First Fridays in Grand Center on Oct. 4 calls for the opening of five new exhibitions at the Sheldon Concert Hall & Art Galleries.

Bea Nettles: Harvest of Memory
October 4, 2019 – December 28, 2019

Bea Nettles: Harvest of Memory is co-organized by the George Eastman Museum and the Sheldon Art Galleries, St. Louis. Internationally recognized for her experimental approaches to art-making that combine craft with alternative photographic processes, Bea Nettles explores the narrative potential of photography. Often incorporating autobiographical and metaphorical elements, Nettles’s imagery references key stages of a woman’s life. Her work examines place, nature, dreams, mythology, and the passage of time. The first exhibition to survey Nettles’s fifty-year career, Bea Nettles: Harvest of Memory provides a comprehensive look at the work of an artist who profoundly illuminates our inner worlds.

It’s Not You, It’s Me: A Declaration of Independence
October 4, 2019 – November 30, 2019

Organized in conjunction with the citywide Innovations in Textiles 2019, the exhibition showcases contemporary works in fashion, photography and performance art by local and regional artists who investigate the narrative possibilities within fashion idioms and fiber art as they intersect with issues of identity and power. Curated by fashion designer Michael Drummond, the exhibit will feature the work of Yasi Fayal, Nina Ganci, Nasheli Juliana, Larry Krone, Qun Yiyao Liu, Yvonne Osei Oppong-Bio, Kat Reynolds, Chloë Simmons and others.

St. Louis, A Musical Gateway: Africa
October 4, 2019 – April 11, 2020

The second in a series that celebrates St. Louis’ multicultural communities, this exhibit features rare and beautiful African instruments drawn from The Sheldon’s Hartenberger World Music Collection. The product of a long aesthetic evolution, the rich tradition of African music is grounded in the function of preserving and passing on cultural histories. This exhibit will feature instruments from West Africa, Middle, South and Southeast Africa, and in January, instruments representing Northern Africa.

Invent a Musical Instrument – Selections from The Sheldon’s SOLID Program
October 4, 2019 – January 25, 2020

A selection of inventive musical instruments by students from over 30 area schools are featured in this exhibition. Created during the 2018 and 2019 school years, the instruments represent the results of The Sheldon’s SOLID (Science of Learning Instrument Design) program, through which students use the Engineering Cycle to build instruments out of recycled materials. SOLID is a STEAM-based program, supported by the St. Louis Science Center.

Kristen Peterson – Visual Delights: Photographs and Altered Books
October 4, 2019 – February 1, 2020

Incorporating Xerox transfers, gel, paint, various forms of photography, and ephemera such as tickets, ribbon, feathers, jewels, glitter and more, Kristen Peterson’s journals, altered books and photographs give the viewer an intimate look at her life experiences. Peterson’s photos have been published in Esquire, People, Time and Actual, and she has exhibited at The National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington D.C.