In The News

Two Female Artists Use Unique, Time-Honored Techniques

By Saranna Zhang

The color yellow is the star of the show in Gabo Martinez’s “The Land of Flowers” at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft (Photo by Katy Anderson)

Craft and ceramics made by female artists are getting a new spotlight. “The Land of the Flowers” from San Marcos-based artist Gabo Martinez at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft and “Smokey Memory” from Dallas-based Nadia Rosales at Lone Gallery in Dallas are two special and unique collections of pots and sculptures. Combining heritage, technique and just a bit of luck, these carefully crafted works are something of a must-see. Continue Reading »

By Chis Becker

XOCHITLALPAN IS THE Nahuatl word for “The Land of Flowers.” This land is a mythical afterworld of everlasting flowers and joy described in the Aztec/Mexica pre-Hispanic and later-colonial poetic tradition known as In Xochitl In Cuicatl (Flower and Song). It is also the evocative title of San Marcos-based artist Gabo Martinez’s exhibit at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, a colorful, immersive installation in the museum’s front gallery of ceramics and large-scale prints inspired by her indigenous roots, as well as images pulled from the oral tradition of Flower Songs. It’s a show where floor-to-ceiling prints radiate with all the colors of nature on a sunny day, and the pottery simply sings.

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When Craft and Art Come Together

By Caitlin Hsu

Yeonsoo Kim, honoree Judy Nyquist, Jihye Han at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft Spring Luncheon (Photo by Jenny Antill Clifton)

At the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft’s 2023 Spring Luncheon, legacies and lifetime achievements were honored. Nearly 250 guests gathered at River Oaks Country Club to celebrate a legend in Houston’s art world: Judy Nyquist. Nyquist is not only Houston Center for Contemporary Craft’s board president, but she is also an activist and philanthropist who has supported the Bayou City art community for many decades.

As artful attendees feasted on a delicious lunch — River Oaks Country Club salad, basil angel hair pasta with grilled chicken and artichokes, and a dessert of Fancy Dainties gourmet cookies — HCCC board member Dori Boone delivered the welcome remarks. Nyquist, the afternoon’s honoree, then took the stage and introduced HCCC’s incoming executive director Leila Cartier, previously of CraftNOW Philadelphia. Cartier is slated to join the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft team in July.

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The Manila-born sculptor traces his roots in a new solo exhibit at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft.

By Robert Boyd

Photo by Michael Starghill, Jr.

What inspires a person to become an artist? Ask Matt Manalo, and he’ll talk about the mural painters he remembers from his childhood in Manila. “I have this very vivid image of folks climbing scaffolding made of bamboo,” says the Philippines-born, now Houston-based artist. “They would be painting these giant movie posters, mural-size. I remember sitting back in the car in traffic watching these guys painting these figures and the titles of the movies. They did it so fast and so beautifully.”

Nineteen years ago, Manalo immigrated from the Philippines to the United States—specifically to the Houston neighborhood of Alief. He was 19 years old. Now 38, he’s officially spent half his life in the Philippines and half in the United States. Manalo examines his voyage from there to here in his sculptural installation “38,” part of his new solo exhibit Philippine-Made, currently on view at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft.

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Iconic Art Space Goes Costume Crazy With a WitchCraft Twist

By Catilin Hsu. Additional reporting Catherine D. Anspon.

Perry Price, Rosemary Price, and Mary Headrick at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft Martini Madness (Photo by Katy Anderson)

This is the first story in a series detailing outrageous, inventive and important art parties. It’s time to anoint the most sizzling soirées of the season.

The Big Event: Houston Center for Contemporary Craft’s Martini Madness! fundraiser

Mise en Scène: The Craft Center’s festive “Witches Den” (party tent) and “Garden of Fortunes” (HCCC’s Craft Garden) in the heart of the Houston Museum District.

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Parents everywhere know the value of crafts to keep children occupied, but can have difficulty coming up with new ideas. The Houston Center for Contemporary Craft has an ongoing monthly resource for that called Hands On Houston. Broadcast November 11th, 2022 on Stafford METV.

Our thanks to Matt Manalo for including Houston Center for Contemporary Craft in his 365 Things to Do in Houston “My Top 5” feature! We are very excited for Matt’s solo exhibition here at HCCC in early 2023.

