St. Louis’ rich arts culture | Living It

To dwell or not to dwell?

Brock Seals chose the latter and established his creative Art, Mimosas, and Pancakes showcase in 2015 during a time when he felt there was a lack of available venues that represented young artists’ work.

Seals’ idea came when he was still a painting novice attempting to tap into St. Louis’ local art scene and scope out how to get his art shown. After talking with fellow artistic minds, he learned they faced the same challenges.

He took matters into his own hands, stumbling upon Mad Art Gallery to host his first art show. It offered Seals and other creators the opportunity to have their respective work viewed by others. That inaugural show sold out, something Seals didn’t expect would happen.

“We weren’t expecting it to be as big as it was, but it worked and I was like, ‘okay we’re doing the right thing,’” Seals said. “Let’s do it again and follow that same blueprint.”

Seals will host the seventh annual event, which would’ve been his eighth, but the COVID-19 quarantine placed it on pause. Artists of all mediums, visual, graphic design, fashion design and more, exhibit their works. For some, it will be the first time they have their work shown.

Pancake art from local company Pancakes also creates their signature artwork featuring delicious hotcakes. Stemming from the name, mimosas are poured in celebration of the night’s artwork.

He said this year’s show is special because the number of featured artists has almost doubled in size compared to previous years. 

“I have about 50 artists including local artists and out-of-town artists,” he said. “I have people coming in from L.A., Detroit, Chicago to [experience] our culture. Some of these people have never been to St. Louis or heard anything about our art scene. I wanted to change that and expose them to it.”

For the submissions, he said he and his team sought out uniqueness and originality.

“I pride myself on giving a lot of beginner artists their first opportunity to display some artwork,” he said.

“I recognize talent. I don’t trip off accolades. I trip off if you’ve got some good quality work that I feel will connect with the audience.”

Some of this year’s lineup includes Bojo, Maxa, Jabbstract, Grand Martell, and more.

Sooner or later, Seals said he hopes to expand AMP by upgrading to a larger venue and taking it on tour to other cities. While expansion is a goal, he plans to keep it as an annual event people can look forward to.

“People enjoy having to wait on it. It’s like holidays, you only get one Christmas,” he said.

Art, Mimosas, and Pancakes is Saturday, July 9 at 8 p.m. at Mad Art Gallery, located at 2727 South 12th Street, St. Louis, MO 63118. 

For tickets and more information about AMP, visit Eventbrite. Follow AMP on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram for updates. 

The St. Louis American featured Seals in a profile about his “The Artivist” pop-up exhibit in April 2022 here.