West Gallery

January - December 30, 2025

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Curators Statement:

“Even in stillness, there is movement.” – Anonymous

 

Visitors can embark on an artistic odyssey with "Harmonizing Dimensions," a curated collection delving into the intricate interplay of motion, time, and rhythm. This transformative exploration shapes and defines the creative landscape, leaving an enduring imprint on the ever-evolving art world.

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As we navigate the swift tapestry of the 21st century, our understanding of motion, time, and rhythm in art undergoes a profound transformation. Technological advancements and global connectivity dissolve traditional boundaries, providing artists with new realms to explore.

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Step into this odyssey at the Blanden, where artworks come alive dynamically, transcending conventional expressions. Let the masterpieces converge in your mind, facilitating a harmonious dialogue between motion, time, and rhythm. Across diverse mediums, artists showcase how movement breathes life into their works, time influences narratives, and rhythm orchestrates unique artistic experiences.

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Working in varied mediums, these artists share a profound grasp of the interplay among fundamental forces. Witness how motion is captured in brushstrokes, time in sculpture, and rhythm in the arrangement of forms and colors. The exhibition encourages an exploration of the dynamic relationship between the static and kinetic, tangible, and ephemeral, finite, and infinite – offering profound insights into the role of motion, time, and rhythm in shaping artistic expression.

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"Harmonizing Dimensions" invites you on a transformative journey where motion, time, and rhythm converge, unlocking uncharted realms of artistic expression. Celebrate the visionary contributions of artists worldwide as they entice us to delve into the profound mysteries within these elemental dimensions.

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May this exhibition inspire you to embrace the ever-shifting dynamics of life, fostering a deeper appreciation for the interconnected dance of motion, time, and rhythm in the realm of art.

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East Gallery

Nov 2 - Jan 18, 2025

 

Artist Statement: 

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In music the term “theme and variations” refers to a standard form composition (a melody, perhaps) first presented in its original form and then repeated in new ways.

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Visual artists do this, too. A theme becomes a “liberating limit”- a subject matter or approach that can be endlessly reimagined, loosened, tightened, or cast in a changed light.

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For me, this is the energy of art. Once perfected, a theme is rife with possibility. A painting bends with the artist’s mood, echoes with the images that came before, and- most profoundly- shifts again in the eyes of each new viewer.

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The principle is as clear in two variations as in seven or eight. The artwork presented here are “Two of a Kind”, but individually alive. Each is a distinct and captured moment, a chronicled inspiration, a lingering melody through still air.

 

Bio:

The path of an artist is seldom direct. We are wanderers — rerouted by endless curiosity, the demands of life, and the pull of new passions.

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For me, those detours only clarified the course. Creating has been my magnetic north, guiding me to a point where I can focus more intently on capturing the quiet beauty of the place I call home.

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I consider myself a neo-regionalist, embracing and promoting a fresh approach to Midwest art. Too often dismissed as fly-over farmland, the Midwest is alive with everything that is America. Our revered land (both wild and worked), the weathered icons of our agricultural heritage, and the skies — shifting like seasons from the bluest blue to pink and copper-red.

 

Reflecting this aesthetic not only honors the Midwest as a place, it elevates the people and the centuries of love and labor that sculpted everything we see.

Second Floor Gallery

Jan 4 - March 22, 2025

 

“I am here to make you think… I am not here to make pretty pictures.”  – Mark Rothko

 

Artist Statement:

The first time I saw a Rothko Painting I was mesmerized by the simplicity, and yet the power and depth of feeling that his painting evoked.  His art is a continual influence on my artistic practice. 

 

My background as a history major / art minor and by continued interest of early civilizations is a major influence in my artwork.  I present an interpretation of this progression of time through the entropy of these civilizations.

 

I combine materials that give some of my paintings a sculptural aspect. I use regular acrylic, metal infused acrylics, and reactive agents in some of my work to achieve the desired effects.  

 

Bio:

Mike Moore attended Mankato State College in the 1960s, graduating with a degree in History and a minor in Art.

 

Spending some time in Colorado he moved back to Iowa where he managed a framing and fine art store in Des Moines.  Later Mike returned to his hometown of Fort Dodge where he has lived for the past 40 plus years. After retiring from sales of home audio equipment he resumed his passion for painting. Mike has exhibited work since 2018 at numerous galleries in Iowa. 

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• Dave Jordano - East Gallery 

  • Duck Blinds (Feb 1 - April 18, 2025) 

• Rachel Mindrup - East Gallery 

  • Neurofibromatosis: The People (May 3 - July 19, 2025) 

• Hans Madsen - Second Floor Gallery 

  • Walk the Last Mile: (April 5 - June 21, 2025)