ia: The best of Iowa arts and culture

Bison were hunted to near extinction in the late 1800s. Today's North American population is about 500,000. Photo: Jonathan Mast.

You herd it here: Six spots to spot bison

Once a mainstay on the Great Plains, bison are making a comeback in the state in parks, nature preserves and farming operations. Here are a few spots to see the mighty beasts from the safety of your vehicle, via a short hike, or through a quick tour.

Bare Bison: The 250-head operation south of Van Meter offers up-close views of the animals on ATV tours as well as from the farm’s fence line. The shop sells bison meat in a variety of cuts, as well as hoodies, T-shirts, hats and other swag.

Fontana Park: The Buchanan County park north of Independence is home to Iowa native animals — bison, deer, eagles and more — in outdoor enclosures. The nature center provides interpretive experiences for families and groups.

Hawkeye Buffalo Ranch: A 40-head herd roams the pastures and woods of the farm in Fredericksburg, in northeast Iowa. You can tour the 150-year-old farm in a wagon to feed the bison.

Jester Park: Polk County Conservation operates this park in Granger and takes care of bison and elk in a sprawling enclosure near an observation deck and eco-friendly playground.

Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge: Take the 5-mile audio driving tour at the Prairie City preserve to see bison and elk roaming the prairie. Look for wallows — depressions devoid of vegetation — where the bison take dust baths.

Whiterock Conservancy: Bison herds often graze in the pastures south and west of the historic Garst family farmhouse home south of Coon Rapids and are often spotted from the Town Loop trail.

Bees, butterflies, hummingbirds and other pollinators buzz around this prairie-style garden in Ames. Photo: Kelly D. Norris LLC.

Native plants, natural style

Earlier this year, garden designer Kelly Norris of Des Moines won a dsm Home Design Award for the garden he designed for a home in Ames. His design was installed by Country Landscapes and features layers of color and texture along its curving gravel paths. It’s a showstopper from the street, especially now that spring has arrived.

Some 57 kinds of plants thrive in the space, including 49 that are native within 250 miles of Ames. While the landscape “appears natural and effortless, the planting works because each of the components occupies a specific niche,” Norris said. “Wild plant communities offer endless opportunities for learning the lesson of resiliency.”

Read about other dsm Home Design Award winners and get inspired for your next indoor or outdoor home project.

Dawson Davenport programs events with Indigenous creators from Iowa and beyond. Photo: Janae Gray.

Meskwaki artist shares contemporary Indigenous art

While the Meskwaki artist Dawson Davenport was earning an art degree at the University of Iowa, he noticed a pattern. Whenever his courses focused on Native American art, it was always functional, like a rug or a pair of beaded moccasins. He saw artifacts but never any art for its own sake.

So he decided to change that. “When I noticed a lack of representation of Native art, I thought, ‘Why not offer this in Iowa City?’” he said.

Housed on the second floor of Public Space One, the gallery displays and sells contemporary paintings, books and other artwork by local and international Indigenous artists, plus clothing from Davenport’s own fashion line, Daepian Apparel. The brand’s small selection of shirts and sweatshirts is meant to promote a positive message of “drive, ambition, empowerment and progression.”

Davenport was born just two years after Congress granted Native Americans the right to freely practice various spiritual, religious and cultural traditions — traditions their nations had been practicing for centuries before Congress even existed.

“That gave us the right to openly pray in ceremonies, to wear traditional regalia, to play our drums,” Davenport said. “There’s a lot of artwork in that.”

Read more about Davenport and other Public Space One artists in our full story online.

Three words: Live otter cam! Follow the furry critters at the National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium in Dubuque and learn how you can help protect their natural habitat, on Earth Day and year-round.

Celebrate Earth Day on the Mississippi River

The National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium in Dubuque is hosting a party for the planet. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 22, visitors can learn about agriculture and watershed conservation efforts through several Earth Day activities.

At the museum’s boatyard, enjoy music from Americana duo Barefoot & Sunshine while sipping on a Conservation Cream Ale from Dimensional Brewing Co. A portion of the ale sales will support the museum’s conservation efforts.

Other activities include “creature features” in the museum’s 4D theater (the fourth dimension involves wind and mist), stingray feedings, behind-the-scenes tours, and a presentation by Hy-Vee on sustainable seafood. General museum tickets are required, but visitors who bring canned food to donate to the local St. Vincent de Paul food bank can get a $5 discount.

The Cedar Rapids Independent Film Festival began in 2001, took a break during the pandemic, and is back for its 20th year. Photo: CRIFF.

Watch an indie movie in Cedar Rapids

A record-setting 99 films were submitted for consideration to this year’s 20th annual Cedar Rapids Independent Film Festival. Of those, 51 were chosen to be screened April 14-16 at the Collins Road Theaters, at 1462 Twixt Town Road in Marion (where they drizzle real butter on the popcorn).

Submissions came from across the country, each with its own connections to Iowa, and are eligible to win various festival awards. The screenings, as well as Saturday’s Eddy Awards Ceremony, are open to the public, but you’ll need tickets first.

Musician and philanthropist Billy Weathers, known as B. Well, performs at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at GDP. Photo: Tobias Tyler.

Des Moines music festival cranks up local music

The vibrant spring music festival Gross Domestic Product will return April 15 and head for the first time to Hoyt Sherman Place in Des Moines. The event is produced by the nonprofit Greater Des Moines Music Coalition, which founded the festival in 2006 to showcase some of the diverse talent Central Iowa has to offer.

This year’s lineup includes several notable names — the Envy Corps, B. Well and Geneviève Salamone, among others — alongside emerging voices. Starting at 4 p.m., the pre-party kicks off the festival at Big Grove Brewery with local DJ CDisiac. See the full schedule and buy tickets online or at the door.

More than 10,000 of Pam Douglas' origami cranes hung at Loras College in Dubuque last summer.

Artist commemorates COVID’s toll in Iowa

The Clive artist Pam Douglas started folding origami cranes in early 2020 to commemorate each Iowan we’ve lost to COVID-19. As the death toll has increased, so has the paper flock, migrating to public exhibitions in Ames, Ankeny, Dubuque and West Des Moines.

Part of the memorial project "Folding Cranes, Enfolding Community," is on display through May 30 at the Waukee Public Library, where a total of 406 birds represent pandemic deaths, as of March 23, in Dallas County (160) and the surrounding counties of Boone (71), Greene (28), Guthrie (48), Madison (47) and Adair (52). But the numbers tell just part of the story: Douglas writes names on some of the birds to honor the individuals, the people who loved and were loved.

It's “a meaningful and beautiful artistic tribute to the value of each life lost,” said Alex Coggeshell, who works at the Waukee Public Library, where visitors can learn how the origami-crane tradition started in Japan after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The Waukee exhibit also includes a pandemic timeline – with state and national turning points – as well as some of Douglas’ other original artwork. The bigger collection of origami cranes will move in June to North Iowa Area Community College in Mason City and then on to Western Iowa Tech Community College in Sioux City.

As of March 23, a total of 10,769 Iowans have died of COVID.