Nature, environmental concerns inspire fall art exhibitions across St. Louis area

One artist, Jean Shin, creates a “baseball diamond” with pieces from baseball bats and ash trees. The ash tree is so threatened by the emerald ash borer that many bats are now made from maple or other materials rather than the traditional ash.

At the St. Louis Art Museum, the centuries-old textile craft of Indian chintz has also been adapted by more contemporary artists, who may also consider more environmentally friendly methods. At Laumeier Sculpture Park, artists examine the influence and importance of forests. Meanwhile, Mona Chalabi considers endangered species in “Squeeze” at the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis.

Here are some of the visual arts events and exhibitions to enliven the coming season.

When Through Dec. 11; park hours are 8 a.m. to 30 minutes past sunset daily; Aronson Fine Arts Center hours are noon-7 p.m. Thursday-Friday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday-Sunday (closed Monday-Wednesday) • Where Laumeier Sculpture Park, 12580 Rott Road • How much Free • More info laumeiersculpturepark.org

The common, beautiful and essential tree becomes a taking-off point for several artists, local and international, indoors and outdoors at Laumeier. The sculpture park and its trees ask viewers to take a different perspective of their environment and the conversation between humans, artwork and nature. Multiple related programs will be presented. Artists contributing include Zadok Ben-David, Benjamin Butler, Charles Gaines, Lena Henke, Katie Holten, Miler Lagos, Jason Middlebrook, Andy Millner, Katie Paterson, Julius von Bismarck and Rachel Youn.

When 5-10 p.m. Sept. 9, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Sept. 10, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sept. 11 • Where Downtown Clayton, roughly bound by Brentwood, Maryland, Bemiston and Carondelet • How much Free • More info saintlouisartfair.com

The St. Louis Art Fair is back, featuring 180 creators, along with music, floral installations, chef demonstrations and even chalk artists. The year’s theme is “Love Is in the Art,” a nod to couples who share booths. The Children’s Creative Castle offers hands-on activities for kids under 12.

When Sept. 9-Feb. 12; hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Thursday and Saturday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday (closed Monday-Wednesday) • Where Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis, 3750 Washington Boulevard • How much Free • More info 314-535-4660; camstl.org

For the 10th Great Rivers Biennial at the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis, jurors selected Yowshien Kuo (painting), Yvonne Osei (video) and Jon Young (sculpture) as winners of the art awards, which include not only an exhibition but a $20,000 honorarium. The biennial recognizes emerging or mid-career artists who live and/or studied and worked in this area. This is also CAM’s 20th year.

When Sept. 9-Feb. 12; hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Thursday and Saturday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday (closed Monday-Wednesday) • Where Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis, 3750 Washington Boulevard • How much Free • More info 314-535-4660; camstl.org

Mona Chalabi takes over the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis Project Wall with illustrations of how habitat loss, poaching and global warming affect endangered species. Chalabi, a London native now based in New York, is also a journalist and writer, who has been published in the New Yorker, the New York Times and the Guardian. Other new exhibitions at CAM: “We didn’t ask permission, we just did it …,” guest curated by Manuela Paz and Christopher Rivera of Embajada, which revisits seminal exhibitions in Puerto Rico; and Sukanya Mani’s “Weight of Shadows.”

When Sept. 10-Dec. 11; park hours are 8 a.m. to 30 minutes past sunset daily • Where South Lawn, Laumeier Sculpture Park, 12580 Rott Road • How much Free • More info laumeiersculpturepark.org

Baseball bats (traditionally made of ash wood), and a tree itself devastated by the emerald ash borer, are components of an “alternate baseball diamond” by Jean Shin, who says of the sport and forests: “What affects the game, affects the environment, and more importantly, what affects the environment, affects the game.”

When 4-9 p.m. Sept. 16, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Sept. 17, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sept. 18 • Where North Main Street, St. Charles • How much Free • More info stcharlesmosaics.org

The Mosaics Fine Art Festival features works by a juried selection of artists from across the country. In addition to art available for sale, visitors can enjoy live performances, children’s activities, a pet pavilion and more.

When Sept. 16-Feb. 5; hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Thursday and Saturday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday (closed Monday-Wednesday) • Where Pulitzer Arts Foundation, 3716 Washington Boulevard • How much Free • More info 314-754-1850; pulitzerarts.org

The Pulitzer Arts Foundation presents a retrospective of artist Barbara Chase-Riboud, whose career from the 1950s to today has been “fundamentally global and transhistorical, with influences ranging from Italian Baroque architecture to West African bronze making,” the museum says. The exhibition will feature about 50 sculptures, along with 20 works on paper and even poetry. (Chase-Riboud also wrote the 1979 novel “Sally Hemings” and has a memoir coming out in October.)

When Sept. 16-April 9; hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday and Saturday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Friday (closed Monday) • Where Gallery 301, St. Louis Art Museum, 1 Fine Arts Drive, Forest Park • How much Free • More info 314-721-0072; slam.org

Video by Hong Kong-based artist Samson Young uses sound while examining the ephemeral qualities of smoke. The video came from Young’s time as artist-in-residence at Ryosoku-in Temple in Japan.

When 5-9 p.m. Sept. 23, 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Sept. 24, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Sept. 25 • Where City Park, Edwardsville • How much Free • More info edwardsvilleartscenter.com

Enjoy works by about 100 juried artists, sample food and drinks by local vendors, and let the kids create their own works of art. Proceeds benefit year-round programs by the Edwardsville Arts Center.

