The healing power of art — Murals, poetry projects installed around Marshalltown in aftermath of tornado

(Editor's note: This is the fourth in a series of stories looking back at the July 19, 2018 EF-3 tornado leading up to the fifth anniversary, but also looking forward and detailing rebuilding and revitalization efforts since then.)

It's often true that the worst circumstances help artists create some of their most memorable and meaningful works -- "Guernica" is a prime example -- and with almost five years now past since an EF-3 tornado ripped through the heart of Marshalltown, it's safe to say the community is experiencing something of a Renaissance.

The evidence is all over town, with almost 30 murals (including "Resiliency" at the Anson Park shelter, which directly references the aftermath of the storm), sculptures and a poetry project at the Veterans Courtyard/Pocket Park in partnership with Cedar Rapids-based Akwi Nji. Arts+Culture Alliance Executive Director Amber Danielson has been the public face of the art revival locally, and she's proud of all the progress she's already seen but hopes to keep the momentum intact going forward.

"Shortly after both natural disasters and amidst the pandemic as well, everyone turned to art in some form. I think the natural disasters in particular opened up an opportunity for Marshalltown to recover in a more creative way, and the art that has been installed since the tornado has been an opportunity for the community to feel more pride and more hope in the recovery and redevelopment efforts," she said. "Especially just with the nature of the tornado, there's still spaces in the community where you can still visually see the impact from. So I think that just naturally created a sense of, like, not feeling hopeful for the future and visual sadness."

Nancy Adams, who serves on the Fisher Art Committee and is widely known as one of the most enthusiastic boosters of the arts in Marshalltown, shared her own reflections and remarked on how the experience of living through the storm differed for different people.

"There was an objective truth to the tornado. It was an EF-3, lasting 'this many minutes -- cutting a swath this wide' -- but the experience of the tornado was subjective. I remember, those first few days, friends speaking of the disconcerting, relentless sounds of chainsaws and generators, while others grieved the utter lack of birdsong; were unsettled by the unnerving quiet. It struck me that these divergent experiences were based on a single shared truth; the devastating loss of so many of our trees. And it underscored the importance of perspective," she said. "In the weeks that followed, I was comforted and uplifted by the brightly colored, knitted covers that blanketed some of our downed trees, by the murals on the sides of buildings and the Marshalltown Strong messages on downtown storefronts. I admired those who could find and express hope. And though art is the result of a highly individualized process, it has the capacity for connectivity. Always, when creating, the artist works from their own perspective. They decide what to highlight, celebrate, distort, omit. When creating in the aftermath of trauma or disaster, they've the opportunity to gain some sense of control over that which happened, and that can be deeply healing."

Although the idea had already been hatched, there were no murals completed in Marshalltown before the tornado, which hit three days before the annual art festival was scheduled to be hosted downtown for the first time.

Danielson admitted there was hesitancy to push forward with the program in the immediate aftermath of the tornado due to concerns of whether it was "too soon," but they ultimately decided, about a year later, it was needed more than ever. The first one went up on the wall of La Salud in November of 2020, and they've moved at a breakneck pace adding to the portfolio since then.

"I think the tornado -- this is true for the community, but also very true for the Alliance -- it provided us opportunities to really evolve as an organization alongside the community needs because after the natural disasters, the community needs transitioned tremendously," Danielson said. "So I think it was an opportunity for us to grow as an organization alongside the community and maybe transition some of the things that we've been doing for a while to better serve the more necessary desires of the community and needs of the community. So I think the mural program was just one of those examples."

In the fall of 2021, the Alliance held community engagement sessions for the Arts and Culture Master Plan, which was adopted by the city council earlier this year, and Danielson said she consistently heard that seeing the murals helped many residents regain pride in their community for the first time since the tornado and subsequent derecho in August of 2020.

"So I think that, for us, confirmed that even amidst trauma and destruction, that art really has the power to bring people together and heal in a way that a lot of outlets are hard to provide," she said. "So since then, now, when we've ever been hesitant on 'Is it too soon?' We usually go for it because that's usually the moment that people need it the most."

Now that the poetry installation at the Pocket Park is wrapped up and the neighborhood mural project has been completed in partnership with Argentinian artist Sasha Primo, Danielson isn't sure what will come next, but she's confident her organization will continue to evolve, thrive and put the "Marshalltown mark" on future projects and initiatives.

"When we hired someone to help us just to really think about what (a mural program) could look like for Marshalltown, we set ourselves up to do -- literally, the narrative in the program says (this) -- two to three a year, so I think if you would've told us you're gonna do 28 in 2 ½ years, I would've said 'No way, that is crazy,'" she said. "But I think the momentum was just natural. It was just kind of like this natural ripple effect of the community desiring more, and we didn't really have to work that hard to find the spaces because they just kind of revealed themselves either through a redevelopment area or someone reaching us and saying 'We want one too.'"

She also hopes that anyone who's interested in art can find something they enjoy in Marshalltown's public art portfolio, from more literal and self-explanatory works like the postcard mural at Thompson True Value or a patriotic mural honoring veterans at the VFW Hall to the abstract like the one on 13th Street or "Perspective" on the wall of the Orpheum Theatre.

"I think they've done a really good job of trying to balance the portfolio to have something for everyone because we recognize that visual art in particular -- all art -- is subjective, and not everyone will like everything," Danielson said. "Not everyone listens to the same music. Not everyone likes to look at the same art, and so I think that's something that we're just always keeping in perspective."

Local artist and lifelong Marshalltonian Kim Mills Hanken is excited by all of the recent developments and optimistic that the surge of creativity will continue for years to come.

"In the aftermath of two devastating storms, what has risen from the ashes is our beautiful public art program. Art is transformational. Even if one is not aware of the power behind the art, its effect is happening," Hanken said. "With transformation there is hope, and with hope there is healing. That is why our public art program has been a tremendous catalyst for our community's repair and renewal."

------

Contact Robert Maharry at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.