We started out connecting emerging artists and collectors through salons, installations, concerts, and more. With over 40 events under our belt, we're constantly looking for ways to put art at the forefront. E-mail info@yellowdoordsm.com for more information or to discuss coordinating a future event.
We used to host salons and other events more regularly. At this time, we aren't posting events on our website — you can follow us on Facebook or Instagram to stay up to date. Thanks!
Since the late 17th century, salons have brought people together to amuse one another and refine the taste and increase the knowledge of the participants through both cultural and intellectual conversations. Yellow Door salons exist much in the same way: as a place and forum that brings people together through shared experiences with visual, aural and performance art.
Presented by Yellow Door, Blk and Bold, and Fox Brewing.
The event will feature artwork by Zet Gold, a documentary short by Sam Fathallah, a musical performance by Jinnouchi Power, tacos by Trish Myers of Up In Your Kitchen / formerly Moar Tacos, beer by Fox Brewing and coffee by Blk and Bold.
Join Yellow Door for the first salon of 2019 and the first event hosted in the private home of local art appreciators Thai & Jillian. Their 1915 gable roofed, brick & stucco home on 42nd Street will feature an art installation by Monica Cohen & Kelsey Lampe; a musical performance by Katie In of Pink Neighbor from Grinnell, Iowa; and a poetry reading by Crystal Stone.
Join Art Terrarium and Yellow Door for the opening of Primary Assemblies.
Featuring work by Ryan Topete and a performance by Jason Snell. The performance will start at 8pm and features EEG and EKG biosensors that read electrical patterns in Jason's brain and heart, transposing them into music.
Featuring works by Leslie Baum and Brian Kapernekas.
Join Yellow Door for Salon #16, featuring works by Firat Erdim and Sayward Schoonmaker, musicmusic by Austin Barnhill of Origami Animals, and more.
Featuring work by Firat Erdim and Sayward Schoonmaker.
Join Yellow Door for Salon #15 and the opening of Regarding the Unknown, featuring works by Leslie Baum and Brian Kapernekas, music by Squirrel Flower, and samples of edible cookie dough by Dough Moines!
Join Yellow Door and sommelier, home-brewer, and all around aficionado Marcus Walsh as he leads a sour beer tasting. The tasting will include 4 of Marcus's sour beers, including Iowa Peach Aronia, Catawba, Golden Solera, and one still Grand Cru style beer, with two cheese pairings. He will guide us through the ins and outs of sour beer, home-brewing, the history of sour beer, and more. The doors open at 5:30pm and the pouring will start at 6pm. We'll wrap up by 7pm or so.
RSVP IS REQUIRED TO ATTEND THIS EVENT. If you do not register via Tikly, you will not be permitted entrance.
30 spots are available. $20 suggested donation.
Questions? E-mail info@yellowdoordsm.com
Artists Rachel Buse and Trey Reis present a sculptural soundscape exploring habitat, capacity, and the processes of dislocation.
Join Yellow Door for Salon #14, featuring a sculptural soundscape by artists Rachel Buse and Trey Reis, words by William Bortz, and Sunshine Ice Pops -- handmade, small-batch ice pops crafted in Des Moines.
Featuring art by Taylor Yocom and Jonathan Berger.
Bring your own mat to this relaxing stretch class led by the wonderful Amy Putney Koenig. This is a wind-down, yin/restorative yoga practice for everyone. Made to create a deep stretch, stimulate meridian lines & invite relaxation, this is a slow moving, meditative practice that gets us deep in to letting go & softening tension. Wear comfy clothes & prepare to chill. Donations welcomed. Space is limited to the first 20 people. First come, first served. Just show up...we'll make space.
Join Yellow Door for Salon #13, featuring video, visual, and fiber art by Taylor Yocom and Jonathan Berger, music by The Vahnevants, and pies by Sandrilene.
Featuring art by Michael Velliquette and Joey Fauerso.
Mark Shapiro is a potter in Western Massachusetts. He is a frequent workshop leader, lecturer, curator, panelist, and writer, and is mentor to many young potters. His work, exhibited widely, is represented in many public collections and was featured in the 4th World Ceramics Biennial in Icheon, Korea. His interviews of prominent ceramic artists are in the Smithsonian Archives of American Art and he edited A Chosen Path: The Ceramic Art of Karen Karnes (UNC Press 2010). He is on the advisory board of Ceramics Monthly, and advisory council of Studio Potter, and is a founding member of POW! (Pots on Wheels!) and director of the Apprenticelines Project, which seeks to promote and expand apprenticeship.
