The Hancher Auditorium building on the University of Iowa campus is renowned for its visual magnificence, with its sweeping wood-paneled lobby and the elegant circles of light illuminating its two-tiered theater. As of March 12, the building has been further beautified by a collection of artwork produced by talented elementary and high school students.

This is not the debut of the Hancher Youth Art Show, but a momentous return led by Hancher Patron Services Manager Paris Young.

“It’s a hugely impactful thing for our community,” Young said. “I, as a former visual artist back in K-12 myself, [know] having your artwork displayed is validating in a lot of ways and just encourages people to stick with the arts in a world that maybe tells you that’s not viable.”

Although the event dates back to 1988, it has not been held in person since 2020, when the onset of the pandemic caused the auditorium to close to the public. Hancher staff persevered, moving the event online in 2021, and while it improved accessibility for people outside Iowa City, the effect just wasn’t the same.

“If you go to the Louvre and look at the ‘Mona Lisa,’ it’s just like, ‘Yeah, wow. There it is,” Zoë Woodworth, Hancher’s graphic design director, said. “I’ve seen this portrait a million, gazillion times, but there’s just something about seeing it in person that is just different, you know, it has a different electricity.”

Woodworth has served on the staff of Hancher since 2013 and has seen the auditorium through its struggle to stay afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic and its relocation from its former home, Hancher Classic, eight years after the 2008 floods.

She said this recovery from the devastating flood damage facilitated the return of the art show in the building that Iowa City patrons are familiar with today, until 2020.

“I feel like I really pushed for us to start doing it again because I was like, ‘No, this means a lot to people, and it’s a great event that everyone enjoys.’ So, we got our act together, and we’re doing well,” Woodworth said.

This year, 27 Iowa City elementary and high schools are participating in the program, and 365 individual pieces of art are currently on display. Patrons, along with the students whose art has been selected, can view the art on evenings they attend a show at Hancher.

In 1988, Woodworth was one of those students, as well as the recipient of the Hancher Guild Award for Achievement in Art.

“I had a piece of art that was in the 1988 art show, and I remember it was a big deal. I was like, ‘Oh, my God,’ because my family went to Hancher as patrons, and we saw lots of shows. So, the thought of my art being up there was like, ‘No, what?’” Woodworth said. “I just want to pay it forward to all the student artists in schools.”

She said the event is particularly validating for more introverted students whose work might usually go unrecognized. The opportunity to have their art displayed can help them feel seen and inspired to continue creating.

March 25, Hancher was filled with families and students for the art show’s free opening reception. Conversation buzzed as attendees flitted between sunlit panels of art from each school, children beaming beside their artwork and their hand-designed artist tags while their parents snapped photos.

Wynni Ahlers, a 7-year-old elementary student attending Longfellow, was in attendance with her parents, Ryan and Lynn, as well as her sister and grandparents.

Ryan and Lynn expressed their appreciation for Wynni’s art teacher, who submitted Wynni’s work for the show, and emphasized how rewarding the event is for students and the public.

“As I walked around, I think it’s so cool to see so many different grades and age levels represented and just showcasing the creative side of kids and how education should include arts and that creative aspect of things,” Ryan said.

Depending on the further success of the event and the feedback it receives, Woodworth and Young hope the art show will expand and attract more schools outside of Iowa City.

“I will say I’ve had teachers from non-Iowa City schools reach out to me and be like, ‘How do we get involved in this?’” Young said. “I think maybe we have it up for longer during more shows because people really seem to enjoy it. So, while it’s undetermined at this time, I think the future of this project is positive.”

Until the event concludes on April 1 and the art is taken off display, it will continue to serve as an illustrative example of what young minds can accomplish when their creativity is acknowledged and nurtured.

Artist Wynni Ahler puts it simply: “I like making art.”