City Museum Re-Did it Right!

Posted by Jacqueline Moy (DRN Intern)

An example of a really outrageous use of deconstruction and recycled materials is the CITY MUSEUM in St. Louis. It is a veritable wonderland of found objects from around the city. They have used all manner of parts and scraps in unbelievably creative ways.

One may find themselves crawling up stories of twisting wire tubes to exit into a salvaged plane or school bus. The museum is just a really excellent example of what you can build out of scrap if you use a little ingenuity and resourcefulness.

From the museum’s website, “Housed in the 600,000 square-foot former International Shoe Company, the museum is an eclectic mixture of children's playground, funhouse, surrealistic pavilion, and architectural marvel made out of unique, found objects. The brainchild of internationally acclaimed artist Bob Cassilly, a classically trained sculptor and serial entrepreneur, the museum opened for visitors in 1997 to the riotous approval of young and old alike.”

Cassilly and his longtime crew of 20 artisans have constructed the museum from the very stuff of the city; and, as a result, it has urban roots deeper than any other institutions.

Reaching no farther than municipal borders for its reclaimed building materials, CITY MUSEUM boasts features such as old chimneys, salvaged bridges, construction cranes, miles of tile, and even two abandoned planes!

"CITY MUSEUM makes you want to know," says Cassilly. "The point is not to learn every fact, but to say, 'Wow, that's wonderful.' And if it's wonderful, it's worth preserving."