Emerging Artist
Cameron Fuller, who moved here three years ago to attend Wash. U., has already shown in local venues large (UM–St. Louis), medium (Philip Slein) and small (Maps, Fort Gondo). His drawings, prints and installations pair a 1960s design aesthetic with animal protagonists from fairy tales: mild-mannered deer wear golf shirts, and wolves force fawns to stay after school to clean the blackboard, clutching a ruler as tightly as any sadistic sister. As with William Blake or Henry Darger, Fuller's genius is that each individual drawing or painting is connected to a larger ecology of the imagination, a mythology of the artist's own devising.
Jazz Club
We're tempted to paste gold stars on Jazz at the Bistro's forehead just for one of their recent blog posts, which affirmed that though Michael Bublé pulls from the Great American Songbook … he's not jazz. (Neither is Rod Stewart.) Jazz is Ravi Coltrane, Freddy Cole and James Moody, Ahmad Jamal, The Bad Plus and the World Saxophone Quartet (featuring our own marvelous Hamiet Bluiett), artists who have all made an appearance on the Bistro's stage in the past three years. Executive director Gene Dobbs Bradford has established the series' national reputation not just with the quality of its bookings, but also by lavishing supernaturally good care on audiences and musicians alike. 3536 Washington, 314-289-4030, jazzstl.org
Gallery: National Artists
Though Matt Strauss' objective with White Flag Projects is to goose our art community into adopting a more expansive set of aesthetics, you don't have to know that to appreciate his curatorial skills. The 2007–08 season started with the bracing photography show "TINYVICES" and ended with "Bendover/Hangover," a performance by a crew of Brooklyn artists that featured Charles and Ray Eames' films, William S. Burroughs' paintings and pieces from four young artists from the current Whitney Biennial. Thanks to Strauss, coastal zeitgeists come here in the immediate, not posthumously. 4568 Manchester, 314-531-3442, whiteflagprojects.org
Established Artist
Sue Eisler moved here 40 years ago, settling into a downtown studio when it was safe to throw boomerangs and bowling balls down Washington. She scavenged industrial detritus, gracefully reworking it into minimalist sculptures that somehow managed (for instance) to transform a battered lobster buoy into a four-legged creature while letting the object's first life shine through, too. Laumeier Sculpture Park's staging a career retrospective through September 7, with sculptures indoors and out, work both old and recent. Go, and be stunned. laumeiersculpturepark.org
Curator/Director
Having lost two terrific contemporary-art curators within the last year — SLAM's Robin Clark and the Kemper's Catharina Manchanda — St. Louis should be more grateful than ever to have Matthias Waschek among its museum mavens. Waschek arrived at the Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts in September 2003, after 12 years at the Louvre in Paris, and his touch has been crisp and challenging, yet welcoming. Through the shows he curates, the shows he brings here and the innovative programs he empowers his staff to put on, he's made this small museum an irreplaceable gem. 3716 Washington, 314-754-1850, pulitzerarts.org
Gallery: Emerging Artists
What used to be an old yeast factory in Lafayette Square is now Open Lot, a studio and exhibition space that kicks the old gallery paradigm right in the butt. OL is about collaboration and experimentation; their November exhibit, "We'll Talk More Later," featured glowing, phosphorus-dusted pieces made by Lot residents and biologist-turned-artist Greg Edmondson. Genre-blurring is also encouraged, like Recourduroy's spring "Abstract Reality" show, which paired local music (Peanuts, Macro Meltdown, The Museum Mutters) with local art (Michael Keth, Jeremy Rabus, Laura Redington). We can't wait to see what's coming next. 1310 S. 18th Street, open.lot@gmail.com, myspace.com/openlot
Gallery: Local Artists
When Elliot Smith Contemporary Art headed east in 2004, then-curator Bruno David stayed here, lovingly rehabbing a small building in the shadow of the Pulitzer and the Contemporary. He outfitted it to show everything from new media to oversized works on paper, and though he reps national artists (including an anonymous East Coaster known as "The Fancy Christ"), David's used his namesake gallery to showcase locals, striking the perfect balance between a sophistication gained from years spent in the New York art scene and an appreciation for work made without the intrusion of ego or toxic ambition. 3721 Washington, 314-531-3030, brunodavidgallery.com
