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RIDGWAY VISITOR CENTER

The Ridgway Visitor Center is the main entrance to the Missouri Botanical Garden, located at 4344 Shaw Blvd. in St. Louis. The building was designed by St. Louis-based Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum and opened in 1982. It replaced the Spink Pavilion, located at 2101 Tower Grove, as the main entrance into the Garden.

The Ridgway Visitor Center is recognizable by its large, barrel-vaulted ceiling, inspired by the Crystal Palace of the 1851 Great Exhibition in London, which Garden founder Henry Shaw visited. Missouri Botanical Garden Blue Chandelier, 2006, by renowned glass artist Dale Chihuly, hangs from the atrium, visible through the front window. The sculpture was assembled on site in mid-air in January, 2006 as a preview to the “Glass in the Garden: Chihuly at the Missouri Botanical Garden” exhibition. The sculpture was purchased for the Garden with funds donated by Emerson and from the estate of Dr. Richard I.C. and Barbara Hagnauer Muckerman, in honor of Hilbert W. and Amy J. Hagnauer. The installation weighs 2,300 pounds and measures six feet across by over 20 feet long. It consists of 928 individual blue and clear glass spirals and gooseneck shapes.

A free parking lot with over 525 spaces is adjacent to the Ridgway Visitor Center. Visitors purchase admission to the Garden at ticket windows and enter the center on the lower level. Stairs or an elevator take guests to the upper level to access the Garden grounds.

Inside the lower level is the 386-seat Shoenberg Theater, which hosts events, lectures and concerts throughout the year. The Garden Gate Shop stocks a variety of fine gifts, plants, books, jewelry, and garden accessories. Trunk shows and rotating exhibits can be found in Grigg Lobby. The Orthwein Floral Display Hall is the site of the annual Orchid Show and “Gardenland Express” holiday flower and train show, in addition to plant society shows, sales and other events throughout the year. The Jordan Education Wing includes the Beaumont, Missouri, Botanical, and Garden rooms for classes and meetings. An orchid display blooms in the Beaumont Room all year.

Visitors can inquire about becoming Garden members at the Membership Services Desk, or check with the officer stationed at the Security Desk for lost and found items. An ATM and a beverage vending machine are also located on the lower level. Restrooms and drinking fountains are on both levels of the visitor center.

On the Ridgway Visitor Center’s upper level is the 3,600 square foot Monsanto Hall, a premiere location for private parties and corporate events. Rotating art and photography exhibits often grace the walls, including a popular holiday wreath display. An old-fashioned cart features Plants in Bloom, a sampling of fresh blossoms cut from plants throughout the Garden. Each is mapped and labeled to give visitors a preview of what they’ll see before they step outside.

Sassafras, the Garden’s café, offers a variety of soups, salads and sandwiches for lunchtime dining from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Light refreshments are available throughout the day. The inside dining facility was renovated in 2005 incorporating a variety of environmentally-friendly materials to promote the Garden’s message of sustainability. The café features warm, earth-toned décor and comfortable upholstered banquettes. Framed botanical artwork from the Garden’s rare book collection is displayed on the walls. Seating is available first-come, first-served both inside and seasonally outside on the veranda. Stroller parking is available just outside the Sassafras entrance in Monsanto Hall.

Also on the upper level, the Spink Gallery features an impressive array of porcelain sculptures created by the late artist Edward Marshall Boehm and donated by Mrs. Edith Spink and her late husband, Mr. C.C. Johnson Spink. Edward Marshall Boehm, a naturalist farmer, began designing porcelain sculpture in 1944. He began his career by sculpting animals, and introduced his first series of birds in 1951. With an ornithologist’s perspective, Boehm sculpted each bird in its natural habitat, carefully recreating its seasonal coloration and capturing its unique behavioral characteristics. It is here that he achieved the highest level of his artistic and technical success.

In glass cases that line the gallery walls, birds and flowers are grouped much as they might be found in nature. The free-standing cases in the center of the room display the largest and most complex pieces of the artist’s career. The Porcelain Process Case gives details of the steps in the intricate process of porcelain sculpture, beginning with the artist’s sketch of live subjects. Clay and plaster models and molds, a two-and-a-half day kiln firing, sanding, painting, and final firings complete the process.

The Spink Gallery features many sculptures of great beauty. Of special interest are the Mute Swans (“Birds of Peace”), the original of which was presented by President Nixon to Chairman Mao and the Chinese people as a peace offering in 1972. Another magnificent piece is the American Eagle presented to John F. Kennedy by The Democratic Party of New Jersey in 1961.

The Missouri Botanical Garden’s mission is “to discover and share knowledge about plants and their environment, in order to preserve and enrich life.” Today, 150 years after opening, the Missouri Botanical Garden is a National Historic Landmark and a center for science and conservation, education and horticultural display.

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