Polk County Heritage Gallery
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**Don't forget to submit your photos for our juried exhibit!** Meet the F/STOP 2020 juror: Brittany Brooke Crow's art explores ideas of intimacy, vulnerability, distance and disruption, and the performative action necessary to create is an inherent part of the content of her work. In order to finish a series that captured her sense of connection to and distance from former lovers, she drove from Iowa to Washington state just to photograph one person with a large-format vi...ew camera. Crow earned a BFA in studio art and a BA in art history from the University of Northern Iowa in 2013. She has since directed the art gallery at Wartburg College, taught for a semester at the same institution, worked for multiple art centers, and served as a governor-appointed board member on the Iowa Arts Council Board of Directors. https://brittanybrookecrow.com/ See more

***Call for photos!*** 2020 has been an. . . interesting year. Let's be honest it needs to F/STOP. We're excited to announce our 3rd themed exhibit. Submit the photos that will help us all to remember this dumpster-fire of a year! ... The exhibit, and awards ceremony, will all be virtual. http://www.polkcountyheritagegallery.org/call-for-entries

**Call for entries opens October 16** It's been a quite a year! We started with a look at issues we care about - with hopes that things would get better. We won't list them here- you know it's been a hard year. For our 3rd themed photography exhibit, this time 100% virtual, we'll be asking Iowa photographs to share their best (or worst) of 2020!

Who's ready for 2020 to stop?

*Honorable Mention* Artists PRofile Emergence (Dyptrich) Sundie + Brad Ruppert...Continue reading

*Honorable Mention* Artist Profile Third Mercs Pt IV: Retractor Rydaz Ethan Edvenson ethanedvenson.com...Continue reading

*Honorable Mention* Artist Profile Look Away Maggie Douglas Instagram: @mdouglas.studio... Website: mdouglas-studio.com About the artwork Look Away began with my usual process of creating abstract work which involves putting down layers of watered down paint and reacting to how it naturally dries. But soon after the first layer dried, I noticed a shoreline developing in the piece. This led me to a message on climate change, pollution, micro plastics etc. and all that is negatively effecting our oceans. I felt that adding a figure looking out into the distance shows our human tendency to avoid conflict and tension for our own comfort. We soak up the beauty and ignore the rest. About the artist I was born in Des Moines, Iowa and graduated from Loras College with a B.A. in Art and Digital Design in 2014. I have worked as a Graphic Designer since graduating and in 2018 began to focus more of my attention on studio art. My body of work entails 2-D multimedia pieces on paper and canvas. I see my pieces as a study of water from its micro to its macro form. In my work I use water as my inspiration, my subject, and my medium. The ebb and flow process, sometimes peaceful, sometimes forceful, guides my process as I act and react to what is on the canvas. How is the current time affecting your artwork? Art is my therapy. The process of art-making brings me so much joy. It is my escape most of the time, but I see some of my work bringing in the reality of the world today. Typically, I create the work for myself, but I am beginning to find the value of creating work that makes a more direct statement about the world and asks the viewer to reflect on it.

*Merit Award* Artist Profile The Arms of an Angel Jill Wells www.jillwellsart.com... Instagram: jillwellsart Facebook: Jill WellsArt About the artwork This piece was inspired by Niccolo dell Arca, "Sorrow Over Dead Christ." I lost my only biological child, William, to SIDS 15 years ago and creating this work helped me cope, process and begin to heal. This work also allows his legacy to be told. This piece is forever a part of me. About the artist I am an Iowa native and a graduate of Drake University with a BFA in painting. My artwork seeks to express emotions and communicate narratives. How is the current time affecting your artwork? My current environment is helping me create, as I am blessed to work from home. I am also blessed to have a home studio and the combination of both has fostered new work.

*Merit Award* Artist Profile Merit Award The Arctic Tern Never Rests :: Ephemera No.3 Julie Russell-Steuart... www.caveworkspress.com IG: @caveworks FB: https://www.facebook.com/CaveworksLetterpress/ Behance: https://www.behance.net/julierussell2 About the artwork From new a series of prints that aim to react to and are broadly, "exploring the ephemeral nature and emotions of the current zeitgeist." Referencing the Arctic Tern of environmental activist Terry Tempest Williams’ essay, Ground Truthing which is an absolute must read. Find it at https://orionmagazine.org/article/ground-truthing/ I also draw upon the idea of networks that connect us, and the necessary work of activism for a better future. I like to experiment with combining processes and this work combines drypoint etching, collograph, monoprint, and hand-set wood and metal type on 100% cotton rag paper. Monoprint background has small variations. Extremely limited edition of 5 printed on my Vandercook Uni III proof press. About the artist Visual artist Julie Russell-Steuart grew up in Maryland and earned a BFA in General Fine Art from Maryland Institute, College of Art. Her work encompasses multiple mediums with a particular interest the synthesis of word and image. She publishes letterpress books of poetry, artist’s books, and prints on a vintage Vandercook printing press. A guillotine paper cutter, Kluge platen press, and six type cabinets full of metal typefaces and various antique cuts round out her print shop. Her artwork combines printmaking techniques like linoleum carving, pressure printing, collograph, wood engraving, and drypoint. She has shown her work internationally, and her books are collected by several University libraries, including The University of Iowa, Texas State University, and the University of Kentucky Lucille Little Fine Arts Library. She resides in Reinbeck, Iowa, with her husband David, and daughter Cassandra. How is the current time affecting your artwork? I began this series of prints to respond to current events in 2017, using the basic title of Ephemera, which refers to something that is fleeting and of the moment. In letterpress/printing history, it refers to pieces that are transitory or meant for a brief time, such as a poster for a show. I own some wood type that is over a hundred years old, and it is interesting to think about all the posters or headlines they were used for. I use them again, acknowledging their history. The series so far are all included in the show. They all have quite different treatments, but share the urgency of translating the moment. I am working on a new print that will also be centered around drypoint like the third in the series. Again, it will reflect a activist or human sense/response to our world and times right now. I draw a lot of energy from my recent job as a field organizer for Bernie Sanders.

*BEST IN SHOW* Artist Feature Into the Weeds Linda Lewis...Continue reading