsessed with creating art with paper pulp, she chose to attend Arizona State University to learn hands on from one of the authors whose book she had studied. With her new skills, she moved to Colorado and became an apprentice to Raymond Tomasso, an internationally known artist. She gave workshops in Vail and Leadville and produced 150 sheets of nearly identical denim papers for a limited-edition book, Strange Papers, that was assembled and bound in Germany. At the same time, she attended the University of Colorado and earned an MFA in sculpture in 1988. She moved back to her hometown in Iowa in 1998 and she became the Visual Arts Director for Quad City Arts, a nonprofit organization. She oversees two art galleries and a public sculpture program. Additionally, she serves on the Acquisitions Committee for the Figge Art Museum and teaches papermaking at Gilda’s Club. After caring for her home & family, she creates art in the wee hours of the night. She consistently exhibits her work in regional exhibitions.

[unTITled]: how a breast cancer survivor learned to say goodbye to her boobs
2023-01-05 - 2023-01-21 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
[UNTITLED]: how a breast cancer survivor learned to say goodbye to her boobs
Octagon Center for the Arts Community Gallery
Curated by Tiffany Antone and Vivian M. Cook
Note that, in order to protect our community — and especially high-risk members of our community, such as cancer patients — masks will be required in the gallery and during all events for this exhibit. Thank you!
Content warning: This exhibit (and accompanying performances) features some strong language and nudity, including photos from Tiffany’s mastectomy and radiation treatments.
January 5-21, 2023:

Exhibit on display in the Octagon Community Gallery

Co-curated with Tiffany Antone, who recently went through breast cancer and a double mastectomy, this exhibit will offer space for community, connection, and healing through conversations around breast cancer and breast removal. Tiffany, and a community of artists with shared experiences of breast cancer, will showcase visual, literary, and performance artwork, and the Octagon will invite community members to participate in interactive art-making opportunities. This exhibit will interrogate our cultural obsession with breasts, bring light to the sometimes fraught (and oft-times under-realized) connection we have to them, and give voice to the myriad complicated feelings that comes with letting them go.
From Co-Curator and Featured Artist, Tiffany Antone:
In fall of 2021 I had my first ever mammogram, which led to a breast cancer diagnosis and a double mastectomy. Facing down the time-crunch of having to decide very quickly whether I wanted to also have reconstructive surgery, I found myself confronting an internal stew of contradictions. I discovered that my relationship to my breasts was much more complex than I realized, and while having them removed was the correct health-wise course to take, reconciling myself to this new, now-altered, body has been a very tortuous experience. It is the complexity of this journey which left me yearning for ways to connect with others not only about breast cancer, but also about what breasts mean to them and what our breasts (or lack thereof) mean to the people around us.
Octagon Class Discounts!
During the run of this exhibit, breast cancer patients, previvors, and survivors will receive a 20% discount on the purchase of an art class at the Octagon. Register in- person or call the Octagon Shop (515-232-5331) between January 5 – 21 to receive the discount. (Youth art camps excluded.)
Saturday, January 7, 2023:

10:30-11:45 AM: Soulful Healing Yoga

Octagon Dance Studio

Join Melissa, founder of Soulful Healing Yoga, for a restorative yoga practice. This type of yoga is rooted in supporting the health of the body and the brain – rewiring functions of the nervous system – by enhancing the ability to reduce stress and process it; boosting the immune system; reducing muscle tension – imagine a sense of completely being able to let go! – and providing tools to learn how to relax and self-soothe. Each shape will be held in a supportive manner with no muscular strength required.
Combine this with yoga nidra, a “yogic sleep” in which the practitioner is in a state of consciousness between wake and sleep that allows for complete physical, mental and emotional relaxation. By allowing your physical body to fall into deep relaxation, you’ll withdraw from your senses and the world around to sink into greater inner awareness and in this meditative state.
This class will have seated and reclined positions, both on the floor. If you have a blanket, pillow or bolster, yoga mat, and blocks of your own, please bring them. If you do not have these items, no worries! Please let us know upon registration and they will be provided for you. If you prefer to do this class seated in a chair, please let us know as well.
This event is geared toward breast cancer patients, survivors, and previvors. However, anyone is welcome to join! No prior yoga experience is required. Please register (for free!) here by January 5th.

1:00-3:30 PM: Writing Through Cancer Meets [UNTITLED]: how a breast cancer survivor learned to say goodbye to her boobs

Octagon Community Gallery

Bring your notebook and pen, and invite your muse to write to writing prompts inspired by the Octagon exhibit, [UNTITLED]: how a breast cancer survivor learned to say goodbye to her boobs.
After introductions and creating a safe space, we will write together for timed intervals. After each session of writing, participants will have the opportunity to read their stories to the group, which is healing on many levels, and a self-care surprise.
This afternoon of writing is led by Ana McCracken, founder of the Ames Writers Collective. For the past year, Ana has led virtual Writing Circle Wednesdays for the William R. Bliss Cancer Resource Center. Writing Through Cancer Writing Circles are inspired by the Amherst Writers & Artists method, which believes that everyone is a writer.
RSVPs for this free event are not required, but preferred. Please email ana@ameswriterscollective.org for questions and to RSVP. Visit ameswriterscollective.org for more information about Writing Through Cancer writing circles.
Quotes from Writing Circle Wednesday Participants:
“I’ve come to regard Writing Circle Wednesdays as an integral part of my cancer treatment. As
much as I appreciate the efforts of my medical team and support from family and friends, I still
feel an “aloneness” in this journey. Writing Circle Wednesdays has proved a convenient
opportunity to air my worries, concerns, hopes and fears that only another cancer patient can
truly fathom. It is a safe space to share insights, tears, and laughter.” —NJ

