Dubuque artist E. E. Kono discusses the work in her solo exhibition, Drift: Recent Works by E. E. Kono, with a reception to follow. Kono shares how landscape, history, and myth inform her approach to creating new work using traditional techniques like egg tempera and silverpoint. Reception to follow in the lobby.
Free with Museum admission
At 1:30 P.M., Award-winning artist and author Arthur Geisert will discuss the making of his book Country Road ABC: An Illustrated Journey through America’s Farmland, a refreshingly realistic view of contemporary rural life in eastern Iowa.
At 2:30 P.M., Dubuque Camera Club members will discuss the 2023 iteration of their annual photography exhibit, Rural Midwest. Members will talk about their experiences and the personal stories behind their work.
Free with regular Museum admission.
Celebrate the bounty of fall, the power of community, and the opening of four new exhibitions. The day includes family architecture workshops, artist conversations, and a block party. Admission is FREE with donation of a non-perishable food item to the Dubuque Food Pantry.
Come downtown and celebrate the past, present, and future of our community.
10 A.M. – 1 P.M. Children’s Workshops
1 P.M. – Gallery conversation: Roberta Condon, Lorraine Ortner-Blake and Beth Hoffman
2:30 P.M. – Gallery talk with Katie Schutte
4–6 P.M. – Block party and community workshop with DuMA’s architects, Paul Schulhof and Az Rashidi. Live music and food trucks hosted with the Bluff Street Neighborhood Association, on 7th Street
(SOLD OUT)Community Day begins with a children’s architecture workshop with Az Rashidi and Paul Schulhof, the architects designing the new museum campus. Participants will share their ideas for the new Museum with Az and Paul and build their own models that describe their vision. Space is limited for this free workshop and advance registration is required.
Also at 10 A.M. is a drop in pumpkin decorating and mask making workshop, which is open to all.
At 1 P.M., join Long Time Passing artists Roberta Condon and Lorraine Ortner-Blake inside the Falb Family Gallery for a conversation with Beth Hoffman, author of Bet the Farm. The three women will discuss the changing rural landscape, the struggles and joys of life on the farm, and how their experiences inspire their art. At 2:30 P.M., artist Katie Schutte will discuss Distorted Recollections in the Kris Mozena McNamer Gallery.
Also opening are the Dubuque Camera Club’s Rural Life and a showcase of work by students from the University of Dubuque’s Department of Digital Art and Design.
The afternoon culminates with a block party from 4-6 P.M. on 7th Street that includes food trucks, a community workshop with Schulhof and Rashidi, live music by Joie Booth Wails and DJ Charlz, and autumnal décor from local farmers.
A conversation among present and past Biennial artists as well as current Iowa Artist Fellows about the choices they’ve made and/or wished they made about their education, their approach to earning a living, and their experiences with museums and galleries.
Louise Kames, a DuMA Biennial 2023 artist and Director of Clarke University’s the Art + Design Program moderates this panel discussion.
Confirmed participants include Peter Xiao, a DuMA Biennial 2023 artist and art professor at Augustana College; Stina Henslee a DuMA Biennial 2023 artist and graphic designer; David Zahn, a DuMA Biennial 2023 sculptor; Erin Dragotto, a DuMA Biennial 2017 artist and VP of Development & Operations for the Museum of Art & Light opening in Kansas next year; and Steffany King, art educator at Dubuque Senior High School.
The 2022 Iowa Arts Fellows joining the conversation are Jennifer Colville from Iowa City, author of “Short Stories for Uncanny Girls” and publisher of PromptPress, a book art journal; Tim Olson, from Dubuque, an artist and photographer whose series titled “Olson’s Art Through the Ages” reimagines historic paintings; and David James “DJ” Savarese from Iowa City, a public speaker, writer and activist who makes literacy-based education, communication and inclusive lives a reality for nontraditionally speaking people.
Made possible by Dupaco Credit Union and Hirschbach Motor Lines, sponsors of the DuMA Biennial 2023.
We expect the conversation will spill out into Washington Park where you can visit with more than 65 DBQ Fest 2023 artists and purchase work to take home. Take a break and refresh with Key City Beer Festival who reminds us that craft brewing is another art form that binds us.
Photographer Rachel Deutmeyer offers her thoughts on her exhibition Everything Fades and what it means for a Biennial artist to have a solo show.
Free with admission
Paul Sacaridiz, Director of Cranbrook Academy of Art and former student of Bill Farrell will present a talk focusing on the importance of Farrell’s work, his role as a teacher, and the innovations and influence of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago on contemporary ceramics.
Free with registration
UPDATE: Available space for the Artist Conversation at the McCarthy Center portion of the event has SOLD OUT. Please join us via ZOOM. You are still welcome to attend the 2:30 PM opening Celebration at the Museum.
[SOLD OUT]1:30 pm Artist Conversation between Jill Wells and Ricki King at the McCarthy Center for Nonprofit Learning, 700 Locust Street (enter the Roshek building on Locust). Join via ZOOM
In honor of Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthdate, Ricki King of Roots to Branches Genealogy will join Des Moines artist Jill Wells for a conversation about her work, family story, and the Great Migration.
2:30-4 pm Celebration
Explore Wells’ immersive work in DuMA’s lobby and enjoy food from Frannie’s Barbeque and music by Iowa Music Award 2022 fan favorite, DJ Nita Beat.
Sponsored by GreenState Credit Union and John Deere Dubuque Works
Join us for a spirited conversation moderated by artist Douglas Ewart featuring Craft Invitational curatorial committee members, Delores Fortuna and Don Friedlich, and exhibiting artist, Kee-Ho Yuen.
The “reasoning” as Ewart calls it, will be a forum to exchange ideas, knowledge and concepts while exploring the role of craft in the art world and in our daily lives.
Topics include: Craft vs. Art, the ecology of traditional ways of fabrication, the intersection of craft with the sciences, and the importance of play.
Following the conversation Douglas Ewart will discuss his multidisciplinary work which weaves together music, art making, and performance.
FREE with regular admission.
As part of the Vietnam: The Real War Opening Reception, Veteran Navy combat photographer Ron Testa will discuss his three tours of duty aboard the USS Ticonderoga and the selection of his images on view in the Museum’s galleries.
