I strive to find interesting ways to use palette knives and utilize everyday household items to add various textures to my paintings. I find this a fun creative way to layer and add interesting depth to my subject matter. I put on some good music and let my mind wonder a bit without the pressure of being so concise with my brush strokes. The colors are bright and fun and meant to provoke feelings of joy and happiness.
 
I am a self-taught artist utilizing acrylic, watercolor, and ink mediums for my paintings. I work full time as a small-town City Clerk/Administrator and took to painting much more frequently in my free time when the global pandemic hit. I used my art as a way to shut out the panic and chaos, that was the world around us for the time being, and focused my energy on manipulating paint as a means of something I could control. I took a chance, overcame the vulnerability, and started to show my work through my personal social media. The rest is history. I’ve since started my own side business and have had a consistent list of commission requests for the last couple of years. I’ve continued to push my abilities and comfort level to reach new boundaries I never thought I could do. I’ve submitted artwork to county and state fairs, started teaching painting classes, participated in a live art competition, plein air painted at the state fair, and have participated in many art festivals in the last few years. My favorite part of this entire journey thus far is connecting with other creative individuals and being trusted to make very sentimental commission works for clients. My daughter is also a huge motivator for me as she shares the same passion, so I’ve been able to share this journey with her and empower her to also get her art out into the world!
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brookej.artjourney/
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/brookej.artjourney/
TikTok: @brookej.artjourney 

Drawing inspiration from the Danish concept of hygge, my art delves into themes of home, coziness, comfort, and spaciousness. I employ a diverse range of mediums—including watercolor, oil, acrylic, and mixed media—to convey messages of joy, peace, invitation, connectedness, and a profound love of nature. My creative process is deeply influenced by personal experiences, which I express through paint. I aim to evoke an emotional engagement, inviting viewers to find their own connections within my work. I am captivated by color, playfulness, loose brushwork, and spontaneity, striving to balance realism and abstraction. Strong design and value contrasts, combined with textural qualities, are essential elements in my compositions. Ultimately, my goal is to draw out the best in myself and others, offering a resting place in my art.

Leslie's Artist Statement: I am a painter drawn to landscapes, portraits, still lifes, and occasional abstracts. My chosen mediums include acrylic, oil, watercolor, and pastel. While my work is rooted in realism, I often weave in elements of impressionism to create mood and movement. Shapes, colors, patterns, and light captivate me. But more than their visual appeal, I’m fascinated by how these elements can evoke emotion and reveal the beauty and order I find in creation. Thoughtfully arranging these components allows me not only to describe what I see but to translate the experience I’m having — the quiet awe, the sense of wonder.

One of the reasons I paint is for those transcendent moments when brush meets canvas. Time seems to pause, my soul quiets, and I am fully present. It’s deeply renewing. As a trained Spiritual Director and Mentor/Coach, I’m drawn to practices like deep listening and centering prayer — disciplines that cultivate stillness and presence. My hope is that my paintings carry some of that quiet delight, inviting viewers into a deeper sense of connection, reflection, and home.

Leslieleavenworth.com

The necklaces displayed use Argentium silver and copper sheet and wire most exclusively.  Argentium silver is a wonderful mix of recycled fine silver with germanium which makes for a silver that is .940 in content and very tarnish resistant. The copper elements are coated with Renaissance Wax, a microcrystalline wax often used to protect historical paintings after restoration.   Chains are either treated copper or sterling silver.  Some of the stones have been finished by myself in the Des Moines Lapidary Society’s shop. Others are procured from Lapidary artists around the world during our annual Gem and Mineral Show at the Fairgrounds in October of each year. 

Sharon's Artist Statement: About Me, Sharon Smith: Joyful Heart Design

As a lifelong crafter, I took many kinds of jewelry related classes through the Des Moines Community Education after retiring from teaching at the Johnston Middle School. I finally settled on metal forming, metal smithing, and lapidary work.  It gives me much joy in producing lovely and unique settings for beautiful stones, thus my business name: Joyful Heart Design.

