George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) and William P. Hobby Airport (Hobby) are among more than 40 Citywide venues currently participating in Sculpture Month Houston (SMH), officially Oct. 15 through Nov. 19.
SMH began in 2016 and takes place every other year to showcase and cast a bright spotlight on the creative talents of sculptors.
Tommy Gregory, who recently departed as Houston Airports’ Public Art Program Director, was one of the original organizers of SMH, intended to further enhance Houston’s reputation for top-tier celebrations and to spur further conversation with regard to the value and beauty of yet another art form. Take a sneak peek at the Houston Airports arts program via this podcast.
Gregory was extremely pleased that HAS has a significant and unique presence in this year’s sculpture recognition.
“It has been extremely rewarding to see that both IAH and HOU have opened their doors to this citywide public event,” Gregory said. “The ‘Two Towers’ project, respectfully the 1940 Air Terminal Museum at Hobby and the original Air Traffic Control Tower at Bush, are unique to the aviation world, as well as to the art community. To be able to use two great structures for temporary art installations has been a true joy. These types of projects do not come without pitfalls and complexities, but the Airports and Sculpture Month Houston are working with some of the best contemporary artists within the state of Texas. So far, all of the sculpture month exhibits, and the partnering galleries and institutions, have been rightly celebrated.”
On Nov. 1, IAH opened for public view Trapping Time by Houston-based artist Jo Ann Fleischhauer. This exhibition is on view at the now-defunct control tower at IAH until Jan. 1, 2019. Trapping Time is a one of a kind temporary art installation by one of Houston’s most revered public artists (who by the way, is a part of the IAH portable works collection). Fleischhauer has turned this 50-year-old structure into a 21st century beacon that pays homage not only to I.M. Pei’s building and the Air Traffic Controllers who worked there, but also to the opening of the airport, by highlighting the night sky. Gregory said that special thanks were due to the Airport’s Infrastructure division; notably Jeffrey Tennyson, Lisa Rocabado, Guillermo Cabrera, and Monty Nunn.
The control tower was designed by legendary architect I.M. Pei who turned 100 in 2017.
Additionally, the 1940 Air Terminal Museum along with the vintage airplane hangar at Hobby will be site of a sculpture display, Wild Blue Yonder. Artists in the show include Shane and Peter Allbritton, Julie De Vries, Christy Karll, David Medina, and Pablo Gimenez Zapiloa (all Houston), Nick Barbee (Galveston), and Thomas Glassford (Mexico City). Wild Blue Yonder will be available through Dec. 1.
Other participating venues throughout the City include art galleries, museums, institutions of higher learning, not-for-profit institutions, and SMH-curated spaces. Sculptors who participate in SMH do so by invitation only.
This year's festival and main show at SITE Gallery Houston is titled Peak Shift and can be viewed through Dec. 1.
Please visit the displays at IAH, Hobby, and throughout the City. Take advantage of this opportunity to celebrate the breadth, depth, and beauty that sculpture offers.