Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

See How a St. Louis House Was Transformed Into a Vibrant Arts Club

See How a St. Louis House Was Transformed Into a Vibrant Arts Club

Architect and painter Susan Barrett has dreamed up a space in which more is never enough.

Eight years ago, long before you and everyone you know inhaled the smash-hit Netflix series The Queen’s Gambit, the multi­hyphenate creative force Susan Barrett was making chess cool in her hometown of St. Louis. Barrett, an architect and painter by training, was at the time the founding executive director of the World Chess Hall of Fame; a non–chess player herself, she dreamed up an exhibition, “A Queen Within: Adorned Archetypes,” that melded fashion and chess.



Barrett has always been a rule breaker with a sixth sense for trends. “A Queen Within” was so successful that it nudged her to venture out on her own, founding Barrett Barrera Projects, a gallery that has blossomed into a hybrid of arts activity in the Central West End neighborhood of St. Louis. Barrett Barrera now comprises four distinct but holistic spaces: projects+​gallery, where she invites artists to show their work; projects+exhibitions, where she debuts multidisciplinary shows; Barrett Barrera Projects, the headquarters for her staff and programming; and, since the fall of 2019, Guest House, an 8,000-square-foot arts club where visiting artists can stay and Barrett Barrera can host events.



With its more-is-more extravagance, Guest House is both a testament to Barrett’s outsize approach to fashion and interiors and a template for how to enjoy art in your home without resorting to the cliché of a blank white cube. “We challenged ourselves to do the opposite of what you would think contemporary art would look like to live with,” Barrett explains. Guest House occupies three and a half stories in a turn-of-the-20th-century building that was previously the home of Shelton Davis Antiques, whose owners lived on the top two floors.



Working with interior designer James Jamieson, Barrett has transformed it into a fantasia of resonant art (from both her personal collection and Barrett Barrera’s), vintage and antique furniture, and bold prints. The ground-level great hall features a Kehinde Wiley dual portrait, a commission from the St. Louis Art Museum; a Lynette Yiadom-Boakye painting; purple custom de Gournay wallpaper; and hot pink ceilings. One floor up are the public spaces, a bar, a parlor, and a dining room, where a tangerine ceiling, lime green walls, and works by Mickalene Thomas, Ayana V. Jackson, and Kwame Brathwaite coexist comfortably. The top two floors are devoted to the private areas, including guest suites, a solarium, a living room, and a dining room.



“The backgrounds had to be as bold as the other elements to stand up to one another,” Jamieson says. For Barrett, Guest House isn’t just a product of fearlessness-it’s about self-assertion.

“You are the one who lives in your space,” she says. “So it should make you happy. It’s not about impressing people. It’s about making you feel the most comfortable.”

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Germany Votes to Suspend Family Reunification for Asylum Seekers
Budapest Pride Parade Draws 200,000 Participants Amid Government Ban
Southern Europe Experiences Extreme Heat
Xiaomi's YU7 SUV Launch Garners Record Pre-Orders Amid Market Challenges
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's Lavish Wedding in Venice
Russia Launches Largest Air Assault on Ukraine Since Invasion
Massive Anti-Government Protests Erupt in Belgrade
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
Hungary's Prime Minister Criticizes NATO's Role in Ukraine
EU TO HUNGARY: LET THEM PRIDE OR PREP FOR SHADE. ORBÁN TO EU: STAY IN YOUR LANE AND FIX YOUR OWN MESS.
Hungarian Scientist to Conduct 30 Research Experiments on the International Space Station
NATO Members Agree to 5% Defense Spending Target by 2035
NATO Leaders Endorse Plan for Increased Defence Spending
U.S. Crude Oil Prices Drop Below $65 Amid Market Volatility
International Astronaut Team Launched to Space Station
Macron and Merz: Europe must arm itself in an unstable world
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Iran Intensifies Crackdown on Alleged Mossad Operatives After Sabotage Claims
Trump Praises Iran’s ‘Very Weak’ Response After U.S. Strikes and Presses Israel to Pursue Peace
Oil Prices Set to Surge After US Strikes Iran
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
Labubu Doll Drives Pop Mart to Status as China’s Most Valuable Toy Maker
Global Coal Demand Defies Paris Accord Goals
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
×