For Immediate Release
Contact: Amy Day
Tel: 515.271.0344 (o)
515.612.0775 (c)
aday@desmoinesartcenter.org

DES MOINES, IOWA (April 2026) – The Des Moines Art Center has been awarded a $26,200 Bedrock Grant from Every Page Foundation to support art conservation and educational outreach. Every Page Foundation is a national organization dedicated to advancing gender equity by promoting the health, security, education, and career development of women and girls. This grant will help honor the legacy of women artists in the Art Center’s collection, expand public access to their work, and promote new career opportunities for women and girls in the arts and sciences.

First, this grant will support the conservation of historically significant artworks by women in the Art Center’s collection, ensuring their inclusion in the groundbreaking exhibition, Whisper to a Scream: Women Artists and Minimalism, organized by Senior Curator Laura Burkhalter and opening in 2027. This show will celebrate the contributions from early modernists to contemporary practitioners, including Sue Fuller, Louise Nevelson, Jackie Ferrara, Eva Hesse, Dorothea Rockburne, Rachel Whiteread, Maya Lin, Gertrude Greene, and Ann Ryan. Conservation work will be completed by an all-woman team from the Midwest Art Conservation Center, highlighting women’s leadership in the field.

Additionally, this project will create career education opportunities by introducing women and girls to the field of art conservation—a discipline that combines expertise in the arts and sciences. With grant support, the Art Center will produce an educational video featuring the conservators’ career journeys, highlighting career pathways for women in the field. The video will be shared via the Art Center’s website, social media channels, and community program partners serving girls and young women.

“The Art Center has a long history of collecting and exhibiting work by women artists, guided by a curatorial philosophy that strives for equitable representation in our galleries and amplified by a transformative gift from the late Louise Noun, who donated more than 120 artworks by women to the collection. We are deeply grateful to Every Page Foundation for supporting the conservation of works by trailblazing women artists whose creativity transformed 20th century American art. This project will safeguard their remarkable contributions to art history and ensure these works remain accessible to future generations. As one of the few places in Central Iowa to view such works, this conservation effort is essential to preserving public access,” said Dr. Kelly Baum, John and Mary Pappajohn Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Art Center. “It will also illuminate a new career pathway and inspire future leaders into the field of art conservation, building upon on our commitment to advancing the professional development of women in the arts.”

This project will be led by Senior Curator Laura Burkhalter, Director of Registration and Collections Management Mickey Ryan, and Senior Director of Museum Learning, Engagement, and Community Access Jill Featherstone, each bringing over 20 years of experience in their respective fields and extensive leadership with the Art Center.

About the Des Moines Art Center
Founded in 1948, the Des Moines Art Center is a vibrant, AAM-accredited (American Alliance of Museums) institution located in the capital city of Iowa that welcomes nearly 350,000 visitors annually from across the country and around the globe. The Art Center is proud to offer free admission to its galleries, programs, and sculpture park for all visitors. Our historic campus consists of three buildings designed by major architects of the 20th century — Eliel Saarinen, I. M. Pei, and Richard Meier — incorporated into the natural landscape of Greenwood Park. The largest art museum in the Greater Des Moines metro and one of the few in the state, the Art Center is home to one of the strongest collections of 20th- and 21st-century art in the region, and it hosts a series of ground-breaking exhibitions and lectures each year featuring artists known regionally, nationally, and internationally. The experimental art for which the Art Center cares is reflected in its creative offerings, including a celebrated education program that prioritizes access and collaboration, an art school with studio classes for all ages, and the John and Mary Pappajohn Sculpture Park, situated on 4.4 acres in downtown Des Moines.

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