Entry No. 56 — the Des Moines file — filed under: hands-on
Des Moines Art Center Studios - Metals & Jewelry Ring Making
The Art Center's Studio School runs short metalsmithing workshops in its dedicated metals studio where you fabricate a bezel-set cabochon ring from raw metal, learning sawing, soldering, and finishing. No previous metalsmithing experience is required and all tools and supplies are provided. Sessions run on a published schedule (a recent run met four evenings over a single week) and tend to sell out, so they appear and disappear from the catalog. It sits inside one of the Midwest's notable art museums, designed in part by I.M. Pei and Richard Meier.
The story
Most visitors head to 4700 Grand Avenue to quietly orbit gallery walls surrounded by architecture designed in part by I.M. Pei and Richard Meier. What they don't realize is that down in the Studio School’s dedicated metals lab, you can pick up a jeweler's saw and light a torch yourself.
The catch is actually catching an open slot. These aren't continuous, walk-in classes; the Art Center runs them as short, hyper-focused intensives—sometimes packed into four consecutive evening sessions over a single week. Because bench space in the metals studio is limited, the listings sell out almost instantly when a new catalog drops, disappearing completely until the next rotation.
You don't need a personal workshop or prior metalworking experience to get in. All the raw silver, cabochon stones, saw frames, solder, and finishing tools are provided at your bench, letting you take a piece of raw metal from raw sheet to a finished, stone-set ring in a handful of nights.
What it's like
Expect the rasp of hand files and the hiss of soldering torches to replace the gallery silence upstairs. You’ll sit at a dedicated metal bench supplied with raw silver, torch stations, and setting tools, moving step-by-step through sizing, sawing, soldering, and bezel-setting a cabochon stone. The environment is focused, tactile, and practical. Because these workshops run on strict schedules and sell out fast, you need to grab a spot the moment the Studio School catalog opens and verify exact session times before you go.
The move: Over a short evening workshop, each of you saws, solders, and sets a stone into a custom silver ring and walks out wearing something the other person watched you make.
📍 Before you go Offered as scheduled session-based workshops that sell out fast; check the current class catalog for an upcoming ring-making or metals offering since dates rotate.
- 📍 Greenwood / Western Gateway
- 💸 $$
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: 4700 Grand Ave, Des Moines, IA 50312
Hours: Added 2026-06-23 — confirm current hours before you go.
⚠ Seasonal or scheduled — always check before you go.
Pair it with
- Enchanted (Enchanted Mystical Boutique) — Pair your freshly set stone ring with a tarot reading or crystal browse just under a mile away on Ingersoll.
- Drake Municipal Observatory — Follow up an evening of metalwork with late-night stargazing inside a hidden 1921 limestone observatory less than a mile off.
- By Wysteria — Keep the hands-on crafting night going with a cold-process soap or candle workshop in the nearby Drake neighborhood.
- JJ Gaffers Glass Blowing Studio — Trade silver wire and soldering torches for molten glass and hot shop pipes over at Mainframe Studios.
Good to know
Do I need any prior metalsmithing experience to sign up?
No. The workshop is designed for absolute beginners, and all necessary tools, silver, stones, and safety equipment are provided in the studio.
How are the ring-making workshops scheduled?
They run as session-based workshops on a published schedule—for example, meeting across four evenings over the course of a single week.
Why can't I find the class on the museum website right now?
The studio classes sell out rapidly. Once a session fills up, it is pulled from the active course catalog until the next schedule release.
Where in the museum complex is the class held?
Classes take place inside the Studio School's dedicated metals studio at the Des Moines Art Center, located at 4700 Grand Avenue.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Official site
last checked: 2026-06-23