The Journey Begins

As a college student money is tight most of the time, and with a down turn in the economy it has become even more important to curb my spending. People always talk about college students' spring break trips and the crazy amount of money spent on excursions to all the corners of the globe. Unfortunately, I am not able to afford these pricy vacations and I began to think about what I could do to experience culture in my own backyard. As I researched my community and university, I came upon the University Museums website and learned just how important they really are. The most impressive thing about the museums on campus is their collection of public artwork. Iowa State University has the largest collection of public works of art of any university in the United States! This fact shocked me and truly made me think... why do I have to take an airplane to see great art? Do I really need to spend a fortune to experience fine art and culture? The answer I came to was absolutely not! Not until I came to this realization did I feel I had something worthy of blogging about. This blog is my journey through 645 pieces of public work on the Iowa State University campus. I will include my opinions, my interpretations, and always a little background research to put the piece in context. Shall we go on a campus tour?



Monday, April 28, 2014

Unlimited Possibilities

Over 25 years ago I rented an art studio in downtown Des Moines. The building has long since been demolished. There were maybe ten other artists renting space there. Some of the other talented artists were Saley Nong who now owns a floral and events business in Des Moines, Sarah Grant who started Sticks furniture store and Doug Shelton who's work I am featuring today, a mural located in Park's Library, titled Unlimited Possibilities.

Doug is a native of Iowa. We met when we were both working at the Des Moines' downtown Younker Department Store. Doug worked as a security guard and I was the manager of the China, Crystal and Silver Department...ancient history! Doug is an accomplished artist who now lives in Arizona but he has done many murals around Iowa, his work is sold through The Olson Larson Gallery in West Des Moines and he is also in the permanent collection of the Des Moines Art Center.
Artist's Comments about Unlimited Possibilities
The title refers to the life of the student as well as the life of the university. In contrast and complementary to the Grant Wood designed murals in the Parks Library which depict mature adults in society, I've focused on student learning activity.
The mural is divided into two sections - on the left is an agricultural setting, and on the right is a classroom setting. This can be viewed as town and country, city and rural, nature and civilization, etc.

Unlimited Possibilities is another fine work of art we can enjoy on campus in the ISU museum collection.


Friday, March 28, 2014

Learning To Fly

Learning To Fly by Eric Sealine

















This mosaic by artist Eric Sealine is made from over 200,000 1" tiles and is 1,395 square feet you can find it in the swimming pool facilities on the first floor of the State Gymnasium. It is also a 2013 CID award winner. The Covering Installation And Design Awards is a competition for architects, designers, contractors, installers, and manufactures to demonstrate creativity and outstanding technical know-how in the use of tile and stone in commercial and residential projects. 

Eric Sealine received his undergraduate degree from ISU. He is a nationally recognized glass artist and now lives in Boston.


The following is Sealine's description of the memory that inspired him to create this mural:

I remember the day I learned to swim. I couldn’t have been more than four or five, and the swimming lessons were not going well. The instructor kept telling us to relax, that we could float, that the water would support us. I sank. I was a scared, skinny kid, blue with cold, and I resolutely sank.And then… I took a big gulp of air, intentionally went under water and kicked off the wall. I pulled up for more air, went back down, and found that I didn’t have to swim, because I could fly… underwater. I’ve loved the water ever since.Learning to Fly is about that oceanic delight we take at moments of great engagement with the world, moments when all our senses are running at 100% of their capacity.

Swimming is my favorite exercise. I love the complete workout, the challenge and that feeling of flying through the water.
By Josianne Ishikawa

Friday, February 28, 2014

Farm House Museum

Welcome to the Farm House Museum!

















The Farm House built in 1860 was the first building on campus and the beginning of Iowa State University. It is open Monday to Friday from noon to 4pm during the school year with limited hours during break times. Anyone is welcome to drop in for a tour and during winter they offer hot chocolate to visitors.  It's a great place to stop in for a visit if you're on campus.

















Here are Farm Assistants Matt and Megan. If you visit the museum you will most likely meet one of them. In this picture they're rolling a quilt as part of an on going renovation project that I've been helping them with. The Farm House Museum has a large quilt collection that has been generously donated over the years.  We measure, catalogue, photograph, label, and carefully roll the quilts with a special tissue paper, then we cover them with muslin and store and hang them on the storage unit you can see in the background.

The Farm House Museum has some quilts by Mary Pemble Barton, one of the most celebrated quilters of the 20th century. Besides here you can also find her quilts at the state historical society and living history farms.