Live Theater
Last fall, with the production of Radio Golf, The Black Rep became the second theater in history to stage August Wilson's Century Cycle in its entirety. Artistic director Ron Himes' dedication to Wilson's brilliant plays, his ability to attract national talent to the Grandel's stage and his visionary approach to Shakespeare are just a few of the things that make The Black Rep not just one of St. Louis' preeminent cultural institutions, but a national standout. 1717 Olive #4, 314-534-3807, theblackrep.org
Established Music Act
Formed four years ago, Rough Shop comprises multi-instrumentalist Andy Ploof, bassist Anne Tkach and multi-instrumentalist John Wendland with other area musicians. Ploof, Tkach and Wendland all contribute both vocals and songs to the band's second full-length CD, Here Today, released in March. The 12 tracks on that Perdition Records disc do far more than exquisitely blend songcraft, harmonies and technical virtuosity: They testify why Rough Shop has earned accolades not just locally but nationally. roughshop.com
Niche Classical
Forget New Age groups who drop backbeats behind Palestrina's motets; the Saint Louis Chamber Chorus makes choral music exciting without stripping it of its dignity. Artistic director Philip Barnes is not only the saint of the lost chord — this spring, the chorus performed a 16th-century anthem, written by John Sheppard for the marriage of Mary I to Spain's Philip II, that had not been heard for more than 400 years — but also an advocate of contemporary composers, staging world premieres of work from artists like Carl Rütti, Patrick Zuk and Ivan Moody. Add to this their mission to perform their concerts in historically significant public buildings (with help from preservationist Esley Hamilton), and it just makes you want to say, "Hosanna!" 636-458-4343, chamberchorus.org
Rock Venue: Bigger
Since 2000, The Pageant has been delighting rock fans who can't stomach arenas or stadiums — that is, rock fans with discernment. With much-lauded acoustics and a 2,300 occupancy, the venue books popular acts like the New Pornographers (aaah, Neko!) and Wilco. One caveat: While the balcony has limited reserved seating, the Pageant usually does the general-admission thang — so arrive late for an SRO show and you're likely SOL. 6161 Delmar, 314-726-6161, thepageant.com
Gospel Music
Before soul or jazz or rock, there was gospel — and St. Louis still has some of the best in the country. Dello Thedford, founder/director of the ecumenical Dello Thedford Gospel Symphonic Choir, brings classical training to the table, "so it's not so yell-y and shout-y," but his singers pour heart and soul into the music. His compositions have been performed nationally; his students have gone on to careers in opera. 314-921-4430
Rock Venue: Smaller
Newer venues like the Bluebird may book edgier bands, and the Sheldon's acoustics may earn nearly universal kudos — but Blueberry Hill's 350-occupancy Duck Room remains the area's hottest spot for a full-tilt-boogie jolt of rock 'n' roll at the club level. When packed, it turns into a nocturnal wonderland of bodies swaying for one reason or another, secondhand smoke and bartenders who should earn combat pay. Oh — and this dude named Berry gigs there monthly. 6504 Delmar, 314-727-4444, blueberryhill.com
Emerging Musical Act
Though the title of Earthworms' debut disc is excellent — No Arms, No Legs, Just a Head and a Body — their 2008 release, Bottle of Bourbon, made critics especially swoony. The group draws inspiration from '90s hip-hop (De La Soul, Public Enemy, even Beatnigs and Fishbone), but its specialness is rooted in how St. Louis it sounds. Not a shock, considering they're on local label F5, and ex-Urge frontman Steve Ewing, DJ Crucial and Jonathan Toth from Hoth put in appearances. Like Nelly's country grammar, Earthworms' vernacular should translate effortlessly to a much larger audience. f5records.com
Musical Theater
They're puckish and ostentatious, flashing rhinestones and glitter, and attracting out-of-town acting talent rivaling that of the city's more, ahem, established theatrical venues. This year, these up-and-coming darlings won twice as many Kevin Kline Awards as either of their closest competitors. Simply put, STAGES is busting out, Fame-style, and busting up St. Louisans' preconceptions of what musical theater in this town can and should be — and for that, we're wholly grateful. Robert G. Reim Theatre, Kirkwood Civic Center, 111 S. Geyer, 314-821-2407, stagesstlouis.org
Perennial A-Listers
David Robertson: Maestro
