Recommended Sculptures for 2025-26 Art on the River Rotating Public Art ExhibitionCity of Dubuque
City Council
CONSENT ITEMS # 5.
Copyrighted
April 7, 2025
ITEM TITLE: Recommended Sculptures for 2025-26 Art on the River
Rotating Public Art Exhibition
SUMMARY: City Manager recommending City Council approval of the
Arts & Cultural Affairs Advisory Commission's
recommendation related to the 2025-2026 Art on the River
exhibit to be on display from August 1, 2025, through June
2026.
SUGGUESTED Receive and File; Approve
DISPOSITION:
ATTACHMENTS:
1. MVM Memo
2. Staff Memo
Page 106 of 386
THE CITY OF
Dubuque
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Masterpiece on the Mississippi
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2017202019
TO: The Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
SUBJECT: Recommended Sculptures for 2025-26 Art on the River Rotating Public Art
Exhibition
DATE: April 1, 2025
Arts & Cultural Affairs Manager Bonnie Spurling is recommending City Council approval
of the Arts & Cultural Affairs Advisory Commission's recommendation related to the
2025-26 Art on the River exhibit to be on display from August 1, 2025, through June
2026. The 2025-26 Art on the River (AOTR) will be the City's 19t" edition hosting this
popular rotating exhibit of large-scale sculptural public art along the Mississippi
Riverwalk in the Port of Dubuque.
The Commission unanimously voted on March 25, 2025, to approve the
recommendation as follows:
Concurrence with the community review panel's 11 sculpture selections:
a. Will Turnbull, "Findicator Species"
b. Kirk Seese, "The Pollinator"
c. Molly Spain, "Sounds of the Seed"
d. Tim Adams, "Lupine"
e. Nicole Beck, "Oscill8"
f. Matt Miller, "Social Fabric"
g. James Cole, "Verdi's Path"
h. Skip Willits, "Stainless River"
i. John Merigan, "Homage to L'Homme Qui Marche"
j. Chris Plaisted, "Wind in the Waves"
k. Gail Chavenelle, "Flow of Wellness III"
2. Concurrence with the community panel's 4 alternate sculpture selections as
needed by Staff to fill any exhibition voids that may arise if a recommended
sculpture is unavailable:
a. Dallas Guffy, "Tilt Shift"
b. Anna Mrzyglod, "The Bear"
c. Evan Lewis, "Mineral Point Spinner"
d. Hilde DeBruynr, "Bloom"
Page 107 of 386
There are no new budget impacts associated with this request. The request uses
approved FY26 budget allocations dedicated to Art on the River; the FY26 Art on the
River budget provides up to 11 stipends of $1,800 per sculpture with travel
reimbursements of up to $200 per artist.
I concur with the recommendation and respectfully request Mayor and City Council
approval.
Y
Mic ael C. Van Milligen
►VA[yV1►VAWA
Attachment
cc: Crenna Brumwell, City Attorney
Cori Burbach, Assistant City Manager
Jill Connors, Economic Development Director
Bonnie Spurling, Arts & Cultural Affairs Manager
2
Page 108 of 386
Dubuque
THE CITY OF
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2007-2012.2013
Masterpiece on the Mississippi 2017*2019
TO: Mike Van Milligen, City Manager
FROM: Bonnie Spurling, Arts & Cultural Affairs Manager
Economic Development Department
Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs
1300 Main Street
Dubuque, Iowa 52001-4763
Office (563) 589-4393
TTY (563) 690-6678
http://www.cityofdubuque.org
SUBJECT: Recommended Sculptures for 2025-26 Art on the River Rotating Public Art
Exhibition
DATE: April 1, 2025
INTRODUCTION
This memorandum presents the recommended 2025-26 Art on the River sculpture selections
as curated by a community jury panel and supported by the Arts & Cultural Affairs Advisory
Commission (the Commission) for approval by the City Manager and City Council.
BACKGROUND
The 2025-26 Art on the River (AOTR) will be the City's 19t" edition hosting this popular
rotating exhibit of large-scale sculptural public art along the Mississippi Riverwalk in the Port
of Dubuque. Each year, the program cultivates a new open-air gallery and community events
that engage residents and visitors in a multi -faceted experience of one of our most significant
and unique attractions, the Mississippi River. Sculptures are sourced through an open call
and available for private purchase for a period of one-year; the 2025-26 exhibit will be on
display from August 1, 2025, through June 2026.
