ArtHouston #10

{ NORMAN ROCKWELL }

{ BRYN LARSEN }

{ FOTOFEST }

{ REDBUD GALLERY }

{ ART BASEL MIAMI }

artH O U S T O N V I S U A L A RT S , C U LT U R E , R E V I E W S

ISSUE 10

OFF THE WALL GALLERY PRESENTS

Life in Motion original works on canvas by artist

TO R A B I

Loose abstract brush strokes combined with meticulously detailed portraits display the humorous storytelling and versatility of Torabi’s exceptional artistic talent.

Al l You Need Is Love , 2019 O R I G I N A L M I X E D M E D I A O N C A N VA S / 4 8 x 6 0 I N C H E S

The Galleria 5015 Westheimer Road #2208 Houston TX 77056 Adjacent to Neiman Marcus’ valet parking lot, facing Post Oak Blvd.

713.871.0940 o f f t h e w a l l g a l l e r y. c o m

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Photo by F. Carter Smith

PUBLISHER’S LETTER 3

“

Taking an image, freezing a moment, reveals how rich reality truly is.

fter two years of eagerly waiting, FotoFest is upon us again! Founded in Houston in 1983, FotoFest is a platform for art and ideas and one of the leading international photography biennials in the world. As a media partner with the festival, this issue wanted to highlight and recognize ten talented photographers from Ten

by Ten, an exhibition organized by FotoFest that showcases ten artists selected by an invited group of international reviewers.

As a photographer, making photographs has become a part of my being, physically and psychically. But I am also appreciative of photography’s rich history. Sixty years ago, hardly a museum or a gallery in the world would have deigned to show a photograph on its walls. Today, art photography is celebrated everywhere: in the most conservative fine art museums, the trendiest galleries, and every commercial art fair of note.

”

On the other hand, this gain has not come without a loss. Today we are bombarded with images everywhere, we are exposed to a deluge of digital photos, which leads us to feel a sense of image overload. With so much visual material to see, remembering an individual photograph becomes nearly impossible.

How do you create and express an idea, a message, or an emotion that will withstand time and be remembered? This is the challenge facing serious photographers today.

It is from this point of view that I recommend visiting the FotoFest exhibitions throughout our city, during the month of March. You will discover meaningful photography with a different slant.

Yours faithfully.

John Bernhard

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CONTENTS

PUBLISHER’S LETTER 3

NEWS BITS 6

BOOK REVIEWS 10 COUPS DE CŒUR 12

14 FEATURE

Dance Salad 25th Anniversary Celebration 18

GALLERY LISTINGS 56

Fernando Casas JT Morse

PERFORMING ARTS SCHEDULE 62 POEM 64

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Bryn Larsen Hanneke Humphrey 30

REVIEWS 66

FotoFest -Ten by Ten Arthur Demicheli

* JESSICA RICE 72 * R OYA L S U M I KAT 74

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1945 -World War II Arthur Demicheli 38

EXPOSURE 76

Ted Cowart Sabrina Bernhard

COLOPHON 79

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French Cultures Festival

EDITOR’S PICK 80

Arthur Demicheli

* Fresh Arts’ interviews

Redbud Gallery

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John Bernhard 52

Art Houston Miami John Bernhard 68

Art, Amegy, Latinx Arthur Demicheli 70

Flight of the Monarch ON THE COVER: Norman Rockwell (1894-1978), The Problem We All Live With, 1963.

Oil on canvas, 36” x 58”.

Illustration for Look, January 14, 1964.

Collection of Norman Rockwell Museum Exhibition at The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston Norman Rockwell: American Freedom December 15, 2019–March 22, 2020

Yvonamor Palix

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news bits

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HESSE McGRAW APPOINTED

Henri Cartier-Bresson, Florence, Tuscany, 1933. © Magnum Photos

Contemporary Arts Museum

SURREAL IMAGINATION The Menil

Photography and the Surreal Imagination exhibition presents the wide reach of the surreal imagination in modern and contemporary photography. Anchored in historical Surrealism, it explores photography’s central tension between documentation and invention, a generative force for artists connected to that movement. These artists produced images that teeter between truth and suggestion, reality and its invented double. Drawn from the Menil’s holdings and Houston collections, the exhibition demonstrates how this vision of photography continues to hold sway and how artists have used the camera to reshape, question, and disturb the way we see the world.

The presentation begins with an examination of the transformation of the everyday through the lens in a tradition that recasts the world as an enigmatic theater, from Eugène Atget’s shots of Old Paris to Allison Janae Hamilton’s haunted folklore of the American South. Photographs in the exhibition also foreground the exploration of the body, including Hans Bellmer’s images of deconstructed dolls and Cindy Sherman’s cinematographic self-staging, among other depictions of costumed, distorted, fragmented figures.

The exhibition is curated by Natalie Dupêcher, Assistant Curator of Modern Art, and will coincide with the FotoFest Biennial 2020.

It will be installed adjacent to the Menil’s Surrealism galleries.

This exhibition is generously supported by the City of Houston.

On view Feb 5 – Jun 14, 2020

The Board of Trustees at Contemporary Arts Museum Houston (CAMH) appointed Hesse McGraw as the new Director, becoming the tenth director in CAMH’s illustrious 71-year history. McGraw comes to CAMH with a nearly twenty-year career in contemporary art, holding numerous leadership and curatorial roles both domestic and international. At CAMH, McGraw will oversee all aspects of the non-collecting institution’s wide-ranging artistic and educational programs, fundraising, and day-to-day operations—while providing leadership to a staff of more than 50. McGraw will bring a new vision that will explore and expand the Museum’s role as a forum and source for audiences to engage with contemporary art.

“I could not be more pleased that Hesse McGraw will be coming to Houston to serve as the new Director of Contemporary Arts Museum Houston,” said Dillon Kyle, Chair of the Board of Trustees. Common throughout his endeavors, McGraw has focused on the essential role of artists in igniting public imagination and animating society’s largest challenges. His curatorial practice and arts organiza-

New Director Hesse McGraw.

Photo by Mike Sinclair.

tion leadership are noted for shifting organizations into springboards that expand the agency of artists beyond the gallery, reach new audiences, and embrace unexpected contexts. “CAMH is a pioneering institution with a remarkable, radical legacy at the leading edge of contemporary art and ideas,” McGraw said.

“I am thrilled to join CAMH at this pivotal moment in our culture—we need artists now more than ever!

The appointment of Hesse McGraw completes a twelvemonth search that took place with the guidance of Russell Reynolds Associates.

McGraw assumed his role at CAMH in mid-January 2020.

AFRICAN COSMOLOGIES FotoFest Biennial 2020

Curated by Mark Sealy MBE, Director of the renowned London-based photographic art institution Autograph ABP, African Cosmologies: Photography, Time, and the Other is a large-scale group exhibition that examines the complex relationships between contemporary life in Africa, the African diaspora, and global histories

of colonialism, photography, and rights and representation.

The exhibition considers the history of photography as one closely tied to a colonial project and Western image production, highlighting artists who confront and challenge this shortsighted, albeit canonized lineage.

March 8 - April 19, Citywide

Wilfred Ukpong Courtesy of the artist

NEWS BITS 7

MAYOR SYLVESTER TURNER REAFFIRMS HIS COMMITMENT TO THE ARTS City of Houston

The Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs announced last December that the City Council approval of approximately $128 million of Hotel Occupancy Tax (HOT) revenue for arts and culture grants over the next five to seven years through a new contract with Houston Arts Alliance.

The Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs (MOCA) advises the mayor on cultural policy and sets the vision and goals for the City’s cultural investments. With the City’s adopted Arts and Cultural Plan as the guide, MOCA has achieved a high level of fairness, equity and transparency in the grants programs.

Calendar year 2020 marks the 42nd year a Houston public/ private partnership – exemplified by the contract with the Arts Alliance -- in support of the arts in Houston. Collaboration has proved highly effective in developing the nonprofit arts community and providing vital services to residents and visitors in Houston.

“I commend and thank the arts community for working together to reach the contract approval to continue the City of Houston’s investment in cultural services,” Mayor Sylvester Turner said. “I see first-hand the diversity of creative expression available every day across our city and all of the ways the arts contribute to the image of Houston as a great place to live and visit.”

“The work we have done over the last four years has strengthened our systems because they reinforce our values and respond to community concerns,” said MOCA Director Debbie McNulty.

“This is the fairest contract in the city’s recent history by instituting a new uniform grants application process that recognizes the contributions of nonprofit organizations of all sizes and disciplines as well as artists.”

Arts and culture offerings provide benefits to residents and improve quality of life through lifelong learning, student success, social and civic engagement, as well as significant economic benefits and jobs.

The local nonprofit arts and culture sector is a $1.2 billion industry that employs a wide range of professions, generates local and state government revenue and pumps more than half a billion dollars into restaurants, hotels, retail stores, parking garages, and other local businesses.

The new contract ensures residents and visitors will continue to have access to a full range of cultural offerings from the largest institutions to neighborhood-based groups throughout Houston, providing film, choir, literary works, visual art, jazz, dance, theatre, musicals, outdoor sculpture, classical music, opera, murals, poetry, craft, folk & traditional arts, photography, and more.

Houston Arts Alliance administers City-funded competitive peer review grant programs to support the delivery of cultural services through over 300 non-profit arts and cultural organizations, individual artists and special art projects.

As the local arts agency, HAA also administers a city-funded cultural calendar open to any organization or event. It will also serve the single point of contact for MOCA’s disaster-related communications going forward.

To learn more about the City’s cultural programs visit https:// www.houstontx.gov/culturalaffairs/index.html and follow the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs on Facebook @HoustonMOCA.

DJ Screw in his home studio. Courtesy SoSouth Music Distribution.

Photo by Ben DeSoto ©1995.

SLOWED AND THROWED: RECORDS OF THE CITY THROUGH MUTATED LENSES Contemporary Arts Museum Houston

The Contemporary Arts Museum Houston (CAMH) presents Slowed and Throwed: Records of the City Through Mutated Lenses, a two-part interdisciplinary exhibition orbiting around the legacy of the late Houston legend DJ Screw. Until his death in 2000, DJ Screw distorted songs by musical artists, creating “chopped and screwed” versions of the original by slowing tempo, reducing pitch, chopping lyrics, and layering freestyles by Houston-based rappers. Known for his signature stretched sound, he also displayed deft skill evident in his transitions, sampling choices, and beat juggling.

The exhibition features unconventional photography and new media created by strategies paralleling the musical methods of the innovative DJ. In their photo-adjacent practices, the participating artists appropriate, mash-up, collage, and mutate photographic inputs, in addition to slowing time. Slowed and Throwed contends that remixing “sampled” materials is a radical aesthetic act utilized by both artists and musicians. Through reconfigurations of sourced and original materials, the featured artists draw attention to inequities stemming from race, gender, and sexual orientation, suggesting new possibilities and alternative realities.

Serving as the physical and conceptual core of Slowed and Throwed is a nesting exhibition of DJ Screw archival materials. Placing the curated archive in dialogue with photo-based artworks demonstrates the resonances between DJ Screw’s creative process and those of the exhibiting artists.

Slowed and Throwed is curated by Patricia Restrepo, Exhibitions Manager and Assistant Curator at Contemporary Arts Museum Houston; alongside guest curators Big Bubb, Owner of Screwed Up Records & Tapes; and E.S.G., rapper and member of the Screwed Up Click.

Exhibition opens March 5, and will remain on view through Sunday, June 7, 2020. As always, admission to CAMH is free.

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TOUCHING LIVES

STAGE SET

NORMAN ROCKWELL

Texas French Alliance for the Arts

Stages

Museum of Fine Arts Houston

The Texan-French Alliance for the Arts’ Be the Peace - Be the Hope Social and Emotional Learning schoolwide program at Sugar Grove Academy, a H.I.S.D. underserved failing school, has been touching the lives of over 800 students and teachers since 2019.

BTPBTH is receiving the support of many prominent international organizations including Cirque du Soleil, Core Dance, NewGen PeaceBuilders, and Rotary International.

This non-profit organization stimulates creativity and offers an understanding of who we are, thus developing a foundation for respect of our identities and differences. Executive Director Karine Parker-Lemoyne said: “By putting ourselves in others people’s shoes, appreciating diversity and building resilience and empathy through simple actions, we can shift the current paradigm of violence that has invaded our school communities.”

