A St. Louis fashion designer who spends her days building dance costumes in Dogtown is about to put her own work on a museum runway. Madeline Mehler, who goes by the stage name Umi Dreami, plans to present a solo runway show at the Saint Louis Art Museum on October 30, built around an 18-piece collection meant to uplift and celebrate women.
Mehler created all 18 pieces in the collection herself, drawing inspiration from the difficulties women face navigating the world and the societal expectations placed on them, according to St. Louis Public Radio. The collection also addresses art and identity, and it reconstructs traditional menswear — collared shirts and ties — into what the station describes as comfortable yet theatrical clothing for women. Mehler has said she creates work that celebrates women rather than using women as a canvas or medium, per the same account.
The show is designed as an extension of “Women Impressionists and the Land,” the major exhibition opening at the museum on October 17 and running through January 10, 2027. That exhibition will showcase roughly 70 works by 19th- and early 20th-century artists including Berthe Morisot, Mary Cassatt, Marie Bracquemond, Blanche Hoschedé-Monet, and Rosa Bonheur, according to the Saint Louis Art Museum. Cassatt, an American painter and printmaker who became a key figure in the French Impressionist movement, created “Mother and Child on a Boat” in 1908, and the exhibition draws on loans from European institutions like the Musée d'Orsay in Paris as well as museums across the United States, the report notes.
A Museum Show Built Around Overlooked Artists
Exhibition curator Simon Kelly has reported that women Impressionist artists have historically attracted less attention than their male counterparts, and he has said the exhibition could contribute to a wider understanding of Impressionism while giving women their rightful place within the movement, per the station's report. Abigail Yoder serves as assistant to Kelly on the project. Adding scholarly weight to that argument, art historians note that the show represents the first major institutional project focused specifically on outdoor landscape and nature imagery painted by female Impressionists rather than the domestic scenes that have traditionally drawn scholarly attention, according to Art History News. Yale University Press is publishing the official exhibition catalogue, co-edited by Kelly alongside essays from international art historians, the outlet reports.
The exhibition's reach extends beyond St. Louis. In August, the U.S. Department of State issued official cultural significance determinations for the foreign art loans included in the show, a designation that offers federal immunity protections for international museum loan objects during U.S. exhibitions. The exhibition will travel to the Minneapolis Institute of Art after its St. Louis run concludes.
Free After-Hours Party Doubles as Fashion Debut
Mehler's runway show takes place during the museum's SLAM Underground after-hours party, which starts at 7 p.m. on October 30 and is branded this time as “SLAM Underground — Enchant,” per the Saint Louis Art Museum. The Halloween-themed event, open to adults 18 and older, features nature-inspired decor and live entertainment alongside the runway show, which the station describes as a fun mix of traditional and contemporary fashion. The show itself is free and includes a bar, food and a DJ, and Mehler is working with an all-female team handling hair, makeup and modeling.
Max Maxedon, the show's producer, has reported that small businesses in St. Louis have been struggling in the current economy and that grants are being cut amid the current political climate, according to St. Louis Public Radio's account. That backdrop stands in some contrast to the civic investment surrounding the museum's own season: developers have launched a new multimillion-dollar food hall investment on Washington Avenue downtown as part of broader Midtown development, even as independent designers like Mehler navigate a tighter funding landscape for their own ventures.
From Erie to Dogtown: Mehler's Path to the Runway
Mehler grew up in Erie, Pennsylvania, and graduated from Kent State University's fashion school seven years before this show, the station reports. She has lived in St. Louis for seven years and currently works as a designer at Weissman Dance Costumes in Dogtown, where, according to Oomz World, she was promoted to full Designer in September 2023 and creates Lyrical, Contemporary and Acro dance costumes using the 3D design software CLO3D. She joined Weissman in October 2021 after relocating to the city.
Mehler's roots in sustainable fashion date back further. She began her career in 2015 while still a student at Kent State, founding Sultrie, a made-to-order slow-fashion and zero-waste line built around durable leathers and handcrafted patterns, according to the Anthony Thomas blog. That commitment to sustainable fabrics carries into her museum collection. Earlier this year, Mehler also took part in Webster Arts' “The Art of Fashion” interactive experience in St. Louis, showcasing garment construction craftsmanship alongside area high school design students, as reported by Town&Style.
Companion Programming Fills Out the Fall Season
The runway show and exhibition are part of a broader wave of cultural programming tied to the Impressionist show. Washington University in St. Louis faculty will perform a companion concert, “Her Light, Her Line, Her Song,” on October 16, spotlighting compositions by 19th-century female composers including Lili Boulanger and Louise Farrenc, according to Washington University in St. Louis. The free performance pairs the museum's visual art with music from women composers of the same era.
For those planning to see the exhibition itself, standard admission to special exhibitions at the museum runs $20 for adults, $16 for seniors and students, and $11 for children ages 6 to 12, though tickets are free to the public every Friday, according to Forest Park Forever. Museum members generally receive free entry to exhibits, and general admission to the museum's main collection galleries remains free daily. Mehler's runway show itself carries no admission cost.
