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bedsitter23Des Moines has an art museum that I made my first trip through last weekend.
Although, you may not expect it, the DM Art Center contains art by a who's who of modern artists.
Warhol, Picasso, Matisse, O'Keefe, Pollock, Basquiat, Monet, Lichtenstein, Chagall, Rodin, Benton, Johns, Rothko, Rauschenberg, Miro, Gaugin, Richter, Sargent, and many many more.
I was there to see the final days of a travelling exhibit of Jackson Pollock's Mural. Mural was one of Pollock's first important works and it was given to the University of Iowa in the 50s.
It was cool to see Pollock's work up close and in person.
There is also an exhibit that runs slightly longer which features Abstract Expressionists on Paper.
In case you wondered, the Art Center was fairly busy. I have been to other culturally important moments in the greater Des Moines area like ostrich racing, a pro wrestling exhibition with Hacksaw Jim Duggan, and the Barack Obama Presidential campaign; and though there were probably more people at those events, the art museum was significantly close.
There was also another exhibit by someone whose name I didn't recognize (Tony Feher) and sorry, this is the type of art that people don't like (Half-drunk two liter bottles of soda, etc.).
As far as the permanent collection, the most arresting piece (probably not surprisingly) has to be Francis Bacon's Study after Velazquez’s Portrait of Innocent X.
It is just as impressive in person as you would imagine. I first heard of Bacon from the late great Gadfly magazine, and he is someone whose name seems to have gained prominence in recent years.
Another painting that gets a lot of attention from the personal collection is Edward Hopper's Automat.
I think everyone knows his Nighthawks or at least its parodies/tributes. Automat has been featured on the cover of Time and is one of Hopper's early works.
If you are ever in the area, it's worth a trip, even for the casual art fan.
Although, you may not expect it, the DM Art Center contains art by a who's who of modern artists.
Warhol, Picasso, Matisse, O'Keefe, Pollock, Basquiat, Monet, Lichtenstein, Chagall, Rodin, Benton, Johns, Rothko, Rauschenberg, Miro, Gaugin, Richter, Sargent, and many many more.
I was there to see the final days of a travelling exhibit of Jackson Pollock's Mural. Mural was one of Pollock's first important works and it was given to the University of Iowa in the 50s.
It was cool to see Pollock's work up close and in person.
There is also an exhibit that runs slightly longer which features Abstract Expressionists on Paper.
In case you wondered, the Art Center was fairly busy. I have been to other culturally important moments in the greater Des Moines area like ostrich racing, a pro wrestling exhibition with Hacksaw Jim Duggan, and the Barack Obama Presidential campaign; and though there were probably more people at those events, the art museum was significantly close.
There was also another exhibit by someone whose name I didn't recognize (Tony Feher) and sorry, this is the type of art that people don't like (Half-drunk two liter bottles of soda, etc.).
As far as the permanent collection, the most arresting piece (probably not surprisingly) has to be Francis Bacon's Study after Velazquez’s Portrait of Innocent X.
It is just as impressive in person as you would imagine. I first heard of Bacon from the late great Gadfly magazine, and he is someone whose name seems to have gained prominence in recent years.
Another painting that gets a lot of attention from the personal collection is Edward Hopper's Automat.
I think everyone knows his Nighthawks or at least its parodies/tributes. Automat has been featured on the cover of Time and is one of Hopper's early works.
If you are ever in the area, it's worth a trip, even for the casual art fan.
