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Spring in Iowa is my favorite time of the year.
The sunlight washes the seasonal affective disorder clean away. Warmer temperatures allow me to start walking outside again. I no longer have to stress about driving in the snow.
My favorite part? The community events happening all over our region.
I gathered a list of arts and culture events happening all over the Midwest in May. This is by no means an exhaustive list - just events I found that sounded interesting and informative to me. There is so much opportunity across the Midwest to flex your creative muscles, appreciate others’ art, and learn about new cultures.
I hope for these calendars to be a collaborative project. Don’t see an event you’re planning on attending? Share the event in the comments so other readers can join you. Excited for an event in June? Let me know in the comments so I can include it in June.
If you attend one of these events, let me know how it goes and what you learn.
Iowa
Come Along With Kate: My coworker, Kate Brockmeyer, has created a calendar of events in the Des Moines Metro Area. Kate is amazing at getting involved in our community - it’s why she’s excellent as her CultureALL job of community outreach - and is always finding great events around town. Check it out! https://calendar.google.com/calendar/ical/comealongwithkate%40gmail.com/public/basic.ics
Desktop:
https://calendar.google.com/calendar/u/0?cid=Y29tZWFsb25nd2l0aGthdGVAZ21haWwuY29t
May 4 - 6 - Tulip Festival - Pella
May 5 - Iowa City Art & Write Night
May 6 - Waverly’s Art Walk
May 20 - Marion Arts Festival
May 26-27 - CelebrAsian
Nebraska
May 2 - 3 - American Ballet Theatre: Giselle
May 6 - Holy Trinity Arts Festival
May 12 - Chicago - Pinewood Bowl Theater
May 27 - Art Battle Omaha
Kansas
May 5 - Great Bend Downtown Art and Wine Walk
May 6 - 7 - Art in the Park Tintype Pop-Up
May 11 - Wichita May Arts Mixr
May 13 - Lenexa Art Fair
May 21 - Jordan Bak, viola: FREE Discovery Concert
May 26-29 - Lawrence Busker Festival
Minnesota
May 6 - Rustic Mamas’ Spring Market
May 6 - 13 - Courtney Mattison - Undercurrent - Art exhibit
May 13 - Enso Daiko
May 19-20 - Art-a-Whirl
May 26 - Art Share at Crossing Arts - Brainerd
South Dakota
May 2 - Author Talks: Geri Mendoza Gutwein
May 5: Arts-Cy-Co
May 12: Pride & Prejudice
May 20: Oglala Lakota Artspace Grand Opening
North Dakota
May 4 - Perfectly Paired Art and Drink event
May 6 - Free Comic Book Day
May 11 - Salvador Dali Birthday Event
May 14 - Eliot Fisk at the North Dakota Museum of Art
May 19 - Art See
Illinois
May 6 - Art Around You: Student Annual Exhibition
May 6 - 7 - Art in Wilder Park
May 13 - Umbrella Arts Festival
May 14 - Van Gogh and the Avant-Garde at the Art Institute of Chicago
May 20 - Old Capitol Art Fair
Michigan
May 1-19 - Vitality and Continuity: Art in the Experiences of Anishinaabe, Inuit, and Pueblo Women
May 5 - Maternal Interior Exhibition Opening
May 6 - Detroit International Festival of Animation
May 13 - Jackson County Free Museum Day
May 20-21 - East Lansing Art Festival
Ohio
May 4 - Interwoven Creative Writing Workshop with Dionne Custer Edwards
May 4 - Speak Easy - true stories, told live
May 13 - Arts with Friends Workshop
May 13 - The Art Ball
May 20 - Cleveland Asian Festival
Indiana
May 4-6 - DivaFest 2023 - The Divine Alchemists
May 6 - Indianapolis Clay Studio Tour
May 7 - Family Arts Fest
May 20 - African Unity Fest
May 20-21 - OneAmerica Broad Ripple Art Fair
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Robert Leonard: Deep Midwest: Politics and Culture, Bussey
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