Out on Olive: Exploring Queer Nightlife Histories, An Exhibit at the National Building Arts Center

Finding Queer Nightlife History is an exhibit at the National Building Arts Center that invites visitors to explore four nightlife venues connected to a series of windows salvaged from 4236-4240 Olive. Each window is a literal and metaphorical "window" into one of four establishments that served St. Louis' Olive Street between 1930-1964. By exploring each of the four establishments, visitors discover different stories of St. Louis' past and that Queer history IS history. As a result, this exhibit weaves together Queer histories, building arts, and the bittersweet process of finding oneself in an archive. Mendel Sato Research Award 2025, Undergraduate student