“This has helped with chemo brain SO MUCH.” —KG

“Living with cancer is a lonely journey. Only those who have been or are on that same journey
truly understand the emotions, fears and challenges we face each day. I was hoping to gain some
insight into how others coped with their diagnosis. I not only gained that, but also came to
understand more fully my own reactions to my personal cancer story. This was a valuable
experience for me. I don’t feel quite as alone as I did.” —PP
Thursday, January 12, 2023:

7:00-8:30 PM: An [UNTITLED] Performance

Octagon Main Gallery
Join Tiffany, and a host of talented artists, as they share an uncensored look at their breast cancer experiences through poetry, short plays, narrative essays, and a dash of stand-up comedy. Told with humor, heart, and sincerity, this performance offers audiences an opportunity to connect more deeply to the artists’ journeys, and one another.
Image: “Heavy Lift” by Tiffany Antone.

Saturday, January 14, 2023:

1:00-2:30 PM: An [UNTITLED] Performance

Octagon Main Gallery
Join Tiffany, and a host of talented artists, as they share an uncensored look at their breast cancer experiences through poetry, short plays, narrative essays, and a dash of stand-up comedy. Told with humor, heart, and sincerity, this performance offers audiences an opportunity to connect more deeply to the artists’ journeys, and one another.
Image: “Heavy Lift” by Tiffany Antone.

3:00-5:00 PM: Make Your Own Boob Prints! Craft Day

Octagon Dance Studio
Before Tiffany’s mastectomy, she created an inkprint of her breasts, and she’s so glad she did! Tiffany’s inkprint is featured in the Octagon Community Gallery, and she invites community members to create their own breast-prints! This event will take place in the Octagon Dance Studio, with a private room available for individuals to actually create a print they can take home with them. Tiffany will provide guidance throughout the process!
Anyone who wants to create a breast-print is welcome to join!
We particularly want to invite breast cancer patients, survivors, and previvors to register for this event. All boobs are welcome, but please note that Tiffany tried this on her reconstructed boobs, and it was a little more challenging.
Please register (for free!) here by January 13th.
Image: Inkprint by Tiffany Antone
Questions about the exhibit? Email curator@octagonarts.org
Looking for some resources related to cancer screening and awareness?
Check out Iowa Cancer Consortium and the William R. Bliss Cancer Center.
Some additional helpful resources recommended to us:
American Cancer Society
LGBTQ+ Guide for Cancer Screening
An article from the American Cancer Society about racial disparities in breast cancer statistics
Thank you to our exhibit artists:
Tiffany Antone, Marla Andich, Summer Awad, Diana Burbano, Pamela Crouch, Hilde DeBruyne, Sharon Goldner, Carolyn Krueger, Kimberly Kruse, Amy McEntaffer, Molly McGuire, Karen Murphy, Connie Mutel, Angela J. Olney, Kelly Marie Schaefer, Rowen Schussheim-Anderson & Students at Augustana College
Art 253 Fiber Sculpture Class, Gaye Shannon-Burnett, Jill Sneed, India Snow-Watt, Mónica Toro Lebrón, Megan Wassom

Thank you to our exhibit photographers:
Kamaura Kim (ArtForce Iowa) and Alyson O’Hara
Thank you to our exhibit partners:
Ames Writers Collective, Iowa Cancer Consortium, NormaLeah Ovarian Cancer Initiative, Soulful Healing Yoga, and William R. Bliss Cancer Center

Thank you to our exhibit funders:
City of Ames Commission on the Arts, Humanities Iowa and the National Endowment for the Humanities,* and Mary Greeley Medical Center.
The Octagon Center for the Arts is also supported by the Iowa Arts Council and Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs.

*This program is supported by Humanities Iowa. The views and opinions expressed by this program do not necessarily reflect those of Humanities Iowa.

Snáithín Bainneanach/Feminine Fiber
2023-01-30 08:00 - 2023-02-25 17:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Snáithín Bainneanach/Feminine Fiber — Exhibition by Cynthia O’Hern
January 30th – February 25th 2023
A new fiber exhibition by Cynthia O’Hern will be exhibiting from January 30th to February 25th in the Community Gallery!

Cynthia O’Hern is a figurative fiber artist who utilizes the process of feltmaking to create figure and form by coaxing wool fibers into solid cloths of felted wool. She is drawn to the medium of felt for its tactile nature; its slow, conscious process; and its latent expressive potential.

Upcoming event dates:

January 30th – Exhibition opening day
February 2nd – 5:00pm Artist talk at the Community Gallery

Octagonal 2023: The All Media Show
2023-03-03 08:00 - 2023-04-08 17:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Octagonal: The All-Media Show is the annual, juried all-media exhibition at the Octagon Center for the Arts in Ames, Iowa. Originally titled the Clay and Paper Show, the exhibit opened in 1968 to provide an opportunity to the central Iowa arts community. Over the past 54 years, the exhibit morphed over the decades to become the Clay, Fiber, Paper, Glass, Metal, Wood Exhibit that has featured hundreds of artists from dozens of states. The newest version of the exhibit, Octagonal: The All-Media Show, launched in 2018 taking a note from the past while moving forward to continue to provide an exciting opportunity for artists across Iowa, the Midwest, and the nation. This exhibit features a regionally-recognized juror each year, attracts artists from across the United States, and provides significant cash awards.

