On a Picture-Perfect Saturday, Art on the Square was held in Downtown Oskaloosa!

(Oskaloosa, Iowa) – On this past warm and eventually sunny Saturday, Art on the Square returned for its 53rd year. Festivities included nearly 30 artist booths, an Emerging Artists area for first-time participants, live local musicians from Muse Music Store, a wood carving demonstration by Roger Beane, a painting demonstration by Illustrator, Joe Hox, and a StoryWalk™ and kids’ activities thanks ISU Extension and Outreach of Mahaska County. Surrounding the Square, 33 windows in the Main Street district were also painted by local artists and creatives as part of the ‘Wild About Art’ Window Art Walk to beautify downtown and celebrate Art on the Square. Some downtown businesses offered Creative Stations, including Crouse’s House of Flowers with Naomi Rei glass tile flower paintings, Brushed by Jude with rock painting and jewelry making, and United Way as a partnership with Oskaloosa Rotary with bubble art. A short walk brought visitors to the Penn Central Mall where the first-ever Five Star Title & Escrow Cardboard Town was set up in center court. Oskaloosa was the place to be for arts & culture on June 11.

As in past Art on the Square events, judges were sent out to select award-winning artwork. The judges this year, Kate Hoksbergen and Briana Bartlett, visited every booth and talked with artists to decide on four Best of Show, four Honorable Mentions, and one Emerging Artist of the Year. After much deliberation, the judges selected the following artists to receive the awards:

Best of Show, 1st Place, Two Dimensional: Meg Prange (Russell, IA) for Hand Appliqued Wall Art
Best of Show, 1st Place, Three Dimensional: Doug Adams (Fairfield, IA) for Twisted Aluminum Tree Art
Best of Show, 2nd Place, Two Dimensional: Kelsey Wilson (Nevada, IA) for Watercolor Paintings
Best of Show, 2nd Place: Three Dimensional: Mark McWhorter (Ottumwa, IA) for Stoneware
Best of Show, Emerging Artist: Brooke Peterson (Glidden, IA) for Canvas & Watercolor Paintings
Honorable Mentions: Brant Bollman (Oskaloosa, IA) for Artisan Puppets & Paintings, Connie Rodgers (University Park, IA) for Handmade Jewelry, Sergiy Nagorny (Oskaloosa, IA) for Copper Wire Sculptures, & Greg Harris (Leawood, KS) for Wooden Bowls

Every one of the 28 total artists who participated in Art on the Square exhibited talent and beautiful art. While many of the artists were locals living near Oskaloosa, others traveled from around Iowa as well as Oklahoma, Missouri, and Kansas. A wide range of artwork filled the booths around the Square, from oil, watercolor, and acrylic paintings to pottery and ceramics, photography, wire sculptures, fiber arts, fine woodworking, jewelry, and more.

“Our Art on the Square committee worked hard to revive this event with fresh ideas. This year was a great success, and it wouldn’t have been possible without the sponsors and volunteers who helped make it happen, the artists who brought their talent to downtown Oskaloosa, and the community members who attended – even through the rain – to support art and artists,” says Amy Brainard, Oskaloosa Main Street Director. “On behalf of Oskaloosa Main Street and the Art on the Square committee, thank you! We can’t wait to start planning next year’s event!”