ART DAYBOOK
Houston’s art scene is as diverse and colorful as the city itself, with galleries and museums that feature works by local, national and international talents. All shows are free unless otherwise noted.
Encounter a feminist view that aims to put the entire world in it, that’s what you call epic.
The piece: “She’s got the whole world in her” The artist: Wangechi Mutu Where: Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; Beck Building; through Feb. 4 in “On Common Ground: Recent Acquisitions in Contemporary Art”
Why: The world needs all the strong women it can get.
Wangechi Mutu’s goddess, with horns sprouting from her head like a cross between Medusa and an African queen, rests in a pose yoga practitioners know as a “low cobra,” sitting up sphinxlike on her elbows as she contemplates the scorched planet that hangs in front of her. The skirt dragging behind her looks like a petticoat that’s been through an apocalypse, burned to its frame. The skirt, which also appears to be a web as viewers walk around it, harbors a scattering of little vessels and figurines that might be the charred remains of civilization. Tail feathers sprout from the figure’s bare behind.
Because the sculpture is one part of Mutu’s powerful “A Trinity” installation, it is possible to think of this sci-fi princess on the floor as the same character who slowly traverses a barren landscape in the nine-minute video “The End of Carrying All.” Mutu performs in the video, which is projected across three large screens, making her way through a swarm of locusts as a basket on her head sprouts ever-heavier and larger structures — a city of sorts, with tall buildings and bicycle parts. The woman finally collapses under the weight, as the basket morphs into a glistening tumor or a giant slug that consumes her and falls off of, what — just a cliff, or the face of the Earth? But all is not finished yet: A volcanic crackling underground signals some kind of energy still rumbling.
The third piece of “A Trinity” hangs outside the gallery. The colorful collage “Forbidden Fruit picker” depicts a sexy Eve figure with a “Robocop”-inspired body who sits under a tree, reaching for an apple as two snakes dangle toward her. She’s fascinating.
But it’s the intent gaze of the figure in Mutu’s sculpture that haunts me. She’s a survivor in a bleak world, ready to take charge.
Anya Tish Gallery
“Vladislav Š´cepanovi´c: To Have or To Be,” through Feb. 17; 4411 Montrose; 713-5242299, anyatishgallery.com.
Art of the World Gallery
“Comic Energy in the Sculpture of Jiménez Deredia,” opens Thursday, through March 17; 2201 Westheimer; 713526-1201, artoftheworldgallery.com.
Barbara Davis Gallery
“Anton Ginzberg|Construction Proxy,” through Feb. 17; 4411 Montrose; 713-5209200, barbaradavisgallery.com.
Catherine Couturier Gallery
“Mitch Dobrowner: Still Earth,” through Feb. 17; 2635 Colquitt; 713-524-5070, catherinecouturier.com.
Cindy Lisica Gallery
“Fall to the Wild: Rachel Gardner and David Solomon,” through Feb. 17; 4411 Montrose, 713-807-7760, cindylisicagallery.com.
Clarke & Associates
“Roberto Cortázar, A 30-Year Survey,” through April 2; 301 E. 11th; 713-254-2998, clarkassoc.com.
David Shelton Gallery
“Jonathan Ryan Storm: Proper Headshrinker,” through Feb. 10; 4411 Montrose; 713-393-7319, davidsheltongallery.com.
G Spot Contemporary Art Space
“Dimitri Kozyrev,” through Jan. 28; 310 E. 9th; 713-822-4842, gspotgallery.com.
Gallery Sonja Roesch
“Mac Whitney: Sculptures and Paintings,” through March 10; 2309 Caroline, 713-6595424, gallerysonjaroesch.com
Gray Contemporary
“Nicole Anona Banowetz: Being More Than One,” through Feb. 17; 3508 Lake; 713-862-4425, graycontemporary.com.
Hiram Butler Gallery
“Matt Kleberg: Drawings,” through Jan. 27; 4520 Blossom; 713-863-7097, hirambutler. com.
Hooks-Epstein Galleries
“Sandi Seltzer Bryant: Internal Journeys; Papers Well Traveled,” through Feb. 17; 2631 Colquitt; 713-522-0718, hooksepsteingalleries.com.
Inman Gallery
“Dana Frankfort: there was a stone,” opens Saturday, through Feb. 24, 3901 Main; 713-526-7800, inmangallery.com.
Jonathan Hopson
“Andy Coolquitt: Hopson Shouse,” opens 1 p.m. Sunday, through March 4; 904 Marshall, jonathanhopsongallery.com.
