Author Wallace Stegner wrote, “One cannot be pessimistic about the West … this is the native home of hope.” And images of hope – as well as images of struggle, endurance, triumph, and astonishing landscapes – will be on display at the Figge Art Museum from June 27 through October 4, with the Davenport venue hosting glorious, thought-provoking photographs in the new exhibition Magnetic West: The Enduring Allure of the American West.

Stunning and elegant works by a collection of more than 30 ceramic artists are set for public viewing at the recently re-opened Figge Art Museum, with the beauty of hand-crafted objects celebrated in About Face: Contemporary Ceramic Sculpture, a new exhibition organized by the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts on display from June 20 through August 30.

Focusing on the artist's earlier works that employ found objects as inspiration, the Figge Art Museum's exhibition George Olson: The Found Object, on display June 9 (the day of the museum's re-opening) through 28, finds its creator using a range of mediums – among them woodcut relief, ink wash, charcoal, and assemblage – to move beyond the objects he is referencing in order to create bold graphic abstractions that simulate the intriguing surface textures of his source material.

A local legend in the arts of calligraphy, lettering, and painting will have a number of his estimable works showcased in the latest Beréskin Gallery & Art Studio exhibit, with the Bettendorf venue inviting visitors to view the talents of a former St. Ambrose University instructor in Paul Herrera: Rhythm & Movement, on display from May 29 through June 25.