Locked away from the public, the SLAM conservation labs shelter the most fragile treasures.
RAINA CHAO SPENT the last day of 2017 crawling around inside a massive sculpture, checking its structure before a crane inched it into place outside the Saint Louis Art Museum. She started 2018 working with museum engineers to drop the humidity by 2 degrees because the condensation forming on a gallery skylight might affect the art. Now she’s leading me through a security door and down a hallway, past the textile, painting, and paper conservation labs.
We step into the objects lab, where Chao is a conservator. She gleefully explains the new 3-D digital microscope, how it will “take a bunch of images and give us a cross section so we can see the layers of paint in order.” She’s about to begin cleaning a seated arhat—a figure of one who’s attained enlightenment but not yet full Buddhahood.
“Yeah, he looks disappointed,” I say.
“He’s meditating,” Chao corrects me.
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Cut from the Same Cloth
“Turkey Tracks” is a 19th-century quiltmaking pattern that has the appearance of little wandering feet. Patterns like the tracks, and their traditions and myths, have been passed down through the generations, from their frontier beginnings to today, where a generation of makers has embraced the material as a means of creating something new. Olivia Jondle is one such designer. Here, she’s taken an early turkey track-pattern quilt, cut it into various shapes, and stitched the pieces together, adding calico and other fabric remnants as needed. The result is a trench coat she calls the Pale Calico Coat. Her designs are for sale at The Rusty Bolt, Jondle’s small-batch fashion company based in St. Louis. —SAMANTHA STEVENSON
Color Block
A background in sculpture trained artist Aly Ytterberg to see objects more fully.
A Modern Story
How a little log cabin went from being a home to a guest house
IN GOOD TIME
With the help of interior designer Robert Idol, a Kirkwood couple creates a home that pays homage to the past, yet feels just right for their modern young family.
Let's Dish
"Food Raconteur” Ashok Nageshwaran wants to tell you a story.
The Right Move
New shops and showrooms bring exciting opportunities for local designers, makers, and arts organizations to sell their wares to home enthusiasts here and everywhere.
Green Dreams
Painter and gardener Lauren Knight branches out.
Cultivating Kokedama
Chris Mower of White Stable Farms discovered the Japanese style of gardening in Italy. Now, he’s bringing it to St. Louis.
Graphic Mood
Letters, icons, and illustrations that speak in a hand-drawn language
AUDRA's New Digs
Audra Noyes, of the Saint Louis Fashion Fund Incubator’s first class, opens an atelier in Ladue.
