Intersections
The Story Behind the Art
Intersections run throughout our history, making Warren County the diverse and inviting community it is today.
The railroad came to Indianola in 1871, and with it came the telegraph, with its poles and singing overhead wires, bringing information instantaneously. First the telegraph and the later advent of the telephone connected neighbors and friends miles away.
By 1905 the automobile roared into Warren County and Indianola, making rural road conditions a rocky topic. Indianola was fortunate to have Jefferson Highway, the first intercontinental highway in the United States, run through the center of town, bringing travelers, visitors, and new businesses to our City.
Before those technological advances Indianola was already home to what is now Simpson College. Simpson brings students from all over Iowa and the United States to Indianola, creating new intersections of knowledge, experiences, and perspectives.
Warren County, and Indianola especially, is where rural and urban meet, blend and enrich each other. Our communities are home to quaint, family-owned shops, big industries that ship products all over the world, and a college that offers a vibrant range of lectures, theater and other cultural opportunities to our community.
Drive a few miles out of town, though, and you’ll find rolling hills home to farms and whose rich soil nurtures the crops that eventually feed the world.
Our interests intersect as well. Over one month of summer in Warren County, you’ll find hot air balloons sailing overhead, livestock and agricultural shows at our county fair, and the sounds of music filling the air.
From the Artist
Joe Tuggle Lacina
Intersections, Steel and Concrete, 60” x 60” x 72”, 2024
This piece references a multitude of concepts and previous bodies of work. I have used the term “Intersection” in a number of sculpture pieces and exhibition titles. The piece is referencing a system or network, similar to neurons or tree branches and roots, i.e. a set of things working together as parts of a mechanism or an interconnecting network. This sculpture also references the concept of intersectionality, which examines how multiple systems of oppression and power affect the experiences of people who hold multiple identities. The piece encourages the audience to examine their place within their community, how their community is formed through the systems and obstructions within their society, and how we build connections to each other, to our home, to our family, and to our global community.
