Blanden Memorial Art Museum A good year for art

By HANS MADSEN editor@messengernews.net

Like so many other places that were affected by the COVID pandemic, the Blanden Memorial Art Museum is on the path to getting back to normal again.

Museum Director Eric Anderson said that the last year has been one of positives at the Blanden, and that there are many bright highlights on the horizon for 2023.

The big highlights of 2022 included bringing back the annual Art Festival.

“We had a virtual one in 2021,” he said. “It just wasn’t the same. We brought back the Art Festival this summer. That was really exciting to get that going again.”

The 2023 Art Festival, scheduled for June 10, is in the planning stages.

Visitors also enjoyed a variety of exhibits in 2022, with lots more to look forward to in 2023.

“We had some really great art exhibits,” he said. “We had sculpture, mixed media, photography and wood objects.”

One of the current exhibits features the photography of Evan Price, of Fort Dodge. The Iowa Central Community College graduate’s work caught Anderson’s eye when Price was still a student. “I remembered his work from when he was a student,” Anderson said. “I offered him a show.”

Hired in 2022 and up to speed, Art Educator Angela Ayala is an Otho native who’s returned to be part of the community.

“She’s been really fantastic