Photo #177: The Des Moines Arts Festival

This is the weekend of the Des Moines Arts Festival, which has a reputation for being one of the biggest and best art festivals in the country. Years ago, the Des Moines Arts Festival started out in Greenwood Park, near the Des Moines Art Center. Back then it was mostly Iowa Artists, and it was on a much smaller scale. For several years it was held on the bridges, and it was during this time that it shifted from Iowa artists to national artists. During the past few years it has been held just to the west of downtown in the Western Gateway Park. And this year the art is displayed in tents surrounding the new Pappajohn Sculpture Garden, which made the entire event all the more attractive.

As is often true, we had violent thunderstorms and strong winds during the night followed by temperatures in the nineties with a heat index of 105 today. With that forecast in mind, my sister and I got out there early. We had our sunscreen and water bottles filled with iced tea, with a stop for refills at Starbucks. It was a great day, despite the heat, and it makes me so happy that we have these kinds of events in a city the size of Des Moines.

Artists are here from all over the country, with one street of tents devoted to the art of art students from local colleges. I really enjoyed seeing their work. Some if it is also within reach of my meager budget.

The Art Festival is a family affair with tents for kids to create their own masterpieces. The festival is a place where face painting is taken to a whole new level. The two kids above, and their mom, were kind enough to let me photograph them. To deal with the heat, people found shade where ever they could, and others cooled off by taking a dip in the fountains.

Photo #108: T8

I took another trip to the Pappajohn Sculpture Garden today. This time I went with my sister, Jacci. We walked around in the sculpture garden and then walked down the street to Starbucks. On the way to Starbucks we noticed they are opening a Jimmy John's nearby, which will make this area even more appealing. I am a big fan of Jimmy Johns.

This sculpture is called T8. You can see the 8 in the middle along with several Ts. You see something different from every angle. I like looking at the sculpture in contrast to the construction that is going on in the surrounding area, along with the crane in the background.

Photo #100: One Hundred Days

At school we make a big deal out of the one hundredth day of the school year. Well this is the one hundredth day of my blog and the 365 Photo Challenge, and that means it is also the one hundredth day of 2010. I cannot believe that I have done this every day for 100 days. I'm pretty impressed with myself, and I can see that I am growing in my photography skills. It also helps that I have a better camera than I started the year with. As much as the photos, I am enjoying taking the time to reflect and write about each day. It has definitely made an impact on my life. I am more observant of my surroundings, and I have become more active, making it a point to go out and look for things to experience and photograph.

We are about to begin our castle project at school, so I went downtown to the central library to pick up some books I needed. The day started out as beautiful and sunny, but it clouded over in the afternoon. After I found what I needed at the library, I spent some time walking around in the Pappajohn Sculpture Garden. The last time I was there was on my birthday in January. It is much more inviting now. When I arrived a wedding party was just leaving. The grass is green, people were walking around, one group was picnicking, kids were playing among the sculptures. There are lots of places to sit and relax and enjoy the art. This part of Des Moines has changed so much in the past year or two. I'm sure I will be down here often. The sculpture garden is just one block from the library, coffee shops, and places to eat.

Afterwards I spent about an hour at the Starbucks down the street. Days like today make me very thankful for my life. Sometimes I just need to remind myself to slow down and smell the coffee.