Our History
The Des Moines Arts Festival traces its beginnings to 1958, when the Des Moines Art Center hosted an event called the All Iowa Art Fair to celebrate the Art Center’s 10th Anniversary. Over the next 40 years, the event evolved, going by many different names, today typically remembered as “Art in the Park”.
In 1997, with the advent of revitalized downtown urban energy, momentum grew to reinvigorate the 40-year-old event. A group of community leaders created a 501c3 nonprofit organization named “The Des Moines Arts Festival” and in 1998, established the first official festival with the same name in downtown Des Moines.
Today, nearly 70 years later, the Des Moines Arts Festival is Iowa’s signature arts and culture event and one of the most prestigious and admired festivals in the world. Since moving downtown in 1998, the Festival has welcomed more than five million guests.
Timeline
1998 | The inaugural Des Moines Arts Festival was held on the Downtown Des Moines bridges from June 26 – 28. The highlight of the Festival was the Juried Art Fair. In its inaugural year, the Festival developed strong relationships with recognized organizations like the National Association of Independent Artists and the International Festivals and Events Association. These relationships assisted in developing the artist program, which is now one of the strongest in the nation.
The programs in the first Festival include the Juried Art Fair, Community Outreach Program, Merchandise, and a variety of interactive arts activities.
1999 | In its second year, the Festival added street dancing and fireworks to its evening activities. Art Gift Certificate programs were created to strengthen the Festival's emphasis on art. The Festival attendance jumped 66% over it’s inaugural year.
2000 | The Festival continued to grow and expanded its hours, opening at 3 p.m. on Friday and 10 a.m. on Saturday. New programs were created to spotlight the culinary arts.
2001 | Nurturing a Student's Vision (NSV) was developed to encourage children with their passion for the arts. Today, this program is known as the Student Art Exhibition. The Festival welcomed Les Statues Vivantes, an artistic experience where authentic Greek statues came to life and interacted with guests.
2002 | Celebrating its 5th year, the Festival lifted up artist demonstrations to make art more accessible and give guests a better understanding of the skill behind the craft.
2003 | The Emerging Iowa Artist Program is established thanks to the visionary leadership of G. David Hurd. This unique program provides an opportunity for residents of Iowa who are enrolled at any institute of higher education across the nation to display and sell their artwork during the Festival for free.
2004 | The Festival expanded the performing arts into three stages to better showcase music, dance, and other programming arts.
2005 | The Festival increased to four stages for performing arts and 136 artists in the Juried Art Fair. New activities included Drum Magic, featuring 100 drums, and ISEK, an Iowa State University robot that interacted with visitors.
2006 | Construction on the Downtown bridges propels the Festival to move its site eight blocks west to Phase One of Western Gateway Park. In this new space, construction was concluding on the new David Chipperfield-designed library and the John and Mary Pappajohn Higher Education Center. Stephen King joins the organization as its new Executive Director.
2007 | The Festival celebrates its 10th anniversary with several new initiatives. First, interactive art took a front seat with the Mural Project. In this project, Festival guests colored tiles to create two billboard-sized replicas of Vincent van Gogh's The Starry Night and Irises. The performing arts were highlighted with live street theatre roaming the Festival site throughout the weekend and a special performance by The Joffrey Ballet. The Festival load-in was celebrated with LIVE! Load-In Thursday at Blues on Grand.
The Festival introduced its first Commemorative Poster by Iowa artist Chris Vance. The Commemorative Posters were available at the Merchandise Shops.
2008 | The first Interrobang Film Festival takes place in the Central Library to celebrate the art of film. The Juried Art Fair expands to include 175 professional visual artists. Two new Interactive Murals were created - The Hour of Tea by Frederick Carl Frieseke and Autumn in New Hampshire by Maurice Prendergast. The Festival went green by beginning a reduce, reuse, and recycle program.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Chris Rom & Geoff Buddie
2009 | The Festival elevated the performing arts with national singer/songwriter, Gavin DeGraw in partnership with the Hy-Vee Triathlon. The Festival hosted its first Habitat for Humanity "Blitz Build." In this, Festival guests contributed their time for a day or an hour to share their art of giving to others. The exterior of the house was completed on-site and taken to a permanent location for a family to enjoy.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Keith Grace
2010 | The John and Mary Pappajohn Sculpture Park is established in Western Gateway Park and serves as the centerpiece for the grounds of the Festival. Tours and special activities in the Sculpture Park were held throughout the weekend.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Jodi Perry
The Festival continued its commitment of "going green" with the help of six local artists who were asked to create recycling kiosks out of found, applied and donated objects. The end results were pieces of artwork that served as a function of recycling for all materials on the Festival grounds.
