Dumke Arts Plaza

This was water

This was water is an immersive installation by artists Kellie Bornhoft and Carey Campbell that imagines a near future where we recount the memory of a vanished lake. Centered on the environmental crisis of the Great Salt Lake, the glowing, interactive work draws inspiration from gypsum “dirty diamonds” that emerge from the drying lakebed.

Points Of Transition / Meditations

Points of Transition was a sculpture installation by artist Cordell Taylor, whose work explores the interplay between nature and humanity through evolving organic forms that investigate shape, color, and texture.

Meditations, a series of abstract films by Jordan Belson and guest curated by Tyrone Davies, brought cosmological imagery to the plaza screen—richly layered explorations of consciousness, transcendence, and the nature of light itself.

A dream that comes in color / it so happened

Megan Geckler’s A dream that comes in color transformed Dumke Arts Plaza with vibrant, site-specific PVC installations celebrating harmony and reflection.

it so happened, curated by Kellie Bornhoft, showcased seven artists’ moving-image works blending digital and hand-crafted processes, highlighting material experimentation and creative process.

Coincidences

Coincidences was an interdisciplinary multimedia project by jo Blake and Cam McLeod blended visual imagery, sound, and choreographed movement to explore shared isolation, sensory experience, trauma, and the resilience that shapes our collective human experience.

Level Up / Cauldron

Level Up, a sculpture exhibition by Mike Whiting showcased pixelated steel forms inspired by early video games like Ms. Pac-Man and Donkey Kong. It transformed minimalist aesthetics into playful, large-scale abstractions.

Cauldron was a dynamic international video curated by Tyrone Davies, featuring ten short works by eight artists.

R E V I V E

R E V I V E by Chakaia Booker was the inaugural Dumke Arts Plaza exhibition. Using repurposed tire rubber to create monumental abstract forms, Booker’s work explores transformation and recontextualization, making it a striking centerpiece for the plaza’s debut of world-class public art.

About

The Dumke Arts Plaza (445 25th St., Ogden, UT 84401) features major art installations as well as community-led arts programming ranging from small concerts to dance performances to video art. It is a space to engage with art in all its forms, but also a place for everyday gatherings — sharing lunch with a friend, or enjoying a family visit. 

The plaza represents the transformation of a blighted motel property into an innovative civic space that brings the community together around art in Ogden’s dynamic Nine Rails Creative District. The plaza’s design, inspired by the region's dynamic landscape, has the flexibility to support many types of art, from large-scale installations to small performances, and includes an LED screen for displaying film and video art. An elevated platform known as the plinth provides more space for arts programming, as well as a new perspective on the plaza and its surroundings. The Dumke Arts Plaza is a welcoming public space, with interactive play elements, unique lighting, benches and waterwise landscaping.

The plaza creates an exciting opportunity to share world-class art exhibitions with the community in an outdoor civic space. Weber State University’s Mary Elizabeth Dee Shaw Gallery and the Department of Visual Art & Design are proud to have curated the inaugural exhibition at the Dumke Arts Plaza on December 3, 2022, that featured a selection of work by the internationally renowned American sculptor Chakaia Booker.

A unique collaboration among project partners and community members has shaped the Dumke Arts Plaza. The Dr. Ezekiel R. and Edna Wattis Dumke Foundation is the lead funder for the project. The Foundation’s gift of more than $2.2 million to support the Dumke Arts Plaza is intended to honor the legacy of its founders and their commitment to Ogden. Ogden City and Weber County RAMP also contributed major funding to the project. The Foundation, Ogden City, RAMP, Weber State University and Ogden Contemporary Arts, along with community stakeholders, collaborated closely to develop the vision for the Dumke Arts Plaza. The plaza design was led by renowned firm, Sasaki Associates, working with Ogden-based firms IO LandArch and Union Creative Agency.

Through a partnership with Ogden City, the Mary Elizabeth Dee Shaw Gallery curates rotating, outdoor exhibitions at the Dumke Arts Plaza. These exhibitions showcase the work of regional, national and international artists and share world-class art with the community in a dynamic, outdoor civic space. 

• Exhibition Schedule