CLICK HERE to visit the Octagonal Page

Exhibit Timeline

Applications Open: Dec 2, 2022
Applications Close: Jan 15, 2023, 11:59 pm
Notification of Jury Results: Jan 25, 2023
Artwork Delivery/Drop-off Deadline: Feb 18, 2023*
Exhibit Opening/Reception: March 3
Exhibit Closes: April 8
Artwork Pickup Dates: April 10 – 14, 2023
Artwork Ship Dates: April 17 – 21, 2023
*All artwork must be received by February 18, 2023. Dropoff only on weekdays (in-person)or via mail.

2023 Juror: Ash Hanson

Ash Hanson has 15 years of experience working with rural communities to activate stories, connect neighbors, and exercise collective imagination.
She is the Executive Director of the Department of Public Transformation (DoPT), an artist-led nonprofit working at the intersection of creativity and civic life in rural communities; the founder of PlaceBase Productions, a theater company that creates original, site-specific musicals celebrating small-town life; and, a member of the Center for Performance and Civic Practice Leadership Circle. Previously, she was the Program Director for the Minnesota Theater Alliance, serving the statewide performing arts community, and the Program Director for Public Art Saint Paul, producing large-scale public art events and experiences.
She was an Artist-in-Residence in the City of Minneapolis Planning Department and with the Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership, where she employed creative community engagement strategies for equitable participation in urban and rural planning processes. She holds an MA in Applied Theater with a focus on Rural Community Development, and she was named an Obama Foundation Fellow and a Bush Fellow for her work with rural communities. She believes deeply in the power of play and exclamation points!
Click to visit Ash Hanson’s website

Below are the accepted artists for 2023. Congratulations!

Last Name
First Name
Title

Arp
Jordan
Heart of Gold

Arp
Jordan
Red, White, BOOM

Busby
Betty
Don’t Touch Me

Busby
Betty
In the Beginning

Cooper
Karen
Doing Fine.

Deam
Natalie
Skullwreck

DuVal Mihelich
Katie
How Do I Say Goodbye?

Freese
Robert
Original Social Post

Gauerke
Jennifer
Comfortmaker

Hardy
Michele
Circles #51

Hoyt
Summer
The Spring of Fortitude

Huffman
Angie
Saturday

Joffe-Bouska
Marcia
RIO DEL OLVIDO (river of forgetfulness)

Kruse
Jerene
Peaceful Shelter

Lemons
Jon
Blank Billboard

McKaig
Kelly
Orbits and Excavations: Nine-Patch Orbit

Park
Sangsook
An old diary memory (Brooch)

Petersen
Clinton
Red City

Pfeiffer
Jarred
Twin Columns

prior
Isaac
Blue Folds, Waves

Quinn
Jess
Symphony In Purple and Green

Reeves
Elizabeth
Consumption

Reinhart
Catherine
Inland Surveying

Reinhart
Catherine
Clan Curio

Rocca
Kimberlee
A Stone’s Throw

Roethler
Megan
Dining Room

Shea
Bradley
Over the Hills and Far Away

Simonsen
Richard
NAUTICA

Sorrell
Josh
Generate

staniforth
art
jungle

Wallace
Rob
Eye of the Tiger

Whalley
Tom
Twister

Whetstone
Mattea
Nutshell

Wilkinson
Alicia
Childhood Sky [healing pixel textile painting]

Wollert
Zach
Construct

Zhang
Dafang
Chinese Wisteria

To all artists who submitted art to Octagonal this year, we want to thank you for supporting the Octagon!

2023 Elementary/Middle/High School Annual Student Show
2023-04-17 - 2023-05-13 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
The Octagon Center for the Arts highlights artwork by local elementary, middle, and high school students annually.

GRADES K – 8 (Virtual):
SHOW DETAILS:

Google Form Submission Due: 5 pm, Saturday, April 1, 2023
Virtual Exhibit Opening: Monday, April 17, 2023
Art from Grades K – 8 will be displayed virtually.
Each elementary and middle school student may submit one piece to exhibit.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS:

All submitted artwork must be entered into the Google Form by April 1st at 5:00 pm to be included in the show.
All media will be accepted.
Photographic reproduction of entries may be used or copied by the Octagon Center for the Arts, without further agreement by the artists, for exhibition and/or publication (print or online). Artwork may not be credited in publications due to space limitations.

GRADES 9 – 12:
IMPORTANT DATES:

Show Opening in the Community Gallery: Monday, April 17, 2023
Reception: Thursday, April 20, 2023, 4:00-5:30pm in the Community Gallery. Our juror will announce high school awards and share comments on the show.
Show Closing in the Community Gallery: Saturday, May 13, 2023

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS:

If you are a 9-12 art instructor or homeschool parent and would like to enter your students’ work into the show, please email the Gallery Director to recieve a copy of the complete submission guidellines.
Eligible high schools or homeschool students must be located within 20 miles from Ames.

2023 EXHIBIT JUROR: SUSAN NORRIS

Susan Norris, an Ames artist, is a human magpie. Walk with her and you’ll witness her exclaim as she picks up a bit of rusty metal or a shard of plastic. Variety is the spice of Norris’ life from the colors, patterns and textures of her thrifted clothing and garden to the way she sets a table.
She is a scrappy collector and determined connector who can stitch Humpty-Dumpty back together again in a variety of imaginative ways. During the 2021 Ames Artist Studio tour folks asked, “How did you think of so many different ways to put things together?”
Norris is passionate about rescuing discarded objects, likening them to discarded people. The process of finding, sorting and grouping objects inspires ideas for expression through assemblage. Norris is currently experimenting with ways to combine her lifelong love of hand stitching and her newfound interest in mending with found object art.

