The Ordinary Eye
The Commonspace

The Ordinary Eye ARCHIVE

Pictures and ephemera that look back at historical St. Louis, from an everyday perspective

2006
Spring A World With Mozart Two hundred and fifty years since the composer's birth, he's still of our time...and I found him all over St. Louis
Summer Word Up Get out those walking shoes, it's time for a summer stroll or pedal to ONSL
Fall Two By Two The animals persist, for a bit longer, near their ark just off the highway

2005
Jan Chop Shop Chop suey takeouts dot the city's north side with incarnations simultaneously similar and yet idiosyncratic enough to stand alone
Mar Man, She is a DOG! In which we have fun with dogs dressed like ballerinas, women dressed like dogs, and a lot of confusion about who's in charge here
May Flower Power Spring has sprung, bringing with it an explosion of color
Sep Take the Next Detour Gandhi said, "There is more to life than increasing its speed." What I saw when I slowed down
Dec Cloud Chasing Taking a fresh look at some familiar corners around town

2004
Feb Decadent Decay Finding surreal beauty in the midst of industrial abandonment
May St. Louis by Lomo Combine one Soviet camera with an eye for barflies and neon signs, and the result is pure magic
Jun Creatures, Featured It's not just garden-variety cats and dogs out there in the urban jungle
Nov Holding Justice in Our Hands When an artist's projection about the consequences of violence came to town, the controversy surrounding the details almost overtook the important subject matter itself
Dec I Love a Parade The St. Louis Thanksgiving Day Parade marked its 20th year...and its status as the second largest televised holiday parade in the country. We've got scenes from the route.

2003
Jan Step In and Say "Cheese" Instant gratification in four frames — that's the magic of the photo booth
Feb Lilly the Cat Follow along as a very big cat explores St. Louis
Mar No Rights or Wrongs St. Louis is my world to enjoy through the viewfinder
Apr A Harvest of Hope Mid-stream on the migrant trail, which stretches from South America into the bootheel and even to St. Louis
May Snapshots of the Sweet Science An impressionistic collection from the most recent Hoosierweight Boxing bouts
Jun Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves Hold onto your handbags, kids; the Gypsy Caravan blows into town with antiques, questionables and junk galore
Jul The City as Museum Exploring form and function behind the scenes at City Museum
Aug Structures and Statues Turning an eye to the intricate details on architectural features large and small
Sep A Day in St. Louis Four Fotologgers freeze the moment to create a still frame in time and place
Oct The Crappy Digital Dr. Digital, or How I Learned to Stop Moaning and Pining Away for a Film Camera
Nov There Goes the Neighborhood! In Skinker-DeBaliviere, you can't swing a camera without hitting real progress, as promised
Dec Urban Art-ventures on the Edge Artica — sounds like a foreign land, and in some ways it was ... all along a forgotten piece of our riverfront

2002
Jan The Collection of the Century With downtown's historic Century Building slated for demolition, the arrival of a trove of old St. Louis postcards couldn't be timelier in its ability to show the city's potential
Feb The Urge is Gone Fans who wish they could see St. Louis' most beloved band just one more time will have to settle for these pictures from their third-to-last show
Mar Bosnian Businesses Rising A walk around our contributor's neighborhood leads from South St. Louis to Eastern Europe, all within a few short blocks
Apr Shot Through the Ropes Wayne St. Wayne's wild images of nights at Kiel Auditorium and the Chase remind us of St. Louis' stretch as Wrestle Town, U.S.A.
May Picture Imperfect There's a weird beauty in the demise of the 14th Street Mall, though angels (yes, angels) now look over the North City strip
Jun Signs of the Time Armed with a digital camera, the Hurleys set out on a quest to save quirky advertisements from the onslaught of the banal
Jul And to Think That It Happened on Arsenal Street Hearing the stories of a painful mental health legacy in the abandoned corners of the old State Hospital
Aug Washington Avenue Moonscape It is the best of times, it is the worst of times in the Loft District
Sep Southside Rock'n'Roll Women Familiarity with females of the species doesn't necessarily lead to understanding them
Oct FOUND Facts Don't throw away that grocery list you found tucked in your library book! It might have a new life in FOUND Magazine...
Nov Radiant Light The ordinary becomes extraordinary when you see St. Louis on infrared film
Dec Making Time at the No-Tell Motel The Coral Court, St. Louis' original "hot sheets" motel, still looms large in the local collective unconscious, years after its demolition

2001
Jan Pillar of Strength Friedens Church continues to anchor the Hyde Park neighborhood, even though much has changed
Feb Camelot in St. Louis For a brief, shining moment, Gaslight Square was all blacks, whites, artists, musicians and the rest needed to get by
Mar Recent Works Jess turns her camera on neighborhoods, industry and "novelty spaces" (you'll see)
Apr The Sweet Hereafter Getting close to St. Louis lives now ended
May A "TREC" Towards Understanding When participants are talking race and engaging creatively, new dialogues start to emerge
Jun Local Color Alleys provide an odd, backwards glance at our town's style
Jul The Wild Kingdom of St. Louis Lawns Ornamental animalia around town includes cows, horses, asses and one lovable stump
Aug River City Phoenix The burned-out shell of St. John's church is strangely picturesque, horrific and beautiful
Sep Unorthodox Beauty Proof that St. Louis is an abundantly beautiful city if you know where to look
Oct Signs That Make Kids Snicker Unfortunately named businesses bring out the sophomore in us
Nov South Grand Lost Combine a roll of film shot in 1976 and digital pictures taken in 2001 and it becomes clear that often what's passed off as progress isn't
Dec Extraordinary in the Ordinary An urban landscape photographer frames some of his favorite St. Louis places

© 2001-2006 The Commonspace