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Art on the River is produced annually and promoted throughout by the Office of Arts &
Cultural Affairs in tandem with community volunteers and City staff. The current AOTR
Planning Committee includes Commissioner Shirley Davis -Orwell, community members Mary
Armstrong, Ryan Decker, Gina Siegert, and City staff member Mike Williams. The Planning
Committee, in concurrence with the Commission, used the following process to arrive at this
year's recommendation.
Theme: The theme "Flow of Wellness" was drafted by the Planning Committee and approved
by the Commission to recruit submissions that invite visitors to explore the power of art on a
personal and communal well-being centered around themes of health, healing, and wellness.
Our aim was to curate an exhibit that reflects how art nurtures the body, mind, and spirit,
celebrates nature's restorative forces, the healing power of movement, and the soothing
effects of light, sound and color.
Page 109 of 386
Selection Process: AOTR sculptures are identified through an international open call for art
and community -driven selection process. Program guidelines are posted online and
advertised broadly. Any interested artist can submit up to 3 entries for consideration at no
cost through our online application portal. There is generally a 6-week window between when
the call is released and when submissions are due. This year, we received 61 unique
applications from 40 artists representing 11 states in the US, as well as India and Germany.
The Planning Committee engages 3 community members based on their expertise in public
art, visual art exhibit curation, and / or in relation to the exhibit's theme to provide an objective
recommendation of works to be exhibited from the submissions received. This year's
`community juror panel' included:
• Jessica Modica — Executive Director at Freeport Art Museum
• Tamsie Ringler, Visual Artist specializing in Iron casting and landscape -based
sculptural installations, retired college professor
• Sarah Cassella, PhD- Associate Professor of Neuroscience, Loras College, Dubuque,
IA
Panelists independently review, score, and comment on submissions based on the criteria
below:
• Theme Appropriateness: How well does the sculpture speak, both visually and through
the artist's statements, to the `Flow of Wellness' theme?
• Artistic Creativity: Does the making or presentation of the work demonstrate
innovative, original approaches in bold, thoughtful, and / or well -crafted ways?
• Aesthetic Value: Will the work attract the public's attention? To what degree will the
work add to the Riverwalk's natural or built landscape?
• Structural Integrity: Will the sculpture structurally stand up against the elements?
After all scores were entered and then reviewed by Staff, panelists met virtually with Staff to
collectively curate the exhibit based on said scoring. Until these final curating discussions,
information that identifies the applying artist is absent from the process to support unbiased
review of applications.
Recommendation: The panelists' recommendation of 11 sculptures for exhibit plus 4
alternates were presented to the Commission for consideration on March 25, 2025. No
additional installation concerns have been noted at this time. The Commission unanimously
voted on March 25, 2025, to approve the recommendation as follows:
1. Concurrence with the community review panel's 11 sculpture selections:
a. Will Turnbull, "Findicator Species"
b. Kirk Seese, "The Pollinator"
c. Molly Spain, "Sounds of the Seed"
d. Tim Adams, "Lupine"
e. Nicole Beck, "Oscill8"
f. Matt Miller, "Social Fabric"
g. James Cole, "Verdi's Path"
h. Skip Willits, "Stainless River"
Page 110 of 386
i. John Merigan, "Homage to L'Homme Qui Marche"
j. Chris Plaisted, "Wind in the Waves"
k. Gail Chavenelle, "Flow of Wellness III"
2. Concurrence with the community panel's 4 alternate sculpture selections as needed by
Staff to fill any exhibition voids that may arise if a recommended sculpture is
unavailable:
a. Dallas Guffy, "Tilt Shift"
b. Anna Mrzyglod, "The Bear"
c. Evan Lewis, "Mineral Point Spinner"
d. Hilde DeBruynr, "Bloom"
BUDGETIMPACTS
There are no new budget impacts associated with this request. The request uses approved
FY26 budget allocations dedicated to Art on the River; the FY26 Art on the River budget
provides up to 11 stipends of $1,800 per sculpture with travel reimbursements of up to $200
per artist.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Staff requests the City Manager and City Council approve the Arts & Cultural Affairs Advisory
Commission's recommendation noted above related to the 2025-26 Art on the River exhibit.
Following City Manager and City Council approval of the above, agreements as reviewed by
the City Attorney's Office, will be presented to Artists for signature and forwarded to the City
Manager for execution.
Cc: Jill Connors, Economic Development Director
Jenny Larson, Director of Finance and Budget
Page 111 of 386