Stories + Spotlights
Art in the public realm tells a collective story. Learn more about the people, artworks, ideas and projects that make up Public Art UHS. Exclusively for everyone.
Remembering
Floyd Newsum
August 2024 | Public Art UHS is deeply saddened by the loss of Floyd Newsum, visionary artist, dedicated professor, and co-founder of Project Row Houses. He was a mentor, colleague and friend who eagerly shared his wealth of knowledge and artistic talent with the entire University of Houston System.
Survival and Growth in John Biggers’ Salt Marsh
January 2024 | Curatorial Intern Allison Young dives into the history of Dr. John Biggers, his life, his inspiration, and his legacy — through a close look at the mural Salt Marsh (1997).
A Passion for Collecting: The Shirley & Donald Rose Gift
October 2023 | Inside her elegant garden home in Montrose, seated with her small dog Rosie in her lap, Shirley Rose discusses how her love of art and collecting began.
Educational Engagement & Outreach at Public Art UHS
June 2023 | Operating across the University of Houston Systems, Public Art UHS is Houston’s front porch for visual arts outreach and education. Learn more about our educational programs that connect visual arts education across academic disciplines.
Spotlight | Rick Lowe
April 2023 | Returning to a painting practice after years of success in the field of social sculpture, Houston- based artist Rick Lowe presents us with abstract canvases that reimagine much of the work he has been committed to for over thirty years.
Spotlight | Ann Stautberg
March 2023 | Throughout her long career, the photographer Ann Stautberg has maintained a close connection with the Texas landscape—from gulf waters to rough terrains and local botanicals—her work is informed by a long history of traditional documentary photography.
Spotlight | Adriana Corral
September 2022 | With an art practice based firmly in historical research, Adriana Corral explores current issues regarding immigration, citizenship, human rights, and labor largely focused on the Texas-Mexico border.
Spotlight | Kaneem Smith
July 2022 | Using repurposed materials, primarily textiles and fibers, the Houston-based artist Kaneem Smith seeks to remain in constant conversation with her ancestors.
Tobi Kahn | OHRA: An Encounter Between Sky and Water
June 2022 | The New York-based artist Tobi Kahn seeks to be the working receptacle between his viewing audience and the divine. In his paintings and sculptures, Kahn consistently creates art that facilitates a meditative and healing experience.
Spotlight | Jamal Cyrus
April 2022 | Houston-based artist Jamal Cyrus draws us in and implores us to look closely at what is not there. His ongoing Eroding Witness series illuminates forgotten and erased histories of the local Black Power movement.
Andy Warhol | Instantaneous Beauty
February 2022 | The exhibition Instantaneous Beauty: Andy Warhol and the Photographic Process explores his process and experimentation with photography, particularly in its relationship to beauty.
Muna Al-Bader | Beautiful in Blue
December 2021 | Artist Muna Al-Bader Connects Cultures with a new mural at UH. Cultural Bonds, in all its blue glory, illustrates half a century of cultural ties and strong diplomatic relations between the United States and Qatar, Al-Bader’s home country.
Exhibition Offers Glimpse into Texas Artist's Life, Legacy
November 2021 | Artworks and archival materials by pioneering artist Dorothy Hood are the centerpiece of a new exhibition organized by Public Art UHS.
Muna Al-Bader | Connecting Cultures
November 2021 | Qatari artist Muna Al-Bader is bringing cans of spray paint in her famous shades of blue to the University of Houston for an interactive event that truly illustrates the meaning of public art.
Spotlight | Charles Ginnever
September 2021 | There’s something about Troika (1979) that feels as though it’s perpetually engaged in the act of becoming, of pointing elsewhere.
Tay Butler | We Are Still Searching…
August 2021 | YardWorks is a new program intended to give these artists an early-career opportunity to exhibit site-specific installations in the heart of the UH Arts District.
Spotlight | Andy Warhol
July 2021 | Read about the man and the machine, Andy Warhol photography and everyday life.
Spotlight | Derek Boshier
June 2021 | Pop Art exploded onto the scene in Britain in the mid-1950s and Public Art UHS artist Derek Boshier was there.
Jorge Pardo | Folly
April 2021 | Jorge Pardo’s masterful works exploring the intersection of functionality, art, technology and craftsmanship have been shown worldwide. Now he is fabricating a large-scale piece for the University of Houston.
Making Waves in Art + Engineering
February 2021 | The Color Field exhibition at the University of Houston has attracted art enthusiasts from all over since it launched last fall.
Dorothy Hood | Texas Icon
February 2021 | Public Art UHS is enriching its collection of Dorothy Hood treasures with a recent donation of the Texas painter’s work.
Color Field | Outdoor Art Exhibition
October 2020 | A series of colorful, bright, large-scale sculptures are now sprinkled across the University of Houston campus.
Color Field | Art is All Around Us
July 2020 | Brightly colored, large-scale sculptures will be dispersed across the University of Houston campus this October.
Remembering Christo
June 2020 | Public Art UHS remembers Christo Vladimirov Javacheff, the artist known simply as Christo, who died May 31, 2020, at the age of 84.
Public Art Turns 50
January 2020 | The Board of Regents of the University of Houston first imagined a program for art in campus spaces in 1965, just as the field of public art began to experience important conceptual shifts.
Marta Chilindrón | Mobius Houston
November 2019 | Mobius Houston is the inaugural temporary public art installation commissioned by Public Art of the University of Houston System (Public Art UHS)
Remembering Michael Galbreth
October 2019 | Public Art UHS remembers Michael Galbreth, one half of Houston’s conceptual art duo The Art Guys, who passed away on October 19, 2019, at the age of 63.
Mobius Houston to Transform UH
September 2019 | To the delight of public art enthusiasts and Instagram lovers alike, a new acrylic sculpture that was engineered and assembled in Houston is making its larger-than-life debut in the University of Houston Arts District.
Public Art's Moment
September 2019 | For the University of Houston System, 2019 is a year to celebrate. It marks 50 years since UH became the first university in Texas to adopt a Percent-for-Art program.
Masaru Takiguchi | Orbit I Returns to UH
August 2019 | Orbit I (1968), one of the first artworks purchased by Public Art UHS nearly 50 years ago, has made a welcome return to the UH campus.
Remembering Carlos Cruz-Diez
July 2019 | Carlos Cruz-Diez, a leading artist from Latin America known for his experimental language based on abstraction, died on July 27, 2019, at the age of 95.
Spotlight | Gerhard Marcks and the Bauhaus
June 2019 | Public Art UHS and the Bauhaus have important connections through the late Peter Guenther (1920-2005), founding chair of the Art History Department at University of Houston.
UH System Launches Temporary Public Art Program
March 2019 | The temporary program will officially launch in summer 2019 with the completion of Mobius Houston by the New York-based Argentinean artist Marta Chilindrón.
Celebrating Dorothy Hood
November 2018 | Dorothy Hood is one of Texas’ most iconic artists, making a name for herself with her monumental canvases.
Sawyer’s Synchronicity of Color: Victoria Comes to Life at UHV
September 2018 | Visitors to the University of Houston-Victoria will be captivated by a new installation by internationally known artist Margo Sawyer.
Carlos Cruz-Diez | A Perfect Marriage of Art and Space
August 2018 | A signature work from the Public Art UHS collection makes a colorful return.
Double Physichromie Gets Deep Cleaning
June 2018 | Inside a Kemah warehouse, hundreds of panels from a high-profile work of art are meticulously placed in racks on rolling carts awaiting their moment to shine again.