Holy Corners, Part 1

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Kingshighway is the main north-south boulevard through the center of the City of St. Louis proper. It passes through both grand and simple neighborhoods and forms the eastern boundary of Forest Park, the U.S.'s largest urban park. Every local college student taking introduction to art history is sent to a two-block section that holds a summary of Greco-Roman architecture: a line of four lovely buildings with Doric, Ionian and Corinthian columns. Along with neighboring historic structures, the intersection of Kingshighway and Washington Avenue is known as Holy Corners.

The southern end contains Tuscan Masonic Temple, built in 1907-1908, and the First Church of Christ, Scientist, from 1903. The Doric Order of Greek architecture featured fluted columns with 20 concave vertical grooves and a plain, unadorned base and capital. The Tuscan Temple takes a pure, simple approach while the Christian Science Church surrounds the Doric columns with a more ornate Italian style.

WHAT'S ON TODAY: U "R" Us is in town with his special friend. We're going to the City Museum, America's wackiest, hardest to describe sort of a museum with lots of large, strange things to climb on.

TOMORROW: The Ionian Order. No, change of topic. This is boring, the lighting of these pictures is harsh and the composition is unimaginative. Let's go right to the City Museum.