Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/1376323
L eighton Hale has opened his eponymous antique shop in the Heights. Hale's longtime partnership at mega-antiques and decorative objects emporium Back Row Home was up for renewal, and like so many others in a transformative year, he opted for change. "I just wanted to get back to myself, which is really just French antiques and mid-century modern furniture and accessories," Hale says. His friends at Alcon Lightcraft informed him of a space available adjacent to their shop and Vandrick James Custom Furniture & Upholstery that used to house Jackson & Company's warehouse overflow. Hale snatched up the space and renovated it, just in time for a container to arrive from France; longtime friend and business associate Cheri Mahoney also joined him in the shop. The 2,800-square- foot retail space houses 18th- and 19th-century French and mid-century modern furniture, including rattan. T hose who remain in town during the summer are always rewarded with an immersive exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; past participating artists have included Pipilotti Rist's Pixel Forest and Worry Will Vanish and the Starn Brothers' Big Bambú. The MFAH continues this tradition with Brazilian artist Ernesto ALL HALE ANTIQUES KINGDOM OF CROCHET I n January, we announced the end of Gremillion & Co. Fine Art's 41 years in the biz but promised news of a phoenix rising from the core of the former gallery. Cue Ellio Fine Art, the vision of three long-time Gremillion gallerists — new owner Trish Matute, VP Brian Freeze, and director Harwood Taylor. This trio has secured a handsome new space amid a hub for performing and culinary arts: 3201 Allen, the historic 1930 Spanish Colonial Revival building, former home of Stages (now at The Gordy next door), being redeveloped by Radom Capital. Expect a late October opening. Ellio's stable will include newly signed talents Susan English, Ender Martos, and LaMonte French as well as heritage Gremillion artists photog Christopher Rauschenberg; painters Leslie Parke, Fernando Casas, John Pavlicek, Joan Steinman, and Eric Peters; and sculptor Christian Renonciat. Matute says, "Knowing that Houston is the most diverse city in the United States, we hope Ellio Fine Art ... will contribute to a more inclusive, loving, and conscious city." Gensler is the architect for the new 1,500 square-foot space, while Christine Ho Interiors and AV Interiors are tapped for interior design. Stay tuned. Catherine D. Anspon ELLIO RISING: 3201 ALLEN'S FUTURE GALLERY Additional square footage in the back provides ample space for their furniture restorer to work and to house inventory, and a new container arrives this month. Currently on the floor are a vintage French rattan loveseat; oodles of oyster sticks to add texture to a room; French champagne cooler stands; an oversized 19th-century French butcher table by Trussant et Cie, Saint-Livrade; and heaps of hotel silver. Leighton Hale Antiques, 551 N. Shepherd Dr., leightonhaleantiques. com. Anne Lee Phillips Neto's engaging, interactive work SunForceOceanLife, the seventh installment in a crowd-pleasing series with serious art chops. Neto's site- specific project measures 30 feet x 79 feet x 55 feet. It's literally and metaphorically elevated, along a walkway in the museum's Cullinan Hall that's suspended 12 feet up in the air. Constructed from crocheted polymer string in the earth-centric colors of yellow, orange, and green, the spiraling labyrinth cocoons visitors as it melds craft and art, biology and cosmology, with elements of ritual tossed in. Neto has been a staple of international biennials for three decades, and this is one of his largest crochet works to date — one that speaks conceptually to the notion of Brazilian culture and women's work, while dramatically subverting its scale. Through September 26, mfah.org. Catherine D. Anspon PHOTO BY © LOUIS VUITTON/JÉRÉMIE SOUTEYRAT. COURTESY THE ARTIST; ESPACE LOUIS VUITTON TOKYO; TANYA BONAKDAR GALLERY, NYC/LA; AND FORTES D'ALOIA & GABRIEL GALERIA, SÃO PAULO. Ellio Fine Art's Brian Freeze, Trish Matute, Harwood Taylor Leighton Hale PRAUPER Ernest Neto crafts an immersive installation for the MFAH this summer. 36