The Art Center's collections span from the 19th century to the present, with a major emphasis on contemporary art.
The Des Moines Art Center is home to some of the finest examples of 19th, 20th, and 21st century art in the world. From 19th century Impressionism to the best of today’s contemporary art, the collections include painting, sculpture, photography, prints, video, and fiber-based works.
The Art Center has built a renowned collection of international modern and contemporary art.
The Art Center's goal is to emphasize quality over quantity, striving to collect a signature example of each artist's work. Highlights include Georgia O'Keeffe (From the Lake No. 1, 1924), Edward Hopper (Automat, 1927), Francis Bacon (Study after Velazquez's Portrait of Pope Innocent X, 1953), Ai Weiwei (Sunflower Seeds, 2009), and Wangechi Mutu (Water Woman, 2017), to name a few.
