Best of 2024
2024 felt like a long reboot after a much longer, far more grueling recovery. We saw more of our friends and colleagues out and about, as well as fresh new exhibitions, programming, and collaborations. Collectively, we had time to breathe and get back into making and presenting. Artists unveiled brand-new bodies of work created during a frozen era when all so many of us had was time. Maybe that time offered us all the fresh perspective that we needed, though.
We’re excited about the return of Flak Magazine after an extended hiatus, and we’ve been energized to re-engage with the art world for the purpose of creative writing and documentation. There was plenty of time for insightful reflection, and as a team, we are eager to once again share new observations and catalog the arts community along the way. Regardless of the ebb and flow of the previous years, 2024 presented us with powerful, fun, and tantalizing exhibitions here in Houston. Here’s our look at some of the highlights.
Phillip Pyle II: So Far So Good and Wave Check (performance)
Houston Museum of African American Culture
You have to take levity where you can get it when the world throws a lot at you, and Phillip Pyle II offered up some much-needed satire in his takeover of the Houston Museum of African American Culture. Spanning the entirety of the space, So Far So Good embodies the breadth of Pyle’s practice - photography, performance, digital art, design, and Legos.
Phillip Pyle II’s So Far So Good at the Houston Museum of African American Culture.
Photo courtesy of the artist
Pyle’s work, going back to “Third Ward Gun Club” and “Whole Foods Coming Soon” signs, balances the artist’s wit and sense of humor with apt social commentary. He blends historical imagery with contemporary elements to craft a stronger connection between past, present, and future, mining photos from archives and history books that overlook people of color. This a concept easily noted in his series Forgotten Struggle (also on view as part of the 2024 Fotofest Biennial), a commentary on the whitewashing of history by the Texas State Board of Education, a series of works in which Pyle repurposed Civil Rights protest imagery, blanking out the signage to mimic the erasure of their voices.
The most unique aspect of Pyle’s work is that it makes the viewer laugh alongside the work, finding humor in these dark moments while underscoring the depth of the issues at play.
- Michael McFadden
Bill Willis: Passing Fancies
Isabella Valise / Devin Borden
Bill Willis is an intelligent, thought-provoking-yet-cheeky interdisciplinary painter. He stays pretty close within his lane of being “A Painter” and bounces between the mediums of painting, but, in my eyes, has remained steadfast to the terms of the traditional contemporary painter. With his latest show, Passing Fancies at Isabella Valise / Devin Borden, Willis presented a new direction from his own ideology and narrative while showcasing his vast knowledge of the material. I'm not sure that I’ve investigated more within a single painting than I have with Willis' work. It's not just his knowledge of art history, but his dedicated practice with his materials.
Willis’ paintings are absent of ego. The prestige he clearly deserves as a nationally-recognized painter and driven Houston professor need not reside in these works. The journey of his own painting career seemingly emits from his brush. The paintings are divided into two groups of documentative narrative and still lifes. Now it may seem run-of-the-mill to have two such categories, but the works themselves are so much deeper than that implies. With an “Alice Neal embodies Alex Katz”-style metamorphosis, the pieces told an odd story from inside the same universe — or even the same dinner party.
Bill Willis, “Passing Fancies”
Courtesy of the artist and Isabella Valise / Devin Borden.
The narratives explore an encounter between two half-dressed women, a post coitus reflection, a moment of emptiness at a dinner party, and the elegance of hob-knobbing. The watercolors seem metaphorically stamped by the 1960s and reveal just enough information for the viewer to peek into the fictional scenarios with an inclination of what might be happening. But the lack of information was also represented in the actual execution of the paintings. “Less is more” – many painters hear this adage echo from their past. Almost monochromatic or even sepia-toned, these paintings read as much as paintings as they do old photographs you accidentally found in your father’s sock drawer. The still lifes contain much of the same nostalgia and are even painted with a sense of haziness, as if a dream, recalled memory, or screen capture from a smokey parlor room. I found them to be saturated not only in their glossy yet muddied palette choices, but dripping with Alfred Hitchcock-level tension and aesthetic. Are the sunflowers dead or viewed from a dingy back room? Is this a still life from 1655 or 1955? Could that be a cake with raw steak on top of it? It’s not that Willis is bad at painting, he's a magnificent painter who just doesn't want to give you additional information. The exhibition was refreshing with the seeming mantra of “paintings as paintings.”
- Paul Middendorf
Alexis Pye: Visions Via Riding High
Art League Houston
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Alexis Pye: The Melancholic Girls Brigade: The Lovers, The Dreamers, and Me
Inman Gallery
Reality is rarely as sleek or as rigid as we sometimes hope. Life and memories blur at the edges when we reflect on our own histories, weaving fantasy into reality and fiction into fact. Alexis Pye’s ever-evolving practice carries with it a sense of the fantastic, blending past, present, and potential into a new presentation, styled in mixed media with the occasional reference to the historic, pulling inspiration from Manet, Klimt, and the rest.