Mark joins us during his weekend of classes at the Des Moines Art Center, THE NEXT POT with Mark Shapiro. Register for the workshop.
Donald Morrill is the author of four books of nonfiction, as well as three volumes of poetry. He has taught at Jilin University, Peoples’ Republic of China, and has been a Fulbright Lecturer at the University of Lodz, Poland, as well as the Bedell Visiting Writer in the Nonfiction Writing Program at the University of Iowa and Writer-in-residence at the Poetry Center at Smith. Currently he teaches in the Low-Residency MFA in Creative Writing Program at the University of Tampa.
Event made possible thanks to the Des Moines Art Center.
Event is free but a good will donation of $5 is suggested.
Join us Thursday, June 21 from 5:30pm to 7:30 PM to tour RDG Dahlquist Art Studio.
Hear from the Public Artist team of David Dahlquist and Matt Niebuhr and get a behind the scenes look at the RDG Dahlquist art studio facility. The first 30 minutes of the event will include networking with small bites and refreshments, the next 30 minutes -- a walking tour, and finally, a presentation from David and Matt with time for questions and answers about Public Art.
The studio is located at 512 Elm St, Des Moines, IA 50309.
The event is free to attend and is made possible by RDG Dahlquist Art Studio and Yellow Door. Space is limited to the first 30 RSVPs.
Questions? E-mail info@yellowdoordsm.com
Join Yellow Door for My Long Time Friend and Colleague and Salon #12, featuring art by Michael Velliquette and Joey Fauerso, music by Glitter Density, comedy by Sid Juwarker, and plants/ceramics/wares from Art Terrarium.
Joey Fauerso and Michael Velliquette first met as studio neighbors in graduate school at University of Wisconsin-Madison. Fauerso and Velliquette have been friends and collaborators for the last 20 years. Both artists are interested in material relationships and modular construction as a means for exploring themes of inner and outer space, human consciousness, and the rituals of daily life.
My Longtime Friend and Colleague marks their fourth two-person exhibition in the last decade. They have previously shown together at Sala Diaz, San Antonio, David Shelton Gallery, and the Villa Terrace Museum. Additionally, their work has been included in over a dozen group shows together over the years. In 2008 they collaborated at the SÍM Artist Residency, Reykjavik, Iceland. From 2002-2005 they were Co-Directors of the Bower Gallery, an artist-run project space in San Antonio, Texas.
Featuring art by Adam Cipcic and Joe Devera.
Join Yellow Door in partnership with The University of Iowa's ATRIUM for art exploration and Salon #11, featuring art by Adam Cipcic (currently of Chicago), Joe Devera (a Grant Woods Scholar) bio-regional folk herbalism by The Potager, music by Elizabeth Moen, and food by Cyd's Catering.
Featuring art by Douglas Degges + Laurel Farrin.
Join Yellow Door for Hold It Here and Salon #10, featuring art by Douglas Degges + Laurel Farrin, music by Tree Branch Twig, wine from Summerset Winery and words by David Wolf and Wini Moranville.
Featuring art and zines by Rob Stephens.
Join Yellow Door for a a night of poetry, featuring readings of work by Ryan Ridge (currently of Salt Lake, City), Nathan Parker (currently of Alabama), Greg Brownderville (currently of Texas) and Abraham Smith (currently of Utah). Get a chance to meet these talented poets and even get signed copies of their work!
Salon Details: Attendance is capped at 65 and the suggested donation per person is $5. Desserts, wine + beer will be served and a BYO libation or morsel to share is always commendable.
Ryan Ridge is the author of four books, most recently Second Acts in American Lives, a collection of stories coauthored with Mel Bosworth, which was released by Alternating Current Press in 2018. His writing has appeared in dozens of print and online journals, as well as several anthologies. In 2016, Ridge received the Italo Calvino Prize in Fabulist Fiction judged by Jonathan Lethem. An assistant professor at Weber State University, he lives in Salt Lake City, Utah, and edits the literary magazine Juked.
Nathan Parker holds an MFA in creative writing from the University of Alabama, where he now works as a full-time Instructor. In 2012 he was featured in American Poets magazine for their Emerging Poets Series, and his first book, The Locust Diagrams, was published in 2015 by Noemi Press. His poems have appeared widely in journals such as American Letters & Commentary, Colorado Review, Conduit, DIAGRAM, FIELD, jubilat, Octopus, Poem-a-Day, Typo, and other places. He lives with his wife and three children in Northport, Alabama.
