Ellis Lockhart 10, his sisters Lydia Lockhart 9 and Sarai 19 months work on the old St. Louis Arena at Color STL Tues. Aug. 23, 2022. 

Ellis Lockhart 10, his sisters Lydia Lockhart 9 and Sarai 19 months work on the old St. Louis Arena at Color STL Tues. Aug. 23, 2022. 

Coloring STL, a 6,000-square-foot interactive and educational exhibit, is on display at the Missouri History Museum.

“I hope what comes out of the exhibit is people start conversations about why the buildings matter to them and parents can chat with their children about the type of house they were raised in,” said Andrew Wanko, public historian and content lead on the Coloring STL.

Guests can color and doodle on more than 50 past and present architectural structures on gallery walls.

The opening reception weekend was hosted on Aug. 20, 2022, and it left quite the impression amongst community members, according to Andrew Wanko, public historian and content lead on the Coloring STL.

“We had a great turnout for opening weekend and erased the wall once because it filled up pretty quickly,” Andrew Wanko, Coloring STL historian and content lead, said.

Landmarks and neighborhood gems including Homer G. Phillips Hospital, the late Annie Malone’s Poro College, Union Station, City Museum are reimagined through visitors’ animation. There is no limit on creative self-expression.

“The idea behind Coloring STL is to celebrate and explore St. Louis architecture in all its shapes, styles, and sizes,” Wanko said.

“We knew architecture would be a huge hit, but we didn’t want to just put a bunch of photos of the buildings on the wall. It wouldn’t have captured the curiosity and fascinations many people have about St. Louis’ environment.”

Coloring STL also features artifacts and information from institutions that no longer stand including the Northland Shopping Center, River Roads Mall, and St. Louis Arena.

“St. Louis malls, including River Roads, became architectural treasures due to the terracotta tiles outside Stix, Baer, and Fuller,” Wanko said.

“There were more than 14,000 mid-century modern geometric tiles outside the mall until it tore down in 2006.”

St. Louis housing developments are another explorable component of Coloring STL.

Wanko said the origins of the city’s common two-family flat households and “gingerbread homes” [houses with swoopy roofs, stone surface, and limestone stain glass windows and arch doorway exteriors] are unique and hold significance.

“St. Louis once had a massive streetcar system, making two-family flats the best of both worlds for people,” he said.

“It was a place where renters could afford their yard, which wasn’t accessible in areas closer to downtown. We have to look at the deeper meaning behind why some of these homes look the way they look, they’re a product of The Great Depression, and that period was the first time architecture was more fantastical with all that was happening in our world.”

The late acclaimed civil rights attorney Frankie Muse Freeman’s daughter, Shelbe Patricia Bullock, told Wanko her mother once lived in a building across the street from Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis. It is featured in Coloring STL.

“She said her mom looked out at the cathedral’s dome every time she came to visit her,” Wanko said. “In honor of her mom, she went to the wall and colored the entire dome.”

Lashonda Lockhart and her five children each grabbed a dry erase marker to participate during a recent visit.

Lockhart, who hails from Miami, Florida and moved to St. Louis with her native husband 11 years ago, said she relates most with Union Station and Homer G. Phillips.

“I resonate with Union Station because my sister-in-law works at another hotel and whenever she comes into town, we always stay there to have a ‘staycation,’” Lockhart said.

“I saw a documentary about Homer G. Phillips Hospital and I can only imagine what it must have been like to give birth at that hospital.”

Wanko said he hopes Coloring STL evokes nostalgic memories and teachable history.

“I want this to be a place where memories are made with family and friends,” Wanko said.

“I hope what comes out of the exhibit is people start conversations about why the buildings matter to them and parents can chat with their children about the type of house they were raised in.”

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