3648 Washington Blvd.
Saint Louis, Missouri
314-533-9900

The Sheldon, designed by the noted 1904 World’s Fair architect Louis C. Spiering, was built in 1912 as the home of the Ethical Society of St. Louis. Musicians and public speakers throughout the years have enjoyed the perfect acoustics of the Sheldon Concert Hall, earning The Sheldon its reputation as "The Carnegie Hall of St. Louis." Well-known singers and ensembles have performed at The Sheldon, and speakers such as Albert Einstein, Dwight Eisenhower and Ernest Hemingway have spoken from its stage. The St. Louis Chapter of the League of Women Voters was founded in The Sheldon’s Green Room.

When the Ethical Society relocated to Saint Louis County in 1964, The Sheldon became a primarily music venue. In 1974 a former singer with the Duke Ellington Orchestra purchased the facility and transformed The Sheldon into a church and the site for many jazz and gospel concerts. A California attorney with a love for chamber music purchased the building in 1984 at the urging of the Paganini String Quartet and began operating The Sheldon in 1986 as a venue for concerts and community events.

Determined to preserve and establish The Sheldon as one of Saint Louis’ greatest cultural resources, the non-profit Sheldon Arts Foundation was formed in 1988. The Foundation purchased the building in 1991. In 1998, The Sheldon expanded its artistic focus to include six new art galleries in a $5 million dollar expansion project. The Sheldon Art Galleries encompass 7,000 square feet and feature exhibits on photography, architecture, St. Louis artists and collection, jazz history, emerging artists and children’s art. The Sheldon's renovations continued in 2001 with the installation of five new stained glass windows designed by acclaimed artist Rodney Winfield. Titled "Theme and Variation," they are designed to be seen both during the day and at night.

The Sheldon is located in the heart of Saint Louis’ Grand Center arts district and continues to offer the St. Louis area a wealth of cultural resources in the tradition of its visionary founders.

EXHIBITS ENDED

Pattie Chalmers’ Mudmaid Museum
Through January 20, 2024

Pattie Chalmers’ Mudmaid Museum is an exploration of folklore and legends that blurs the lines between myth and reality. Chalmers has created her own museum of catfish-beings, referred to as “Mudmaids,” believed to exist in the Mississippi River in a distant past. This unique concept of a museum within a gallery plays with the definitions of fact and fiction, featuring artifacts created by Chalmers. The Mudmaid Museum exhibition reveals an alternate history, a museum filled with artifacts from when Mudmaid apparitions were encountered in American waterways. In the Mudmaid Museum visitors will see books, woodcarvings, photographs, rag dolls, diaries, letters, whisker oil bottles and much more from the foggy past

Free

For more information visit the exhibit’s webpage

Visiting The Sheldon Art Galleries
Visiting Hours
Tuesday - Friday: Noon - 5 pm
Saturday: 10 am - 2 pm
Sunday & Monday: Closed
There is no charge to visit The Sheldon Art Galleries.