In February I traveled to Pella Iowa for a solo show at Central College. It was a nice relaxing time. I got meet with students and give a few talks about my work. Pella is a quaint Dutch town that has an amazing old style butcher shop and two incredible bakeries. I ate to many dutch pastries and spent quite a bit of time in a coffee shop on town square.
On Monday morning I went to a nature preserve and watched 50 or more bald eagles flying over the river and nesting in huge trees by the water. I had never seen that many eagles together in one place.
I flew into Des Moines on a Saturday night and had most of Sunday to hang out and explore before driving to Pella. It just so happened that the Des Moines art center (which has a surprisingly good collection) had a Grant Wood show up complete with American Gothic. Grant Wood of course had his roots in Iowa. I always knew good things could come from the mid-west. It is always quite an experience to see work in person that you only know through reproductions.
