Greetings

IT’S SPRINGTIME! Clocks have sprung forward, trees are blossoming, flowers are blooming and bees are buzzing. It is time for renewal.

LISA HOLTHOUSE Executive Publisher

ONE OF THE giants of Houston restaurateuring, Lee Ellis, died recently in Round Top at just 63.

I long tracked Lee’s rise to notoriety as the genius behind the BRC Gastropub — remember that big red rooster statue out front on Shepherd? — and Liberty Kitchen. With the success of those concepts, which elevated “fun” food to haute cuisine, I gave Lee a nickname: the Godfather of Comfort-Food Chic.

In 2015, as we were making plans to launch this magazine the following year, my photographer friend Julie Soefer and I created a series of mock covers to promote it. Lee was so noteworthy — and, with his long, gray ZZ Top beard, so cool — he was among our subjects, along with the likes of Lynn Wyatt and rocker Kam Franklin. (See that cover at right.)

Lee’s approach to food reminded me of Dolly Parton’s approach to style: “It costs a lot of money to look this cheap.” He may have been serving French fries, but by damn he was going to fry them in butter, as he did at one of his later concepts, Star Fish. And if you ordered gumbo at Liberty, it came with rice and a side of potato salad, a nod to his Cajun roots in Lafayette, La. At his various concepts, Frito pie was a delicacy, donuts were paired with fried chicken, and slices of red velvet cake were blended into milkshakes.

I have a heightened sense of rebirth and awakening this time of year. I physically begin to declutter — cleaning out closets, cabinets, drawers, other people’s drawers (much to their chagrin!). And this season, this particular year, my mind and soul are going through a wonderful recharge. As I think of this CityBook issue, with an art focus and a springtime print date, I find it serendipitous regarding my own reawakening. A few years ago, as I have before mentioned, I jumped into a personal journey of studying the Bible. I started with a biblein-a-year app, then I graduated to a full-blown three-year bible study. (I’m definitely not the best student; thankfully they don’t take roll!) But I have learned and grown immensely.

In his last years, Lee broke ties will his eateries here. He and wife Melissa Savarino, a jewelry designer, moved to Round Top, where he operated a motel and a barbecue joint.

One of the great accomplishments of my life was when Lee came to my house for dinner and assessed that my homemade gumbo was pretty good. As personal triumphs go, little else can compare.

I have always thought of prophets as people chosen to speak for God. But with my spring rebirth, I’ve come to realize that we can all be prophets. If we can change a person’s life with words or music or art, it’s a prophetic opportunity. I’ll never be a preacher, or one of those wonderful people who wander off to Africa and create ministries. But in my own way, this spring I am wrestling with how to make a profound impact.

How can I take my own gifts and abilities and turn them into a positive impact on others? One of my interests is art, which circles back to the serendipity mentioned above. And I simply can’t wait to use it in a prophetic way.

I’m energized and excited about springtime in Houston and all that comes with it. The art scene is so vast and, as you’ll read inside, there is great opportunity to get out and be inspired.

JEFF GREMILLION Editor-in-Chief

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Beautiful Mind

THE MENIL COLLECTION explores the influence and intrigue of its founding curatorial director in a retrospective show, up through August. Once called “the marvelous, mad maven of modern art in America,” then-California-based curator Walter Hopps, now passed, was the first to show Andy Warhol’s Campbell’s Soup Can paintings in a gallery setting. The Curatorial Imagination of Walter Hopps features more than 130 pieces, many of which have been gifted to the museum by his wife, Caroline Huber. The show coincides with the publication of a new book, Artists We’ve Known, highlighting works by 50 artists with whom Huber and Hopps were close. –evan w. black

Design

BeDesign, the largest destination for European design in Texas, has welcomed its first French brand. Ligne Roset, which previously had a presence in Houston a decade ago, opened within the newly expanded BeDesign showroom at 2016 W. Alabama.

Shopping

Denver-based boot brand Freebird has opened its doors to store No. 15 in the Galleria. Located in the Nordstrom wing on the lower level, the boutique has classics alongside trendy pairs, like booties in fun colors with elegant detailing.

Music

Houston guitarist and composer George Heathco released a new album, George Heathco Solo Ensemble, Volume One. It’s a collection of electric and acoustic guitar instrumentals encompassing tightly scored orchestral arrangements, trippy soundscapes, and everything in between.

Dance

Get in the groove

Expertly navigating dual challenges as a new arts organization during the era of social distancing, Houston Contemporary Dance Company, led by Marlana Doyle, has found its footing in its fourth season. As the only Houston-based repertory company that commissions dances by choreographers both local and from around the country, HCDC consistently performs unique and exciting shows at venues like MATCH and the Hobby Center.

On April 29, the group presents Coincide, featuring world premieres by choreographers Alexander Anderson and Yoshito Sakuraba, and a new film by Hope Stone Dance. And summer programming includes a June 9 show in celebration of Miller Outdoor Theatre’s 100th season. For more arts happenings, see page 32. –ewb

Wine

For a Good ‘Cause’

One of the biggest winners at the Rodeo Uncorked wine competition was Houston’s Jenn Rossi: Each of the four wines produced by her new urban winery The Cause garnered a silver or bronze medal. Even better news? For each bottle sold, at least $1 is donated to charities, including Memorial Park Conservancy. The park’s new land bridges appear on The Cause’s labels!

ewb

Tree Tops!

IMMERSE YOURSELF in a neon “forest” at the Musem of Fine Arts, Houston’s latest installation, Pipilotti Rist’s Pixel Forest Thousands of LED lights, encased in resin spheres, hang from the ceiling of Cullinan Hall; on the walls, Rist’s video projection called Worry Will Vanish plays. –ewb

Wellness

Two Houston doctors have launched Revive Biotech, a new line of hempand plant-based products designed to relieve pain, aid recovery and promote wellness. The lineup includes balms, creams, roll-ons, drops and gummies, offering varying strengths of CBD derivatives. The new hempbased products are available online and at a soon-to-open retail location in Huntsville.