The Stanley Museum of Art will remain closed on Friday, July 4, 2025, for Independence Day. We will reopen to the public on Saturday, July 5, 2025, at regular hours.
Surrounding
Even from Gibson Square Park outside, Odili Donald Odita’s new 13.5-by-27-foot mural “Surrounding” beckons visitors into the museum’s first-floor lobby. The work was installed in early-April 2022 by a team of three: Alan Prazniak, Conor Fields, and Jenna Pirello. Odita visited mid-installation to review progress and meet with the press. The commissioned mural is the first installation in the museum's ongoing public art series Thresholds, which features the work of Iowa-associated artists.
The installation team began by transferring the design onto the wall, then masking off sections with removable tape before painting. Each shape was uniquely colored with hand-mixed acrylic latex wall paint. Once each shape was finished and the tape removed, the team performed touch ups and finished the mural with a coat of varnish. Angular geometric designs now dance across the expansive wall. Colors advance and recede as the viewer moves across, filling the lobby space with vibrant joy.
