St. Louis has a new attraction along one of its old alignments of Route 66 — the Neon Museum of St. Louis, which opened about a month ago.
According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the museum in a former garage sits along 3537 Choteau St. (aka Route 66).
It’s owned and curated by artist Deborah Katon. The museum features vintage neon signs from area businesses and sculptures that use neon.
She has been creating art with neon since receiving a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Fine Arts in Philadelphia and a Master of Fine Arts from Washington University.
“Today, LED lighting is less expensive and not as fragile as neon, and that has led to an appreciation of vintage neon as a dying art form,” Katon says. […]
Commercial signs at the museum include a long-ago Schnucks slogan (“My Schnucks Brings it Home”) and a neon sign once popular in the windows of St. Louis dry cleaners (“One Hour Cleaning-No Extra Charge”).
New pieces will be added to the Neon Museum of St. Louis as they are created and as vintage signs are acquired — or as the pieces on display are sold and replaced.
The museum also is a federally recognized nonprofit, which means any donation of working and broken neon signs qualifies as a tax write-off.
Here are a few photos of the museum’s interior, via its Facebook account:
Hours at the museum vary. It is open by appointment by calling (314) 585-0538.
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