Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/1482853
From top: Rick Lowe's Project Row Houses: Hindsight, 2022, at Moody Center for the Arts, Rice University. Preston Gaines in studio. The artist solos at Barbara Davis Gallery. HOUSTON Art Notes T his month, a c o o l q u a r t e t u n f u r l s . C a t c h the plant m a n , a k a P r e s t o n Gaines, in "Archetypes of Nature" at Barbara Davis Gallery — the biophilian exhibition of the fall, in which the architecturally trained talent continues his obsession with tropical foliage. The former CAMH artist in residence has been freshly anointed b y C u l t u R u n n e r s as an awardee of an international grant for The Future Is Unwritten Artist Response Fund. At Barbara Davis, experience Gaines' vision informed by vegetation, sustainable furniture, vintage vibes, and some really cool projections (through November 12) … Surrealism reigns this season via a group show that celebrates Sculpture Month Houston. Dr. Volker Eisele curates an exhibition based on brain science: "Synaptic," staged at the creepy agrarian relic SITE Gallery at The Silos at Sawyer Yards. Among the 18 talents from around the state are Ronald L. Jones, Sharon Kopriva in collaboration with neurosurgeon Dr. John Berry, Laurie Frick, Virginia Luna Montgomery, Brad Tucker, Meredith Jack, Jeff Gibbons, Christie Blizard, Hillary Holsonback, Chris Sauter, and Stephan Hillerbrand + Mary Magsamen (through December 3) … At Rice University, Moody Center for the Arts' "Urban Impressions: Experiencing the Global Contemporary Metropolis" brings a global/local emphasis that speaks directly to our rapidly morphing, ephemeral city. Moody Center curator Frauke Josenhans organizes the show, which includes Rick Lowe, whose canvas is based on Third Ward domino games; Nigerian-born/Berlin-based Emeka Ogboh, commissioned to create a taste of Houston realized by the stout beer Japa, a collaboration with local craft brewer Astral Brewing; Houston talent Tiffany Chung, whose meditations on family history and archaeological sites in Vietnam are nuanced and poignant; and Mary Flanagan, whose AI views explore a proposed utopian future. Other finds include early work by former MFAH Core Fellow/ now global art star Julie Mehretu and South African- born Robin Rhode's performative take on street life and public walls in the roughest part of Johannesburg (through December 17) … Wrap your viewing at Art League Houston with a doubleheader pairing iconic Houston photographer Earlie Hudnall Jr., recipient of this year's ALH Lifetime Achievement honors, with Dallas/ Fort Worth-based Letitia Huckaby, 2022 Texas Artist of the Year, whose practice intersects photography and fabric metaphorically imprinted with history and meaning. Catch both exhibitions, "Drawn to Communities" and "Bitter Waters Sweet," respectively, through December 3. Catherine D. Anspon COURTESY THE ARTIST AND ART LEAGUE HOUSTON, PHOTO ALEX BARBER COURTESY THE ARTIST AND GAGOSIAN, PHOTO SEAN FLEMING COURTESY THE ARTIST AND BARBARA DAVIS GALLERY, PHOTO ZACH CHAMBERS Letitia Huckaby's Ms. Rose, 2022, at Art League Houston. THE OFFICE OF JAY MONROE | 7 1 3. 504.6936 w w w . j a y m o n r o e h o u s t o n . c o m 18