LOCATED IN THE MAIN GALLERY Octagonal: The All-Media Exhibit 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 51 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:…

LOCATED IN SWEENEY GALLERY (THIRD FLOOR) Artist Statement Limen may pertain to the sill of a doorway, the threshold itself, or the point at which a stimulus produces a physiological or psychological response. It marks a boundary of perception. The thresholds presented here explore feelings of liminality, and loss. Things emerge and divide, crystalize in time, accrete, stratify, and dissolve. Sometimes they just burn. I see in these material states of transformation a way to discuss inner experience, but I also…

You can see all the details about this important and unusual exhibit here.

LOCATED IN THE COMMUNITY GALLERY (STREET LEVEL) Peggy Johnston Artist Statement My love of paper made it almost inevitable that I would discover the book arts. Since crafting my first books 30 years ago, I have explored bookmaking as an art as well as a craft. I love to be surprised by my work (and usually am). Often, materials that I have collected inspire a piece. What would happen if I sewed a few hundred slide mounts together? How about…

LOCATED IN THE COMMUNITY GALLERY   Kat Silent Water is a printmaker based out of Ankeny, Iowa, working in woodblock and linoleum relief since 2014. She recently embraced the alchemical properties of encaustic painting in her latest body of work, ‘Wax Cathedral’. Silent Water’s inspiration has taken root in Art Nouveau’s celebration of organic forms and cultural anthropology.    Silent Water earned a Bachelor of Arts in Art and Visual Culture from Iowa State University in 2015, with an emphasis…

LOCATED IN THE COMMUNITY GALLERY   About Terry Brigman: After graduating in 1970, I went to work for a local company as a draftsman. In my spare time, I painted, sketched, and created small pieces of artwork that I sold or gave away. Art and the creation of art has wound its way through my life for the next many decades. Four years later, I left drafting and embarked on a career in the grocery business. The pay was substantially…

LOCATED IN THE COMMUNITY GALLERY Artist Statement I explore the intersection of our urban, rural, and wild spaces through artmaking. I am inspired by the love of the land we share in the midwest. My pieces are one-of-a-kind exposures using Cyanotype, combining the photo process with drawn illustrations of farm animals, cultivated, and native species. My work highlights the strength and character of the animals while putting them into the context of our modern lifestyle. Their lives depend on our…

LOCATED IN THE COMMUNITY GALLERY Papercutters Times Three Paper Cutting is a traditional art form practiced in a variety of guises in countries around the world. The three of us found our ways from different directions. Beth was introduced to the Polish style at a Wycinanki workshop in New Mexico. Linda visited a museum devoted to Scherenschnitte in Switzerland, and Lucky grew up with the Korean traditional paper (Hanji) art. All of these influences can be seen in our individual…