ia: The best of Iowa arts and culture

Crowds broke the Iowa State Fair single-day attendance record with 128,298 visitors Aug. 20, 2022. What records will we break this year? Photo: Iowa State Fair

The first weekend at the Iowa State Fair

The Iowa summer tradition is finally here, with plenty to do, animals to see and delicacies to taste. Whether you’re a one-and-done visitor or a multi-day marathoner, here are some good bets for an action-packed first weekend in Des Moines.

Bright and early at 9 a.m. on Friday, see some classic cars at the Grand Concourse. Otherwise, if you have to work that day and venture out later, catch a 7 p.m. free concert with Rockland Road at the Anne and Bill Riley Stage or the Nadas at the MidAmerican Energy Stage.

Saturday, take embroidery sewing classes at noon in the Varied Industries Building. Later, watch ice carvers work their chilly magic at 6 p.m. in the John Deere Agriculture Building.

Sunday morning, watch a watercolor and oil painting demonstration or learn how to make candles in the Patty and Jim Cownie Cultural Center. In fact, you could stay all afternoon for how-to demos on 3D printing, polymer clay jewelry and origami.

This weekend’s Grandstand lineup includes Tyler Hubbard of Florida Georgia Line on Friday, the New Kids on the Block on Saturday and Eric Church on Sunday. Here’s the full schedule.

If you see the fair's new CEO, Jeremy Parsons, walking around, say hi. You can get to know him in this article from dsm.

Hear some "dad rock" from Solon-based group Trophy Dads during Uptown Getdown. Photo: Trophy Dads

Uptown Getdown in Marion

Bring your lawn chairs and rock out to live music at the Uptown Getdown every Thursday in August in Marion’s revitalized Uptown district. Detour performs today, the Trophy Dads perform Aug. 17, and the Boot Jack Band plays Aug. 24. Various food vendors will also be available to grab a bite to eat.

The Uptown neighborhood traces its origins to the late 1800s when various businesses clustered around the City Square Park. Today it’s a thriving Iowa Main Street District with dozens of shops, restaurants and cultural attractions, including the Marion Heritage Center and Museum and Granger House Cultural Center and Museum.

With over 40 vendors to sample, you're bound to find a new favorite drink during Stem & Stein. Photo: Fishback & Stephenson Cider

Sip the day away in Waterloo

Visit the RiverLoop Expo Plaza in downtown Waterloo for the Cedar Valley’s Stem & Stein beer and wine fest this Saturday, Aug. 12. Sample drinks from more than 40 breweries and wineries, including Iowa Brewing Co., Fireside Winery and Fishback & Stephenson Cider. And when your stomach starts to rumble, head over to the local food vendors, like Chad’s Pizza and Lark Brewing.

Proceeds from ticket sales benefit the Friends of the Waterloo Center for the Arts, which offers cultural and arts programs for the community.

Iowa lakes and waterways are the main stars during this conservation education event in Arnolds Park. Photo: Travel Iowa

Immerse yourself at a water festival in Okoboji

For a day of fun and environmental education, head to Arnolds Park for the Okoboji Blue Water Festival this Saturday, Aug. 12. The free festival raises awareness about water quality in the Iowa Great Lakes through activities, exhibits and speakers. Plus, there’s live music.

At the expo, you’ll find more than 30 conservation groups promoting strategies to improve water quality, including wetland and prairie restoration projects, and protect lakes and rivers from invasive species. There also will be educational activities for all ages, including a seminar on fishing. National Geographic journalist and filmmaker Jon Bowermaster plans to deliver a keynote address at 2 p.m.

During the free evening concert, catch Grammy-nominated country rocker Elle King and bluesy singer AJ Croce. Find the full schedule online.

Kelly Baum was a former curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Photo: Duane Tinkey

Meet the Des Moines Art Center’s new director

Even when Kelly Baum was a curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Des Moines Art Center’s reputation stood out.

“The Art Center was on my radar,” Baum said. “It’s one of the best museums in the country, housed in three incredible buildings.”

Now Baum is the primary caretaker of the Art Center’s 75-year legacy. The board hired her as director to succeed Jeff Fleming, who’d held that role for 25 years. Most visibly, Fleming oversaw the conception, construction and 2009 opening of the Pappajohn Sculpture Park in downtown Des Moines, which the Art Center manages in collaboration with the city’s Parks and Recreation Department.

Baum moved from New York and started work in May. She curated contemporary art at four institutions, in the Northeast and in Texas, for 23 years before accepting the role in Des Moines.

“I consider myself the primary caretaker of the Art Center,” she said. “My phone is never off. I only silence it when I’m in a movie theater. I’ll do the same when I finally get to the opera. So I’m this institution’s primary caretaker, I’m on call 24/7. I think that’s natural. That’s right for the director.”

Learn more about Baum and her career in a recent Q&A with Business Record reporter Nicole Grundmeier.

Go ahead, dance like nobody is watching at the Alternating Currents silent disco. Feel free to sing along like nobody is listening too. Photo: Alternating Currents

Go with the flow in the Quad Cities

At the only bend of the Mississippi River that flows from east to west, in the Quad Cities, the annual Alternating Currents festival offers an outpouring of music, film and comedy. At this year’s to-do, Aug. 17-20, more than 100 performances, screenings and other events will fill more than 30 venues, flooding the city with creative art, entertainment and creative energy.

This year’s eclectic lineup includes concerts, stand-up comedy shows, aura and chakra readings, an art fair, a film festival at the Figge Art Museum, a silent disco at the Skybridge with panoramic views of the river and city skyline. Oh — and don’t forget to take your kayak or canoe to Floatzilla, which is billed as the largest paddling event on the Mississippi.

Admission is free to all of the weekend’s events, which are detailed on a handy app and a website. (Both are much easier to navigate than the river.)