When Sept. 23-Jan. 23; hours are 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday and Wednesday-Sunday (closed Tuesday) • Where Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University, 1 Brookings Drive • How much Free • More info 314-935-4523; kemperartmuseum.wustl.edu

Studio work by a German artist of large, vivid abstract paintings includes 37 pieces done over more than 30 years. Katharina Grosse’s “practice stretches the boundaries of painting in all directions,” says Sabine Eckmann, director of the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum at Washington University.

When 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sept. 25 • Where Francis Park, Eichelberger Street and Donovan Avenue • How much Free • More info artintheparkstl.com

After a two-year hiatus, Art in the Park St. Louis Hills comes back for its 15th year. Artists fill both sides of the lily pond in Francis Park to show off and sell their work, which includes jewelry, ceramics, painting, digital art, glass, sculpture and photography. Live music, food, children’s activities, a classic car show and exhibition baseball round out the day.

When Sept. 30-Feb. 19; hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday and Saturday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Friday (closed Monday) • Where Galleries 249-250, St. Louis Art Museum, 1 Fine Arts Drive, Forest Park • How much Free • More info 314-721-0072; slam.org

Works by Botswana-born Meleko Mokgosi include monochromatic figurative paintings from his current project, “Spaces of Subjection,” placed near pigment transfers of text and images from the 1911 book “Epaminondas and His Auntie” by Sara Cone Bryant. The children’s book has been criticized for its racist stereotypes.

When Oct. 7-Jan. 21; hours are noon-5 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday (closed Sunday-Monday) • Where Sheldon Concert Hall & Art Galleries, 3648 Washington Boulevard • How much Free • More info 314-533-9900; thesheldon.org

Shooting still images with a Widelux F8 panoramic camera, actor Jeff Bridges documented “sometimes chaotic, sometimes casual, intimate moments on movie sets,” the Sheldon says. His work is featured in an exhibition that makes a visit to the Midwest. On view in other Sheldon galleries: “Angela Shaffer: Good Mother”; “Chris Scavotto: The Painter’s Language”; “Emmy Lingscheit: To the Animals”; and “Savannah Calhoun and Lisa Simms: Leer.net.”

When Starting Oct. 7 • Where Grand Center, near Washington and Josephine Baker boulevards • How much Free • More info wallsstl.com

Twenty colorful murals make their debut in the Grand Center neighborhood as part of “The Walls Off Washington,” a new public arts initiative by the Kranzberg Arts Foundation. The murals, created by individuals and groups, are mostly located between Washington Boulevard and Samuel Shepard Drive; enter near Sophie’s Artist Lounge. Some of the paintings will be replaced yearly; others will remain longer.

When 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Oct. 8, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Oct. 9 • Where 4100-4200 blocks of Flora Place • How much $8-$10, free for ages 14 and under • More info shawstlouis.org

Browse the artwork of 130 artists and makers from across the country while enjoying live music, food vendors and the stately homes of tree-lined Flora Place. This is the fair’s 30th season. Proceeds benefit the Shaw Neighborhood Improvement Association.

When Oct. 20-Nov. 6 • Where Ann and Andrew Tisch Park, east end of Danforth Campus, Washington University, 1 Brookings Drive • How much Free • More info kemperartmuseum.wustl.edu

Larger-than-life photos of Holocaust survivors, including 12 people from St. Louis, will line the perimeter of a park just north of the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum at Washington University. The temporary exhibition of work by Luigi Toscano has traveled internationally to commemorate survivors at a time when antisemitism is on the rise.

When Oct. 23-Jan. 8; hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday and Saturday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Friday (closed Monday) • Where St. Louis Art Museum, 1 Fine Arts Drive, Forest Park • How much $6-$12; free for members, children under 5 and for all on Fridays • More info 314-721-0072; slam.org

The centuries-old Indian art of painted and printed cloth revolutionized fashion and global trade. Chintz, mostly from the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, will display the beautiful textiles used for both clothing and furnishings. Included are contemporary Indian artists concerned with sustainable practices.

When Opens Nov. 2 • Where 36 Millstone Campus Drive • How much To be announced • More info stlholocaustmuseum.org

After a $21 million expansion that quadruples the space of the previous facility, the St. Louis Kaplan Feldman Holocaust Museum will open Nov. 2. The larger museum will feature new technology, meeting rooms and space for more than 12,000 artifacts, furthering the institution’s mission to preserve the memory of the Holocaust and to empower visitors to reject hatred and injustice. It is one of 22 Holocaust museums across the country.

When Nov. 5-Feb. 11; hours are 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday (closed Sunday-Tuesday) • Where International Photography Hall of Fame and Museum, 3415 Locust Street • How much $5-$10, free for members • More info iphf.org

An exhibition featuring the work of the 2022 International Photography Hall of Fame inductees and awardees opens Nov. 5, the day after a gala event (6 p.m. Nov. 4 at .Zack, 3224 Locust Street) honoring photographers Edward Burtynsky, Chester Higgins, Graciela Iturbide, Helen Levitt, Danny Lyon, Sarah Moon. Also honored will be Kyle Huber with a visionary award and the Association of International Photography Art Dealers with a leadership award.

Valerie Schremp Hahn contributed to this report.