The Dubuque Museum of Art is pleased to present a new exhibition highlighting the boundless imagination and humor of children’s book author and artist Arthur Geisert. The original etchings from his newest book will be on view. The book will be available for purchase in the museum shop starting August 30th.

Arthur Geisert is the author of over 30 books, three of which have been awarded The New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Book Award. Born in Texas and raised in Los Angeles, Geisert came to the Midwest via Omaha and Chicago. He lived in Galena, Illinois for many years before crossing the Mississippi to settle in Iowa in 2007.

DuMA has enjoyed a long relationship with the artist, whose complete works are among the Museum’s most prized collections. Through the generosity of the Jack and Mantea Schmid Family, Arthur Geisert, and Bonnie Geisert, the Museum acquired all of the artist’s prints, books, and etching plates more than a decade ago—a collection that expands with each new book.

How the Big Bad Wolf Got His Comeuppance is the second book in Geisert’s trilogy of stories set in Clayton County, Iowa where he lives. Inspired by the county’s quaint towns and colorful countryside, Geisert incorporates his fantastical stories into his world. The first book in the trilogy, Pumpkin Island, came out in 2019 and was set in Geisert’s hometown of Elkader, the county seat. The third book is currently in creation and will feature trolls who live under the many stone bridges on the Turkey River, the main tributary in the county that flows into the Mississippi River.

Geisert’s book presents a new interpretation of the legendary three little pigs story. The mother of the three pigs warns them about the wolf, giving them the opportunity to engineer elaborate arrangements to foil the wolf’s plans at every turn. The story is written by Elkader Public Library Director Lisa Wilke Pope and illustrated by Geisert’s intricate etchings.

Click Here For More Information

Image credit:
Arthur Geisert, How the Big Bad Wolf Got His Comeuppance, 2020,
jacket cover, hand-colored etching on paper, 2021.2.1

Founded in 2003 and presented every two years, the DuMA Biennial is a competitive, juried exhibition that recognizes and honors the artistic talent in our region.

Preparations for the 2021 DuMA Biennial began in December 2020 when the call for entries opened to emerging and established artists residing within a 200 mile-radius of Dubuque. Following the jurying process, the selected artists were announced on May 6th and the exhibition opens June 26th. The DuMA Biennial features new work created during a momentous year. It presents a compelling survey of the period and provide a sense of where artists have found the inspiration to continue to create.

This summer promises greater opportunity for visitors to come to the museum to once again experience first-hand works on exhibit.

Click Here For More Information

Image Credit:
Stina Henslee, For Fanny Cassidy, 2021,
Ink, watercolor, spray paint, acrylic, and collage on illustration board, 30×40 in.,
Collection of the artist

The Dubuque Museum of Art (DuMA) in partnership with Voices Productions and with additional support by Trappist Caskets and Humanities Iowa, is hosting a temporary exhibition of Dana Harrison’s I Am A Man mural at the corner of Bluff Street and 8th Street in downtown Dubuque.

The mural is located on a portion of the west side of a building that is planned for eventual deconstruction.

Mr. Harrison is an Iowa native who discovered a passion for letters and characters in the mid 1990s. He studied under Dasc of the mwck’z (Midwest can controllerz) and the late Sazko of the Belgium bombers, and is a member of the Scarce Elements Crew. Fellow Iowa graffiti writer Asphate will work with Harrison on this mural.

The mural is inspired by a photograph taken on April 8, 1968 by photojournalist Bob Adelman at the memorial march in Memphis, Tennessee for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. who had been assassinated just days before. Dr. King was planning to lead the I Am a Man march in Memphis supporting a sanitation workers strike that had begun in February. The workers were striking over their dangerous, low-paying working conditions as well as the racial violence of the era. The man in the image is carrying one of the hundreds of I AM A MAN signs made for the march. Instead of a march led by Dr. King, the man carries it in mourning for Dr. King’s murder.

Click Here For More Information

Photo credit: Bob Adelman

The much anticipated K-12 exhibition of artwork from students in the Dubuque Community and Holy Family schools occurs each spring. Biennially, the Museum hosts an exhibition of work by City high school students. Because of the pandemic, the Museum chose to combine these exhibitions and present them in a virtual format. The Dubuque Area K-12 Virtual Exhibition was open to all students and features 150 works in a variety of mediums.

Click Here For More Information