Greg Brownderville is the author of three books of poetry: A Horse with Holes in It, Gust, and Deep Down in the Delta. An associate professor of English at SMU, he directs the Creative Writing program and edits the Southwest Review.
Abraham Smith is the author of four poetry collections from Action Books: Ashagalomancy (2015); Only Jesus Could Icefish in Summer (2014); Hank (2010); and Whim Man Mammon (2007). In 2015, he released Hick Poetics (Lost Roads Press), a co-edited anthology of contemporary rural American poetry and related essays. He is the recipient of fellowships from the Fine Arts Work Center and the Alabama State Council on the Arts. Tuskaloosa Kills, a prose patchwork co-written with Scott McWaters, is forthcoming in March from Spork Books. Destruction of Man, his book-length poem about farming, is forthcoming in April from Third Man Books. Smith teaches poetry at Weber State University.
Hosted by Open Door Rep and Yellow Door. There is a $5 suggested donation the day of the show and seating is limited to first come, first served. Light snacks and libations are provided.
Actors will perform The House of Yes by Wendy MacLeod.
In this obsidian-black comedy, The Pascals, for whom the clock stopped with the Kennedy assasination, are shut in as a Thankgiving hurricane swirls outside. Arriving ahead of the storm's eye are Jackie-O's twin brother, Marty and his fiancee Lesly. The obsessive Jackie is keen to renew her long-running incestuous affair with Marty, which is fine by the mother, who's still lamenting her husband's desertion, and by puppyish younger brother Anthony who immediately desires Lesly. The resulting battle over Marty becomes something of a class struggle between the Pascals' poetic insanity and Lesly's plebian pragmatism.
Join Yellow Door for Have At It and Salon #9, featuring visual art by Rob Stephens, music by The Future Babies, words by Steve Rose, and cakes by Liz Proctor.
Salon Details: Attendance is capped at 65 and the suggested donation per person is $5. All proceeds benefit the performers. Light snacks, wine + beer are always provided, but a BYO libation or morsel to share is always commendable.
Artist preview begins at 6:00pm and performances begin at 8:00pm.
Featuring works by Saulaman Schlegel and Spivey Knapik.
Join Yellow Door for Inter/Veil and Salon #7, featuring visual, performance, and sound art by Saulaman Schlegel + Spivey Knapik, words by Don Pugsley, music by Tommy Boynton (of The Mimzees), and meats and cheeses by Randall Brown and Shawn Bennigsdorf of Charcuterie on the Lawn (and Aposto!).
Salon Details: Attendance is capped at 65 and the suggested donation per person is $5. All proceeds benefit the performers. Light snacks, wine + beer are always provided, but a BYO libation or morsel to share is always commendable.
Artist preview begins at 6:00pm and performances begin at 8:00pm.
The Mimzees are a song cycle band in the chamber music-folk idiom from Des Moines, dedicated to bringing poetry to life through music.
$5 suggested donation. Light snacks. Hot tea. And beer, thanks to Exile.
Sundays are sacred. That's why we're having Benjamin Spellman of Good Vibes Yoga to Yellow Door for a yoga session among the art. You'll have a chance to see the exhibition, "In Layers" with works by Michelle Bolinger, Michael Jefferson, and Allison Reimus.
Bring your own yoga mat. $5 suggested donation (all going back to Good Vibes). Beer generously provided by Exile, before, during, and after the yoga class!
TO CONFIRM YOUR ATTENDANCE, e-mail info@yellowdoordsm.com as space is limited to 24 warm + beautiful bodies.
Featuring works by Michelle Bolinger, Michael Jefferson, and Allison Reimus.
Join Yellow Door for In Layers and Salon #6, featuring artwork by Michelle Bolinger, Michael Jefferson, and Allison Reimus, words by Brian Spears, music by Annalibera, and more.
Salon Details: Attendance is capped at 65 and the suggested donation per person is $5. All proceeds benefit the performers. Light snacks, wine + beer are always provided, but a BYO libation or morsel to share is always commendable.
Artist preview begins at 6:00pm and performances begin at 8:00pm.
