Delmar Loop Art Display

Since the earliest days of the University City Delmar Loop revitalization effort, beginning with the opening of Blueberry Hill in 1972, the area has long been recognized as a center in the Saint Louis area for pop culture and pop art. The live window displays and memorabilia of Blueberry Hill, the music history of Chuck Berry in the Duck Room, the Loop's Ice Sculpture Festival, street musicians, creative small businesses and authentic pop-up shops all add to the mix to make The Loop a unique area. Now due to recent nationwide tragedies and protests, local artists have headed to the Delmar business district to create a must see display of historical significance on the boarded storefronts.

One display that caught my attention is a 25-foot mural designed and painted by local artist Brock Seals, assisted by Damon Addison and documented by photographer and filmmaker, Nicholas Coulter. The mural is located along the east wall of W Karaoke Lounge, 6655 Delmar. It borders an adjacent common area and is located just south of the Farmers Market.

The mural's colorful fragmented background shapes remind one of a stained glass window and could be said to mirror modern society with panes outlined in black, a color not fully integrated into the design. The eye then focuses on whimsical streaks of hope that prevail across the 'stained' background with curves portraying the bending of old ways of systemic racism to a redefinition of justice and a new day in race relations in America. Just as Frederick Douglass, a statesman, social reformer, writer and orator presented in the speech "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?", Seals artwork seems to ask "What to the 2020 Black is American justice?".

The Delmar Loop Art Display is there for the viewing and it is worth the trip. Seals work can be found on Instagram @sealsbrock or at brockseals.com. Coulter Photography and Films is on Instagram @ nicholas.coulter.