Houston Art Roundup
What I saw on a short trip to Texas
Last week I made a quick trip to Houston, where I saw nine art exhibitions (!) in about three days. I spent a good part of my twenties living, working, and studying in the city, and I still miss my friends there and all of the art and culture available on any given day. Here’s a quick roundup of what I saw.
Joe Overstreet: Taking Flight at The Menil Collection (January 24 - July 13, 2025). I was fortunate to have a tour of the exhibition with its curator, Natalie Dupêcher, who shared fascinating details about the artist’s life and explained the special considerations for installing these unique artworks. Overstreet’s colors blew me away. Review forthcoming.
Miguel Angel Ríos: Merged with Vastness at Sicardi Ayers Bacino (January 18 - March 8, 2025). Rios’s wide views of the desert brought to mind Solito, a 2022 book by Javier Zamora about the author’s journey at age 9 from El Salvador to the US, including his multiple attempts to cross the harsh border desert. Here though, the artist’s acid colors and enigmatic figures made the work feel like it was about something more psychological than physical.
Stencilled Elegance: Ise Katagami and the Art of Textile Design at Asia Society Texas (January 23 - April 27, 2025). This understated show brings together astoundingly detailed stencils traditionally used to make patterns on Japanese kimono. A documentary video walks viewers through the labor intensive, elegant process. Review forthcoming.
Artworks by Gabo Martinez from The Sun Rises at Midnight at Pablo Cardoza Gallery. Image courtesy of the gallery The Sun Rises at Midnight: Manik Raj Nakra and Gabo Martinez at Pablo Cardoza Gallery (February 8 - April 13, 2025). I interviewed Martinez for Glasstire in 2019 and was interested to see how things have evolved. This exhibition presents a new direction for Martinez, and features some unexpected crossovers between both artists’ works. Review forthcoming.
Installation view of Elaine Reichek: ‘Something Betwixt and Between’ - Matisse & Bloomsbury at Seven Sisters. Image courtesy of the gallery Elaine Reichek: ‘Something Betwixt and Between’ - Matisse & Bloomsbury at Seven Sisters (January 18 - March 8, 2025). I’ve been wanting to visit Seven Sisters since it opened in the fall of 2023, and was lucky to catch this colorful show on its last day. Founder Erin Dorn kindly showed me around the space and even shared works from her storage area, including beautiful paintings on cardboard by her artist husband Ken Dorn that will be on view there soon. Reichek’s take on Matisse and the Bloomsbury — two of my faves — was hard not to like, and made me want to visit the Bloomsbury house Charleston even more urgently than before.
Artwork from Ashley Thomas: Solastalgia Hour at the Galveston Arts Center. Image courtesy of the center Ashley Thomas: Solastalgia Hour at the Galveston Arts Center (March 8 - June 8, 2025). This gorgeous exhibition features new drawings, a new zine (in which I contributed a text), and, for the first time ever, Thomas’s animation. All of the works have a subtle power, but this last piece really brings the drawings and their ideas to life, and is accompanied by wonderful music by Jesse Jenkins.
Performance and installation by Michael Anthony García from Radical Synergy at the Galveston Arts Center. Image by author Michael Anthony García: Radical Synergy at the Galveston Arts Center (March 8 - June 8, 2025). The Austin-based artist presented a multimedia installation and performance that connected ideas of play, memory, place, and time. Review forthcoming.
Installation view of Toshiko Takaezu: Worlds Within at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. Image courtesy of the museum Toshiko Takaezu: Worlds Within at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston (March 2 - May 18, 2025). The first nationally touring retrospective of the artist’s work in 20 years is a must-see for anyone living in or passing through Houston over the next couple of months. Takaezu’s ceramics and textiles are sublime, and her jewel-toned glazes are absolutely bewitching to anyone who’s ever worked with clay. I’m currently working my way through the exhibition catalog, which is also top notch. Review forthcoming.
Photograph of Tamara de Lempicka painting in 1929 by Thérèse Bonney. Image courtesy of the museum Tamara de Lempicka at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston (March 9 - May 26, 2025). The first American museum retrospective of Lempicka’s work is an in depth look at an artist we’ve all heard of, but don’t often get to really see. Technically skilled and socially rebellious, Lempicka was an interesting figure who ended up living part of her later life in Houston. This show is enriched by furniture, perfume bottles, garments and other decorative arts objects from the time that really give us a sense of Lempicka’s milieu.
Bonus:
Interior of Basket Books & Art.Photo from Glasstire I was finally able to visit Basket Books & Art, a lovely bookshop and art space in Montrose. When we stopped by they were setting up their current exhibition of paintings by Joe Fyfe, and it was nice to get a sneak peek.
I really miss thrifting in Spain, so I squeezed in a couple of my old favorite shops between art stops. It was especially fun because the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo is going on at the moment (the largest rodeo in the world), so the stores had special displays with plenty of gaudy fringed and bedazzled leather and blue jeans items that were, as we say in Texas, a real hoot.
Jai España and Pat Masterson working on my lithograph at the University of Houston Printmaking department Lastly, I was able to return to a printmaking project that I started last year when I was a guest artist at the University of Houston. Master printer, artist, and professor Pat Masterson is working on the three lithographs I produced, and is currently in the process of adding ten layers of color to one of the pieces. I’m very excited to see how these turn out, and am hoping to sign them this fall. Special thanks to UH artist and grad student Jai España, who has been doing an amazing job assisting Pat on the project.