QUESTIONS?
Contact: Casey Bridgham, Gallery Director
Address: 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA 50010
Phone: 515-232-5331
Email: exhibits@octagonarts.org

515 Week at the Octagon
2023-05-15 08:00 - 2023-05-19 17:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Monday, May 15th – Friday, May 19th, 2023
Click the above image for more information about this event!

Downtown Ames has a lot of fun scheduled each day from 5/15 – 5/19. On 5/16 and 5/17, help us add some fun color to our patio and paint on our fence and exterior walls!

The Shop will be open late Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday for 515 Week!
Monday special 15% off discount on several artists in the Shop!
We invite anyone and everyone to get creative with our patio fence! Paint will be provided during the evening on Family Night (Tuesday) AND during the 5th Farmer’s Market (Wednesday)!

Party on the Patio - May 18th - Featuring Leo Bird
2023-05-18 17:00 - 20:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Thursday, May 18th
5 PM – 8 PM
Party on the Patio is every third Thursday of the month, May – September from 5 PM – 8 PM. Performers are scheduled to perform from 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM unless otherwise noted. Drinks and light refreshments provided for a donation.
Thursday, May 18th Performer:
Leo Bird
Motivational + Comical Speaker
Performing: 6:30 PM – 7:00 PM

Leo’s website: https://leobirdstandsup.com/about-leo-bird/

The Words He Cannot Say
2023-05-22 10:00 - 2023-06-17 17:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
The Words He Cannot Say — Exhibition by Leo Bird
May 22nd – June 17th, 2023
A exhibition by Leo Bird
Exhibiting in the Community Gallery

This exhibition is a collection of works of Leo’s art accompanied by Leo’s writings.

About The Words He Cannot Say:

I, Leo Bird (b. 1991, Ames, Iowa) was diagnosed with autism when I was three years old and created the graphic memoir The Words He Cannot Say. In this memoir I show how I overcame alienation and bullying, succeeded in my job search, and learned from mistakes through the patient help of parents, teachers, and classmates.
From analyzing my past, I learned how I or someone else could have acted differently so the conflict could have had a better outcome. I write and draw to provide commentary on actions that my peers and I took in the past, without being influenced by any book, movie, author, or genre. My work is life becoming art instead of art imitating life. Some parts of The Words He Cannot Say were written objectively enough to allow subjective opinions. Audiences react to it in ways that surprise me and I learn from the audience. My stories inspire audiences to be kind, self aware, courageous, and adventurous and have debunked myths. The artist I draw like is Alex Katz, whom I had not heard of before artists had analyzed my art. I aim to use a color scheme that creates the maximum amount of contrast between adjacent colors using the minimum amount of color.
I got the idea for The Words He Cannot Say an interview in the summer between my junior and senior year of college in 2013. The interviewer suggested I could teach people about autism. I thought I could do that by using the true storytelling techniques I learned in my Writing Short Stories Class. When I shared my stories, I learned that nuerotypicals (people without autism) and even cats and dogs faced the same challenges fitting in as I did and found the topic interesting, so I shifted the focus of The Words He Cannot Say to fitting in, building talent and character and allowed The Words He Cannot Say to lose the autism theme. This discovery motivated me to write about my life.

Leo Bird’s Website: https://leobirdstandsup.com/about-leo-bird/

Upcoming event dates:

May 22nd – Exhibition Opening Day and Reception
June 17th – Exhibition Closes

Ames Art Walk - June 1st
2023-06-01 17:00 - 20:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
5 PM – 8 PM June 1st, 2023

Here’s who is coming to The Octagon during Ames Art Walk!

⏪ Nathan Moore
Ceramicist, Artist, Teacher
“Born in the Midwest, my journey as a ceramic artist started at a small liberal arts college nestled in the northeast corner of Iowa. There, I became increasingly interested in clay and its power to connect people to each other and art.”

Jordan Brooks ⏩
Multi-Disciplinary
Jordan Brooks (he/him) is a creator, educator, facilitator, and community builder. He is the founder and owner of KNWSLF (pronounced “know self”). Jordan blends creative expression and inquiry with community-centered and student-centered interventions to create developmentally engaging experiences.

⏪ Cyre Empire™
Mixed Media
Provocatively Afrocentric Mix Media

Nicole and Christ Nevels ⏩
Paintings and Mixed Media
Multiple textures and materials blooming with vibrant colors mixed with people-watching, movement and martial arts make each of Mixed Media Christian-artists Christ (pronounced Chris) and Nicole Nevels paintings, drawings, prints, altered books/cards and jewelry a rich, joyful experience with a life-giving message being conveyed.

⏪ Valerie Williams
Pottery
Valerie specializes in bowls that are functional and light, graceful and very usable. She never liked stoneware – too heavy, and she didn’t like the scratchy feeling of the fork on the matte glazes. So when Valerie started throwing clay, she knew she wanted thin walls on her pots and a very smooth glaze. But Valerie found an affinity for stoneware. She loves the malleability of the clay and the communication she feels with the material when she’s throwing.

Ashley Vance ⏩
Printmaking & Mixed Media
Ashley Fay Vance is a printmaker and mixed media artist from Knoxville, Iowa. In 2022, Ashley graduated with her BFA in integrated studio arts from Iowa State University, with a minor in women’s and gender studies. Ashley’s work focuses on issues regarding feminism and social justice and primarily comprises different types of print media. Ashley is interning for ceramics artist Caroline Freese and attending grad school for art therapy and counseling in the fall.