In our My Top 5 series, we turn to the Houstonians who create and shape Houston’s character and ask them to share their own favorite things that make H-Town home. This week, we’re delighted to feature artist Matt Manalo, who also founded alternative art space, Alief Art House.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

By Justin Jerkins

Photo: Michael Starghill Photography; courtesy of the artist.

“I’ve lived here for 19 years; my family and I moved here [from Manila, Philippines],” says artist Matt Manalo, founder of Alief Art House and Filipinx Artists of Houston. “I was already in college when I left, pursuing computer engineering and then when I came here, I felt like it wasn’t a thing I wanted to pursue anymore. At that time, people were really hiring nurses at a fast rate and so I thought that was something I would be doing for the rest of my life, and it turned out it wasn’t [laughs]. I quickly realized that I can’t really imagine spending the rest of my life working at a hospital and that’s when I did some self-searching…I’ve always been interested in art growing up and that’s when I realized that art is something I wanted to do full-time for the rest of my life.”

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How does craft tell stories differently than other visual arts media? I posed this question to Texas-raised, Los Angeles-based artist and curator Andres Payan Estrada, juror for CraftTexas 2022, the biennial juried exhibition presented by Houston Center for Contemporary Craft (HCCC), now in its 11th edition. “We always highlight the material, how it’s made, and the labor behind it,” says Estrada, “but most importantly we aim to highlight the individual who is making it.”

By Sherry Cheng

Individual narratives and histories are embedded through and through in this conceptually expansive yet thematically cohesive exhibition, on view Oct. 1, 2022 through Jan. 28, 2023 at HCCC. 40 pieces by 27 artists, selected from a pool of more than 250 applicants, enter into nuanced conversations with each other and with the viewer, connecting through explorations of identity, social history, and communal experiences, while pushing the boundaries of contemporary craft. “Artists are dismantling the perception of what a craft object is,” observes Estrada. “It’s often thought of as either solely living in the domestic or something being painstakingly created by hand. A lot of these artists are taking these preconceptions and blowing them up.”

Olaniyi Rasheed Akindiya, “OSU MEJILA ATI ODUN KAN – 12 MOON IS ONE COMPLETE CALENDAR YEAR,” 2020. Mixed-media tapestry sculpture installation. 100 x 26 x 100 inches. Photo by ARTWITHAKIRASH STUDIO LLC.

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By Becca Hensley

While mourning the death of my grandmother recently, I made my first visit to the Rothko Chapel in Houston. The octagonal, minimalistic sanctum, anchored by a reflective pool, looked nothing like a conventional house of worship, yet it drew me in immediately. Something healing flowed out.

In 1964, art collectors John and Dominique de Menil commissioned abstract expressionist Mark Rothko to design this ecumenical structure. Completed in 1971, a year after Rothko’s suicide, the chapel showcases 14 of this master’s paintings, each featuring a series of mysteriously dark, subtle hues: grays, purples, even greens. They took me inside myself in a grounding way — centering me on that first visit, as well as on subsequent ones.

DAVID WARREN / ALAMY STOCK PHOTO

Houston reigns as an arts and curiosities mecca, as evidenced by its prized Museum District, home to not only this chapel but 18 other institutions grouped into four walkable zones about 4 miles south of downtown. Displaying objects as varied as the largest emerald crystal found in North America, Byzantine icons and Jackson Pollock paintings, the district offers something for every mood. There’s even a 55-acre zoological park.

You can’t experience the entire district in one trip, but here’s a doable plan for a three-day museumfest.

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The Houston Center for Contemporary Craft’s Spring Luncheon at River Oaks Country Club toasted 20 years of cutting edge exhibitions from artists working in today’s important craft media. Artist Catherine Morgan, the inspiration behind HCCC’s founding, was honored at the event along with the organization’s original board of directors. who were tapped as honorary chairs.

By Vivian Phillips and Catherine D. Anspon

Yvonne Garcia, David Gooding & Edward Lane McCartney (Photo by Katy Anderson)

The Houston Center for Contemporary Craft’s Spring Luncheon at River Oaks Country Club toasted 20 years of cutting edge exhibitions from artists working in today’s important craft media. Artist Catherine Morgan, the inspiration behind HCCC’s founding, was honored at the event along with the organization’s original board of directors. who were tapped as honorary chairs.

Chrissi Morgan, Bill Morgan, honoree Catherine Morgan, honorary chair Sara Morgan, honorary chair Mike Morgan (Photo by Katy Anderson)

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