15 NOV TUE 2021

My Art Practice – It Might Not Look Like Art

Before the “Days of COVID” series there were four Riverview Artist Salons (RAS) (17-20) and a couple Salonniere DSM events. RAS19 was held at xBk Live the day the WHO declared COVID a pandemic and 6 days later I started working my day job from home for what would be an “indefinite” amount of time.

RAS is a community service art project I started In January 2017 and Salonniere DSM is where River City Art and Music (RCAM) got its start back in 2014 with a Meetup.com group of the same name.

The RAS mission is “To elevate the status of Creatives living in our cities and state and to provide a center for networking, public engagement, new ideas, personal development and artistic growth”. Events include Poetry Intermezzo, Art Advocacy, Community Outreach, Creative Showcase and Pop-Up Art Show. Member’s of a RAS Facebook Group and/or other Iowa Creatives come forward and/or are invited to participate in a free two hour public event to share their words, sound, passions and works. Events were held at the Des Moines Social Club, University of Iowa Pappajohn Center for Higher Education, Mainframe Studios and most recently it’s new homebase, xBk Live. Due to the COVID pandemic, and lack of funding, events are on hold.

Salonniere DSM is membership based and includes small, intimate gatherings where art, music or cultural events are the highlight with dining experiences at locally owned Des Moines restaurants. Due to the COVID pandemic, events are on hold.

Each event “is” a work of art and requires a lot of creative thinking to bring it to life. I create a “theme”, which everything revolves around, promotional content, publicity, copywriting, graphic design, planning, coordinating, decorating, timing, narration, etc., etc. Using my education and skills acquired from 10 years in hospitality management, including 4 in conference center/event management, I know a thing or two about back and front of the house. It’s been a great marriage of my “own” art and my “career” to bring this great passion of mine to life.

“If you dream it, you can do it. What’s stopping you?” – vlvh