2011 | The Festival continued to expand its green initiatives through the use of compostable materials at every food and beverage stand, moving all communications to electronic, and creating bags out of past banners.
The Festival partnered with Habitat for Humanity for its second Blitz Build.
The Interactive Sculpture Project took on new dimensions with a 30-foot by 25-foot inverted ice cream cone.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Michael Kuseke
2012 | The Des Moines Arts Festival’s 15th Anniversary featured an all-Iowa line-up of live music with The Nadas, Thankful Dirt, Rebel Creek, James Biehn, and Bonnie Finken.
Festival guests helped create a giant mural for “Paint the Skywalk”. In this, Emerging Iowa artist Abby Butson's work was featured in a 10'x13' mural that was permanently installed in The Partnership Building's Skywalk following the Festival.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Andrew Sovjani
2013 | The Silent Rivers VIP Club and Hospitality Suite debuted as a destination for sponsors and patrons to enjoy the Festival while also providing a dedicated space for private groups to hold an event. A new Jazz and Wine Pavilion was also created in partnership with the Civic Music Association, with wines from Gateway Market. The art of craft beer was introduced with the Iowa Craft Beer Tent. It featured beers from 13 Iowa breweries.
Nationally celebrated comedic performer Roberto the Magnificent performed on the Performing Arts Stage.
Habitat for Humanity returned to the Festival with its third Blitz Build.
Commemorative Poster Artist: William Armstrong
2014 | The Mural Project returned with Sunday on the Island of La Grande Jatte by Georges-Pierre Seurat. New interactive media zones were hosted by media partners WHO - HD News, Channel 13, Clear Channel Media + Communications, and Des Moines Radio Group. Each Zone featured boosted Wi-Fi, smartphone charging stations, and social media streaming. Saturday was capped off with a fireworks celebration.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Signe Grushovenko & Genna Grushovenko
2015 | Birds of a Feather was commissioned for Metro Arts Alliance's 40th anniversary and painted with help from thousands of visitors at the Festival. The public created hundreds of dove-sized bird kites out of repurposed vinyl, which flew behind the "big bird" like a jet trail. Birds of a Feather was installed at the Des Moines International Airport and is still there today.
The performing arts featured Mat Kerney on Friday and the legendary Eddie Money.
The Festival hosted its 4th Habitat for Humanity Blitz Build.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Benjamin Frey
2016 | The inaugural REVEAL event was held in January as a special way to announce the artists invited to the Des Moines Arts Festival.
The organization established the G. David Hurd Innovator in the Arts Award at the Preview Celebration with recognition for local artist Larassa Kabel.
The Jazz and Wine Pavilion evolved into a new Acoustic Stage while the Main Stage welcomed Gin Blossoms and Grand Funk Railroad. The Main Stage also hosted its first laser and LED light show.
The Festival introduced BOOM ART!, an interactive mural project which suspends a colorful mural 30 feet high from the all-new, all-electric MidAmerican Energy bucket truck.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Brice McCasland
2017 | Des Moines Arts Festival celebrated its 20th anniversary with the "20 Party" and the unveiling of a massive mural painted on the Ford and Garland building by Iowa artist Chris Vance.
The Main Stage hosted eVenti Verticali's WANTED comedy aerial show, the Secret Walls smackdown art competition, Saint Motel, and Big Head Todd and the Monsters, while the Acoustic Stage featured Joe Purdy and The Pines.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Chris Vance
2018 | The live music of Sir Sly and the Spin Doctors headlined Friday and Saturday night, respectively, with Jukebox the Ghost opening on Friday night on the Hy-Vee Main Stage. As a special feature to the Festival, both nights culminated with a spectacular laser show with an amazing convergence of light, music and sound. The Acoustic Stage featured Dan Tedesco, Joe and Vicki Price, Dusty Heart, Shaun Munday, and others.
