Kaleidoscope Bus on September 20, 2025

10am-2pm

Meet Tom Chouteau and the big Kaleidoscope Bus! This Kaleidoscope on wheels will be parked right outside of the Geneseo Public Library in the North lot on Saturday, September 20.   Visitors are encouraged to stop by and experience a mirrored, kaleidoscope environment inside this colorful school bus.

"My mission is to place kaleidoscopes and mirrored environments out in front of the public eye in the best way possible so that those who view them may have their lives enhanced and refreshed."

Tom Chouteau is a native of Davenport, Iowa and has been creating kaleidoscopes for 30 years. He has been the recipient of many awards and has led dozens of workshops on the subject of kaleidoscope creation. People of all ages have been taught by Tom how kaleidoscopes are put together, what makes them work, and the many varieties of mirror tunnels and images that can be created. Tom has taught after school classes in the Iowa Quad Cities, demonstrated at local organizations and clubs, and directed senior citizens and teen classes at area libraries.

“As a child, I played with mirrors and experimented with how they work,” he said.  Tom comes by his artistic endeavors naturally--his father was an artist and taught at St. Ambrose.  He has seven sisters, and four members of his family have art degrees.

"It's a School Bus that I purchased in 2005. The bus was converted to be a Fine Art experience for 3rd graders of the Quad City area. It was named "the Art-O-Mobile." The agreement we made when I purchased it, was that I would use it for educational purposes.

The Kaleidoscope Caravan is for both adults and children. “Oftentimes, the adults must be coaxed to leave,” said Tom. “The interior is lit up with fluorescent black lights and painted details that kind of place you into an unfamiliar world. Sort of like Alice's Adventures in Wonderland!”

And one of Tom’s creations, the Blue Note, is a large kaleidoscope that is located inside the Geneseo Public Library.  It has a secure stepladder for children to use to look through it.