An inverted replica of the Marston water tower is one of many mixed-media, dangling pieces in artist Norie Sato's new "Fifth Muse" in the Marston Hall atrium in 2016. The sculpture was commissioned by university museums and as an Art in State Buildings project for the building's renovation. "Fifth Muse" also is part of Iowa State's public art collection. File photo by Christopher Gannon.
Iowa State's Art on Campus collection contains more than 2,500 public works of art -- indoors and outdoors -- making it one of the largest campus public art programs in the United States. A July 9 celebration will focus on that collection in five 45-minute tours led by university museums staff and volunteers. Each will consider a different theme and different works of art on campus.
Education and visual literacy curator Lilah Anderson said summer is a great time to highlight and access the public art collection. With a smaller group of students on campus, it's also a good time to offer programs for their faculty/staff and Ames community audiences, she said.
What makes it public?
Most of the Art on Campus collection is on exhibition all the time and publicly accessible. Another feature that sets the collection apart is that many pieces were acquired through a public process, in which a campus committee wrote a public art statement, helped select an artist and worked with the artist on the overall idea to be represented in the new piece.
Maquoketa artist Rose Frantzen's mural in the Gerdin Business Building addition, installed earlier this month and included in Sydney Marshall's 11 a.m. tour July 9, is the latest example of the public art process.
The five tours are free and open to the public; registration is requested (see links below). Masks are encouraged for those who are not yet vaccinated against COVID-19.
July 9 guided tours
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9-10 a.m., Campus Beautiful, begins at the Bighorn sculpture in the Elizabeth and Byron Anderson Sculpture Garden south of Morrill Hall, register
Director and chief curator Lynette Pohlman explores the evolution of the Art on Campus collection. An aesthetically beautiful campus was a top priority for university founding members Adonijah Welch and Peter Melendy. -
11 a.m.-noon, Recent Art on Campus Acquisitions and Collection Care, begins at the Bighorn sculpture in the Elizabeth and Byron Anderson Sculpture Garden south of Morrill Hall, register
Curator Sydney Marshall will provide insight to caring for the 2,500-plus works of art in the collection, located in buildings, courtyards, open spaces and classrooms. -
Noon-1 p.m., Science and Art in the Art on Campus Collection, begins at the south entrance of the Molecular Biology Building, register
Curators Adrienne Gennett and Allison Sheridan will explore the intersections of art and science within the collection and how creativity and knowledge from one impacts the other. -
1-2 p.m., Art on Campus Highlights, begins at the Janus Agri Altar sculpture in the Agronomy Hall courtyard, register
In an introduction of sorts, docent Rae Reilly reviews some of the iconic works of art in the collection. -
3-4 p.m., Women Artists in the Art on Campus Collection, begins at the Bighorn sculpture in the Elizabeth and Byron Anderson Sculpture Garden south of Morrill Hall, register
Female artists are widely represented in the collection, and interpretative specialist Brooke Rogers delves into the unique women who have made their mark on Iowa State's artful campus.
