Arts and attractions
Fountain of the Four Seasons sculpture by Christian Petersen.
Exhibits Calendar
Anderson Sculpture Garden | contact
South of Morrill Hall, free
Brunnier Art Museum | contact
Scheman Building, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 1-4 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, $3 suggested donation
- Closed for renovations through summer 2019
Christian Petersen Art Museum | contact
Morrill Hall, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday, $3 suggested donation
- Closed through summer 2019
Design on Main Gallery | contact
203 Main St., 2-5 p.m. Thursday-Saturday
Central campus, Noon-4 p.m., Monday-Friday, $3 suggested donation
- "Timeless: Love and Romance in the Victorian Era," an exhibition that takes a peek into love and romance in the Victorian era, through Oct. 31, 2019
Gallery 181 | 515-294-7428
College of Design, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday, free
Parks Library | contact
Special Collections and University Archives, 403 Parks Library, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday, free
- "We Are ISU: Snapshots of Student Life," an exhibit focusing on photographs, scrapbooks, journals, t-shirts, and more from past students, March 13 through Sept. 2019
- Online exhibits: archives.lib.iastate.edu
Throughout Parks Library
- "Art in Parks," features contemporary women artists, ongoing
Memorial Union | contact
Gallery, viewing based on room availability, free
- "The Portrait," series of female figures by Beth Bird, through July 15
Pioneer Room, viewing based on room availability, free
Multicultural Center, 8 a.m.-11 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 8 a.m.-5p.m. Friday, 5-11 p.m. Sunday, free
9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday, $9 (youth $4.50, free for members)
Hughes Conservatory
- "Where's ALDO? (Leopold)," tucked within the surrounding plants and flowers inside the Hughes Conservatory, look for eight ecologists, including Aldo Leopold who is considered the father of wildlife ecology and a native Iowan, through Aug. 17
Textiles and Clothing Museum, Mary Alice Gallery | contact
1015 Morrill Hall, 11 a.m.-4 p.m., Monday-Friday, free
Reiman Gardens
Campus attractions
- The Brunnier Art Museum
- Christian Petersen Art Museum
- Farm House Museum
- The Gentle Doctor sculpture
- Grant Wood murals
- Hilton Coliseum
- Iowa State Center
- Iowa State University Research Park
- Jack Trice Stadium
- Reiman Gardens
- Veenker Memorial Golf Course
- C6 Virtual Reality Applications Center
Highlights
Best public rose garden
Iowa State's Reiman Gardens has been named the best public rose garden in the U.S.
Most beautiful campus
Iowa State's campus includes over 600 public works of art and was rated as one of America's 25 most beautiful in the book, The Campus as a Work of Art.
Carillon
The 10-bell carillon chime installed in the Campanile in 1899 was the first scientifically tuned bell chime outside of England; the carillon has 50 bells today.
Building of the 20th Century
Iowa State's Stephens Auditorium was named Iowa's "Building of the 20th Century" by the American Institute of Architects (AIA), Iowa Chapter.
Most Grant Wood murals
Iowa State has the largest Grant Wood murals in the nation, including two WPA projects located in Parks Library -- "Breaking the Sod" and "When Tillage Begins, Other Arts Follow."
Seamless curtain
The main stage curtain in Stephens Auditorium is seamless, made entirely of silk, measures 85 by 35 feet and weighs 3,000 pounds. It was woven in Kyoto, Japan, on the world's largest continuous loom.
Accredited museum
The University Museums at Iowa State is one of only 10 percent of museums in the nation to be accredited by the American Association of Museums.
Medallion site
Iowa State's central campus was one of only three university campuses to make the American Society of Landscape Architect's 1999 centennial listing of "Medallion Sites."
Most Christian Petersen sculptures
Iowa State holds the nation's largest campus public collection of sculptures by Christian Petersen, who was artist-in-residence from 1934 to 1955.
Online art tour
You can take a virtual look at some campus art with University Museums' Digital Art on Campus project.