Discover soon how this unique collaborative has positively transformed the dynamic of a whole school! To help support more children, visit: www.texanfrenchalliance.org or www.BePeaceBeHope.org

January was the grand opening of Stages’ new 66,850-squarefoot three-theater campus, The Gordy, located in the Washington Ave. neighborhood.

The $35 Million Theater Complex has three intimate performance spaces designed to bring audiences and artists closer to each other than ever before. The new Gordy’s goal in 2020 is set to bring 435 performances spanning 12 productions, reaching an audience of 65,000. The Gordy offers a fully-equipped purpose-built home for theatre-making in Houston, including rehearsal and education studios; full production and design workshops; meeting, event and shared community work spaces; and full administrative suite. Stateof-the-art theatre technology and design will thrill artists and audiences, building new capacity for Stages and our city’s theatre community.

The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, presents “Norman Rockwell: American Freedom” the first comprehensive exhibition devoted to Norman Rockwell’s iconic depictions of FDR’s Four Freedoms— Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Worship, Freedom from Fear, and Freedom from Want—exploring how the 1943 paintings came to be embraced by millions of Americans, providing crucial aid to the war effort and taking their place among the most indelible images in the history of American art. The exhibition is on view at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, until March 22, 2020.

The Gordy, 800 Rosine Street

WRITERS’ FESTIVAL

Photograph of Norman Rockwell with Freedom of Speech painting, 1943. © Norman Rockwell Family Agency.

FRANCIS BACON

Writefest

Writefest is a week-long writers’ festival taking place May 4-10, 2020, in Houston, TX. It is hosted by Writespace, Houston’s grassroots nonprofit literary arts center.

The festival kicks off with a series of Monday-Thursday workshops and culminates in a weekend filled with panels and presentations by local and national writers, agents and

Houston is the fifth venue for the acclaimed exhibition’s seven-city tour organized by the Norman Rockwell Museum. The exhibition debuted at The New-York Historical Society in May 2018. In addition to the Four Freedoms, Norman Rockwell: American Freedom features paintings, illustrations, and prints by Rockwell and a range of his contemporaries. Throughout the exhibition, historical documents, photographs, videos, artifacts, and interactive digital displays bring the era to life.

Museum of Fine Arts Houston

book editors, literary journal editors of all genres, a free book and journal fair, and readings by local and nationally-recognized authors.

The Keynote speaker is Poet Jericho Brown.

You can register online: www.writefesthouston.com More info: 713-487-5603 write@writespacehouston.org

This exhibition from the Centre Pompidou in Paris features some 40 canvases, including an array of the artist’s monumental triptychs, which are among his most celebrated works. With significant new loans added to the Houston presentation, Francis Bacon: Late Paintings is the first museum exhibition to investigate Bacon’s late works in depth. February 23–May 25

Francis Bacon, Self-Portrait, 1971, oil on canvas. Centre Pompidou. © The Estate of Francis Bacon.

NEWS BITS 9

MFAH NEW KINDER BUILDING TO OPEN THIS FALL Museum of Fine Arts Houston

Detail view of glass tubing on the eastern facade of the Nancy and Rich Kinder Building. Courtesy of the Museum of Fine Art, Houston.

Gary Tinterow, Director and Margaret Alkek Williams Chair, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, announced that the Museum’s new Nancy and Rich Kinder Building will open to the public on Sunday, November 1, 2020. Designed by Steven Holl Architects especially for the display of the important and rapidly growing MFAH collections of 20th- and 21st-century art, to which it dedicates more than 100,000 square feet of gallery space, the Kinder Building is the final component in the Museum’s eight-year project to expand and enhance its Susan and Fayez S. Sarofim Campus in the heart of Houston.

A series of seven major site-specific commissioned artworks will be inaugurated with the Kinder Building, serving as portals that connect this new structure with the other components of the campus. Commissioned artists are El Anatsui, Byung Hoon Choi, Carlos Cruz-Diez, Olafur Eliasson, Trenton Doyle Hancock, Cristina Iglesias, and Ai Weiwei. These commissions join additional recent acquisitions to be featured in the Kinder Building, including works by Magdalena Abakanowicz, Mark Bradford, Yayoi Kusama, Glenn Ligon, Ursula von Rydingsvard, and Kara Walker. In celebration of the opening, the Museum will offer free general admission to all three of its Sarofim Campus gallery buildings for a full week, November 1 through 8, 2020.

Gary Tinterow said, “The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, has, over the last dozen years, become one of this nation’s fastest-growing art museums in terms of collections, programs, and audience. Through our campus plan, we have been stepping up in every way to match the growth, diversity, and dynamism of our city. When we open the Nancy and Rich Kinder Building to the public on November 1, 2020, we will welcome visitors to an expansive, beautifully designed complex of buildings and urban gardens, revealing an international collection that we could never before exhibit in such range and depth.”

With two floors of galleries radiating from a light-filled atrium and three gallery spaces at street level, the Kinder Building enables the MFAH to present the first comprehensive installation of its international collections of modern and contemporary art.

The Kinder Building stands in complementary contrast to the Museum’s existing gallery buildings—the Caroline Wiess Law Building and the Audrey Jones Beck Building—and in dialogue with the adjacent 1986 Cullen Sculpture Garden.

The trapezoidal concrete Kinder Building is clad in vertical glass tubes that will emit a soft glow at night in a pattern across its facades.

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book reviews

SunriseSunset

When Dreams Were Poems

Christo & Jeanne -Claude

For the past several years, photographer, screenwriter, and author Bill Wittliff has been placing photographic paper inside beer cans, tubes made of PVC, and other cylindrical containers and affixing them to posts, trees, and other vertical supports on his Plum Creek Ranch near Luling, Texas.

Wittliff pokes pinholes in the containers and allows the sun to “paint” on the paper over periods that can last anywhere from a few days to a year. The resulting solargraphs are, a record of “the slow turning of the earth. Kate Breakey’s foreword sets an affectionate, thoughtful tone for this stirring artwork, followed by the literary observations of photographer, educator, and artist Keith Carter.

Texas A&M University Press, 2019

A book of poetry that explores Laurie Newendorp’s multi-faceted view of the world through relationships with family, artists and professors. Her love of light, color, mythology, fairy tale and the forever beauty of the Romantic Movement cross time from Walt Whitman and William Blake to a unique interpretation of the birth of her son. The result is a surreal journey on “life’s evolutionary staircase.”

Blurb, January 2020

Part biography, part critical analysis, part catalogue, this updated edition brings back TASCHEN’s best-selling Collector’s Edition, designed by Christo himself. It spans Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s entire work, from early drawings and family photos to plans for future projects.

Hundreds of photographs and drawings trace the couple’s projects from the past 10 years, including The Floating Piers and The London Mastaba, as well as works in progress such as The Mastaba of Abu Dhabi and L’Arc de Triomphe Wrapped, Paris.

The result is an eloquent homage to Jeanne-Claude and a celebration of the work of two artists whose imagination has affected the landscape of every continent.

Taschen, November, 2019

BILL WITTLIFF

LAURIE NEWENDORP

PAUL GOLDBERGER

The Telling Image LOIS FARFEL STARK

Freddie Mercury ALFONSO CASAS

A vibrant illustrated biography packed with colorful, high-impact drawings capturing the flair, innovation, and dazzling energy that made Freddie Mercury and Queen transcendent superstars.

University of Texas Press, May 2020

Seeing the World Through Shape. How do humans make sense of the world?

In answer to this timeless question, award winning documentary filmmaker, Lois Farfel Stark, takes the reader on a remarkable journey from tribal ceremonies in Liberia and the pyramids in Egypt, to the gravity-defying architecture of modern China. Drawing on her experience as a global explorer, Stark unveils a crucial, hidden key to understanding the universe: Shape itself.

Greenleaf Book Group Press, 2018

Walker Evans

STEPHANIE SCHWARTZ

This sweeping reinterpretation of Walker Evans reveals how the photographer’s work for hire during and after the Great Depression forces us to reconsider American documentary and its histories.

University of Texas Press, June 2020

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coups de cœur

ARTIST

Nena Marsh

An artist deeply connected to place, Nena Marsh reinterprets the landscapes of Texas, both rural and urban. Her precise observation has been honed through her long career in photography. Working with her own photo images, she captures the emotional qualities that invigorate a sense of connection. Working on unusual surfaces, she uses diverse mark making, a distinctive palette and non-tradition tools to capture the essence and energy of a scene. Whether abstracted or monumental in size, her paintings and drawings possess an energy of their own. nena.marsh@me.com

ARTIST

Leslie Roades

Leslie Roades’ work is inspired by an intuitive consciousness in nature that connects body and environment. She creates abstractions that are geological, biological, and figural, most often embracing the fluid qualities of paint and the intuitive decisions that come with creating by hand. Leslie combines diverse organic imagery to call attention to transient boundaries and deep ecological connections. By bringing abstraction together with plant and animal forms, she muses upon the subjectivity of experience with the desire to evoke a corporeal as well as an immaterial feeling. www.leslieroades.com

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ARTIST, ACTIVIST

Herb Shapiro

Herb Shapiro devotes the majority of his time to activist sculptures, with the goal of stimulating dialogue and educating viewers about topical world issues. His work is now less abstract and follows a more storytelling format to convey a message. “As an activist, I do more than simply show my work in galleries. I want as many people to experience my work as possible, which you can see on any given weekend in Houston’s city parks. I firmly believe that activist art needs to be taken to the people in the streets.” www.herbshapiroart.com PHOTOGRAPHER

Deborah Bay

Deborah Bay is an American artist based in Houston who specializes in constructed studio photography. Images are constructed in-camera using lenses and prisms to explore the interaction of light and color with optical objects, following in the lineage of light studies by Bauhaus artists and other experimental works. www.deborahbay.com

ARTIST

Lúcio Carvalho Lúcio Carvalho works is inspired by scenography as well as Baroque, Rococo and Renaissance era. Emotion, memory and imaginary archives – fragment from the past, projection of the future – are building the work that needs to be protected because of its fragility, to stay preserve for the future to exist with a certain freedom. Using painting, photography as well as sculpture, Carvalho is not particularly attached to the medium he is using. For him, they can change at any time, they are interchangeable and only at the service of the idea. www.chicevolutioninart.com

N S A L A

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2 5 T H

A N N I V E R S A R Y

C E L E B R A T I O N

Dance Salad Festival will celebrate its 25th Anniversary in Houston and the 28th season since its inception in Belgium within the Festival week of events.

To acknowledge such a momentous milestone in the life of the Festival we asked loyal dance writers to share their thoughts and speak their hearts about what their experience with Dance Salad has meant for them.

Molly Glentzer, Houston Chronicle’s Senior Writer and Critic of Arts & Culture who has been masterfully and devotedly covering DSF since 1999, reflects: “As far as I know, there is still nothing like this festival anywhere else in America – or any other dance gathering that is simultaneously so global and intimate… What an exhilarating, virtuosic ride Nancy Henderek has given all of us for 25 years, and such an inspired education. I am forever grateful.”

Here’s a sneak peek at the companies and performers booked for the 2020 Festival: PERFORMANCES April 9, 10, & 11, 2020 at 7:30pm Wortham Center, Cullen Theater, 501 Texas Ave.

Hofesh Shechter Company (London, UK):

Maggie Foyer, writer and moderator of the Choreographers Forum of many years, from London, UK, writes: “Dance Salad Festival is like no other. At other festivals, you run from one theatre space to another, catching a matinee here, a late-night performance there, and maybe meeting briefly at the hotel. At Dance Salad Festival, the shared class and afternoon meal breaks forge friendships, bonding artists across the language and cultural barriers. It is a uniquely special event… [Nancy’s] determination in persuading choreographers to bring their curated works to Houston is legendary. Dance survives through cross-fertilization: being introduced to new audiences and for those audiences to spread the word on new names. Houston’s Dance Salad Festival has done sterling work in this respect.”

Grand Finale (curated version for DSF) choreographed by Hofesh Shechter, with live music, composed by the choreographer.

CHOREOGRAPHERS’ FORUM Free Event, April 8, at 7:00pm at Museum of Fine Arts Houston.

Dunia Dance Theater (Belgium/Zimbabwe):

The Forum will feature Sebastian Kloborg, guest choreographer of the Royal Danish Ballet, along with Rafael Bonachela, Artistic Director of Sydney Dance Company, Australia and choreographer Harold George, founder and Artistic Director of Dunia Dance Theater Brussels, Belgium / Harare, Zimbabwe. As always, the Forum will be moderated by Maggie Foyer, dance writer from London, UK.

