(Radio Iowa)  – Smaller Iowa communities have the opportunity to host a traveling exhibition from the world-renowned Smithsonian Institution starting next year. Jeff Morgan, spokesman for the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, says the exhibit called “Spark! Places of Innovation” will inspire visitors to consider why the spirit of innovation flourishes in some rural places but not others. “It’s going to be a number of different things on display with this exhibit, including photographs,” Morgan says. “There’s going to be interactive opportunities for people to be involved with the exhibits and videos, and some augmented reality components that will explore the unique combinations of places, people and circumstances.”

The exhibition will deliver new opportunities to Iowans, he says, offering rural communities a chance to access a Smithsonian-quality experience that can connect people to history, humanities, culture, arts, science, and innovation. “Communities will be encouraged to develop cultural programming, different art spaces, social justice initiatives, for example, anything that can spark transformative conversations between people who would most likely not normally engage with each other,” Morgan says, “so it’s about bringing people together.”

Morgan says the exhibit aims to serve as a springboard for local programming in the humanities, sciences and arts that prompt people to learn how innovation has impacted their communities and how they can become innovators themselves. A total of six Iowa communities will be chosen to bring the exhibit to their town. “Iowa communities with populations of 20,000 people or fewer can apply to host the exhibit in 2024 and 2025,” Morgan says, “and they can find all of the information they need at history.iowa.gov.”

The deadline to apply is September 8th. The exhibit will be in Iowa through a partnership between the Smithsonian Museum on Main Street program, the State Historical Society of Iowa and the Iowa Humanities Council.