Moody Gallery
“Page Kempner: Making Notes in the Margins,” through Feb. 17; 2815 Colquitt; 713-526-9911, moodygallery.com.
Nicole Longnecker Gallery
“Danville Chadbourne” and “John Adelman,” through Feb. 17; 2625 Colquitt; 346-800-2780, longneckergallery.com.
Octavia Art Gallery
“Deep in the Heart: Texas Landscapes by Gay Gaddis,” through Jan. 31; 3637 W. Alabama, No. 120; 713-877-1810, octaviaartgallery.com.
Rudolph Blume Fine Art/ArtScan
“Tribalism Begins at Home: New Works from Matthew Bourbon,” through Feb. 17; 1836 Richmond, 713-807-1836,
rudolphprojects.com.
Samara Gallery
“Andrés Paredes: Eternal Spring,” through Feb. 24; 3911 Main; 713-999-1009, samaragallery.com.
Sicardi Gallery
“Portrait,” group show, opens Thursday, through March 15; 1506 W. Alabama; 713-529-1313, sicardigallery.com.
Texas Gallery
“Jeremy DePrez: Mindfold,” through Saturday; 2012 Peden; 713-524-1593, texgal. com.
Reaves | Foltz Fine Art
“Protégés: The Legacy of Dr. John Biggers as Viewed Through the Art Works of Thirteen Students,” opens Friday, Alvia Wardlaw speaks 4:30 p.m. Saturday, reception 6 p.m. Saturday, through Feb. 10; 2143 Westheimer; 713-521-7500, reavesart.com. Williams Tower Gallery “Assistance League of Houston Annual Art Show,” through Feb. 23; 2800 Post Oak Blvd.; 713-526-6461.
Art Car Museum
“The Rat Rod Review,” through Feb. 18; 140 Heights; 713-861-5526, artcarmuseum.com.
Art League Houston
Nathaniel Donnett’s “In One Form or Another,” Aesha Lee’s “The Beauty of the Black Woman” and Ross Irwin and Harry Leverette’s “Houston Sinfonia,” through Saturday; 1953 Montrose; 713-523-9530, artleaguehouston.org.
Asia Society Texas Center
“Wondrous Worlds: Art & Islam Through Time & Place,” through Feb. 25, and “Zheng Chongbin: Clusters of Memory,” through July 8; 1370 Southmore; 713-496-9901, asiasociety.org/texas.
Blaffer Art Museum
“Sergio Prego: Rose-colored Drift/To the Students” and “Gabriel Martinez: Everything Turns Away Quite Leisurely,” through Jan. 27; University of Houston, 4173 Elgin; 713-743-9521, blafferartmuseum.org.
Contemporary Arts Museum Houston
“Dissent and Desire,” opens 6:30 p.m. Friday, through April 29; “Christopher Knowles: In a Word,” through March 25; 5216 Montrose; 713-284-8250, camh.org.
Galveston Arts Center
“The Color Condition: Premium Quality,” “Cary Reeder: Impermanence” and “Michael Golden: O-Connected,” through Feb. 25; 127 Strand, Galveston; 409-763-2403, galvestonartscenter.org.
Holocaust Museum
“Human Rights Art,” through June 3, and “New Dimensions in Testimony,” through Jan. 31; $8-$12, free on Sundays; 9220 Kirby; 713-942-8000, hmh.org.
Lawndale Art Center
“Between Love & Madness: Mexican Comics from the 1970s” and “Augusto Mora: ¿A Dónde Nos Llevan? (Where Are They Taking Us To?),” opens 6 p.m. Thursday, through March 25; 4912 Main; 713-528-5858, lawndaleartcenter.org.
Menil Collection
“Mona Hatoum: Terra Infirma,” through Feb. 25; 1533 Sul Ross, 713-5259400, menil.org.
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
“HOME — So Different, So Appealing,” through Sunday; “Bestowing Beauty: Masterpieces From Persian Lands,” through Feb. 11; “The Glamour and Romance of Oscar de la Renta,” through Jan. 28; “David Levinthal: Photographs 1972-2016,” through Feb. 18; $7.50-$25; 5601 Main; 713-639-7300, mfah.org.
Project Row Houses
“Round 47 | The Act of Doing: Preserving, Revitalizing and Protecting Third Ward,” through Feb. 11; 2521 Holman; 713-526-7662, projectrowhouses.org.