The Festival hosted its 5th Habitat for Humanity Blitz Build.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Chris Dahlquist
2019 | The Interactive Art Alley made its debut, with professional chalk artist Kathleen Roling creating a unique chalk drawing on the pavement. Along the wall, guests colored in local artist Jenna Brownlee's drawings in giant coloring mural. The Interrobang Film Festival became IMDb verified, so the awards granted from the Film Festival were acknowledged and accredited within the international film industry. Headliners The Strumbellas, The Mowgli's and The Family Stone were enjoyed by thousands of guests on the Hy-Vee Main Stage. The Roots Stage featured folk and Americana standouts Bo Ramsey and William Elliott Whitmore, among others.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Karin Wagner Coron
2020 | Plans for the 2020 Festival were sidelined due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and the organization focused on new opportunities. Artwork from the Student Art Exhibition was moved online and later into the Central Library, where students and families were able to view the artwork in small groups. The Interrobang Film Festival was streamed online with Vimeo during the traditional Festival dates. The Festival's website and social media showcased artists, small businesses, and non-profit organizations, and rallied community support for these businesses. The organization launched A Seat at the Table, an online conversation to elevate diversity, culture, and diversity in the arts, and Artist INC, a platform that offered professional development to creative entrepreneurs.
2021 | Proving that a comeback can be stronger than a setback, the Festival site was re-organized to accommodate social distancing following the COVID-19 pandemic. The Festival welcomed back the 150 artists who had previously been invited for the 2020 Festival and returned programs like the Student Art Exhibition, Community Outreach Program, Emerging Iowa Artists, and the Interrobang Film Festival. The Hy-Vee Main Stage featured lovelytheband and Here Come the Mummies while the Roots Stage welcomed Tommy Prine, son of legendary singer songwriter John Prine, and Lilly Hiatt daughter of another legend, John Hiatt. Beyond the Festival, the organization expanded the A Seat at the Table program into a full season.
The Festival welcomed its 6th Habitat for Humanity Blitz Build.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Brianna Martray
2022 | The Festival celebrated its 25th anniversary with an explosive line-up of events. It began with a kickoff concert on Thursday, June 23, at the Roots Stage, featuring William Elliott Whitmore. Next, when the Festival opened on Friday morning, guests were greeted by an increased number of artists – a return to the pre-pandemic level of 190 professional visual artists. The Community Outreach Program gained a new sponsor, MidAmerican Energy Company, which increased support for the nonprofits by providing each organization with a stipend to be used for supplies or staffing. The two stages welcomed G. Love & Special Sauce, Moon Taxi, Cedric Burnside, Chicago Farmer, and Sarah Shook & the Disarmers, and also hosted it’s first ever Drag Show. Finally, the Festival featured a Milling Experience with the Iowa Home Crafters, which showcased woodworking.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Ella Richards
2023 | The Emerging Artist Program expanded by adding a new category designed for artists who are new to the Festivals and Fairs industry. The Mural Project returned with the creation of The Circus by Georges Seurat, 1891. Following the Festival, it was permanently installed at Athene. Local artist Jenna Brownlee created the commemorative poster, Garden Party, which broke records by selling out along with selling out of all merchandise associated with it. The Hy-Vee Main Stage featured The 502’s and Sister Hazel, while the Interrobang Film Festival added TALKBACKS for the first time.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Jenna Brownlee
2024 | The Mural Project went in a new direction with a collaboration ARTForce Iowa. Through this partnership, the art for the Mural Project, Together We Flourish, was created by students at East High School and Roosevelt High School. The piece was separated into two halves, “Day” and “Night”. Following the Festival, “Day” was installed in Roosevelt High School, and “Night” was installed at East High School.
The Festival created a new destination, Liquid Art, as an on-site lounge with cocktails, mocktails, and other specialty craft beverages. The community packed the Hy-Vee Main Stage lawn to see performances by St. Paul and the Broken Bones and The Marshall Tucker Band.
In marketing, the Festival teamed up with the Iowa Lottery to launch a contest to win Art Bucks and a premium VIP experience. Thousands of individuals entered to win.
The Festival hosted its 7th Habitat for Humanity Blitz Build.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Andy Fletcher
2025 | The Festival expanded its offerings by creating four new programs for celebrating literary arts. It also celebrated fashion and textile arts with a fashion show by Iowa artist Isa Maisa. To support guests, the Festival launched Quincy’s Sensory Space as a new artistic experience and rest space for individuals with sensory sensitivities and their families. The Iowa Home Crafters returned to showcase milling and the art of woodworking.
Commemorative Poster Artist: Evan Abrahamson