Party on the Patio - June 15th - Featuring Cyre Empire™
2023-06-15 17:00 - 20:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Thursday, June 15th
5 PM – 8 PM
Party on the Patio is every third Thursday of the month, May – September from 5 PM – 8 PM. Performers are scheduled to perform from 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM unless otherwise noted. Drinks and light refreshments provided for a donation.
Thursday, June 15th Performer:
Cyre Empire™
Hip Hop

Cyre bio –

My name is Cyre, I am a Designer, Podcaster, Music Artist, and more. I’m from the south-side of Chicago,IL. I am aspiring to become a torch of light for the youth, to show them anything is possible by planting seeds to blossom a better future for you and I.

Lito bio –

I am designer, rapper, songwriter, self taught music engineer from Libreville Gabon. Growing up I lived in both France and Gabon and traveled around the world with my parents which enriched my cultural background. I want to disrupt the status quo with my design and my music to inspire people to be who they are and not what the society is forcing them to be.

The Octagon Annual All-Member Show
2023-06-26 08:00 - 2023-07-22 17:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
June 26th – July 22nd
Reception: July 20th at 5pm
At the Community Gallery

This unjuried show celebrates the skills, creativity, and lived experiences of the Octagon community! Let’s fill the gallery and surround ourselves with our own amazing work — established artists next to emerging artists, all media.
Reception Event:
The reception for this show will be a closing reception on July 20th at 5pm. This shares the same date as our Patio Party, so there will be a live performance from our musical guest, The Bone People! You wont want to miss it!

2023 Artist List:
Penny Adam, Deborah Anders-Bond, Tiffany Antone, Sherry Berghefer, Casey Bridgham, Terry Brigman, Tina Campbell, Linda Cather, Johnson Caitlyn Chellew, Susan Cunningham, Mark Doherty, Pamela Douglas, Timothy F. Pross, Caroline Freese, Vaibhavi Gala, Jennifer Gauerke, Joe Geha, Jill Guffy, Erik Gustafson, Katharine Hensley, Donna Hoff-Grambau, Carl Kurtz, Kristin M. Roach, Joshua McCunn, Matthew McLain, Diane Michaud Lowry, Michael Moore, Christ & Nicole Nevels, Rebecca Newton, Rosalise Olson, Katy Patterson Phelps, Isaac Prior, Kuntal Raythatha, Kyle Renell, Kimberlee Rocca, Jill Sneed, Josh Sorrell, Tracey Stewart, Kathy Svec, Troy Thomas, Dean Traver, Mark True, Rob Wallace, Alicia Wilkinson, Amanda Williams, Kelsey Wilson, Irina Yavorskaya, Thomas Zimmerman.

Party on the Patio - July 20th - Featuring The Bone People
2023-07-20 17:00 - 20:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Thursday, July 20th
5 PM – 8 PM
Party on the Patio is every third Thursday of the month, May – September from 5 PM – 8 PM. Performers are scheduled to perform from 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM unless otherwise noted. Drinks and light refreshments provided for a donation.
This event shares the same time and date as the 2023 Octagon Annual All-Member Show Reception!
More information about the All-Member show can be found here: https://octagonarts.org/the-member-show/
Thursday, July 20th Performer:
The Bone People
Rock, Jazz, R&B, Spoken Word

Jazz-poet Debra Marquart and her collaborators, Peter Manesis and Anthony Stevens, fuse elements of rock, jazz, and rhythm & blues with poetry and storytelling. The group performs in coffeehouses, bookstores, libraries, colleges and high schools across the country. In live performances, The Bone People move from storytelling to poetry to song, drawing connections between different genres and art forms. Since the group’s inception in 1992, The Bone People have worked to create a sound that blends the lyricism of poetry with the power of acoustic and electric music—to find that small sliver of a world where the two can co-exist without either one being compromised.
The Bone People Website: https://debramarquart.com/the-bone-people/

"Misplaced and Lost" Exhibition by Lisa Lockman
2023-07-31 08:00 - 2023-08-26 17:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
“Misplaced and Lost” Exhibition by Lisa Lockman
July 31st – August 26th, 2023
An Exhibition by Lisa Lockman
Exhibiting in the Community Gallery

Lisa Lockman is an artist and a Professor of Art at Nebraska Wesleyan University where she teaches ceramics and metalsmithing. Her current work – ceramic murals and vessels – is influenced by maternal ancestry and the exploration of new technologies utilized with clay. “My interests in ancestry, specifically the women of my paternal side, and new technologies in art and ceramics have become the major influences in my current work.”

Reception date TBD!

Party on the Patio - August 17th - Featuring King Wylde
2023-08-17 17:00 - 20:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Thursday, August 17th
5 PM – 8 PM
Party on the Patio is every third Thursday of the month, May – September from 5 PM – 8 PM. Performers are scheduled to perform from 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM unless otherwise noted. Drinks and light refreshments provided for a donation.
Thursday, August 17th Performer:
King Wylde
Rock, R&B

King Wylde is an inspiring artist who tastefully blends the genres of Alternative Rock and RnB. With a truly electrifying stage presence and killer showmanship, he is a must see musician.

