‘Where inspiration can happen’
\'Painting Presence\' opens today; other exhibits coming soon to the Blanden
-Submitted image <BR> This still-life titled, "Color of Happiness," is part of an exhibit called "Painting Presence" by Leslie Leavenworth, which is opening at the Blanden Memorial Art Museum today.
-Submitted image <BR> This photo of an antique car is one of a set of ultraviolet photos made by Fort Dodge resident Ormonde Mickelsen Butler, which will appear in the upcoming exhibit, "At 720 Nanometers," opening in early November.
-Submitted image <BR> This painting will be part of Michael Harwood Lee's exhibit titled, "When There Are No More Hills to Climb." The exhibit will run from Feb. 6 to April 17, 2027, at the Blanden Memorial Art Museum.
-Submitted image <BR> This painting is one in a collection of paintings done by the late Robert Brady, of Fort Dodge. The exhibit will open in December at the Blanden Memorial Art Museum.
-Submitted image <BR> This still-life titled, "Color of Happiness," is part of an exhibit called "Painting Presence" by Leslie Leavenworth, which is opening at the Blanden Memorial Art Museum today.
-Submitted image <BR> This photo of an antique car is one of a set of ultraviolet photos made by Fort Dodge resident Ormonde Mickelsen Butler, which will appear in the upcoming exhibit, "At 720 Nanometers," opening in early November.
-Submitted image <BR> This painting will be part of Michael Harwood Lee's exhibit titled, "When There Are No More Hills to Climb." The exhibit will run from Feb. 6 to April 17, 2027, at the Blanden Memorial Art Museum.
-Submitted image <BR> This painting is one in a collection of paintings done by the late Robert Brady, of Fort Dodge. The exhibit will open in December at the Blanden Memorial Art Museum.
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If you ask Eric Anderson, the director of the Blanden Memorial Art Museum, about the institution's purpose, he'll state it plainly.
"We're here to try to create an arena where inspiration can happen," he said.
And that arena is open to everyone.
"We want to create a welcoming environment where people can come in, enjoy art, appreciate art and feel free to ask questions," Anderson said.
The museum at 920 Third Ave. S. will be offering a wide range of exhibitions that visitors can appreciate and ask questions about through the rest of this year and the first part of 2027.
One of those exhibitions will open to the public today.
Some paintings by Des Moines area artist Leslie Leavenworth will be in the museum's second floor gallery. Called "Painting Presence," it will consist of about 20 works.
Anderson said the exhibition will consist of still-life paintings and landscapes.
He said Leavenworth has a "very unique, expressionistic style of painting."
Leavenworth will be at the museum on Oct. 17 for a reception. The reception will start at 2 p.m., and she will give a presentation at 3 p.m.
"Painting Presence" will be on display until Nov. 21.
That exhibition will overlap with two others in the East Gallery on the first floor.
On display there through the end of October is a series of collage paintings by Jennifer Lynn Bates, an instructor at Hawkeye Community College in Waterloo.
At the beginning of November, the collages will be replaced by "At 720 Nanometers," a set of ultraviolet photos made by Fort Dodge resident Ormonde Mickelsen Butler.
Anderson said that in the photos, everything that would appear light and bright to the human eye appears dark. And everything that looks dark to a person viewing it, shows up as light in the photos.
So in the photos, a bright clear sky looks dark and ominous, while thick dark vegetation looks white.
"I think it will be a very nice contrast between this and the bright colors of the art on the second floor," Anderson said.
The ultraviolet photos will be on display from Nov. 7 to Jan. 23.
Up on the second floor, paintings by the late Robert Brady, of Fort Dodge, will replace "Painting Presence" in December.
Anderson said Brady, who died in 1986, had "amazing artistic talent."
He said Brady's family had a business called Brady Transfer and Storage, which at some point was taken over by White Transfer and Storage. According to Anderson, the Crimmins family, which owns White Transfer and Storage, found a bunch of Brady's art in one of the buildings his business once used. That art was donated to the museum.
2027 Exhibits
Exhibitions at the Blanden are planned a couple years in advance, so a schedule for the first half of 2027 is available.
It includes:
• "When There Are No More Hills to Climb" by Michael Harwood Lee, Feb. 6-April 17.
• "Finding the Light" by Lou Blanchfield, Feb. 6-March 6.
• "On the Sea" by Gayle Stevens, March 13-June 19.