Conventional gift-giving guides suggest buying something made of tin or aluminum to celebrate a 10-year anniversary.

Luckily, the Contemporary Art Museum in St. Louis is anything but traditional.

Instead of going with an aluminum watch or tin of gourmet tea, the CAM decided to celebrate the 10th anniversary of its Midtown building with a few exhibitions inside (and outside) its walls.

The Skinny:

Fun Fact: Since 2003, CAM has shown the work of more than 260 artists.
Contemporary Art Museum of St. Louis
3750 Washington Blvd.
St. Louis, MO 63108
314.535.4660
info@camstl.org

Place is the Space

Through August 2014

When the Contemporary Art Museum’s doors opened in 2003, the Brad Cloepfil-designed space ushered in new identity for the organization, and a new place to showcase contemporary art. The St. Louis museum was the first for Cloepfil, who created the 27,000-square-foot building with an emphasis on open, flexible spaces with natural light.

To mark its anniversary, five artists will create site-specific pieces that respond to the various components of the acclaimed building, including surface, scale, transparency and boundaries.

You and I, Horizontal (II)

Sept. 6 - Dec. 29

In his first solo museum show in the Midwest, Anthony McCall (a key figure in avant-garde cinema and contemporary art) presents his digital animation of a slowly shifting beam of “solid light” that only gets better as viewers interact.

Street Views

Oct. 11 – Dec. 29, 6 to 10 p.m. every evening

Jennifer Steinkamp turns the museum inside out when she takes over its Washington Boulevard façade. Her lush, nature-based imagery slowly creeps and grows as the projections evolve in both shape and color.

Audible Interruptions

Through August 2014

CAM no longer relegates art simply to its gallery spaces, but lets it spill out into the hallways elevators and yes, even the restrooms with this exhibition. Kevin Harris, a St. Louis-based artist, musician and engineer, guest curates this series. He selected seven artists to fill the museum’s utilitarian spaces with sound installations.

Chrysler Tapete

Sept. 6 – Oct. 27

Wallpaper works with a dizzying array of repeated elements will fill the museum’s front room in this exhibition of Thomas Bayrle’s work. The renowned German artist was a key figure in European pop art, and his work explores how mass production and consumption impacts our understanding of the world.

Ed Ruscha: Miracle

Nov. 1 – Dec. 29

Nebraska-born artist, Ed Ruscha, will show his short film, “Miracle,” in CAM’s front room. The piece, created in 1975, follows a day in the life of an auto mechanic who has a transformative experience while working on a Ford Mustang engine. Vroom.