Theme Guidelines

The theme of Salon Saint Louis 2021 is “Storytelling — American Regionalism” – think Thomas Hart Benton, John Steuart Curry and Grant Wood; as well as the Luminist Style – think George Caleb Bingham and Henry Lewis. These 18th and 19th Century artists created stories of the rivers and the plains of the Midwest in their artwork.

Participants will interpret this theme creating their own stories with various techniques and styles of decorative painting such as: gilding, sign writing, illustration, ornamentation, grisaille, anamorphic, fresco, marble and wood imitation, trompe l’oeil, murals, distressing, glasswork and street art.

Types of Decorative Techniques