I reside in Urbandale and teach classes in my home studio.  I call them On Demand Classes, as the subject and time are arranged to suit both teacher and student.  You may contact me by text or phone call: 515-419-7082.

etsy.com/shop/designsbyjoyfulheart

As someone who has always been captivated by the dramatic beauty of rural landscapes, my experiences growing up in Iowa have deeply influenced my artistic vision. I am particularly drawn to the powerful presence of storms, which I strive to depict in my oil paintings with vivid detail. My goal is for viewers to experience a sense of belonging and familiarity when they engage with my art, and feel the warmth of home in their hearts.

My name is Niki Gyles (Hill). I was born in Des Moines, Iowa in 1990. I am a self-taught artist with only a high school education.
I have been doing art since I was old enough to hold a paintbrush. Growing up, I was always influenced by my father and his side of the family. Either you were a painter, musician or both. I typically tell people I got my skill from him. Thanks Dad! I am constantly inspired by my home landscape of Iowan beauty. The rolling hills, cornfields at sunset and the mighty thunderstorms that pass by. It’s no secret that I chase storms as well. Each painting I do is an intimate process of building layers using galkyd/solvent mediums and achieving realistic detail. Some works are made using one reference photo and others are made using a hodgepodge of multiple references. If you have any questions regarding me or my process, feel free to ask!
You can reach me at instagram.com/NikiGylesArtist

Info coming soon. Visit: handersonstudio.com/gallery

 “Products of a Chaotic Brain”
by Charlotte Saliers
This exhibit is a look into a creative brain expressed in glass and broken pottery.  Some subjects repeat themselves (bee’s on the brain), while others are random creations.  All are colorful and joyful.

Charlotte is a longtime Urbandale resident who has been working with stained glass for over 20 years.  She uses glass, pottery and upcycled items to create light hearted mosaics.  She doesn’t take her work too seriously, because she believes art should be fun!

"Threads of Connection"
Stephanie Majeran
This exhibit is an exploration of color, texture, and form through the versatile medium of yarn. Each piece incorporates thrifted items, yarn scraps, and/or driftwood, highlighting sustainability while reflecting nature's textures and our deep connection to it.

Stephanie is a Des Moines-based fiber artist whose passion for yarn art emerged during the pandemic, sparked by creative moments shared with her young daughter. Discovering a natural affinity for working with yarn, Stephanie has dedicated herself to mastering a variety of yarn-based techniques, including woven wall hangings, intricate yarn paintings, and playful pom-pom creations. Her work is inspired by the textures and colors of nature, often featuring driftwood and reclaimed fibers to craft pieces that resonate with her commitment to sustainability. By transforming found materials into art, she breathes new life into what might otherwise be overlooked. Stephanie’s large-scale installations have been featured in local Airbnbs, and her custom creations have found homes in spaces with unique design needs. Through her art, she aims to infuse everyday environments with vibrant color and texture, inviting viewers to reconnect with the beauty of the natural world.

Tiara Young
Mis Raíces y Mi Alma (My roots and my Soul)

This exhibition focuses on the artwork I have created to represent and connect with my Hispanic culture. Over the course of 3 years I have put a lot of time and effort into reconnecting with my culture, and representing this through paintings has been an amazing way to do so. Many of the pieces focus on traditions, events that have happened in my life, and feelings. I have created these pieces to show people that my culture is beautiful and that they should experience it too through artwork.
 
The other pieces in this exhibition represent my growth and how I want to continue exploring different themes in my career as a Latina artist. 

Artist Bio: Tiara Young is a 20-year-old Honduran artist. She has been drawing ever since she was a little girl, and her dream job is to be a full-time artist. She has won several awards and has had her artwork in multiple exhibitions and shows. She spends most of her free time painting or drawing and currently attends Iowa State University for graphic design and illustration.

RANDOM THOUGHTS

As artists we are continually getting ideas for designs that may or may not be suitable for an art piece.  When these ideas pop up we make sketches to develop these ideas further.

