All Things to Do

CJoy Art Works: Turning Out Wonderful Creations in Little Bohemia At 199 North Main Street in the Little Bohemia neighborhood of downtown Ste. Genevieve, Christina Joy Elsen opens CJoy Art Works—a studio storefront showcasing hand-built ceramic work by an artist whose journey spans scenic design for Disney and Sesame Street Live, professional painting, organic farming, and three decades of artistic evolution. Relocating to Ste. Genevieve in 2025 after emerging from a St. Louis basement studio with a distinctive hand-building style developed through years of personal practice, Christina brings BA in Studio Art from Carleton College (1995), professional credentials as scenic artist in Minneapolis, and deeply personal understanding of how life’s transformations shape artistic vision. The studio displays functional and sculptural pottery created through careful hand-building techniques, inviting visitors to experience work developed across multiple creative chapters—each piece reflecting years of skill refinement, artistic intentionality, and love of the medium. From Scenic Design to Studio Pottery: A Creative Journey Christina Joy Elsen’s artistic path spans multiple mediums and decades of creative practice. After earning her BA in Studio Art from Carleton College in 1995, she worked as scenic artist in Minneapolis, building and painting sets for major productions including Sesame Street Read more…

Location: Historic Downtown Ste. Geneviève Attention shoppers: Follow the Cookie Crumb Trail! Sample cookies and collect recipes to get started on your own Christmas baking! Participating downtown shops will feature a different cookie recipe and have sample cookies for you to taste. Proceeds go to a local family in need. Just in time for Christmas! Read more…

October 22, 2022 “Meet” Dr. Lewis Linn, Missouri’s model Senator, Ferdinand Rozier an early merchant, and Jean Baptiste Valle an early leader of the community. Or “meet” folks portraying the well-to-do, or the not-so-well-to-do, residents of Ste. Geneviève’s history before 1880? At the Déjà vu Spirit Reunion, on the 4th Saturday in October from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., visitors will experience these stories and more as the Foundation for Restoration of Ste. Geneviève hosts its annual event in the historic Memorial Cemetery. Tour the cemetery via lantern light and chat “face-to-face” with friendly spirits clad in traditional dress and enjoy a hauntingly good time. Sponsored by the Foundation for Restoration of Ste. Geneviève as a fundraiser for Memorial Cemetery. Read more…

EKlekTix – Jean Rissover Became a Painter at 70 and Now Creates Narrative Art While You Watch At 130 North Main Street in an 1860s building, Jean Rissover paints during the hours her gallery is open—not as demonstration or performance but as working artist fully engaged in creating the figurative paintings that crowd her studio walls. About 75 original oil paintings, most 11×14 inches or smaller, fill the space alongside eclectic giftware sourced from artisans around the world. The paintings tell stories, primarily of women—their activities, experiences, relationships, joys, sorrows, and moods—drawn from Rissover’s imagination populated by characters who “live in her head” and demand to be painted. Some focus on Sainte Geneviève’s French colonial history. Others explore universal experiences of being female across time and culture. All are narrative in nature, inviting viewers to construct stories around the figures Rissover portrays with loose, impressionistic brushwork that suggests rather than defines, leaving space for interpretation. The remarkable part isn’t just the art—it’s the journey. Jean Rissover started painting in 2011 at age 70, after retiring from a career spanning teaching, social work, event organization, antique shop ownership, and managing editor of the Ste. Genevieve Herald. It was her first serious Read more…

European Entitlements At 102 South Main Street in the heart of historic Ste. Genevieve, European Entitlements brings a curated collection of fine European home décor and garden items to Missouri’s oldest town—a fitting match given Ste. Genevieve’s deep French and German heritage. This specialty shop sells products made and manufactured exclusively in Europe: French linens, Scottish jewelry, Italian and German porcelain, English creamware, Swedish linens, Irish wools, and French and Italian soaps. Many products come from companies that have been in business for well over a century, connecting Old World craft traditions with contemporary American homes. As one visitor noted: “European Entitlements is a must-stop with fine home and garden décor and beautiful coffee table books.” Made in Europe, Only in Europe The commitment runs absolute: every product originates from European manufacturers. No knock-offs, no “European-style” items produced elsewhere, no compromises on authenticity. When you purchase French linens at European Entitlements, they’re woven in France by companies whose looms have operated for generations. The Scottish jewelry comes from Scottish artisans working in techniques passed down through families. Italian porcelain emerges from Italian kilns firing patterns perfected over centuries. This dedication to provenance matters in an era when “Made in Europe” Read more…