Meow Wolf Houston takes guests to interstellar dimensions even NASA cannot attain.
Don’t let the sniffs and sneers of out-of-staters idiot you—Texas is a haven for world-class artwork, with Houston as its crowning glory. Our worldwide views and entry to long-running establishments like Rice College, the Menil Assortment, the Museum of Effective Arts, and others give us loads of inspiration to proceed studying, rising, and experimenting with all of the potential the humanities has to supply.
So, in fact, Houston had greater than its fair proportion of notable happenings in 2024 that deserve our recognition.
Are you able to clear up all of Meow Wolf Houston’s mysteries?
Meow Wolf Lastly Opened
Houston performs host to the fifth Meow Wolf expertise, themed round a sleepy West Texas radio station that unexpectedly will get shunted right into a parallel universe. It will get weirder from there. Guests can unravel the mysteries behind what precisely occurred to the ETNL crew by exploring each nook and cranny of the family-friendly story. Open drawers, flip by way of books, and take notes as you dive headfirst into the works of greater than 100 native, nationwide, and worldwide artists.
“We couldn’t be extra energized to deliver Meow Wolf to Houston, a metropolis that thrives on creativity,” says Meow Wolf Houston normal supervisor Gil Perez. “Town’s deep-rooted appreciation for the humanities impressed us to collaborate with native artists to create an expertise that feels distinctly Houston—vibrant, shocking, and stuffed with risk.”
We missed you, previous pal.
Welcome Again, River Oaks Theatre
River Oaks Theatre’s new house owners, Culinary Khancepts, lastly accomplished its three-year renovation of the historic house, an actual nail-biter of a time for Houston film buffs. As of October 3, we now have an lively artwork home movie show once more, wealthy with numerous programming of recent releases, cult classics, common classics, and even reside leisure like comedy, drag brunches, and magic exhibits. The brand-new menu and meals service to your seat actually don’t damage, both.
“The River Oaks Theatre has been part of Houston’s historical past for the final 85 years. It’s been a thrill to see audiences return to this majestic film palace and have fun the eclectic programming we’ve provided since reopening this October,” says Robert Saucedo, creative director of the River Oaks Theatre. “So long as Houstonians crave big-screen magic, reside occasions, and cinematic surprises, we will likely be honored to serve the group.”
Now you not should debate between going to an artwork gallery or going clubbing over the weekend. Artwork Membership helps you to do each on the identical time.
Artwork Membership Arrived
Earlier this month, Publish Houston lastly opened Artwork Membership after spending the summer season tempting us with the shimmering otherworldliness of Photo voltaic Mud. True to its title, the brand new expertise brings collectively the pulse-pounding dancing and drinks of an evening in town with the aesthetic pleasures present in exploring an artwork gallery. Season one, which runs till December 2025, showcases 13 totally different artists from world wide whose immersive works interact each sense. Be certain to stay round for the revived Tomo journal and artwork store, too. This former Montrose spot is likely one of the finest locations within the metropolis to choose up reads on the most popular trendy inventive subjects.
Orange Present’s beloved Artwork Automobile Parade (and the museum) is in nice fingers with Jack Massing on the helm.
An Artwork Man Retains Arting
Jack Massing, higher often known as one half of the internationally famend anarchic collective The Artwork Guys, was named the brand new govt director of the Orange Present for Visionary Artwork in August. This implies he’ll even be accountable for the group’s relaunch of the Artwork Automobile Museum within the Heights; many an artwork automotive–loving Houston coronary heart broke on the information of its April closing. It’s an thrilling new chapter for an thrilling foundational pylon within the native arts scene. We will’t wait to see what a longtime and daring expertise like Massing has in retailer for us within the years to come back.
CAMH Celebrated 75 Years
Modern Arts Museum Houston is now 75 years younger, and like all native museum buffs, we couldn’t be happier for its continued success. The museum’s Six Scenes From Our Future exhibition, which ran from October 2023 till March 2024, featured celebrated up to date artists like JooYoung Choi, Lisa Lapinski, Leslie Martinez, and others. Every created a bit straight addressing and responding to a piece from CAMH’s very first present in 1948, This Is Modern Artwork. Their intention was to query prevailing norms about how artwork needs to be displayed, in addition to the methods through which design and high-quality artwork overlap. It’s an angle that has continued as a throughline because the museum’s affect solely grew from there.
Wrestling, comedy, and comedy wrestling followers alike mourned the lack of hilarious and all-around nice man Greg “Tex Lonestar” Vallot.
Goodbye to a Native Legend
Greg “Tex Lonestar” Vallot earned his status as each a neighborhood comedy powerhouse and a heckuva good man by way of his frenetic, humorous Doomsday Wrestling exhibits. When he handed from most cancers on the age of 48 in November, tributes poured in from his castmates and followers alike.