When the sketch is worthy the design may develop further into a piece of art.  Some ideas call for making a large piece —too large to jump into right away without further exploration or development so a small scale fabric sketch is the perfect next step to test fabric choices and other design details.  Many ideas are perfectly suited for small scale execution.

Central Iowa Textile Artists

This small Iowa group of 13 has been together for about 25 years, sharing techniques and learning from each other. Although some members have moved on and others have replaced them, we continue without any formal structure.  We are a small group whose shared goal is educating the public about our art form through exhibitions.  All group members are accomplished artists and quilters, and many are teachers and authors, and our works have appeared in many publications.

ARTISTS
Carolyn Abbott. •. Ilene Bartos. •. Janet Bergeron. •. Mary Cecil
Becky Kemble. •. Sue Kluber. •. Angela Lawrence
Rebecca Loew. •. Jenny Messer. •. Janet Pitman. •. Wendy Reed
Barbara Riggs. •. Barb StewartFern Stewart

These 60 pieces of artwork are from the children who practice art in Sunflower Fine Art Studio in Waukee. Their artwork represents a high level of children’s art in Iowa. The studio was established in 2008. The number of students has grown from about 15 to about 75. In the studio, the children not only learn the knowledge and skills of art but are able to try different medias to create their own artwork. Tingting Beck is the owner of the studio. She is also a professional artist as well. Her artwork has won awards in several art competitions or shows.

Visit Sunflower Fine Art Studio's Facebook page

My photographs seek to expand the viewers’ perceptions of the world around them. 
 
I see details, shapes, patterns, textures, colors.  As humans we tend to turn visual stimuli into objects and label them.  It has been said that once we have named something we no longer see it.  We create a general concept, a shorthand identification of something and then we stop appreciating its uniqueness and we don’t notice if it has changed.
 
Some of the images in this exhibit are of easily recognizable things such as what may seem to be a simple flower arrangement.  But these are quirky arrangements in that they include weeds.  I ask you to consider what does it mean when we call something a weed and who gets to decide a plant is a weed?
 
Other photos show part of an object such as showing details of manhole covers.  You may have already noticed manhole covers come in different patterns or designs and have different manufacturers.  But you may not have thought about how the place they have been left to serve (i.e., their location) can change them.  Time and place often change them –just as time and place can change us.
 
Some my images emphasize shape or geometric forms.  These might include a whole object, several arranged objects, or some architectural details.  In some cases by narrowing the focus to just some of an object’s details the images become abstracts where the object is no longer identifiable. 
 
I also invite you to expand your awareness of yourself by being attentive to how you interact with the images.  You might notice if you look at the titles and how often you look at the title before looking at the photo.  If you do look at the title consider if or how it shapes your perception of or reaction to each image.   [email protected]

Abstract Mixed Media Art by Kristy Evans
Visit her website for more details. www.kristyevansart.com

“Outside, Looking In” is an art quilt exhibit that I created to increase mental health awareness in our community. The idea for this project arose from conversations on creative wellbeing and the art quilt process that I utilize and teach to others. Many of my quilts remind me of my clients' stories as I sort through my thoughts while sewing for self-care. The installation includes personally constructed art quilts (modern improv, machine-pieced, and mostly hand-quilted) along with a connected mental health diagnosis and educational information. Additional quilts will be displayed connecting how the past lives on with us and creates our sense of self. *These are not traditional quilts.*
 
Cora is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist and a Veteran of the United States Air Force. She provides mental health counseling and creative coaching, see more information at www.creatorswellbeing.com. Cora’s passion is to increase clarity, instill hope, and provide compassionate and clinical guidance to all mental health and substance abuse concerns. She also practices personal self-care and spends time creating fiber art, quilting, teaching workshops on self-care, dyeing fabric, riding her bike as fast as her legs will take her, and incorporating healthy nutrition and weightlifting into her routine. 
 
Take care & live well,  Cora Ritter