Semperoper Ballet Dresden (Germany):

Pas de deux from The Four Seasons choreographed by David Dawson, set to music by Max Richter.

Royal Danish Ballet’s Kammerballetten performances (Denmark):

Chorale Dances choreographed by Tobias Praetorius set to music by J. C Bach, live piano by Alexander McKenzie.

Absolute Pitch Black choreographed by Sebastian Kloborg, set to music by F. Chopin live violin by Niklas Walentin and piano by Alexander McKenzie.

Royal Ballet of Flanders (Belgium):

Jack (solo) choreographed by Drew Jacoby, set to music by George Gershwin.

Making Men, dance and film, choreographed by Harold George and filmed by Antoine Panier, set to a combination of original African and classical Western music scores.

Sydney Dance Company (Australia):

ab [intra] choreographed by Rafael Bonachela, set to music by Peteris Vasks.

Laboration Art Company (France):

ANNA choreographed by Laura Arend.

EVENT15

D Laboration Art Company, France Performing ANNA, Choreography by Laura Arend.

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Above: Dunia Dance Company, Belgium/Zimbabwe Performing Making Men. Choreography by Harold George.

Photo by AntoinePanier Right: Hofesh Shechter Company, London Performing Grand Finale.

Choreography by Hofesh Shechter.

Photo by Rahi Rezvan

ESS AY 1 7

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FERNANDO CASAS

by JT Morse

photography by John Bernhard

F o r m o r e t h a n 4 0 y e a r s , F e r n a n d o C a s a s , a n a r t i s t , p a i n t e r, a n d philosopher from Bolivia, has been using his paintings, drawings, and installation pieces to explore philosophical themes such as time, self, d u a l i t y, a n d c o - c o n s t i t u t i o n . O u r w r i t e r J T M o r s e v i s i t e d h i m a t h i s studio in North Houston.

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“My art is philosophical and visual.

For example, when I began doing works that were all-encompassing representations of the space around me, I would say, ‘I’m going to include everything—the wall, the dog, the couch, the this and that, and my leg and my arm and my hand and my shoulder, etc.”

Fernando Casas in his studio.

Photography by John Bernhard

A S F E R N A N D O C A S A S L E A D S M E into what would be utilized as a walk-in closet in most homes, I am overwhelmed by the obscene number of paintings stored and stashed in this oil-scented oasis. The furniture-barren room is stuffed to the proverbial gills with canvases and I’m thrilled. Since most of the pieces are masked with butcher paper drapes, I fidget and salivate like a child entering a secret garden as Casas, my most gracious host, gingerly unveils half-a-score of them for me.

One by one, each work of artistic endeavor is even more breath-taking and intriguing than the last. Some are masterworks in graphite with intense shading and realism so well done that I think they must be black and white photographs rather than drawings. Others strike me as colorful homages to the works of Dali, based on their bizarreness of subject and transmutations of reality. But, despite the power and magnificence of many of them, there is a single painting that refuses to stop echoing its call in my mind’s eye—even weeks after my visit to this attic of artistic wonders.

The piece I can’t forget is a nearly life-sized self-portrait, nothing less and everything more. Duality: The Labyrinth of Self-Deception features a youthful incarnation of Casas

sitting perched on the edge of a chair. In front of the artist— secured by his toes and the balls of his bare feet—is a large, rectangular piece of looking glass. So far, there’s nothing resoundingly obscure or unique about this self-portrait. Or is there?

With little to no effort on my part, I find myself swept up in the sensation of inhabiting the painted version of Fernando Casas—the version that is observing the mirror-reflected representation of Casas in the painting. Mind blown? Mine was.

For the sake of my own commitment to journalism and my ludicrous desire to attempt explaining an inkling of the virtuoso that is Fernando Casas and this specific magnum opus, I will now feebly attempt to describe Duality: The Labyrinth of Self-Deception via five-dollar detail. Take a deep breath, relax your mind, and when you’re ready read on.

In the upper-left foreground of the painting—so close I can nearly smell his tanned skin—is the inside of the artist’s left hand, fingers curled as if he’s holding an invisible camera.

In the center of the painting, his other arm is seen, extended as if grasping the camera’s lens. Tracing back up his right forearm, my eye settles on his bent knee, which is nestled into the crook of his elbow. Whose elbow? I can feel the

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Fernando Casas Duality: The Labyrinth of Self-Deception 1979 Oil on canvas 76”x42”

FEATURE 21

pressure of his knee. The bicep of his right arm is flexed, and every hair on the quadricep is stark black against the patches of sunlight that highlight his lean leg. Is it his leg or mine? I glance down to the bottom portion of the painting and suddenly have the desire to smooth out the striped, cutoff shorts as they wrinkle and bunch between belt and thigh. His belt. My belt. His thigh. My thigh. My thigh.

As I look back on that bizarre moment of transference, unlike any I’ve ever experienced before, I willingly conclude that I was undoubtedly inhabiting Fernando Casas via his painting, via Duality.

When asked about the origins of this bewildering piece, Casas had this to say: “My art is philosophical and visual. For example, when I began doing works that were all-encompassing representations of the space around me, I would say, ‘I’m going to include everything—the wall, the dog, the couch, the this and that, and my leg and my arm and my hand and my shoulder, et cetera.’ In these attempts, I eventually arrived at a point in which I didn’t see anything. Here, between this shoulder and this shoulder—I didn’t, and don’t, see anything. One might say, ‘Well, in your painting, why don’t you just suture it, putting the shoulders next to one another?’ But this is incorrect. Our shoulders are not neighbors. They do not touch. I needed to find a way to represent this empty space, this observational blind spot.

For ten or twelve years, I kept trying to suture and solve this problem until I concluded that there is an imperfection with us, with our necks, that impedes us from seeing everything. But if there could be a perfect observer—who could see everything—then this human imperfection would be solved. However, this would be impossible. It can’t be sutured and solved. And, to you, I must note that this observational blind spot also happens in our minds.”

Another philosophy-meets-art concept that Casas has spent years examining, recapitulating, and exploring is polar perspective. In the simplest of breakdowns, as noted in his book Limits & Proximities, “polar perspective is a graphical system for creating two-dimensional images representing a world of four dimensions.” Instead of merely painting a 2D bowl of fruit on a table, Casas gives viewers an experientially elevated 3D sense of the subject then takes his work a step further by adding the visually elusive element of time, thus thrusting the fruit, its bowl, and the painting into 4D. While I’m still not sure I understand the scientific mechanics, mathematical components, and neuroscientific effects of Fernando’s work completely, I fully acknowledge that viewing his existential explorations in ‘oil on canvas’ sucked me in like artistic quicksand and spit me out like a philosophical geyser. In a good way. A deep way. The best way.

After leaving the walk-in closet of wonders, Casas escorted me back to the first floor of the amazing home that he and a fellow artist built together, by hand, back in the eighties. And there, in a cozy, art-lined dining area, I had the pleasure of spending a prized hour of my life sampling

breads and cheeses, sipping red wine, petting rescued pooches Gaia and Karma, and doing my best to grasp the words and expressions flowing from Fernando’s philosophically kissed lips.

With graciousness, Casas openly shared the highs and lows of his journey from his homeland of Bolivia to the Lone Star State with stints spent in the mountains of Colorado and bohemian streets of San Francisco along the way. He spoke with such warmth and quaintness about the series of pear paintings he produced for his beloved partner, Terry.

And as he described his life, his art, and his philosophies, I allowed his words to wash over me, holding on loosely, as to absorb them like a sponge rather than grasp at them with greedy fingers.

Later, at home as I looked back on my notes from our conversation, I smiled upon discovering a sketch I’d scribbled of a Venn Diagram in which two circles labeled “Art” and “Philosophy” converged to create a Fernando Casasshaped space in the center. This drabble of whimsy in my notebook, no doubt, also came as a direct result of being touched by the spirit of philosopher-artist Casas. His sense of humor and light-heartedness serve him well to balance his immense depth and staggering profundity.

One of the space-time concepts Casas did his best to translate for me was this: “If I have a sphere of vision, then I have another sphere of vision, and they are mathematically connected in a coherent way by sharing a single point, and if I was able to flatten one then flatten another, I would have a coherent image of space-time.”

Oh, sweet Fernando. I wanted to tell you, in that moment, that I understood. I’d love to tell you that I understand now.

But it’s likely that an entire cask of vino, vast wheat field of grain, and a Guernsey’s worth of cheese still wouldn’t help me see the light in the way you see it. But, despite my lack of understanding of your profound musings, I cherish you, see your light, and will forever revel in your genius all the same.

I’d like to close out my feeble attempt at introducing you to the brilliance of this bonafide and fascinating philosopher-artist-king with a final snippet he so graciously gifted me—a tidbit that I honestly and actually was able to comprehend and savor. Enjoy.

“Part of the truth of art is that great works of artistry throughout history have always told us or depicted—whether in words or visually or in dance—who we are and what this world, in which we live, is. When I do my art, I feel I am participating in some transcendental process of the cosmic evolution of sentience, consciousness, and thought. In being a person who brings beauty and truth out, one becomes a participant in the evolution of the multiverse, of the enormous cosmic scenario that we are.”

Thank you for taking the time to read this article and for venturing with me into the studio, the heart, and the mind of the great Fernando Casas. For more information about him, visit fernandocasas.com.

ARTHOUSTON 22

Fernando Casas, Waiting, 2010 Mixed media 64” x 112” in.

Fernando Casas, Flora, 1981, Oil on Panel, 48”x96” in.

Fernando Casas work in progress in his studio.

Photography by John Bernhard

“If I have a sphere of vision, then I have another sphere of vision, and they are mathematically connected in a coherent way by sharing a single point, and if I was able to flatten one then flatten another, I would have a coherent image of space-time.”

FEATURE 23

EA R EN 2 4 A R T HF O U TS UT O

COLLECTOR 25

Left: Susan Budge’s Big Belly 2016, ceramic.

Opposite page: Bryn Larsen in her study seated with views of the Stanmore courtyard with Arman’s As in the Sink, 1990, porcelain sculpture, and Fudge, a rescue chow-chow mix.

Photos by John Bernhard

BRYN LARSEN COLLECTOR FOCUS:

An enthusiast whose dynamism quickly immersed her in the Houston art world, bringing together a fascinating collection and then co-founding Foto Relevance, a gallery dedicated to photographic art. But also a lesson of how a family can revel in and live with art.

BY HANNEKE HUMPHREY PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOHN BERNHARD

Bryn Larsen’s home in Houston is dazzling, from the lively, crisp furnishings and decorations to her captivating collection of art.

Attention has been dedicated to carefully displaying her artwork, as a curator would, so that it literally sings. Upon arrival, we don’t even need to look for the house number, as Susan Budge’s lovely ceramic sculpture greets us out front. Called Big Belly, the jovial, round figure sets the uplifting tone. Then we are immediately struck by the harmonies of blue, her favorite color, in her

ARTHOUSTON 26

Clockwise from top: Dining Room: On left, Daniel McFarlane’s Falls, 2011, automotive paint, acrylic paint, mixed media on wood panel.

Large installation by Libbie Masterson Sky, Tiled, 2010, inkjet print. Great Room: Over the fireplace, Judy Ledgerwood’s Sunshine After Rain, 2005, oil and interference acrylic on canvas. On the wall between the bookcases, Gavin Perry’s monumental pigmented resin, vinyl on board work Untitled, 2013. Upstairs Gallery: On the left, Paul Kremer’s Six Floats, which features five silkscreen prints and one unique screened mono print, 2017. At the end of the hallway, Jay Shinn’s Extro, 2013, neon, enamel, mirror Plexiglas and frosted Plexiglas. On the right, Mie Olise’s Bridge House, 2012, acrylic and water from Gowanus Canal. Upstairs Landing: Michael Lange’s WALD 0172, 2009, archival pigment print; sculpture that wraps around the corner is by Susan Giles Sagratowerbridge, 2012, paper and wood; Renate Aller’s White Sands | March 2013, archival pigment print. Photos by John Bernhard. dining room. The monumental Sky, Tiled print by her friend Libbie Masterson is calming and meditative. As sky does, the piece naturally beckons us to look up. The rich ultramarine paint color on the ceiling of the room, not on the usual walls, ever so aptly and tastefully complements the artwork. From room to room, we have similar experiences.