Three Univerity of Iowa International Writing Program (IWP) writers gather for a special performance at Yellow Door, reading excerpts from their poems, plays, and novels, critiquing art, and playing music. Join us for an evening featuring three internationally acclaimed writers.
The International Salon will start promptly at 6pm. Beer and wine provided.
Maung Day (Myanmarese; poet, artist, translator) has published six poetry books in Burmese and one in English. His poetry has appeared in International Poetry Review, Guernica, The Wolf, The Awl and elsewhere. He translates widely between English and Burmese; his visual work and poetry are exhibited and curated internationally. He participates courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor (Kenyan; fiction writer) is an author, lecturer, and arts curator. Her first novel, Dust, was published by Knopf in 2014, and received the 2015 TBC Jomo Kenyatta Literature Award. In 2003, she won the Caine Prize for African Writing for her story “Weight of Whispers,” also the title of a 2003 volume. Owuor was an IWP Fall Resident in 2005, and returns as the Residency’s first Grinnell Fellow. She participates courtesy of Grinnell College.
Kinga Tóth (Hungarian; poet, translator, illustrator, songwriter, performer) has published six poetry books, all self-illustrated. Her visual poetry has been exhibited widely; she is the lead singer of the experimental band Tóth Kína Hegyfalu and is working on the visual/sound/poetry projects X and [Moonlight Faces], for which she received the 2017 Hazai Attila award. She participates courtesy of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
Hosted by Open Door Rep and Yellow Door. There is a $5 suggested donation the day of the show and seating is limited to first come, first served. Light snacks and libations are provided.
Actors will perform The Cheats by Hamish Linklater.
John and Anne have two children and a good marriage—they have sex, drive hybrids, and recently, they cut out sugar. But John has been spying on the neighbors, frankly, for a while now, and at 9 a.m, Halloween morning, the neighbors drop by for a visit. THE CHEATS is a play about your marriage, and how it can go wrong when you forget to lock the front door.
The Chicago Tribune describes the world premiere of THE CHEATS as “partly about the pleasures and limitations of voyeurism, partly about marital infidelity, but mostly about living in close proximity to the most intimate moments experienced by other couples”.
Join us for the closing reception of From Off To On featuring artwork by Katy Kirbach and Zoe Nelson.
Sundays are sacred. Join us for Yoga in the Gallery at 4pm. Bring your own yoga mat. Donations if you feel so moved. Drinks provided. Good Vibes will lead the class!
Featuring works by Katy Kirbach and Zoe Nelson.
Join Yellow Door for the opening reception of From Off To On and Salon #5, featuring artwork by Katy Kirbach and Zoe Nelson, words by Kyle McCord (Professor at Drake), music by Odd Pets, and comedy by Tim Overton.
Salon Details: Attendance is capped at 65 and the suggested donation per person is $5. All proceeds benefit the performers. Light snacks, wine + beer are always provided, but a BYO libation or morsel to share is always commendable.
Artist preview at 6:00 and performances begin at 8:00pm.
Join us for the closing reception for [sharp tongue quiet lips] featuring works by Heidi Wiren Bartlett and Kuldeep Singh. Free street parking available. Enter through the yellow door.
![[sharp tongue quiet lips] - The Art of Heidi Wiren Bartlett and Kuldeep Singh](/assets/images/2017/heidi-wiren-bartlett-kuldeep-singh/current-exhibition.png)
Featuring work by Heidi Wiren Bartlett and Kuldeep Singh.
Join Yellow Door for Salon #4, featuring performance, 2D, and 3D art by Heidi Wiren Bartlett and Kuldeep Singh, music by Iranian composer and scholar Nima Hamidi, words by Jeff Porter, Professor in English at University of Iowa, and local produce by farmer Jordan Clasen of Grade A Gardens.
Salon Details: Attendance is capped at 65 and the suggested donation per person is $10. All proceeds benefit the performers. Light snacks, wine + beer are always provided, but a BYO libation or morsel to share is always commendable.
Doors open at 7:00pm and performances begin at 8:00pm.
Sundays are sacred. That's why we're having Benjamin Spellman of Good Vibes Yoga to Yellow Door for a yoga session among the art. Consider this the official "Art Week Wind Down."
Bring your own yoga mat. Donations if you feel so moved. Drinks provided.
About Good Vibes: Good Vibes Yoga is an all-inclusive community emanating good energy and soulful experiences. Here, you are part of a movement. Visit www.goodvibesyoga.com to learn more.
