Counterpublic is preparing to stretch St. Louis’ imagination again. This fall, the nonprofit arts organization will launch its third citywide exhibition, a triennial that threads artists, neighborhoods, and cultural institutions into one collective conversation. From September 12 through December 22, the exhibition will unfold across the city — not as a single event, but as a living, shifting network of place-based works.
This year’s theme, “Coyote Time,” was revealed during an artist launch party and concert at the Garage last Thursday. The room felt like a cross-section of St. Louis’ creative ecosystem: DJs, curators, neighborhood organizers, museum leaders, and artists who don’t wait for institutions to validate their work. House DJ Nyara warmed the space with a steady pulse, and by the time Sir Eddie C hit the stage, the gathering had transformed from an announcement into a community moment.
“Coyote time” is a term borrowed from gaming. It takes place the split second after a character steps off a platform but can still jump before falling. Assistant Curator Charlie Farrell described it as “a forgiveness mechanic… the moment where you have jumped and the platform has yet to appear.” It’s a tiny window where hesitation, hope, and possibility all coexist.
As a metaphor, it lands squarely in the world we’re living in. “Coyote time is also a question of how we support ourselves through increasingly unstable times,” Farrell said. “What is the future we want to build toward? What are the platforms we can invest in to support ourselves and our communities?”
That question is already being answered in the work of artists like André Fuqua, a St. Louis–born artist, engineer, and scientist affiliated with Occupy Vacancy. Working alongside Brianna McIntyre, Fuqua is transforming vacant lots in the Vandeventer neighborhood into spaces for public reflection.
“All of the work deals with architectural remnants of the city, honoring its cultural heritage and history,” Fuqua said. Their installation, Reflected Memory on Traced Ground, outlines the footprint of a former home with flowers — a quiet act of remembrance. At the entrance, a single standing door with a mirrored back invites visitors to step inside and confront themselves, the past, and the lives once held in that space. Fuqua calls it “a moment of respite for the viewer.”
Beginning September 12, installations will appear across The Ville, Tower Grove, the St. Louis Riverfront, and inside institutions including The Luminary, Kemper Art Museum, Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis, and Saint Louis Art Museum. The exhibition’s reach mirrors its ambition: to imagine futures that feel grounded in community rather than imposed from above.
“We’re thinking about near futures — what they look like, smell like, feel like,” Farrell said. “Things are rapidly changing. We don’t know what tomorrow will bring, but what we do have is our community, and that’s what we can invest in and build upon.”
That sense of investment was already alive at the launch party. As Nyara blended house beats with Montell Jordan’s “This Is How We Do It” and Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us,” the room shifted. Strangers became collaborators. Attendees became participants.
Sir Eddie C, fresh off his South by Southwest debut, delivered crowd favorites like “Up + Away” and “Groovy Pt. II (What Would Juve Do).” He then brought Be.Be The Neosoul onstage for a soulful performance of “Godbody.” It is a collaboration born during the COVID-19 pandemic and has since been performed across the city.
By the end of the night, the dance floor felt like its own kind of platform. Survival mode gave way to joy, connection, and possibility. In that shared space, “Coyote Time” was a lived moment. Everyone was suspended between uncertainty and hope, choosing — together — to leap anyway.
For more information on Counterpublic’s “Coyote Time,” visit counterpublic.org.
Living It content is produced with funding by the ARPA for the Arts grants program in partnership with the Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis and the Community Development Administration.
