The Quad Cities are graced with vast rolling lawns that stretch for acres under magnificent, stately trees: our cemeteries. Here are some of the region’s finest statues and architecture, with a breadth of symbolism drawn from ancient Egypt, Classical Greece, Medieval and Victorian Europe. Family names on the cemetery’s monuments and mausoleum – such as Davenport, Bettendorf, Deere, Fejervary, Sudlow – are cornerstones of our communities. The name “Oberholtzer” isn’t as immediately familiar as these, but this environmentalist, writer, musician, photographer, and explorer’s impact is still felt today.

On October 6, both Figge Art Museum members and the general public are invited to celebrate the work of a gifted, Chicago-based artist during a Member Reception and Artist Talk with Caroline Kent, whose new installation An Improvisation of Form transforms the Davenport venue's Katz Gallery into an immersive exhibition of paintings, site specific interventions, and sculptures, surrounding visitors in a unique synthesis of language and abstract forms.

A collection of 20 unique software, video, and light-technology artworks, the Figge Art Museum's latest touring exhibition Message from Our Planet: Digital Art from the Thoma Collection, on display through December 31, will treat visitors to the Davenport venue to an arresting assemblage created by a diverse group of international artists working at the forefront of digital and electronic art.

A fascinating exploration into the roles of metal objects in sustaining and enhancing life in African communities, the Figge Art Museum's Peace, Power, & Prestige: Metal Arts in Africa, on display through January 8, will offer patrons the chance to view spectacular works in an exhibit designed to demonstrate the aesthetic, expressive, and artistic powers of metal.