But what struck me most was how she and her family live with the art. For Bryn, art is not only to be observed and revered, to be protected behind a glass case. It transcends the beautiful and thought-inspiring. Art is something to cherish, hold, and have fun with, just like part of the family. Sitting around a coffee table, she nonchalantly picks up a sculpture “As in the Sink” by Arman.

The artist’s inventive idea came from taking Limoges porcelain factory rejects and assembling them like demitasse pieces.

She and her children are actively engaged with the art, and an early Judy Ledgerwood abstract is a frequent source of conversation. “I love the simplicity, the texture...and my children can’t decide if those are peas in a pod, grass, the sun, or the sky.

They’re always looking to figure out what that could be.” When her children first saw Gavin Perry’s vividly blue and spectacu-

lar work made of nine poured layers of resin, they were worried.

“They thought it was glass, very breakable, and they didn’t want to touch it. But it’s pretty indestructible ... and really fun.” Plus its reflectivity at night makes it easy for their Mom to see what everyone is up to.

Bryn has a multi-dimensional background and has lived in many places, from London as a child to New York City as a lawyer. She began collecting just over a decade ago after returning to her hometown Houston, becoming very involved with local museums, the photography department of the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, and the Menil Collection. Now she is a trustee of the Contemporary Art Museum and on the board of the Houston Center for Photography. In addition, local gallerists like Barbara Davis and Heidi Vaughan are invaluable advisors and have become close to her. Part of Bryn’s collection is even consigned at Heidi’s gallery.

All these relations have spurred extensive travel with curators, other collectors, and experts. As Bryn says, this rich exposure “is like going to grad school without homework,” and it is clear that she has vast knowledge.

She was imbued in both fine and decorative arts growing up,

27

Foyer: Ann Carrington Silver Schnapper, 2017, silver plated nickel and steel spoons; John Mason Black Figure, 2014, ceramic; Valérie Belin Christmas Roses (Helleborus Niger), 2010, pigment print. Photography by John Bernhard

for me is when something “ The catalyst resonates with me….

I get excited, and it just speaks to me….

I just know it will be terrific.

”

ARTHOUSTON 28

Children’s Study: Abelardo Morell’s Camera Obscura: View of Central Park Looking North, Spring 2010. Photography by John Bernhard.

remembering in particular a monumental piece by Tom Holland.

It was the first artwork her parents bought, and her mother, who lives just down the road, still has it. Whenever the family moved, the piece needed a special crate, and the first question was “Where can that go?” And the eclecticism of her parents’ collection informs Bryn’s own interests. Her art is contemporary in a very diverse way, ranging from the rococo floral bouquet by Ann Carrington made of a panoply of spoons and weighing 400 pounds, to a minimalist sculpture called Black Figure by John Mason. Then there is Renate Allers’ ethereal print hinting to Magritte. Or Abelardo Morell’s upending photograph, made by using camera obscura techniques to project an inverted image of Central Park.

In her purchases, “what moves her” is the most important guiding force. The process is meandering, nonlinear. She loves colorful, vivid art, and there are many pieces in her favorite blue. She is attracted to abstract, layered painting and cites the dream of owning a Dorothy Hood. Photography that is complex, with additions of collage, embroidery, or painting, fascinates her. And she is committed to fostering local artists: Libbie Masterson, Susan Budge, Myke Venable, and many more. Finally, she is interested in the whole oeuvre of artists, in how they have grown over time,

in the visual voice they have. “I don’t collect anyone if I don’t love everything they do.”

In 2016, she ventured from collecting to representing and opened Foto Relevance in partnership with Geoffrey Koslov.

The gallery is specialized in museum-quality and contemporary photographic art, a platform for innovative artists from around the world. As the gallery is growing, they have just moved and opened a new space in the Museum District.

Bryn emanates sheer joy about life and art. It is amazing how she has been able to amass such a broad collection in just over ten years and then expand her enthusiasm to run a gallery. And she has done it all in harmony with her young family. I can’t help but think of what delight her children have, with constant discoveries, stimulating conversation pieces, and gorgeous inspiration.

Interior and landscape design credits: Sarah Eilers of Lucas/Eilers Design Associates created the interior design of Bryn’s home and has collaborated with her many times. Fadi Hlayhel of Thompson and Hanson developed the landscape design and the perfect spot for Susan Budge’s sculpture.

John Bernhard, Wood 5, 2012, Archival ink print, 30”x20” in.

29

JOHN BERNHARD A

R e t r o s p e c t i v e March 2020

2000 EDWARDS ST #317, HOUSTON, TX 77007

713 724-0709

WWW.SERRANOGALLERY.COM

ARTHOUSTON 30

Daniel Handal Gouldian Finch (Ray of Power), 2016 Archival pigment print, Courtesy of ClampArt, New York City

Spotlight FotoFest

Ten byTen TEN REVIEWERS SELECT TEN PORTFOLIOS FROM THE FOTOFEST MEETING PLACE. ARTHOUSTON IS DELIGHTED TO SHOWCASE THEIR WORK. BY

F O T O F E S T ’ S I N T E R N A T I O N A L M E E T I N G P L A C E Portfolio

Review, held in conjunction with their citywide Biennial, is the largest and longest running event of its kind in the United States. Every two years, 150 curators, editors, and photography and fine art experts travel to Houston to review 450 photographic portfolios by emerging and established artists and photographers from around the globe.

The Ten by Ten exhibition is a celebration of this important site of discourse and display, highlighting the works of 10 artists, nominated by 10 guest reviewers, whose works exemplify the broad range of contemporary photographic practice. Each of the artists in the exhibition is represented by the presentation of a single photographic series from their oeuvre. Diverse topics ranging from queer rights and Indigenous representation in media to unregulated commercial development and the erasure of complex histories are examined by the artists and further

ARTHUR

DEMICHELI

contextualized by a series of texts penned by the guest reviewers who selected them. The broad range of subjects featured in the exhibition reflects not only current attitudes in photographic praxis, but also those important issues and topics that appear in news headlines and frame the contemporary moment.

Ten by Ten: Ten Reviewers Select Ten Portfolios from the Meeting Place 2018 artists include: Citlali Fabian, Richard Frishman, Anton Guatama, Daniel Handal, Ellie Ivanova, David Johnson with Philip Matthews, Seunggu Kim, Yan Wang Preston, Krista Svalbonas, and Saba Sitton.

The reviewers that selected portfolios include: Peggy Sue Amison, Thomas Elsen, Jim Estrin, Karen Haas, Allie Haeusslein, Matthew Kluk, Gwen Lee, Mark Sloan, Catherine Troiano, and Lisa Volpe.

Exhibition on view March 8 – April 19, 2020, at Silos on Sawyer, 1502 Sawyer Street, Houston.

FEATURE 31

ARTHOUSTON 32

FEATURE 33

Citlali Fabiรกn Adriana, 2015 Inkjet Print Courtesy of the artist

Ellie Ivanova Take, 2015 Gelatin silver print/mordanรงage Courtesy of the artist

ARTHOUSTON 34

From left clockwise: Anton Gautama, Fortune and Longevity, 2016, Archival Pigment Print. Seunggu Kim, Seodalsan, 2014, Pigment Print Courtesy the artist.

Yan Wang Preston, Puhejing Quarry Ecology Recovery Project, Dali, China, 2017, C-Print. Courtesy of the artist. Saba Sitton, Inception Uncertainty, 2018, Archival pigment print. Courtesy of the artist. David Johnson in collaboration with Philip Matthews NC 012, 2015, Archival Pigment Print. Courtesy of the Artist.

FEATURE35

Krista Svalbonas Bayreuth 1, 2018, Layered laser cut pigment prints. Courtesy of the Artist Richard Frishman, Colored Entrance; Philadelphia, Mississippi, 2018, Archival Pigment Print. Courtesy of the artist

ARTHOUSTON 36

Shell production

Dresden

1945 Lead

MUSEUM 37

L O N E S TA R F L I G H T M U S E U M O P E N S P H O T O

W O R L D WA R I I ’ S L A S T Y E A R I N P I C T U R E S

E X H I B I T F E AT U R I N G S O M E O F T H E M O S T FA M O U S A N D I N FA M O U S P H O T O G R A P H S O F 1 9 4 5 , N E A R I N G T H E E N D O F W O R L D WA R I I .

BY ARTHUR DEMICHELI

At the end of 1944, Americans were feeling good about the progress of World War II, but it was far from over.

The year 1945 would see the great joy of Victory In Europe (VE Day) and Victory Over Japan (VJ Day) but is would also see some of the most brutal fighting of the war. It would show the world the true horror of Hitler’s Nazi Germany and it would see the introduction of the most destructive weapons humanity had ever known. It was one of the most important years in history and 75 years later, its effects still shape the world we live in today. These forty iconic images from the last year of World War II capture the reality, sacrifice and raw emotion of the men and women who struggled and succeeded in preserving freedom on a global basis.

On view through September 12, 2020

The mission of The Lone Star Flight Museum (LSFM) is to celebrate flight and achievements in Texas aviation as well as educate and engage our youth through science, technology, engineering and math. In addition to the Texas Aviation Hall of Fame, the 130,000 square foot museum is home to a flying collection of rare and historic commercial, general aviation and military aircraft. Guests can experience the wonder of flight in a warbird ride and get hands-on in the high-tech Aviation Learning Center and Flight Academy. Multiple public and STEM-focused education programs create an unforgettable museum experience for visitors of all ages. Located at Ellington Airport, just 20 minutes from downtown, Lone Star Flight Museum 11551 Aerospace Ave., Houston, TX 77034 lonestarflight.org or call 346-708-2517.

C

ARTHOUSTON 38

Ted

owart

BY SABRINA BERNHARD PHOTOGRAPHY BY ARTHUR DEMICHELI

A MADMEN, A DREAMER, A H O M E G R O W N A R T I S T, T E D C O WA R T, I S H E R E T O S T A Y.

ESS AY 3 9

Ted Cowart, Limestone Field, mixed media and collage on canvas, 48 x 60 in. Ted Cowart in his home in Houston.

Photo by Arthur Demicheli

graduate, and a dreamer, I often place too much pressure on myself to reach my goals instantaneously. However, Ted Cowart, world renowned painter, inspired and assured me, with his life story, that everything will fall into place at its own time.

From a young age, very young age, Ted began drawing.

He mimicked scenes from movies, such as Fantasia, and at the age of 5, his drawings were recognizable. It was clear from the beginning that this right sided brain of his was going to get him far. Cultivating the debut of his rich education in the arts all happened right here in Houston, as he went to Lanier Middle School and Lamar High School. He got a scholarship, very young, that lasted 10 years, where he was privileged enough to go, every day after school, to the Museum of Fine Arts’ art school, led by Ruth Pershing Uhler. With a developing and curious mind, roaming the AS A YOUNG PROFESSIONAL, A RECENT

halls of the MFAH was a dream and set him apart from the mass. This early passion for the arts sparked the desire to be a full-time painter when he grew up.

After graduating from Lamar High School, Ted moved to California to start school at the Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles. These high-level courses were demanding yet rewarding as he found himself turning down job offers in an effort to complete school first. This degree allowed Ted to get one step closer to his dream. He was now an expert in differentiating “what was for painting, design, or promotion”.

Right before graduation, Ted found himself in Germany, completing his mandatory military service for 18 months.

A slight hiccup in his preconceived trajectory. However, he was gracious for the opportunity since he felt “like a kid in a candy store” as he travelled all across Europe, from

ARTHOUSTON 40

41

From left: Ted Cowart, Urban Canyon I, Urban Canyon II, Urban Canyon III, Urban Canyon IV. Opposite page: Ted Cowart, Urban Canyon V, all mixed media on canvas, 48 x 60 in.

“

THE PASSION I HAVE FOR MY ARTWORK IS INFECTIOUS.

Paris to Nice to Barcelona. He painted everything he saw, from landscapes to portraits of officers. He always stayed consistent in the effort put into his skills; practice makes perfect and tenacity allows for practice.

After a brief return to Houston, Ted’s luck with connections continued bolstering. In 1963, he had landed a marketing job with Revlon on Madison Ave in New York City. Then was introduced into a whole new world after receiving a letter from Cynthia Rathbone, daughter of famous English actor, Basil Rathbone, and a reputable art dealer, working for Hockaday Associates. Shortly after, Ted also got a job with Hockaday, which was one of the most popular and reputable advertising agencies that had a long, diverse, and happy list of clients. Ted worked with all the new models, fashion, and photographers.