"Crossroads" Exhibition by Central Iowa Textile Artists
2023-09-05 10:00 - 2023-09-30 17:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Crossroads
Group Exhibition by Central Iowa Textile Artists
September 5th – September 30th, 2023 At The Octagon Community Gallery
About this group exhibition:
“Crossroads” – A place where two roads meet and cross each other. An intersection where a choice must be made, to go straight, or change course and take a new direction. We come to many crossroads in our lives, places where we decide to stay on the straight path, to take the path least taken, or to create a new path altogether. Sometimes life events force us down a path we don’t choose.
The artists who are members of the Central Iowa Textiles Artists have been creating art for many years. They come from varied backgrounds. Although only one member has a degree in art, all have studied with various artists in the field of textiles and beyond, for many years as they honed their own style and process.
Artist List:
Ilene Bartos, Janet Bergeron, Mary Cecil, Barbara Jones, Rebecca Kemble, Sue Kluber, Rebecca Loew, Janet Pittman, Wendy Read, Barbara Riggs, Barbara Stewart, Fern Stewart
Exhibition Dates:
September 5th – Exhibition Opening Day & Reception at 5PM
September 30th – Exhibition Closes
Artist Biographies:

Ilene Bartos –
Ilene has been working with fiber arts and quilting for over 20 years, designing both traditional
and art quilts. Her works have hung in galleries and shows and won various awards and blue
ribbons. She enjoys being a lecturer at guilds and loves teaching others how to make quilts that
are slightly beyond their comfort level or outside the traditional box. Quilting combines her
passion for color with her love of fabric and gives infinite possibilities for creative
expression.Ilene authored two traditional quilt books in 2009 and 2010 but has since been
devoting her time to designing contemporary art quilts and writing patterns for them. She loves
teaching others how to work with bright colors because it makes everyone smile – her motto is to
spread joy, one quilt at a time.
Janet Bergeron –
Textiles have defined Janet’s world since the age of eight. From garment construction,
costume design, quilting, dyeing, and construction, her happiness has always been
found in her sewing room. Her work has been exhibited locally and in a number of regional and traveling
exhibitions, as well as many homes and offices.
Mary Cecil –
Mary Cecil has always had an interest in the arts but never found her niche until she
discovered quilting. As with most quilters, she began with more traditional designs but
then began to see challenges in more diverse forms of expression. Her life in both the
US and Mexico has offered endless inspiration from images of architecture, birds, plants
and more, which she captures with her camera and then brings to life in fabric. Her work
has received recognition in a variety of venues and she continues to improve and
explore textile art making.
Barbara Jones –
For the past twenty years, Barbara has been involved in quilting, primarily in creating
fabric wall art rather than making bed quilts.
Over the years she has sold many of her “fabric paintings” and has had her art
displayed in galleries throughout the US. Her work as also been displayed in magazines
and newspaper articles. In 2006 she started a pattern company of primarily whimsical animals. The patterns are
sold in quilt stores throughout the US, the UK, Australia and Canada.
Her process for many of her art quilt “paintings” begins with a sketch of the motif,
(usually an animal) which is then transferred to the background fabric. The quilt
“paintings” often include various media, i.e., painted or hand-dyed fabric by the artist,
wool, silk, yarn, zippers, buttons, sticks, etc. many of the fabric “paintings” are done
entirely by hand, so each piece requires months to complete.
Barbara likes to bring awareness of the environmental issues facing many animals that
are disappearing or on the endangered species list through her art.
Rebecca Kemble –
Rebecca has always been inspired by her environment, and found joy in creating.
Whether in the countryside, or the city, there is always something that catches her
interest to influence her art. As a mixed media artist, she tends to combine the use of
paint, dye, fabric and stitch to create both image and texture. Her work has been shown
internationally, nationally, and resides in private collections throughout the United
States. Because of her awareness of the world around her, she is also keenly aware of how the
environment is being affected by changes in our climate. Her latest works have focused
on the “little” things that provide so much for our survival.
Sue Kluber –
There has never been a moment in Sue Kluber’s life that did not include art.
Observing all that nature offered consumed her. Love of the changing seasons ,the
wildlife, and a grandmother who lived “by the signs” were treasured inspirations, as
were life lessons from a colorful and diverse cast of talented characters that crossed
her path. She has entered some shows, won a few awards, and sells some pieces,
but the rewards are really the joy of capturing moments that she loves in the art.
Rebecca Loew –
Rebecca Loew is a textile artist living in Grinnell, Iowa. She has been quilting for more
than 40 years, but in the past ten years Rebecca has explored many other areas of the
fiber arts. She has exhibited her work in several gallery shows and has art in private
collections. She has taught Shibori, natural dying, and other textile arts at the Des
Moines Art Center.
Janet Pittman –
Janet Pittman, a quilt artist from West Des Moines, Iowa, has been quilting and
designing as owner of Garden Trellis Designs for over 30 years. Janet’s quilt designs
have appeared in Love of Quilting, American Patchwork and Quilting, and Country
Marketplace magazines. She the author of Appliqué, the Basics and Beyond, Colorful
Quilts for Playful Kids and First Time Machine Appliqué.
Inspiration for her wall hangings comes from photographs she has taken of her own
garden and of gardens and other sites on her travels. She finds that the color variations
in hand-dyed fabric and batik fabric add to the natural feel of her mostly realistic
designs. Many of her quilts are embellished with decorative threads, machine or hand
stitched, to add texture and color to the images.
Wendy Read –
Just as many young children have throughout the generations, Wendy Read became
comfortable with the fiber arts at an early age, from playing with her mother’s button
basket and the fabric scraps that fell on the floor as her mother sewed, to making many
of her own clothes as a teenager. As an adult drawn to the arts, she naturally
experimented with the media she was most familiar with, incorporating exotic and
interesting fibers and materials, paints, and dyes to create her art. Born in Baton Rouge,
Louisiana, she was fortunate to have the influence of several professional and amateur
artists in her family, as well as year-round access to nature.
Her work has been displayed in numerous exhibits and private showings, and has won
many awards throughout the country. While she uses many fiber art techniques, there is
usually extensive thread-painting in her work, where the thread becomes her paint, and
the sewing machine her paintbrush.
Barbara Riggs –
Barbara Riggs has been a fiber artist and art quilter for over 20 years. Having grown up
on a farm in Iowa has greatly influenced her art. Nature is a theme that is very much
reflected in her work. Capturing what she saw with drawings and paintings was what
drew her to the art world. When the paints and solvents had to be put away, she had to
find another medium to continue to create art. Having had a needle and thread in her
hands from a very young age, it was a natural transition to move to fiber art. Her work
has been shown internationally, nationally and in many local and regional venues,
featured in national publications, and received numerous awards.
Barbara Stewart –
Barbara (Barb) Stewart was first associated and greatly influenced into the art world by her
maternal grandmother, who was an outstanding artist, and by her Uncle Harry whose
drawings would have received numerous awards had they been displayed. Unfortunately,
she never inherited these artistic blessing, but was quite crafty and could literally sew
anything. For her, quilting was always a dream to pursue, but that was not possible until her
retirement. However, prior to her retirement, quilting expanded from the traditional style to
include an amazing form of “art quilting”, which allowed more creativity and spontaneity.
Then, with the directive of many exceptional art quilters, books and classes, she was able to
acquire knowledge involving various techniques that expanded her art quilting abilities,
including creation of three-dimensional quilts. Barb’s quilts have been influenced by her life
experiences, by nature, by other artists, by various themes or challenges from art quilt
groups she is involved with, and quite often by scripture. Exhibits of her art quilts have
occurred in various venues and at numerous private showings. Her quilts have also
received awards and have been purchased. Art quilting became a blessing for Barb, always
encouraging her to stretch her mind and imagination to create artistic beauty for others to
enjoy.
Fern Stewart –
Fern Stewart has quilted for the past 40 years. Her early work mimicked the quilt
movement of the time relying on templates, a limited color palette and traditional
approach. She quickly moved beyond those limitations and acknowledged her
independent creative spirit. She has created a number of award winning quilts.
Currently she is working on a series of quilts entitled Urban Development in which
she reflects on the changes to cities due to population growth and developer greed.
Social changes, housing density, loss of habitat and related concerns will be the
focus of her next four quilts.

