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        Francis of Assisi once said, “He who works with his hands is a laborer. He who works with his hands and his head is a craftsman. He who works with his hands and his head and his heart is an artist.”  Peg Fetter, a metalsmith and artist based out of St. Louis, displays this quote on her website for a good reason; it perfectly describes her work, mindset and everyday life. “My love for art began as far back as I can remember,” Peg explains. “I always knew I was going to be an artist. Everyone around me knew I was going to be an artist because I said it every day.

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    On any given weekend at the City Museum, there's a good chance you'll spot sculptor Paul Bayer carving away on his dream project before you even walk in the door. An astounding 20 ton, 6'x6'x7'block of solid white marble, Bayer describes the piece as “probably my biggest achievement.” He continues, “It's a reminder to protect creativity for the children and the child in all of us so we can do things like creating something that's cool that we can all be a part of just like the City Museum itself.”

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    Nestled in St. Louis’s beautiful South Hampton neighborhood, Julie Malone’s studio overflows with color, imagination and paintings in process. Vibrant pieces from the Personal Hotspots series 2018, Malone’s collection for this year, line the walls, each with their own surprise. 

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    “I didn’t follow my passion from the get-go because I never thought I’d be great,” says Doug Gilberg, executive director of Wildwood Green Arts. “But I’ve learned that greatness isn’t key, but a passion for exploration.” 

    Wildwood Green Arts is nestled peacefully in the hills of beautiful Wildwood, and acts as an oasis of ceramics, nature and creativity for anyone looking to take a break from their busy lives to learn. The grounds offer a small plant nursery, a ceramics workspace and a wide selection of Doug’s handcrafted ceramic bells, organic forms, planters and wall hangings.

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    This is the art that Gregg Rasmusson builds: precise, linear and symmetric. The sharp lines that repeat across his ceramic pieces are purposeful and unhesitating, creating patterns that are as much architectural as they are artistic. It is no surprise that Rasmusson’s first career was as a home remodeler; each piece is made with workmanlike detail. Also, grout.

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    For Andy Hahn, creativity was something he was born with. He was always fascinated by an artist’s ability to portray a subject accurately, but he wasn’t always so fascinated by the abstract side. Hahn describes that “juvenile” way of looking at art as, “If it wasn’t photo realistic, then it just wasn’t art to me.”

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