Don Draper was a carbon copy of Ted in the Mad Men drama television series. His view from his corner office of the New York skyscrapers has now become an inspiration for his new painting series “Urban Canyons”.

Ted balanced his time between New York City and Beverly Hills while still working on advertising and design.

In New York, off of Park Avenue, Ted had an art dealer that continued to put his name out and succeeded in making him powerful connections. He would do interviews of celebrities for the magazines and then, with his art always in the back of his mind, draw their portraits which were

”

then printed in magazines, like Vogue and Bazaar.

Ted was nonstop working in the bustling cities from coast to coast. This stressful and demanding work life began to wear on him and burned him out. He wanted to be in New York full time, in order to start his own business and do what he really wanted, paint. At the end of the 60s, Ted downsized in New York in order to be fully devoted to his own business. Years of advertising and networking all the right people allowed Ted to build a very successful client list to sell his artwork. Ted started out and continues to this day to generate a following solely based on word of mouth.

At 40 years old, Ted wanted out of New York and moved back to Houston for a short while. Ted worked as an advertising consultant for Neiman Marcus and painted out of his dining room. Painting full-time started to get closer and closer. After all of his gracious success, he was still envious of the painters that were able to be free with their art.

Ted moved to Palm Springs, where he took all that he learned from art school to ad agencies on Madison Avenue, to paint full time, while still running his advertising business remotely. He was surrounded by inspiring artists, such as Ed Moses. He learned new concepts about art such as the benefits of experimentation. This new, beautiful location allowed Ted to detach himself from the logistical side of work and truly allow the creative juices to flow. Ted was finally free to paint.

ARTHOUSTON 42

Ted Cowart in his Houston’s studio.

Photos by Arthur Demicheli

With luck still on his side, Ted’s Palm Springs neighbor, Jane Behman, came over for a cocktail and saw Ted’s artwork hanging on the walls. Without him knowing she had an art gallery in town, she fell in love with his work and showcased it shortly after them first meeting. This relationship sprung him into his lifelong dream of being a full-time painter, after he had waited patiently for decades before his dream became a reality.

The 90s were the beginning of Ted’s successful and admirable career. After years of envisioning himself being a painter, starting as a young boy, he was finally living his dream. He said: “I am waking up some days having to pinch myself, how in the world did I get here?

Every day is a dream!” Ted recognizes that he would not be the accomplished artist that he is today without each steppingstone of his life. Ted’s work is shown in numerous galleries nationally, but he prides himself as being an independent artist, as he values freedom. His life story taught me that things happen for a reason, to never give up on your dreams, and that patience is key.

Ted Cowart is represented by Off the Wall gallery and will have his first exhibition at the gallery in March 2020.

“

I AM WAKING UP SOME DAYS

HAVING TO PINCH M Y S E L F, HOW IN THE WORLD DID I GET HERE? EVERY DAY IS A DREAM!

”

43

Top: Ted Cowart works Via Monte Vista (left) and Black + White (right) fills the walls of this cozy study.

Bottom: A trio of colorful paintings by Ted Cowart enlivens the neutral palette in this living room.

Photos by Arthur Demicheli

ARTHOUSTON 44

French Cultures

Internationally-acclaimed French singer CharlElie Couture as the 2020 French Cultures Festival kick-off concert headliner.

Photo ©Shaan C. Below: Swiss musical duo BARON.E, Faustine Pochon and Arnaud Rolle.

Festival C o n c e r t s BY

ARTHUR

DEMICHELI

For the 8th consecutive year, the Cultural Service of the French Embassy in Houston presents the French Cultures Festival Kick-off concert, to be held on March 6th downtown Houston, a free and family-friendly event to launch the month-long celebration of the French language and of the diversity of French cultures in Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas.

This year, internationally-acclaimed French-American artist CharlElie Couture will be coming to Houston to perform on stage at Discovery Green, along with two other music bands from Quebec and the United States.

A multidisciplinary artist in the field of music, drawing, painting and poetry, CharlElie has released more than 25 albums and 18 soundtracks, and given 1,500 concerts worldwide. His last album, Même pas sommeil, was released last year.

Another free concert of note is BARON.E, a french-speaking, Swiss musical duo composed by Faustine Pochon and Arnaud Rolle.

First inspired by all forms of rock, then by current French music, these two friends of 22 years quickly began to create a musical and textual universe in sync with themselves and their time.

BARON.E creates French-language electro-pop or indie-pop from which emanates a “festive melancholy” or even a “violent fragility”; so many oxymorons captured in the audience during the concerts of the two young artists.

Sponsored by the Consulate General of Switzerland in Houston, this U.S. concert will take place at The Alliance Française, 427 Lovett Blvd, Friday, March 27, at 7PM.

45

Ta n i a B o t e l h o Magic Birds April 2 - 29, 2020 Opening reception April 4, 5-7 pm

5200 Montrose Boulevard

G A L LAERRTYH PORUOS FT IOL NE 4 67

Tanja Peterson, Director of Redbud Gallery with owner Gus Kopriva. Photo by Michael Collins

47

REDBUD GALLERY B Y

J O H N

B E R N H A R D

Located in the heart of Houston Heights, Redbud Gallery is celebrating 20 years

of consistantly promoting the rich culture of Texas Art. Owner, Gus Kopriva, shows all media and exhibit artists ranging from masters to first timers, while organizing group exchange exhibitions in Germany, China, Peru, Mexico, and France to name but a few.

ARTHOUSTON 48

JOHN BERNHARD: You opened

Redbud Gallery over 20 years ago in a red-brick building built in 1928 which you had restored. You and the building were the recipient of the Houston Heights Association Community Improvement Award. What was your motivation at the time?

GUS KOPRIVA: We purchased the

building for studio space for Sharon Kopriva. We had some space left over which enabled us to open one of the smallest galleries in Texas. I started collecting art over 35 years ago and I had been involved as a board member for Lawndale at the University of Houston. After curating several local exhibitions, providing engineering services to artists, and serving as a municipal art commissioner, I decided to open Redbud Gallery. We have had over 200 shows.

JB: Did you envision being in the

same spot for over 20 years?

GK: I had no idea what the future

would bring. We even opened a gallery in Berlin and had our grand opening in a blizzard. We survived by distributing free beer. The gallery lasted only for a short time before we lost our lease to a restaurant. Thank god...

Berlin is sexy but poor, I kept hearing.

JB: Over all of these years, can you

recall your most memorable exhibition? What made it so?

premiered in Chicago and traveled to New Orleans with no issues. In Houston, we added a few local artists to bring the number of works up to 250. We had protests during the opening. The police controlled the picket line. Redbud Gallery was investigated for pornography after the vice squad raided us. In addition, the Catholic League charged us with sacrilege and a local shop called us cultural racists. It was an exciting spectacle. My mother made cookies and we sold most of the work.

GK: There are thousands of talented

individuals looking for spaces to exhibit. I do not work with difficult people. Time is too short. Before you decide on gallery representation, consider the following: - Representing yourself.

- Forming a co-op venture.

- Marketing through web sales.

- Organizing your own or group shows.

- Hiring an agent to represent you.

All of the above….

If you decide on approaching a gallery…

JB: As a lifelong collector you repre-

sent well-known artists such as Lucas Johnson, Felicien Rops, Angelbert Metoyer, Al Souza, John Biggers, and many others. What are your criteria for choosing them?

GK: I am a student of art history.

I love to see and touch something that has been created by a master who has made significant contributions to the arts. Last year we were honored to showcase Derek Boshier, who is a major figure in the British Pop Scene.

Dorothy Tanning, Jim Roche, and Robert Dampier are among many others of significance. Our Director Tanja Peterson is curating our shows based on historical, craftsman like, unique, and novel works. Redbud Gallery has the ability to showcase whatever we wish; we have our own financial support and no overseeing board to answer to.

While being professional and following the Golden Rule and doing your homework about the space, it is important to ask other artists about the reputation of the dealer. Furthermore, inquire as to what type and price range work is selected.

In order to succeed, (from Goings) find a Gatekeeper or someone who is connected to the people you want to know. Be strategic in reaching out, staying in touch, and intentional in demonstrating your competency.

Connect with other people in the network. Show the Gatekeeper you’re willing to learn as he or she will likely introduce you to others and keep investing in you. Help as many people as possible. It’s not just who you know, it’s who you help. People remember what you do for them.

JB: You are known for your

GK: All our shows have had elements

JB: You showcase both emerging

of excitement. The exhibit that created the most commotion was a show titled Sextablos. A Hispanic Chicago based artist curated this show based on small pieces of tin years ago. It

and well-established artists, and you also promote new artists that never had an opportunity to exhibit in galleries. What is your advice to upcoming artist?

collaborations with art galleries worldwide. You have worked with galleries in China, Germany, Turkey, Greece, France, Peru, and even Cuba.

Do you have any new countries to add to your cluster?

49

Installation view, Alfredo Romero, Vestiges of Our Time, 2019. Courtesy of Redbud Gallery.

GK: For the last 15 years, Redbud

has managed over ten major group shows of primarily Texas art in various museums in the world. These exhibitions take a lot of capital and logistical effort. Our next target will probably be Mexico. It is a country that I truly admire from a cultural standpoint. Furthermore, we have a close working relationship with a museum and artist residency in Germany that enables us to host smaller solo or group exhibitions in Germany.

“ I am a student of art history.

I love to see and touch something that has been created by a master who has made significant contributions to the arts.

�

ARTHOUSTON 50

Installation view, Alfredo Romero, Vestiges of Our Time, 2019. Courtesy of Redbud Gallery.

JB: What are your thoughts and

experience with art fairs?

strengthening our collective commercial sector. What are your goals in the near future to fulfill HAGA’s mission?

GK: I have mixed feelings. Most of our

top tier collectors attend the major art fairs in Basel, Miami, Chicago, and New York. Redbud Gallery has participated in international and local art fairs. We broke even on sales. I think our best fairs are those that are managed and financed from local sources. They have a stake in the success or failure of a fair endeavor.

JB: You are the president of the

Houston Gallery Association (HAGA), whose ultimate mission is to advocate Houston as an internationally recognizable arts center thereby

GK: Last year, we formalized our

organization and received our nonprofit status. In 2020 we plan to increase our membership, continue our successful work in releasing funds from the City of Houston for public art, and work on a master plan to strengthen Houston’s art community by promoting new and exciting arts policies and leveraging programs such as Sculpture Month Houston and Fotofest.

JB: What are your plans for the

future of your gallery?

GK: Last year, we added 2500 additional sq. ft to enable us to exhibit larger and more extensive works and installations. The gallery had a very successful year due to our increased presence on internet marketing platforms. In addition to our book publishing efforts, Redbud Gallery is heavily involved with managing a temporary sculpture program on major Houston Boulevards. My goal is to present 100 pieces scattered throughout the city’s districts.

We want to help place permanent art pieces along our major road intersections. My vision is to plan and erect a monumental 500 feet piece of art that will symbolize our city to the world.

51

ARTHOUSTON 52

Art Basel Miami Beach at the Miami Beach Convention Center. Photos courtesy © ArtBasel.

ART HOUSTON MIAMI Last December, Miami hosted 20 art fairs, multiple museum exhibitions, and many other private collection shows that galvanized the entire city.

ArtHouston was present to feel the pulse of Houston’s participating artists and gallerists.

BY JOHN BERNHARD The main fair ART BASEL MIAMI BEACH at the Miami Beach Convention Center, offers ”blue chip” art from the finest galleries in the world. In 2019, the fair brought together 269 premier galleries, presenting works ranging from early 20th century Modern art to the present. While galleries from the United States and Latin America continued to be strongly represented, the show also featured new and returning exhibitors from across the globe, including Asia, Europe, and Africa. Leading private collectors from Europe, the Americas, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East attended this year, as well as representatives from around 200 museums and institutions.

Noah Horowitz, Art Basel Director for the Americas, commented: “We’re thrilled that our show in Miami Beach has become a not-to-miss cultural event for both established collectors and the next generation of patrons, as well as a major confluence of the American creative class. The gal-

lery presentations were of exceptional quality throughout the fair, reinforcing ArtBasel as the leading forum for modern and contemporary art in the region.”