“All I can actually say is he made my in-ring dream come true, if just for a short while,” says Travis Ray, who pulled double obligation refereeing matches and wrestling underneath the title Achilles the Heel. “He was a uncommon form of particular person, an excellent individual that genuinely cared about folks and lived as much as each little bit of the legend Houston knew him as.”
Astrid Lang, a neighborhood comic, began out as an enormous fan of Vallot and DW earlier than deciding to enter the squared circle herself because the wrestler Roachella.
“After the peak of the pandemic, in August 2021, I used to be within the viewers for the return of DW,” she says. “And for this present, I bear in mind Tex got here out to ‘Deep within the Coronary heart of Texas.’ I used to be not the one member of the viewers wiping away tears whereas clapping, shouting, laughing on the absurdity and group and pleasure of all of it.”
The Tower Theatre will not sit empty and lonely alongside Westheimer, because of the incoming Jazz, TX.
Jazz Is Coming to Montrose
Hypothesis abounded about what would fill the house when Acme Oyster Home, situated in Montrose’s previous Tower Theatre, abruptly closed in December 2023. The constructing initially opened in 1936 as a movie show, and has had previous lives as a Hollywood Video retailer and Tex-Mex restaurant. Whereas the builders didn’t take any of our concepts, we have been excited to listen to that it will likely be returning to its creative roots because the Houston outpost for pianist Doc Watkins’s San Antonio–based mostly membership Jazz, TX. Watkins plans to showcase a variety of jazz subgenres, together with Latin, New Orleans, R&B, and extra. Reconstruction has been underway since Could, however no phrase but on when it should formally open.
The Hearth Museum Reopened
One other main milestone within the Houston museum scene: The Hearth Museum is lastly able to obtain guests once more after 4 years of renovations. It makes its residence within the Outdated 7’s, an historic Midtown firefighter constructing inbuilt 1899. Displays embrace a rundown of what the preservation efforts entailed, fireplace security and prevention, and the historical past of native firefighters. Outdated 7’s additionally holds the unhappy distinction of being the one extant Victorian firehouse left in Houston out of the unique 10, which made the $5.7 million restoration all of the extra essential. We’re excited to have this stalwart establishment again.
As soon as nestled on the second story of an previous home in Montrose, Flats will now be capable to provide its providers inside the entire constructing.
Flats Acquired Larger
Flats, the one public darkroom for analog movie in Houston, just lately expanded its operations to take over the entire constructing situated at 2402 Montrose. Now protecting each tales, the group can present a wider vary of providers, together with free lessons for teenagers and upgraded software program and tools. Plans are additionally within the works to open a second darkroom within the house.
“We’re thrilled to have the chance to develop into the complete constructing. This progress permits us so as to add additional darkroom house, a pc lab, and even an exhibition house to showcase extra artists,” says proprietor Jessi Bowman. “It’s an enormous milestone for Flats, and we’re deeply grateful to everybody who has supported us alongside the best way.”
Houston Airports personnel current the 2024 Skytrax Awards to Mayor Whitmire and his employees.
Houston Airports Defended Their Title
Skytrax gave its inaugural award for finest airport artwork to Houston in 2023. Refusing to be outshone, IAH and Pastime took it residence once more this yr as properly. It’s straightforward to see why. Whether or not departing or arriving, guests are handled to reside portray, reside music, partnerships with native arts establishments just like the Orange Present, and loads of galleries to assist cross the time.
“[The award] just isn’t solely a praise to the dedicated effort of Houston Airports to supply a 5-star passenger expertise, however can be a notable win for the native artists, galleries, and museums whose expertise, creativity and views are featured all through Bush and Pastime airports,” says Alton DuLaney, director of cultural arts and curator of public artwork for Houston Airports. “In 2024, we collectively celebrated the creative spirit of Houston, strategically on show for greater than 60 million passengers to take pleasure in.”
MD Anderson Expanded Its Artwork Program
In October, MD Anderson Most cancers Heart introduced that it might develop the quantity of artwork on show in its amenities, with the intention of making extra visually interesting areas for sufferers and their households to loosen up amongst lovely works.
“As we develop our attain, we achieve this with the understanding that artwork can have a profound affect on the therapeutic course of,” MD Anderson president Peter WT Pisters, MD, stated in a press launch. “Our new and revitalized areas will foster an surroundings that’s inspirational and conducive to many alternative types of bodily and emotional therapeutic.”
The initiative will likely be overseen by Jennifer Finkel, PhD, who begins her function of affiliate vice chairman for artwork expertise in January. She’s beforehand curated collections for Wake Forest College and Cleveland Clinic Basis.
