Josh Cox is one of Marshalltown’s most tireless advocates for art, and he always seems to have another new idea in the works. The latest is the new Tiny Art Walk on the 100 block of West Main Street, with a total of six installations planned including two already in place in the berms near the Times-Republican office.

According to Cox, Arts + Culture Alliance (ACA) Executive Director Amber Danielson and Marshalltown Central Business District (MCBD) Executive Director Danielle Lekin approached him with an idea about reinvigorating the berms while other sections of Main Street to the east are being redeveloped and rebuilt.

“They challenged me to think of a way to do something here, creative, to get people to come,” he said.

Both Danielson and Lekin are thrilled with the outcome.

“The ACA is thrilled to invest in our local artists community to bring vibrancy and unique experiences to Marshalltown. We are so proud of this innovative work from Josh Cox and the talented local artists on display,” Danielson said.

“MCBD is incredibly excited to partner with Josh and the ACA on this project. It’s a wonderful opportunity to bring something beautiful to an area that is often overlooked. We believe it will become a unique attraction in downtown, and we’re honored to serve as the pilot community for Tiny Art Walk,” Lekin added. “This project has so much potential, and we’re excited to see how it could grow and pop up in communities throughout the area.”

The two pieces installed so far, which feature a QR code that directs the smartphone user to an Instagram page with more information about the walk, were created by Janet Collison and Lisa Cantrell, and by the end of the weekend, Cox expected to have three more set up (from Miguel Sanchez, Dawn Gettler and Jacqueline Zamora) while still searching for a sixth artist. There was no specific prompt or theme, and the artists were encouraged to create anything that spoke to them and do a different kind of work.

Ever the optimist and ideas man, Cox said a major goal for the future is a collective art studio somewhere in Marshalltown, though money remains the biggest hurdle on that front.

“If I put that out in the universe, an artist collective studio/gallery space would be perfect for this town,” he said. “We need that centralized hub, I think, for artists to get together. The Alliance is doing a great job of getting artists together socially, but let’s get them together to make some work, exhibit together and (have) a consistent space for the public to know this is where it’s gonna be.”

To learn more, find tiny_art_walk on Instagram or reach out to Cox directly.

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Contact Robert Maharry at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or

rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.