Sicardi Ayers Bacino Gallery was the only gallery from Houston to participate at the fair. They presented an exhibition of works by Venezuelan masters Carlos Cruz-Diez, Alejandro Otero, Mercedes Pardo, and Jesús Rafael Soto.

Partner and Director Allison Ayers said: “Art Basel 2019 was a great experience as usual, and allowed us to connect with collectors from all over the world” ART MIAMI, the homegrown fair that’s become a true rival to the main event, Art Basel Miami Beach, debuted with a 15-percent larger footprint, with more galleries and wider aisles. This was the fair where, Houston’s Art of the World Gallery made its mark showing bronze head sculptures from Javier Marin.

Other South beach venues included one of the fastest

INSIGHTS53

“

Art Basel 2019 was a great experience as usual, and allowed us to connect with collectors from all over the world

�

- Allison Ayers

Sicardi Ayers Bacino Gallery at Art Basel Miami Beach.

A R T HI NO SUISGTHOTNS 5 4

EVENT55

growing satelite fairs, UNTITLED, which hosted international galleries in an airy seaside tent erected on the sand beach. This fair was the choice of McClain gallery to showcase Texas Artists Dorothy Hood and Shane Tolbert.

Erin Dorn, Director, McClain Gallery said: “The energy at the fair was palpable, and we had engaging conversations with collectors and art enthusiasts from all over the world.

The reception to both artists’ abstractions was terrific, and a discovery for most.”

Many Houston artist also made their way to Miami, some for the first time. The popular fairs RED DOT, SPECTRUM and SCOPE attracted many Houstonians like Justin Garcia, Angela Fabri, Rolando Rojas, Fariba Abedin, Valentina Atkinson, Daria Aksenova and Ryan Schmidt.

Artist Valentina Atkinson said: “Our participation in Red Dot Miami was a fabulous experience. Art fairs present the single best opportunity to meet collectors, gallerists and curators. They open doors you might never expect. Fairs are also your best chance to see upcoming work, all in one room surrounded by people who also love art.”

Angela Fabri, who showed her work at Spectrum said: “To be invited to participate in the biggest art week in the world was a dream.”

Another Houston artist, Chu Okoli, shared his experience, “I participated at the Red Dot Miami with Perseus Gallery. I’ve done many Art Fairs including recent ones like the New York Art Expo 2019 and the Contemporary Art Fair Santa Fe NM 2019. However, showing at

Sébastien Boileau “Mr.D1987“ Art Angel, 2019, Winwood Art District, Miami.

Photo by Dave Lee Right: McClain Gallery at Untitled, Art Fair Miami Beach Photo courtesy of McClain Gallery

“

The energy at the fair was palpable...

”

- Erin Dorn

the Art Basel Miami was a different level of experience.

The quality of patronage; the scope and glamour of the art world converging in Miami for one festive week was for me magical.”

Outside the fairs, on the streets, some artists left their marks permanently during the art week festivities.

Houston based French American Artist Sébastien Boileau “ Mr.D1987 “ and assistant Jonathan Ayala spray painted an art angel portrait on a 3 story mural in the heart of Wynwood Art District. The wall was gifted by Houston based mural company Eyeful Art inc. to the Salvation Army. The wall is part of #bigwallsbigdreams, also a Houston run initiative

by Up Art Studio who sourced the wall. According to Sébastien “the work is aimed to inspiring future artist to get involved and inspire others.”

This year will be Art Basel’s 50th anniversary, and to celebrate the occasion the fair’s organizers have planned an ambitious three-part exhibition that will use contemporary art to explore the world that has been created in the wake of the fair’s wild and sustained popularity.

Stay tuned.

ARTHOUSTON 56

gallery listings BISONG GALLERY 1305 Sterrett St. 713 498-3015

BOOKER•LOWE GALLERY 4623 Feagan St. 713 880-1541

CASTERLINE|GOODMAN GALLERY 4444 Westheimer Rd,#F105 +1 970 948-0393 Larry Garmezy, In the Flow of Time

ARCHWAY GALLERY

CASA RAMIREZ FOLK ART 241 West 19th St. 713-880-2420

2305 Dunlavy St. 713 522-2409

MARCH 7 - APRIL 2 Larry Garmezy APRIL 4 - APRIL 30 Isabelle Perre AEROSOL WARFARE 2110 Jefferson 832 748-8369

ARADER GALLERY 5015 Westheimer Rd, #2303 713 621-7151

ART OF THE WORLD GALLERY

ARDEN GALLERY 239 Westheimer Rd. 713 371-6333

2201 Westheimer Rd. 713 526-1201 ART LEAGUE OF BAYTOWN 110 W Texas Ave, Baytown 281 427-2222

ANYA TISH GALLERY

4411 Montrose Blvd.

713 524-2299 APAMA MACKEY GALLERY 628 East 11th Street 713 850-8527

CARDOZA FINE ART 1320 Nance St. 832 548-0404

ART PALACE 3913 Main St. 832 390-1278

ART LEAGUE HOUSTON

CATHERINE COUTURIER GALLERY 2635 Colquitt St. 713 524-5070 CAVALIER FINE ART 3845 Dunlavy St. 713 552-1416 CLARKE & ASSOCIATES 301 E 11th St. 281 310-0513 COMMUNITY ARTISTS 4101 San Jacinto, Suite 115 713 523-1616

1953 Montrose Blvd.

713 523-9530

DAVID SHELTON GALLERY 3909 Main St, 832 538-0924

ASHER GALLERY 4848 Main St. 713 529-4848

DEAN DAY GALLERY 2639 Colquitt St. 713 520-1021

BARBARA DAVIS GALLERY 4411 Montrose Blvd.

713 520-9200

D. M. ALLISON GALLERY 2709 Colquitt 832 607-4378

DEBORAH COLTON GALLERY 2445 North Blvd.

713 869-5151

DEVIN BORDEN GALLERY 3917 Main St. 713 529-2700

DIMMITT CONTEMPORARY ART

3637 W Alabama St #160 281 468-6569 18 HANDS GALLERY 249 W. 19th St, Suite B 713 869-3099

FOTO RELEVANCE 4411 Montrose Blvd., #C 713 505-1499

Gspot GALLERY 310 East 9th Street 713 869-4770 GALERIA REGINA 1716 Richmond Ave 713 523-2524 GALERIE SPECTRA 303 Memorial City Way, 832 656-9671 GALLERY SONJA ROESCH 2309 Caroline St 713 659-5424 THE GITE GALLERY 2024 Alabama St. 713 523-3311

GALVESTON ART CENTER 2501 Market St. Galveston 409 763-2403

GLADE GALLERY 24 Waterway Avenue The Woodlands 832 557-8781

57

ARTHOUSTON 58

gallery listings

GRAY CONTEMPORARY 3508 Lake St. 713 862-4425

GREMILLION & CO. FINE ART, INC. 2501 Sunset Blvd.

713 522-2701

HANNAH BACOL BUSCH GALLERY 6900 S. Rice Ave. 713 527-0523

KOELSCH GALLERY 801 Richmond avenue 713 626-0175

Torabi, Life in Motion… Classic Rock

LA COLOMBE D’OR GALLERY

OFF THE WALL GALLERY

3410 Montrose Blvd.

713 524 -7999

McCLAIN GALLERY 2242 Richmond Ave. 713 520-9988

HARAMBEE ART GALLERY 901 Bagby St. harambeeartgallery.com

MEREDITH LONG & CO. 2323 San Felipe 713 523-6671

HARRIS GALLERY 1100 Bissonnet 713 522-9116

MOODY GALLERY

HIRAM BUTLER GALLERY 4520 Blossom St. 713 863-7097 HOOKS-EPSTEIN GALLERIES 2631 Colquitt St. 713 522-0718

2815 Colquitt St. 713 526-9911

NANCY LITTLEJOHN FINE ART 3465 B W. Alabama Houston, TX 77027 832 740-4288

O’KANE GALLERY UH-Downtown One Main Street 713 221-8042 PARKERSON GALLERY 3510 Lake St. 713 524-4945 PEVETO 2627 Colquitt Street 713 360-7098 POISSANT GALLERY 5102 Center St. 713 868-9337

2000 Edwards St. #117 713 724-0709 SICARDI AYERS BACINO GALLERY 2246 Richmond Ave. 713 529-1313 SIMPSON GALLERIES 6116 Skyline Dr. Suite 1 713 524-6751 TEXAS GALLERY 2012 Peden St. 713 524-1593

FOLTZ FINE ART

2143 Westheimer Rd. 713 521-7500

REDBUD GALLERY 303 E. 11th St. 713 862-2532

HOUSTON CENTER FOR PHOTOGRAPHY

ROCKSTAR GALLERY 5700 NW Central Dr #160 832 868-0242

1441 West Alabama Street 713 529-4755 HUNTER GORHAM GALLERY 1834 1/2 Westheimer Rd. 713 492-0504

5015 Westheimer Rd. Galleria II, Level II 713 871-0940

SERRANO GALLERY

RUDOLPH BLUME FINE ART Reed Anderson

1836 Richmond Avenue 713 807-1836

Jon Flamin

INMAN GALLERY 3901 Main St. 713 526-7800

NICOLE LONGNECKER 3233 West 11th St. 713 591-4997

SHE WORKS FLEXIBLE 1709 Westheimer Rd. 713 522-0369

YVONAMOR PALIX FINE ARTS 1024 Studewood 281 467-6065

JACK MEIER GALLERY 2310 Bissonnet 713 526-2983

OCTAVIA ART GALLERY 3637 West Alabama #120 713 877-1810

SAMARA GALLERY 3100 Richmond, suite 104 713 999-1009

ZOYA TOMMY 4102 Fannin St. 832 649-5814

Didier Mayes, En la Terminal, oil on canvas, 43x55 in

59

ARTHOUSTON 60

61

Adriana LoRusso

Clovis Postali

Didier Mayes

Gretchen Bender Sparks

Valentina Kisseleva

Deborah Ellington

Vicki Hessemer

Nichole Dittmann

Gabriela Monterroso

Lacy Husmann

Valentina Atkinson

Tania Botelho

Alessandra Albin

Lyn Sullivan

Matthew Gantt

Studio 326 832-607-9117 alorussoart@gmail.com

Studio 306 713-899-0112 www.dellingtonartstudio.com

Studio 317 713-724-0709 www.valentinaatkinson.com

Studio 215 832-696-5789 www.clovispostali.sitelio.me

Studio 121 713-504-9118 www.vickihessemer.com

Studio 102 281-660-5061 IG- @taniahbotelho

Studio 214 713-444-7562 www.gretchenbendersparks.com

Studio 317 713-724-0709 www.serranogallery.com

Studio 218 713-501-7290 FB-Nichole Dittmann Jewelry Designs

Studio 210 713-557-8731 aa@alessandraalbin.com

Studio # 210 281-682-6628 www.gabrielamonterroso.com

Studio 312 281-520-1349 www.lynsullivan.com

Studio 325 832-803-2001 FB - Tiva Kisseleva Frick

Studio 105 832-993-5583 www.lacyhusmann.com

Studio 213 713-689-9709 www.constellationism.info

WHERE ART LOVERS AND ARTISTS CONNECT VISIT ARTISTS’ STUDIOS EVERY SECOND SATURDAY OF THE MONTH

2000 EDWARDS ST. HOUSTON, TX 77007

12-6PM

SILVERSTREETHOUSTON.COM

ARTHOUSTON 62

performing arts schedule

HOUSTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA ALLEY THEATRE

HOUSTON GRAND OPERA Brown Theater, Wortham Theater Center 510 Preston St. 713 546-0200

615 Texas Avenue 713 220-5700 CAMP DAVID March 1 - 15 1984 March 6 - 29

2020 BALL April 4

DEAD MAN’S CELL PHONE April 17 - May 10

SALOME April 17, 19, 25, May 1

AMERIKIN May 8 - June 7

THE MAGIC FLUTE April 24, 26, 28, May 2, 5, 8

SENSE AND SENSIBILITY June 5 - July 5

Disney’s Newsies

Jesse H. Jones Hall 615 Louisiana Street, Suite 100 713 227-4772 UPPER ELEMENTARY March 4, 5, April 14, 15 ADAMS’ EL NINO March 14, 15 WHOLE LOTTA SHAKIN’—SWING TO ROCK March 20, 21, 22 MOZART’S PIANO CONCERT NO. 20 March 26, 28, 29 ANDRES CONDUCTS MAHLER 7 April 3, 4, 5 HARRY POTTER AND THE HALFBLOOD PRINCE™ April 10, 11, May 9, 10 ARETHA—QUEEN OF SOUL April 17, 18, 19 HEROES & ADVENTURES April 18 SYMPHONIE FANTASTIQUE May 1, 2, 3 BEETHOVEN + LOPEZ May 15, 17 GAME ON! May 21, BEST OF JOHN WILLIAMS—STAR WARS May 22, 23, 24

