Image from "The Pruitt-Igoe Myth" documentary.
Last month I was given the opportunity to serve as Guest Blogger for the Art21 Blog. For those unfamiliar with the blog, it was initially founded to provide further reading on the artists featured in the PBS documentary series, Art in the Twenty-First Century. In recent years, the blog has broadened its scope beyond the documentary series, and has become a forum for international contemporary art, reaching over 50,000 readers every month. During my two-week tenure as Guest Blogger I was given the freedom to write about any topic that I desired, keeping in mind that the blog reached both national and international audiences.
With this daunting task in mind, I used the blog as an opportunity to showcase the diverse cultural initiatives that have helped to redefine St. Louis’s identity over the past decade. Oftentimes, it is tempting to perceive mid-size Midwestern cities as the homogeneous products of post-industrialism. However, having called many Midwestern cities my home, I feel that such a mindset fails to acknowledge the unique populations, traditions, and industries that have shaped the city’s identity. Though St. Louis may not be the center of the contemporary art world, the city has bred and attracted artists whose socially-based practices address issues that resound beyond our city limits. Throughout my four blog posts, I question how we reconcile the city’s unfavorable economic indicators—such as the recent population decline—with the enormous cultural growth that St. Louis has experienced during the past decade alone.
In an attempt to better understand the role that the city’s identity plays in our cultural practices, I met with ten different artists, social workers, and community activists during the weeks leading up to my stint as Guest Blogger. These individuals included: Juan William Chávez, Theaster Gates, students and professors from the Brown School of Social Work, alums of the Community Arts Training Institute, and Roseann Weiss. Rather than paving over St. Louis’s complex history, each individual I met with actively considers the city’s opportunities and challenges, proposing responsible methods for cultural regeneration.
I invite you to visit the Art21 Blog to learn more about the individuals and initiatives that are working to re-imagine the cultural landscape of St. Louis, moving our city’s cultural achievements beyond local discussions and into international circles.