Party on the Patio - September 21st - Madhyami Deshmukh
2023-09-21 17:00 - 20:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Thursday, September 21st
5 PM – 8 PM
Party on the Patio is every third Thursday of the month, May – September from 5 PM – 8 PM. Performers are scheduled to perform from 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM unless otherwise noted. Drinks and light refreshments provided for a donation.
Thursday, September 21st Performer:
Madhyami Deshmukh
Indian Classical Music

By request of our performer for cultural reasons, drinks and refreshments will be available after the performance! We are encouraging our guests to respect this request from our performer.

"Intersection of Parallel" Group Exhibition by Jen Hem and Julie Russell-Steuart
2023-10-09 10:00 - 2023-11-04 17:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Intersection of Parallel
Group Exhibition by Jen Hem and Julie Russell-Steuart
October 9th – November 4th, 2023
Opening Reception: Thursday, October 12th, 6-8pm
The Octagon Community Gallery
About this group exhibition:

Even as they act individually and independently, the work of these artists cross paths and intersect in powerful ways. Printmaker Julie Russell-Steuart and mixed media artist Jen Hem face off on the parallel gallery walls to tell a story together. Viewers will move through the space they inhabit, pick up the threads and follow them to places of their own.
Weaving themes of voice, activism, advocacy, social justice and mental health, Jen and Julie create an experience together that is only as deep and curious as one is willing to dive in: an of-the-moment snapshot of the emotions and undercurrents of being alive right now.
Jen Hem talks about their underlying themes and experience with mental health, “Depression can be debilitating and painful, literally like you’re bound with your mouth sewn shut. Pulling myself ‘up by my bootstraps’ was impossible. It can be hard to function, sometimes hard to even get out of bed…and it can be even harder to ask for help due to fear of not being heard and being dismissed, but finding yourself—and your voice—is possible”.
Some of Hem’s mixed media works are large, spanning six feet with figurative-based vibrant and energetic images and emotions running through them.
Hem believes that art is a powerful tool for healing and self-expression. They say that the ink “pulls the art out of me, I do not tell the brush what to paint.” This process allows Hem to tap into their subconscious mind and create works that are both honest and raw.
They contrast with Julie’s more restrained and tightly coiled root-like drypoint etchings, some with boundary pushing colors, like textured neon inks and “rainbow rolls.” Her work also draws on a spontaneity of expression and a dialogue with the work. An enigmatic figure and the anthropomorphic root shapes of a small series within delve into storytelling and narrative art. Poem fragments as titles are incorporated using hand-set metal type offer a layer of contextual experience. Other work is more focused on specific time and place like the 2020 George Floyd protests in “Names in Ash.”
Jen’s works speak too with painted words found in shapes, and symbology like locks and birds. Jen and Julie both share the heart as a symbol and vehicle of expression. Together, Hem and Russell-Steuart create an exhibition that is both deeply personal and universally resonant to viewers, especially activists and advocates finding their voice.
Exhibition Dates:
October 9th – Exhibition Opening Day
November 4th – Exhibition Closes
Julie will teach a pop-up letterpress poster printing workshop on Saturday, Oct 21, from 1 to 4pm, focusing on expressing a message with a short intro to protest poster print history. The resulting student prints will be displayed in the exhibition on a resource wall. Sign up for poster workshop here.

Join us for the opening reception on Thursday, October 12, from 6-8pm, to meet the artists and see their work in person. The exhibition will be on view through November 4, 2023.