About Yellow Door: Yellow Door is a residential alternative gallery space that is shifting the perceptions and dynamics of visual, aural, and performance art. Visit www.yellowdoordsm.com to learn more.
Join us for the closing reception for “Finding Distance” featuring works by Gyan Shrosbree + Jim Shrosbree. Free street parking available. Enter through the yellow door.
Hosted by Open Door Rep and Yellow Door, you'll hear a reading of Orange Flower Water, a play written by Craig Wright.
The Chicago Tribune describes the play as "Uncommonly intense and intimate ninety-minute drama." "A brutally honest drama about marriage and infidelity" by Chicago Sun-Times, and "Simultaneously visceral, with crackling humor, and intellectual." by Star Tribune.
There is a $5 suggested donation the day of the show and seating is limited to first come, first served. Light snacks and libations are provided
Join us on “First Friday” for the artist reception for “Finding Distance” featuring works by Gyan Shrosbree + Jim Shrosbree. Free street parking available. Beer will be served or BYO. Enter through the yellow door.
Features art by Jim Shrosbree + Gyan Shrosbree, music by Christopher The Conquered, and words by Adam Hooks, English professor and Shakespearean master. In addition to art, music and readings, underground BBQ masters Cale Johnson + Aaron Gibbons of Dave Boys BBQ will be serving up an assortment of their specialty meats. They'll show us how meat can be art too.
From Des Moines originally, Andrea has shown her paintings, drawings, and prints not only across the Midwest, but both nationally and internationally. Currently a Professor of Art at Knox College in Illinois, Andrea has won an array of awards, honors and grants and has participated in workshops in France, Vermont and Iowa.
To learn more about Andrea and see her work, visit www.andreaferrigno.com
From Des Moines originally, Andrea has shown her paintings, drawings, and prints not only across the Midwest, but both nationally and internationally. Currently a Professor of Art at Knox College in Illinois, Andrea has won an array of awards, honors and grants and has participated in workshops in France, Vermont and Iowa.
Andrea finds the visual arts an opportune place to freely inquire about and understand the world. She looks analytically to science and philosophy in order to glean information and inspiration from our shared attempt to understand, as well as communicate about the natural world. Andrea enjoys exploring these ideas in a variety of media including drawing, painting and print. Moving through media allows her to stay in a mode of continuous questioning, discovery, and risk.
Andrea has her MFA and MA from the University of Iowa and her BFA in Painting from the Kansas City Art Institute.
To learn more about Andrea and see her work, visit www.andreaferrigno.com
Featuring art by Andrea Ferrigno, spoken word by Christopher Merrill, small bites by Tami's Tarts, comedy by Onnalee Kelley, and an acoustic set by Spencer Brown.
Doors open at 6pm, speakers begin at 7pm.
Please join us for our official public opening and artist reception featuring works by local artists Andy Davis + Benjamin Gardner. Artist discussion/Q&A will begin at 7pm. Free street parking available. Wine and beer will be served. Enter through the yellow door.
Andy Davis Andy Davis was born in Des Moines, Iowa in 1989. Davis received his BFA in 2011 from the Kansas City Art Institute and completed MFA in Studio Practice at Southern Methodist University in 2016. Davis’ nomadic practice took him to Vietnam in 2013 and 2014 and recently continued thanks to a residency at Archive Fever: SOMA Summer 2016, Mexico City and a Post-Graduate Fellowship at the Ecole Nationale Superieure d’Art in Dijon, France. He is currently developing a residency program focused on political ecology in collaboration with the NGO Estampa Verde and Rancho Los Amigos in the rainforests of Veracruz, Mexico. To see more of the artist’s work, visit www.andypdavis.com
Benjamin Gardner Benjamin Gardner was born in rural Northern Illinois. He received his BFA from Millikin University and his MFA from Illinois State University. He has participated in recent group exhibitions in Iowa, South Carolina, New York, and Germany. Gardner is Chair of the Department of Art and Design at Drake University and lives and works in Des Moines, Iowa. To see more of the artist’s work, visit www.benjaminagardner.com
Yellow Door’s inaugural salon hosted nearly 100 individuals over the course of the evening. Salon Series No. 1 featured visual art by Andy Davis + Benjamin Gardner, live music by the husband + wife duo In Rooms, a poetry reading by Anna Meister and a knockout home-brewed sour beer by Marcus Walsh. It was a memorable event and a fabulous way to kick off Yellow Door’s Salon Series.