By Josianne Ishikawa

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Library Boy and Girl

This semester has been a pretty busy one. My schedule filled with business classes on topics that don’t come naturally to me, I feel as though these new confusing things have been a real change of pace from my comfort zone. My time in the Museums this semester is giving me some of my only history exposure of the semester. I have been learning a lot about Christian Petersen, and the huge impact he’s had on this campus. The artist in residence for 21 years, his art includes the Fountain of the Four Seasons, Conversations, and many others. The library holds one of my favorite pieces by Petersen, and it has become more meaningful to me this semester.

Much like my semester, the library can be a  hectic place, full of the bustle of students, busily trying to get their work done. Further inside holds an escape from all of this. Walk past Bookends cafĂ©, and immediately the library becomes much quieter. I see the familiar Grant Wood mural, and the two figures that are guarding it. These sculptures were made by Christian Petersen in 1944 as a replacement for lamps that were originally supposed to be in that location. The two figures are so calm and simple. Throughout this year, I have learned a little more about the history behind them. At the time they were made, men and women were in separate classes, lived on opposite sides of campus, and even had a curfew of 7:30. The library was one of the only places where boys and girls could meet without a chaperone. Once you put these sculptures into context, they hold more information. They are shyly looking at each other, so there are undertones of flirtation and secret meanings in their gazes. 




The library's art to me is special in that there are so many images of ISU’s history, covering every student’s experience. In between all this art are the two statues, representing the individual student. My favorite part about Christian Petersen’s works are that he so often captured quiet moments that everyone encounters in their life. The stone isn’t a flashy color, it’s just simply carved in a way that fits its surroundings. I feel like the statues may be lost in between these massive murals by Grant Wood and in the rotunda, but that’s what I like about them. They are two people, focused on their studies (or probably more likely, each other), and every student can project their own story onto them.

Monday, October 28, 2013

Terrazzo Floor, Julie Chang Curtiss Hall



                Earlier this month the new additions to Curtiss Hall were unveiled to the public. Curtiss Hall is home to the Agricultural College, as well as the Anthropology department, sneakily hidden away in the third floor. Having had an anthropology class daily in Curtiss throughout my 3 years here, I’ve been able to see the progress of this huge project.  We are lucky to have a newly renovated building with new classrooms, as well as the Global CafĂ© with plenty of seating and food available for students. Along with these new features, there are some additions to the art on campus collection.
                In my time as an intern with the museums, I’ve learned a lot about how much art Iowa State really has to offer on campus. We have the largest public art collection in the country, which I had no idea about until recently. Once you realize how much art we really have, you start noticing it everywhere. One of the great things about Iowa State’s public art is that every building has art that is applicable to the subject that is important in that building.
                Of the two new art pieces in Curtiss Hall, I’m going to be looking at the terrazzo floor by Julie Chang in first floor. Right in the center of the floor, this piece lines up with the overlook connecting all the floors of the building together, meaning you can see this piece from any floor you are on. I like how the terrazzo flowers and geometric shapes fit together with the material for the surrounding floor. In a lot of ways Iowa State’s Art on Campus is seen without being too obvious, like the other new glass piece lining the upstairs of the Global CafĂ©. The floor is something students will be walking over daily, and hopefully as they walk over the piece they see a new aspect of Iowa agriculture each time.
               

Looking over the new piece, I started looking from the floor above in order to get a complete view. The first thing I noticed is that it’s definitely not an obvious connection to agriculture and its many parts, but as you look at the individual pieces you start to fit everything together. The blue circling arrow was a prominent shape in the piece, it made me start thinking about the Lion King and the whole Circle of Life song. The blue arrow is connecting all of the other pieces of this giant floor puzzle together, and wherever the arrow touches another shape, there is this great layering of colors that make the piece so intricate. There is a mixture of geometric and natural shapes, and a mix of abstract and literal representations of Iowa agriculture. I see images of windmills, which are such a common sight on the Iowa skyline. The flowers and leaves show some of the blending of the colors, while incorporating images of what looks to be soybeans, one of Iowa’s main crops. Animal life is also represented in the floor, with metal inlays of insects and deer tracks.
                Many of the shapes are simplified versions of images that are very familiar to agriculture in Iowa. For those who are in the building actually studying agriculture, all they really need is a simple reminder to bring about thoughts of the plants and processes they’re studying. For the people just visiting, or maybe the anthropology major like myself, it gives us a little more freedom when looking at the floor. There’s a lot more room for imagination with a more abstract image. I love how this work of art is practical, and is hidden away in an everyday space. Combining every aspect of agriculture together in a simple abstract, I’m glad I’ll be walking over it everyday for the rest of my time here.

By Sydney Marshall