Special to the Times Vedette
Beginning July 1, visitors to Whiterock Conservancy can experience “Markers and Deep Roots,” a site-specific installation of collaborative ceramic sculptures by artists Sue and Jim Heemstra. Located along the Steve Garst Trail, the installation features brightly colored sculptural forms that engage the prairie landscape and invite reflection on the connections between people, place and history. Through walking, observation and encounter, visitors are encouraged to consider how landscapes hold stories, histories and traces of those who have passed through them.
“Whiterock Conservancy itself is a mark of dedication to the celebration and observance of agricultural and natural history,” Sue Heemstra said.
“Markers and Deep Roots” is part of a larger public art initiative, “Declarations,” bringing immersive installations to communities across central and southwest Iowa throughout 2026. Created in recognition of the United States’ semiquincentennial, or 250th anniversary, “Declarations” celebrates Iowa’s landscapes, labor and cultural identity through site-responsive artworks placed in unexpected locales. The project invites Iowans to engage more deeply with place, memory and shared human experience while fostering dialogue between rural and urban communities, past and future, and the Midwest and the wider world.
“Markers and Deep Roots” will be available for viewing beginning July 1 through Sept. 30. Whiterock Conservancy is open year-round, and visitors are welcome to explore the installation through self-guided visits at any time.
About Sue and Jim Heemstra
Lifelong artists, Sue and Jim Heemstra met in the early 1970s while attending college, where Sue studied painting and Jim explored printmaking. In the years that followed, careers and family life shaped their paths while continuing to inform their creative practices. Avid travelers and self-described “museum nerds,” they share a deep appreciation for art history and lifelong learning. Though they rarely collaborate directly, they work side by side in a shared ceramic studio, each pursuing a distinct artistic language and creative practice. Find them on Instagram and Facebook @H2Clay.
Jim Heemstra
Jim Heemstra is a photographer turned ceramic artist. He studied printmaking in college and began a 50-year career as a photographer while working as a photojournalist. He later studied with Ansel Adams in Yosemite, taught photography at Drake University, and published work in numerous national and international magazines. Today, he brings that visual sensibility to clay, finding inspiration in carving and painting ceramic surfaces.
Sue Heemstra
Sue Heemstra began her artistic practice in drawing and painting before expanding into fiber arts and eventually ceramics. After studying at the Des Moines Art Center, Drake University, and RDG Dahlquist Studios, she discovered the creative possibilities of clay. Today, her work combines hand-building, carving, glaze, and underglaze techniques, with drawing continuing to serve as the foundation of her creative process.
About “Declarations”
“Declarations” is a site-specific public art exhibition taking place July through September 2026 throughout central and southwest Iowa. Using art, storytelling and public participation, “Declarations” turns public space into a living conversation about who we are and what we are building together for the next 250 years. Find exhibition details along with maps, events, suggested itineraries and artist interviews at declarations.art and on Instagram at the username declarations.art. The public is invited to contribute to a time capsule that will be concealed until the year 2276 at Union Park’s Heritage Carousel in Des Moines. Learn more at declarations.art/time.
“Declarations” is a collaborative initiative of Group Creative Services and Whiterock Conservancy in partnership with art installation site hosts, community partners and sponsors.
Call the Whiterock Conservancy office at 712-790-8221 or email executivedirector@whiterockconservancy.org with any questions.
