10 art exhibits to catch this month

Whether you prefer to explore antiquity, contemplate legacy, or participate in contemporary conversations, there is plenty to take in this month at the city’s many museums and galleries. Here are a few must-see shows to catch this month.

Tom Huck: A Monkey Mountain Kronikle – May 1 through June 6

Farmington-born, St. Louis-based printmaker Tom Huck is returning to Duane Reed Gallery with a collection of large-scale, satirical prints in the traditional of Northern Renaissance masters. With classical technique and punk-rock ethos, Huck is local creator.

Photo by Sonal Churiwal

Photo by Sonal Churiwal

Liminal – Through May 31

The Museum of Contemporary Religious Art at Saint Louis University was the first museum dedicated to the exploration of spiritual and religious dimensions in contemporary art. While its time is coming to an end, MOCRA has one last show to share before it goes. Liminal explores MOCRA’s more than three decades of exhibitions by placing artists who have previously exhibited at the museum in conversation with the permanent collection.

READ MORE: The Museum of Contemporary Religious Art says farewell with Liminal

Sanctuaries of the City – Through June 14

The Field House Museum’s Sanctuaries of the City exhibit highlights eight places of worship: Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church, Centenary United Methodist Church, St. Mary of Victories Catholic Church, Basilica of St. Louis, King of France, St. John Nepomuk Chapel, Trinity Lutheran Church, First Baptist Church and B’nai El Congregation. The collection explores not only the aesthetics and architecture of these buildings, but their history and that of communities around them.

Carmon Colangelo–20-Year Survey – Through June 27

Bruno David Gallery is playing host to this retrospective from celebrated painter and printmaker Carmon Colangelo, featuring work that pulls from his interest in “environmental fragility, the permeability of borders, the collapse and reconstruction of meaning, and the human impulse to map the unknown.” To hear from the artist in person, check out Colangelo’s artist talk at the Forsyth Boulevard gallery on May 2.

Courtesy of the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum

Courtesy of the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum

Looking Back Toward the Future: Contemporary Photography from China – Through July 27

More than 40 large-scale images created in China between 1993 and 2006 will fill the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum’s Barney A. Ebsworth Gallery as part of this powerful photography exhibition. Looking Back Toward the Future explores how this group of artists used varied approaches to capture a nation in the midst of rapid sociopolitical, economic, and cultural change.

READ MORE: St. Louis spring and summer arts guide

CAM Spring/Summer Exhibitions – Through August 9

The Contemporary Art Museum’s biannual refresh brings together the work of Andrea Carlson, Claude Cahun and Marcel Moore, Ayana Evans, Janie Stamm, and the students of CAM’s Teen Studio Art Program. Stop by the museum on March 6 for an opening reception and First Friday festivities.

READ MORE: The Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis’ Teen Museum Studies program turns students into curators

Courtesy of the Pulitzer Arts Foundation

Courtesy of the Pulitzer Arts Foundation

Dialogues & Conversations – Through August 9

This new exhibition at the Pulitzer Arts Foundation celebrates the 25th anniversary of the space by returning to the curatorial roots of its founder, Emily Rauh Pulitzer. Featuring work by more than 35 artists, including Edgar Degas, Jasper Johns, Alberto Giacometti, and more, Dialogues & Conversations is a far-reaching exhibition and fitting celebration of this major anniversary.

READ MORE: Pulitzer Arts Foundation marks 25 years with Dialogues & Conversations

Ancient Splendor: Roman Art in the Time of Trajan – Through August 16

If your Roman Empire is the literal Roman Empire, you’ll want to make time to stop by the Saint Louis Art Museum in the months ahead for Ancient Splendor. Co-organized by StArt and the Saint Louis Art Museuma and curated by Lucrezia Ungaro, archaeological curator of the city of Rome, Ancient Splendor will fill galleries with artifacts and antiquities from the height of Rome’s power.

Courtesy of the Saint Louis Art Museum.

Courtesy of the Saint Louis Art Museum.

Visions of Antiquity – Through October 18

The Saint Louis Art Museum is looking back at the ancient world through the eyes of artists across generations in Visions of Antiquity, curated by associate curator of prints, drawings, and photographs Clare Kobasa. Works from 1500 to the present that explore Greco-Roman themes will be on display in three sections: “Knowledge and Order,” “Triumph and Tragedy,” and Remnants and Ruins” in Galleries 234 and 235.

Begin Again: Wak’a Garden – Through April 15, 2029

The second installment in Laumeier Sculpture Park’s Begin Again series dedicated the to the art space’s 50th anniversary, Wak’a Garden is a commission by 2026 Visiting Artist in Residence Juan William Chávez and 2026 Kranzberg Exhibition Series Artist Kiersten Torrez. The organic structure is not only a sculptural piece in itself, but will also act as a gathering and teaching space during its tenure at Laumeier.

READ MORE: Treasures of the past shine in Ancient Splendor