Pure Country

IMA HOGG COMPETITION May 30

THEATRE UNDER THE STARS 1475 West Gray 713 520-1220

DA CAMERA 1402 Sul Ross 713 524-524-7601

PURE COUNTRY April 14, 26

A LITTLE DAY MUSIC March 4, April 1, May 6

DISNEY’S NEWSIES May 19 - 31

CÉCILE MCLORIN SALVANT TRIO April 3 MIGUEL ZENÓN QUARTET April 17 ANTHRACITE FIELDS—BANG ON A CAN ALL STARS & HOUSTON CHAMBER CHOIR May 8

63

HOBBY CENTER

800 Bagby Street 713 315-2400 FIDDLER ON THE ROOF March 24 - 29 AN EVENING WITH C.S. LEWIS & J.R.R. TOLKIEN Apr 25, 26 BACH GOES GREEK May 16 CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY June 2 - 7 HAMILTON June 3 - July 31 Hamilton, photo by Joan Marcus

HOUSTON BALLET Wortham Center, 500 Texas Avenue 713 227-2787

FORGED IN HOUSTON March 12 - 22 SPRING ACADEMY SHOWCASE April 24 - 25 FROM HOUSTON TO THE WORLD May 23 - May 31 ROMEO & JULIET June 4 - June 14 From Houston to the World, Houston Ballet

A R T H OAURSTTHOONU S6 T4 O N 6 4

poetry

IT SNOWS IN HOUSTON ON EMILY DICKINSON’S BIRTHDAY B Y

L A U R I E

N E W E N D O R P

Fresh from heaven’s oven, Miss Dickinson’s notorious gingerbread, brown a s the ear th tones of Amherst , Ma ssachusetts, a state in America with a Cape that curl s into the ocean like a dog’s tail frozen in a steady wag; and inland, on the other side of Boston, snow clouds are billowing -Miss Dickinson’s white apron -caught by winds of winter time blowing here in Houston, snow sof t a s sugar sif ted by the sparkling air -and you, love, are the scent of spices, my gingerbread in Houston, beside me longer than this snow will la st , melting, magic f lurried light -the angel side of storm here, snow wings by night , warm hear ts in the morning.

This poem was originally published by Laurie Newendorp in her debut chapbook When dreams were poems.

65

ARTHOUSTON 66

reviews

Katja Loher, Video Art Crystal Projection, 2020

KATJA LOHER

Escaping Earth: The Kinetic Work of Casey Curran

CASEY CURRAN

ANYA TISH GALLERY

HOUSTON CENTER FOR CONTEMPORARY CRAFT

Anya Tish Gallery presents the return of Swiss-born, New Yorkbased multidisciplinary artist Katja Loher for What happens to the swallows who are late for spring? The exhibition features her latest body of work: video, video-sculpture and installation.

Intricate images are projected onto large floating spheres or incased in glass bubbles and bird nests, placing the observer in a universe of strange planets where creatures and landscapes interact and communicate in symphonic harmony bringing into question the individual´s role in the greater universe.

Katja Loher is changing the face of video art by choosing to present her works as organic sculptural forms, or Videosculptures, in lieu of a flat rectangular screen. Loher’s nearly seamless fusion of the technological with the organic reflects the digital world of magic she creates. Each Videosculpture addresses ecological urgencies, such as the plight of pollinators, abuses of technology, and the future of humanity, while simultaneously drawing attention to the intrinsic beauty of the life sustaining processes that support our planet.

The videos are the product of a collaborative efforts between the creative talents of architects, designers, poets, composers, glass blowers, and performers who, under the creative direction of Loher, work to animate the imagined world of the artist. While Loher proposes questions in her works, she does not offer answers- that task is left to the viewer who will emerge from her Miniverse inspired by a renewed appreciation for the splendor and complexity of nature and the desire to preserve its beauty.

On view March 6 - April 3, 2020.

Houston Center for Contemporary Craft presents Escaping Earth: The Kinetic Work of Casey Curran, featuring kinetic sculptures, asteroid paintings, and installations that reflect the haunting beauty of human innovation and its aftermath. The exhibition, which is Curran’s first solo show outside of Washington State, showcases the artist’s ability to create exquisite sculptures that convey the complexities found within nature, art, and architecture.

In this collection of work, Curran questions the human psyche and the ultimate purpose behind the human drive to define and create. Representing the impulse to control nature for human consumption, his kinetic sculptures evoke a sense of curiosity and wonder in the viewer. In pieces like “Seed,” he presents a garden of ghostly, lace-like forms that bloom into gothic tableaus of flora and fauna. He comments, “We have created both beauty and desolation, defined only through the lens of our goals, and it is through this lens, this eye of the beholder, that I bring a seed of an idea to the audience.”

This exhibition captures the impact of human aspirations on the finite system of resources found in the terrestrial environment, as well as on the new frontier of outer space. HCCC Curator, Kathryn Hall comments, “Curran captures both the beauty and the dark side of innovation. While we continue to build monuments that mark our existence, and we seek to colonize new frontiers, Curran questions the overall costs of this quest for immortality on our ecosystem, giving pause to the universal impact of the human race.” On view until March 29, 2020.

67

Sarah Ferguson, Marmalade and Martini

Brice Marden, Cold Mountain Study (13), 1988-91.

Ink on paper, 7 7/8x 9 3/8 in. Photo by Bill Jacobson

SARAH FERGUSON + MALLORY PAGE

BRICE MARDEN

Dimmitt Contemporary Art is pleased to announce DOUBLE RAINBOW, an exhibition of paintings by artists Sarah Ferguson and Mallory Page.

DOUBLE RAINBOW is a joint exhibition focusing on the concept of the rainbow, providing an immersive experience shared by all. Together, Ferguson and Page decided to approach the exhibition as an installation; boldly juxtaposing their distinct styles, yet uniting them through color. Through the adoption of a more subdued version of the color spectrum, their intent was not only to hint at bridging the cultural auras of yesteryear and today, but also to broach the idea of igniting each individual to their own wistful response to the rainbow connection.

It’s the sublime versus the applied; while Page’s work reveals lavish brushstrokes yielding gossamer layers, Ferguson’s reveals a painstakingly methodical application of hard-edged, geometric shapes. Both have individually adopted the use of monochromatic tone to build out visual spaces, enhancing one color to evoke an emotional, at times even visceral, response.

Each artist’s work comes together in their psychological exploration by studying identity through light, space and color as well as the shifts and nuances of various tonal perspectives.

While recognizing the natural phenomena of the rainbow, they also commit themselves to the cultural symbolism it provokes.

Dimmitt Contemporary Art is a fine art gallery and advisory firm located in Houston, Texas.

The exhibition will be on view through Thursday, March 19, 2020.

Think of Them as Spaces: Brice Marden’s Drawings is an exploration of the artist’s draftsmanship and the catalytic role the medium plays within his practice. In a 1979 written statement, Marden asked that his drawings be thought of “as spaces.” This comment suggests, for him, drawing is a medium that not only exists in more than two dimensions, but also is capable of reflecting the spirit and experience of a particular place. As seen throughout his work, Marden’s expansive vision explores how landscape, architecture, and objects found in nature shape one’s way of understanding the world.

This exhibition presents six series of drawings that span nearly the entirety of Marden’s ongoing career, highlighting the processes of invention and permutation that occur as he works and thinks on paper. One series—composed of twelve works with dense layers of pigmentation—revisits geographies and methods crucial to his early work, namely the architectural forms of ancient Greece and the heavily worked and opaque surfaces made of wax and graphite that first brought him to prominence. Additionally, the presentation maps how the artist’s two watershed series, The Seasons and Cold Mountain, have reverberated within his practice and have evolved over decades. Drawing as a means of study, a quality that runs throughout his oeuvre, is particularly apparent in his examinations of proportion and ratio as well as in works taken from sketchbooks that Marden completed while traveling. Feb 21 – Jun 14, 2020

MENIL DRAWING INSTITUTE

ARTHOUSTON 68

Last October at the Amegy Tower near the Galleria, The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) Houston District, presented the Hispanic Heritage Month Awards recognizing newly elected officials.

LULAC treasurer, Mrs. Mary Ramos, hosted a beautiful evening. Awards were presented by the charismatic team of Steve Stephens, CEO, Amegy Bank and Kenny Mercado, CIO, CenterPoint Energy.

arts-Amegy-latinx

H I S PA N I C H E R I TA G E M O N T H AWA R D S A N D A R T E X H I B I T AT AMEGY BANK TOWER

BY ARTHUR DEMICHELI PHOTOS BY HEIDI POWELL

ArtHouston Magazine’s publisher John Bernhard curated the art exhibition in conjunction with the event, and showcased a talented group of artists from Manteca, the nation’s first online directory of Latinx creatives practicing in the literary, performing and visual arts, based in Houston. 18 artists out of 200 were selected to exhibit their work.

From left: Commissioner Adrian Garcia, Christina Morales from the Texas House of Representatives, Senator Carol Alvarado , Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, Congresswoman Sylvia R. Garcia, Steve Stephens, CEO, Amegy Bank and Kenny Mercado, CIO, Centerpoint.

An inspiring panel discussion about upcoming elections was held followed by questions from the audience.

EVENT 69

Peso Zapata, Diego part of the Printing Money series, 2019, mixed media on canvas, 20x30 in.

Curator John Bernhard and Kelly Foreman, VP Amegy Bank with Peso Zapata, winner of “Best in Show.�

Artist Gabriela Monterroso from Guatemala, Bettie Donovan, Amegy Bank Project Manager and Colombian artist Zulma Vega.

Matt Ross, ArtHouston Senior Account Executive reviewing the artworks.

ARTHOUSTON 70

Guest Curator

F

Page Piland and Yvonamor Palix Right: Installation views of Flight of the Monarch, International Art Biennial, Spring Street Studios, curated by Yvonamor Palix.

FLIGHT OF THE MONARCH

, INTERNATIONAL ART B I E N N I A L , WA S A N E X H I B I T O N C U R AT E D B Y Y V O N A M O R PA L I X . IN HER OWN WORDS, SHE SHARED WITH ARTHOUSTON, HER INSIGHTFUL THOUGHTS A B O U T T H E C H A L L E N G E S O F C U R AT I N G S U C H A S H O W.

After so many years of curating exhibits

so much more. I have seen the branches of

comes from Spring Street Studio artists and

for the foreign ministries of Mexico and of

enormous trees drag on the ground from

with the Sawyer Yards artists. The Biennial

France along with my experience as guest

their weight. Truly a magical sight and some-

lasted four months, I invited many wonderful

curator of the French Pavillion and art insti-

thing that I believe close to the leitmotiv of

associations to use the momentum and space

tutions, I was happy and honored to accept

an artist and to artists as a whole.

as a place of gathering, discussion related

this challenge. Initially, it was an annual ex-

The exhibit included works by over 60 art-

to the arts and other social or community

hibit of the resident artists of the Studios.

ists, with 25 countries represented. The first

issues along with a rich program of music by

For this, they did not need a curator so I pro-

country after the US in terms of representa-

the Houston Ensemble Ars Lyrica. This gave

posed to bring to the table which is what I do

tion was France closely followed by Mexico.

place for a great arena for the local public

best. I wanted to create a dialogue between

I am the daughter of a career diplomat so

to enjoy. I was surprised when international

the art of diverse origins, the art of diverse

diplomacy runs through my veins and bring-

curators such as my friends Sarah Wilson

styles and of diverse techniques.

ing in the Consular Corps for the opening

and Adrien Sina were struck by the project,

The title that I chose was Flight of the

and for the closing of the event was impor-

hopefully, this will grow into a bigger project

Monarch, International Art Biennial, Hous-

tant. Houston is the second city of the US

with proper funding from the city and private

ton. The Monarch is an insect that symbol-

with such a diverse Consular representation.

corporations in order to put Houston on the

izes the extreme tenacity and perseverance

I felt that Houston deserved an International

International Biennial map.

necessary to achieve the extraordinary.