Artist Biographies:
Jen Hem is an Iowa artist who works primarily in India Ink, and is active in Mental Health Awareness Advocacy, Advocacy for the Awareness of Violent and Sexual crimes, and exploring other mediums through their art. Jen exhibits some attributes of realism, pop art, minimalistic line art, and abstract expressionism. Their art is full of color and infused with vulnerable emotions, and psychological undertones that have developed through their experience growing up in poverty amidst a difficult family life. Jen often says “the quiet part out loud” in their art, as they bring awareness to topics including mental health, consent, sexual crimes, inequality, LBGTQ+ rights, and abuses often not openly discussed.
Visual artist Julie Russell-Steuart grew up in Maryland and earned a BFA in General Fine Art from Maryland Institute, College of Art. Her work encompasses multiple mediums with a particular interest the synthesis of word and image. She publishes artist’s books and prints on a vintage Vandercook printing press under the imprint Caveworks Press. A guillotine paper cutter and seven type cabinets full of metal typefaces and various antique cuts round out her print shop. Her artwork often combines two or more printmaking techniques like linoleum carving, pressure printing, collograph, polyester lithography, drypoint, laser cut plates, metal type and wood engraving. She has shown her work internationally, and her books are collected by several University libraries, including The University of Iowa, Texas State University, and the University of Kentucky Lucille Little Fine Arts Library. She resides in Reinbeck, Iowa, with her husband David, and daughter Venus.

Octagon Winter Market
2023-11-09 10:00 - 2023-12-09 17:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Octagon Winter Market!
November 9th – December 9th, 2023 At The Octagon Community Gallery
About this group exhibition:
The Octagon Shop is excited to announce a temporary expansion in our Community Gallery! From November 9th to December 9th, we will have new work by Shop artists, fun discounts and other surprises!
Stay Tuned!

Exhibition Dates:
November 9th – Exhibition Opening Day
December 9th – Exhibition Closes

Uncontainable Meanderings and Affinities
2023-12-18 10:00 - 2024-01-13 17:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
Uncontainable Meanderings and Affinities
Group Exhibition by Ethan Edvenson and Kimberlee Rocca
December 18th, 2023 – January 13th, 2024 At The Octagon Community Gallery
About this group exhibition:

Exhibition Dates:
Debember 18th, 2023 – Exhibition Opening Day
January 4th, 2024 – Exhibition Reception at 5pm in the Community Gallery
January 13th, 2024 – Exhibition Closes
Artist Biographies:
Ethan Edvenson is a fine artist from Des Moines, IA who creates mixed media drawings. He conveys individualism, humor,
and rebirth through gestural marks, surreal imagery, and storytelling. Edvenson graduated from the University of Northern
Iowa with a BFA in studio art and Art History minor.
Kimberlee Rocca is an Iowa artist whose passion for color, process, experimentation and reclamation merge to translate
her love of nature and modern lines into vibrant and textural 2-d and 3-d abstract works and play sculptures. Works are
created from mixed media and discarded construction debris.

The Music in My HeART
2024-01-22 10:00 - 2024-02-24 17:00 | Octagon Center for the Arts, 427 Douglas Avenue, Ames, IA, 50010, United States
The Music in My HeART
Solo Exhibition by Antonia Ruppert
January 22nd – February 24th, 2024 At The Octagon Community Gallery
Exhibition Dates:
January 22nd, 2024 – Exhibition Opening Day
February 24th, 2024 – Exhibition Closes
Artist Biography:
Chicago-born Antonia Ruppert is an artist, singer-songwriter and educator who has been
painting for over 30 years. Growing up in the Austin community, she creates paintings that
connect people and tell a story. The oldest of six siblings, with no funds to purchase art
supplies, she recalls drawing on discarded paper inserts from her Mom’s stockings. These
humble beginnings have been instrumental in inspiring hundreds of paintings and drawings,
where hope, faith and community are central.
Ruppert was the 2021 Invest South/West Artist in Residence for Chicago’s Austin community
and the 2022 Artist in Residence for the Addison Public Library. Ruppert is an honoree of the
Peggy A. Montes Unsung Heroine Award for Cook County, IL.
Ruppert has been featured in the Museum of Science and Industry Black Creativity Exhibition,
Moraine Valley Community College and the Dupage Art League’s Best of the Best Exhibition.
Her favorite paintings and murals can be found in numerous regional venues including the
Chicago Public Library, Berwyn North District 98 Elementary Schools, University of Chicago
Hospitals, Acorn Public Library, Addison Public Library, Austin Childcare Network, Chicago
School of Professional Psychology, Forest Park Park District, Elmwood Park Public Library,
Grand Prairie Services, Living Springs Community Church, Markham Public Library, Near
North Montessori School, Oak Forest Park District and the Oak Park Area Arts Council.
In 2021, she collaborated with the Office of the Mayor of the City of Berwyn and the Award-
Winning Junior State of America Morton West Debate Club Chapter to commission and speak
at the first Juneteenth Commemoration held in the city. Most recently, she supported the
Mayor of the Village of Hazel Crest and the new 2023 Arts Committee.
Ruppert is thankful to God for her gifts and is the illustrator of a recently published children’s
book —The Place Where I Belong—by Candice Klopfenstein.
Ruppert’s art and music will be featured in upcoming exhibitions at the Harold Washington
Library Center, The Chicago Public Library North Austin Branch Library and now the Octagon
Center for the Arts in Ames, Iowa in 2024.
Ruppert is well known at the frontlines of the artivist community and seeks to uplift her entire
community with artistic expression. Like African American sculptor, Elizabeth Catlett, Ruppert
aims to “do something for the betterment of all of us.”
