The Waterloo Center for the Arts is an art museum in

Waterloo, Iowa Waterloo is a city in and the county seat of Black Hawk County, Iowa, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census the population was 67,314, making it the eighth-largest city in the state. The city is part of the Waterloo – Cedar Falls ...

. It is home to the largest collection of

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

an art outside of

. It also includes the Phelps Youth Pavilion, where children learn about art through art activities; as well as the Black Hawk Children's Theatre. The center has a permanent section of works by American artist

Grant Wood Grant DeVolson Wood (February 13, 1891 February 12, 1942) was an American painter and representative of Regionalism, best known for his paintings depicting the rural American Midwest. He is particularly well known for '' American Gothic'' (193 ...

. With

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

and the

Rhode Island School of Design The Rhode Island School of Design (RISD , pronounced "Riz-D") is a private art and design school in Providence, Rhode Island. The school was founded as a coeducational institution in 1877 by Helen Adelia Rowe Metcalf, who sought to increase the ...

, the Center sponsored a series called ''Reframing Haiti: Art, History, and Performativity.'' The center's official slogan is "Stimulating inquiry, provoking dialogue and connecting people through the arts."

Galleries

The Center collects many kinds of art, including art from the American Midwest; American Decorative Arts; and international folk art. It has a significant collection of Mexican folk art, and the world's largest public collection of

Haitian art Haitian art is a complex tradition, reflecting African roots with strong Indigenous, American and European aesthetic and religious influences. It is an important representation of Haitian culture and history. Many artists cluster in "schools" of ...

. Its permanent galleries include: *The Forsberg Riverside Galleries, which focuses on Midwest art, American crafts and Haitian and

Caribbean Art Caribbean art refers to the visual arts, visual (including painting, photography, and printmaking) as well as plastic arts (such as sculpture) originating from the islands of the Caribbean (for mainland-Caribbean see ''Caribbean South America''). ...

*The Law-Reddington Galleries, with changing exhibits and a theatre *The Reuling Feldman Galleries, containing a large portion of the center's Haitian art *The Watkins Grand Foyer, with changing exhibits *The Langlass Loft Gallery, with Haitian art, and a balcony overlooking the Watkins Grand Foyer and downtown Waterloo *The Rotary Lichty Gallery, with community outreach exhibits *The Longfellow Consourse, which includes the Waterloo Community Playhouse, Black Hawk Children's Theatre, changing art exhibits, and a view of the Cedar River *The Urban Galleries, a series of art installations in downtown storefronts *West Gallery, with changing exhibits *The Block-Loomis Consourse, changing art exhibits with children in mind *Riverloop Sculpture Plaza, with outdoor seating and sculptures from the center's permanent collection **

Other features

The Riverloop Amphitheatre is a rentable outdoor space with seating for up to 3,000, where outdoor concerts are held in the summertime. Mark's Park is a summertime outdoor waterpark/playground for the free use of children. It is named after Mark Young, a Waterloo resident who died in a motorcycle accident in 2003.

References

{{authority control Museums in Black Hawk County, Iowa Art museums and galleries in Iowa