Biennial that would showcase local talent

I hope to continue creating other projects

These beautiful little creatures fly to central

through the work of young and mid-career art-

in my own unorthodox manner that will

Mexico to their sanctuary from Canada, it’s

ists. The word Biennial carries weight because

highlight the artists and that give our minds

the new generation that completes the cy-

it implicates a two-year process of selection

‘flight” through interesting and thought-

cle. They travel a great distance and it takes

and preparation as opposed to what is known

provoking exhibits. For now, I will return to my

6 generations for them to return. The mon-

in Houston as a Biannual which is simply

showroom ARTIQUE in the Heights where

arch butterfly shows us that its purpose in

an open door exhibit of the artist studios

I present monographic exhibitions, offer

life is far greater than that of an individual

that take place twice a year. I worked with

insightful discussion, and provide decent

butterfly and that as a group they achieve

a very limited budget, but much support

coffee or wine!

71

ARTHOUSTON 72

I

n

t

What upcoming projects are you working on?

Recently, I painted a mural for Arts District Houston when they paired up with the HUE Mural Festival. I got to paint the exterior of sculpture artist Bill Meek’s studio, using my work to tell the story of the ongoing gentrification in that area. The imagery I created is of Old Historic 1st ward houses floating off into space.

What was the very first independent creative project you worked on?

I’ve managed my own creative projects since I was small, always making something. I then began canvas painting in high school. My first “contracted” mural gig I was hired for was at a child development center. I painted an entire game room for the kids, and then they had me paint a classroom to look like under the ocean. I painted an enormous whale shark. The kids loved it! That was over 15 years ago. I was super young and inexperienced. The woman who operated the program really liked me and my art, and took a huge chance there!

Where are you from?

I’m from Cypress, a suburb of Houston, where I was born and raised up until high school when I moved to Austin with my family. It was there that I really started to open up creatively. I met a hugely diverse creative community in Austin — a totally different culture than I was exposed to living in Cypress. Once

e

r

v

i

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I graduated high school and moved back to the Houston area, it was almost as if I had learned how to appreciate the art and culture Houston has to offer and then got involved in gallery shows and painting murals.

I’ve been here ever since.

What types of mediums do you work in?

I mostly use paints, brushes and acrylics for both murals and smaller studio work. I also draw a lot with pencils, charcoals, pens, prisma colors, copic markers — you name it. Drawing is my most connective, authentic form of expression, but painting is where I challenge myself the most and learn the most about creating and myself as an artist, so I’m hooked. I don’t do a whole lot of exploring with other mediums outside of that.

T h e m a t i c a l l y, w h a t i s your work usually about?

Most of the time, I paint what I see in my imagination — streams of consciousness, I guess. I try not to confine a piece to anything at all in the beginning, and what usually happens is that I’ll see a theme or subject matter emerge later on. It’s almost as if something in the subconscious is pulled out. Creating something beautiful is always a priority, and most of the time it’s feminine. The meanings that I find afterwards can be seen as slightly political or represent a current issue, but I’m not strictly painting about one type of thing or even controlling a

JESSICA RICE

piece that much. Other times, my work speaks to my experiences in my life being a woman or a mom. I have three little girls that constantly inspire me.

What recent projects are you most proud of?

This isn’t very recent, but I’ll always be proud of the mural I created in the art alley at Sawyer Yards of a little girl with headphones. I painted that piece in 2016 right before the last election, and she sort of became a symbol. A ton of people reached out to me over the years about her.

Some even took their daughters out there to pose with her for pictures and were brought to tears. I think because the little girl I painted was a person of color, it became more impactful during that time than I could have ever imagined.

Why do you create art?

I create art because it’s my passion and just something I always feel like doing. Another reason is for connection — to connect with myself and other people. I’ve always been a terribly shy person, so I think I started making art when I was a very small child to express myself without actually having to talk to people. I used to draw pictures for kids in my class and give it to them, and then the other kids liked my drawings and started asking for one, so that’s how I used to make friends. It’s also something I’ve always done alone to get back to myself and to think, and almost meditate, if that makes sense.

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Bringing Home with Us Mural by Royal Sumikat at Henderson & Kane in Arts District Houston, Photo by Giselle Parra.

What upcoming projects are you working on?

The latest mural project I completed was Bringing Home With us in Old Sixth Ward at Henderson and Kane General Store, funded in partnership with Arts District Houston. For the task, I read up on the history of the neighborhood and found out the first inhabitants of the 6th Ward were emancipated slaves, Germans, Mexicans, and Italian immigrants.

The mural symbolizes 6th Ward’s predecessors who “shouldered” the responsibility and carried the neighborhood — building it from the ground up as railroad workers, grocery store owners, farmers, and factory workers.

This project is incredibly important to me because I, too, am an immigrant who came here to Houston with my family to build a life and be a part of a tight knit community.

I am currently putting the finishing touches on some works that will be featured at the Lumikhâ Arts Showcase happening January 25th at Winter Street Studios.

After that, I’ll be working on an art bike for Houston Bike Share, which will complement the mural I painted at Henderson & Kane. It’ll be my first time painting on a bike, so I’m pretty excited about it!

What was the very first independent creative project you worked on?

What constitutes an independent creative project? And how far back do I go to consider a project a “first”?

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Taking a crayon to my parents bedroom wall when I was 3 was my VERY first independent creative endeavor, but only my mom got to experience the beauty of this project. It was immediately painted over.

Ah, the bittersweet art of impermanence.

Fast forward to the beginning of my art career, the very first project I worked on was an art trade with an art pen pal who lives in Florida.

I sent her a photorealistic portrait done in charcoal and she sent me a surreal drawing. We traded art for a couple of years, and now I have a couple of her works hanging on my wall.

Where are you from?

I was born in Makati, Philippines. I moved with my mother and brother to Saudi Arabia when I was 6 to be with my dad, who was an overseas Filipino worker for 14 years. We used to only see him twice a year, and our method of communication was letters and recorded voice cassette tapes. In 1995, during my 4th grade year, we moved to Houston.

I always drew, painted, and crafted but didn’t consider myself an artist until a friend of mine introduced me to their sibling as “their friend, the artist.” I started my career as an artist 6 years ago, and it’s changed my life.

What types of mediums do you work in?

Every few years it seems to change.

When I started, I was drawing lots of charcoal portraits. Then, I picked

ROYAL SUMIKAT

up spray paint. This introduced me to bright bold colors, so I gravitated towards Copic markers and acrylics. Now, I’m really into gouache. I’ve gotten comfortable with markers, but that’s when I take that stretch opportunity and try something new.

Spray paint has been the constant in my work.

T h e m a t i c a l l y, w h a t i s your work usually about?

I paint a lot of women — women warriors, immigrant women, indigenous women, women of color, etc.

My intention is to bring recognition to the global culture’s unsung heroes, silent victims, hidden warriors, and tender healers. Like Nina Simone says, “An artist’s duty is to reflect the times.”

What recent projects are you most proud of?

The mural at Henderson & Kane is an awesome project that I’m really happy with, as well as the Filipinx Artists of Houston’s inaugural event, Filipinx Film Night and Art Show,

Why do you create art?

I make art because I have ideas, emotions, and stories that I want to express to whoever is open to receiving them. Storytelling was a huge part of my ancestors’ culture, and I want to reconnect with them through my talents. If my life was an altar for my ancestors, my art is my offering to them.

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exposure

ALFONSO BONILLA

www.serranogallery.com 713-724–0709

JON FLAMING

www.foltzgallery.com 713 521-7500

DARIA AKSENOVA

www.dariaaksenova.com 713-865-0577

E X P O S U R7 E7 7 7

LYN SULLIVAN

Silver Street Studios, #211 www.lynsullivan.com Lyn@lynsullivan.com 281 520-1349

ADRIANA LORUSSO

Silver Street Studios, #326 alorussoart@gmail.com

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artH O U S T O N PUBLISHER, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

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ARTHOUSTONMAGAZINE.COM ARTHOUSTONMAGAZINE@GMAIL.COM ArtHouston is published semiannually by Art Houston Magazine, LLC. ©Copyright 2019. All right reserved. The entire contents of ArtHouston may not be reproduced in any matter, either in part or in whole, without written permission from the publisher. In addition, the artists within hold copyrights on their images and essays. Any use of or copying of their works without their written permission is in violation of the copyright law. Art Houston Magazine, LLC. is not responsible in any way for mispellings, omissions, incorrect phone numbers or addresses.

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contributors

Arthur Demicheli EDITOR, WRITER

Arthur Demicheli is a freelance copywriter and photographer from New York who has worked in the marketing, advertising, and publishing industries since 1992. Recently, Arthur has been a dynamic part of ArtHouston’s team. He holds an MA in Humanities from the University of Geneva. He is an avid fan of art, film, and photograhy history.

Morgan Cronin WRITER

Morgan Cronin is a New York City based writer, originally from Houston. She received her B.A. in Journalism from the University of Oklahoma and is currently a secondyear MFA candidate at the New School, where she is studying creative nonfiction. She has been a regular contributor to ArtHouston. Her work has appeared in the Culture Trip, Houston Press, and elsewhere.

Nathan Lindstrom PHOTOGRAPHER

Nathan Lindstrom is a commercial portrait and lifestyle photographer based in Houston with clients from all over the world. Having grown up in Iowa and lived in Argentina and Spain, Lindstrom draws on his experiences for inspiration. His work was included in two shows during the last FotoFest exhibition. Lindstrom has a studio in Silver Street Studios and lives with his wife and their dog, Kirby.

Hanneke Humphrey WRITER

In addition to writing, Hanneke Humphrey is active as a creative artist, event organizer, and MFAH docent.

Of American, French, and Dutch background, she worked as an economist, marketing strategist, and educator for many years, while pursuing her love of the arts.

Sabrina Bernhard WRITER

Sabrina Bernhard is a recent graduate from the University of Texas at Austin, where she received a BA in International Relations and in French. She is working with ArtHouston to fulfill her passion for the arts, while further developing Houston’s admirable cross-cultural reputation. Sabrina is passionate about travelling, la Francophonie, music, and culture.

Karine Parker-Lemoyne CURATO R, EDUCATO R

Karine Parker-Lemoyne is a Texan-French curator, visual artist, educator and community developer. She currently runs the Texan-French Alliance for the Arts.

Some of the major projects she developed include Go West 1 at UNESCO in Paris, the Houston citywide “Open the Door” public art program, and in 2015 “From A Space to A Place” that strives to meet the challenges of increasing urbanization.

Holly Walrath EDITOR, WRITER

Denver Writing. variety Houston Texas.

Holly Walrath is a freelance editor and author living in Seabrook. She attended the University of Texas at Austin for her B.A. in English and the University of for her M.L.A. in Creative Her writing has appeared in a of publications including the Chronicle and Arts+Culture

Jody (aka JT) Morse WRITER

JT Morse is a freelance, multi-genre writer based in Evergreen, TX. She pens everything from award-winning flash fiction to spec fic poetry to nonfiction articles for local and national magazines. Morse also teaches writing workshops for Writespace, Comicpalooza, HIA, and RWA. For more information, visit her social media pages: @JTMorseWriter.

Hall Puckett PHOTOGRAPHER

Hall Puckett is a photographer based in Houston. Early on when friends and family asked him what he was going to do with a major in psychology and a minor in photography his response was “I guess I’ll just have to take pictures of crazy people!” Funny how things work out. He currently lives off the north loop in a “transitional neighborhood” with his wife, two rescue dogs, and a cat named Lalo.

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editor’s pick

Joel Anderson

Photography by Joel Anderson, H-Town Skyline 92, 2019, Encaustic on birch panel in black float frame.

There are new perspectives on the downtown skyline which has become a signature series for photographer Joel Anderson. “Preparing for this series was like a treasure hunt in some ways,” says Anderson. “Where exactly does one stand to get compositionally great images of our city? Realizing I needed to get above the trees and power lines for some of the shots that I wanted, I bought a drone and became an FAA-certified drone pilot.”

Anderson continues, “I also wanted to go big in this collection, and that meant scaling everything up, from my workspace, techniques, processes, and framing decisions, to even trading in my SUV for a van to accommodate the bigger pieces.” Anderson maintains a studio at The Silos on Sawyer and is a frequent exhibitor on the local art fair circuit, including the Bayou City Arts Festival and the First Saturday Arts Market. www.JoelAndersonArt.com