Des Moines, IA - June 28, 2015 - The on-site jury of the 2015 Des Moines Arts Festival® presented awards to ten visual artists at an awards ceremony held this morning at Centro Restaurant in downtown Des Moines. Ceramic artist, Michael Schwegmann was awarded Best of Show. Zora Murff was named Best of Emerging Iowa Artists.
Michael Schwegmann received a BFA from the University of Illinois. He has made ceramic sculpture as a full time studio artist since 1995. Michael's sculptural ceramics focus complex ideas of labor. He sells his work through galleries, public and private commissions, and juried art fairs across the United States.
Best of Show:
Michael Schwegmann: Ceramics
Best of Show Emerging Iowa Artists:
Zora Murff: EIA
Awards of Excellence:
Deborah Mae Broad: Graphics/Printmaking
E. Douglas Wunder: Jewelry
Joachim Knill: Painting
Matthew Hemminghaus: Photography
Robert Erickson and Tor Erickson: Wood
Juror Awards:
Lynda Ladwig: Ceramics
Andrew Kosten: Graphics/Printmaking
Dylan Strzynski: Mixed Media
Want more? Here's a quick article plus a video from the festival: http://whotv.com/2015/06/28/des-moines-art-festival-california-artist-brings-his-own-art-box/
Comments
I hope you can, Barry. The several times we Des Moines we were knocked out by the terrific organization, attention to artists and the attention of the sponsors, that their displays must have an art activity, or enhance the "art festival." AND the Iowa artists program is so well supported, AND ... Seeing as this is a "big" festival with so many moving parts it works amazingly well.
Yes, you can't say anything bad about St. Louis, but from an organizational point of view, it doesn't have all the components that DM has, or ABE or some of the other extravaganzas. Nonetheless, for the readers here we're not so interested in those parts but in the $$$ and both shows deliver those nicely.
I'll have something to say about this show as soon as I get a chance. It is best run show in the country. They do a fantastic job.
Notice I said best run. St Louis is still the best show, but, Des Moines is very close. If St Louis is #1, Des Moines is 1A. I hope I get to do this show for the next 5 years.