In her exhibition The Melancholic Girls Brigade: The Lovers, The Dreamers, and Me at Inman Gallery, Pye offered a meditation on the transition from one’s 20s to 30s, embodying the emotional undertones of “navigating breakups, interpersonal relationships, and balancing pragmatism with romanticism.” The works depicted young women either alone or with others but always with a sense of separation. White borders around figures pull them from their surroundings, transplanting them from what should feel like their own space into a sense of solitude.
Alexis Pye, “Stressed”
Photo: Thomas DuBrock. Courtesy of Inman Gallery.
Visions via Riding High at Art League Houston presented a series that pulled away from solitude and delved deeper into the blurriness of memory. In the series, Pye explores the relationship between cars and memories, embellishing the narrative with fantastical elements. Part of Pye’s practice is an exploration of Blackness, and the vehicles here transition from the literal to the figurative, a shifting culture, a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment.
Pye’s work often carries a personal element. She is rooted in her sense of self and her sense of community, bringing a dreaminess and sense of wonder to the viewer that invites them to meditate along with her.
- Michael McFadden
THIS SIDE UP
Houston Center for Contemporary Craft
There is a silent artistry behind the exhibitions we view, meticulous efforts taken to make the labor invisible to the viewers. THIS SIDE UP, presented at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, pulled back the curtain to shed light on and celebrate the creative ingenuity of the preparators, fabricators, and conservators whose work underpins the art world.
Curator Sarah Darro, along with the artists and practiced art handler, fabricator, et. al. Iva Kinnard, reimagined the gallery so thoroughly that it seemed undone, stripped down to its raw materials to disrupt the polished norms of the white cube.
Artist Vivian Chiu’s “Passages (those that carried us)” anchored the show with poetic resonance. Her vessels, reconstructed from crates once housing porcelain imports, blur the line between carrier and cargo. Installed atop the crates that housed them, they evoke layered histories of migration and trade.
Vivian Chiu, “Passages (those that carried us)”
Photo: Peter Molick. Courtesy of the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft.
William Powhida and John Powers presented art fair byproducts upcycled into domestic objects, their chairs and tables imbued with a dry humor that both honors and satirizes their origins. Adam John Manley’s “Quotidian Relics” series elevates the mundane — tape measures, framing kits — into reliquaries, urging viewers to see the artistry in the overlooked.
Clynton Lowry’s “Sleeper series” repurposed moving blankets into wearable objects, merging fashion and function, while Walead Beshty’s “FedEx® Kraft Box” sculptures, cracked and collaged with shipping labels, documented transnational journeys, turning the scars of transit into a visual narrative.
Dismantling the hidden nature of art labor is a tall task, but celebrating the craft and encouraging viewers to reflect on the blurred line between function and art are admirable endeavors.
- Michael McFadden
Cody Ledvina and Lane Hagood: Vessels
The Car Wash
If one had only a few words to describe the fundamentals of Cody Ledvina and Lane Hagood’s previous interweavings, it would be “brilliant absurdity.” These two artists have been making waves with their works, sculptures, and performances for well over 15 years. Did Ledvina wear a suit and carry a briefcase with a deployed parachute dragging behind him as he walked up the stairs of the courthouse following one of the many Enron trials? Absolutely. Did I just drive by to see Hagood holding a gorgeous painting in his hands before tossing it over a fence into an endless void that would soon become a monstrous Montrose highrise? Yep. With both of these artists well into their established careers, it's always a treat to see them creating an exhibition together that was certain to tickle the brains of many.
Vessels was a one-night-only, “better come early” exhibition that was attended by the who’s who of Houston’s art world. London Ham appeared on the scene over 10 years ago with a variety of intoxicating exhibitions hosted at a series of (sometimes unusual) locations over the years. Each new location brought with it a stronger stance inside the professional art world and the realm of curation. While he has since moved to England for school, his most recent endeavor was The Car Wash, which is as it sounds. It’s simply one wall bisecting a drive-through car wash in the heart of Montrose with a “better catch it on opening night or you may never see it again” vibe. That said, the shows he presented contained some of the biggest names of the year.
The crowd at Cody Ledvina and Lane Hagood’s exhibition, Vessels, at the Car Wash.
Photo courtesy of the artists.
Hagood and Ledvina brought together a series of jumbled delights. This isn’t to say they were jumbled and disorganized, we already know that was the intention of the creations, but it was a collection of well-produced works with the energy and anxiety of a game of Charades. Many of the works were painted on thin pieces of foam core and were all priced at $40 each. By the time I arrived, it was a scramble to see all the new pieces and even harder to see or find the one I knew I needed. Which one was that? I had no clue, but everyone wanted one and they were already mostly sold. Dozens and dozens of paintings/sculptures hung on the wall with a number. Follow that number on one of a few available price sheets floating around the crowd, you'd have to elbow your way to a sheet of paper to write your name next to the piece you wanted. Were there pens or pencils available? Of course not! Alas, I saw one discarded on a small wall by a table of empty wine glasses. Success! It was chaos in its best form. Was London in it to fill his pockets with exhibition profits? Not a chance. Don’t forget the likely 50/50 split of $40, which then Cody and Lane split into $20. The beauty was not only in the delivery of these works but the performative element of the exhibition. It was literally asses-to-elbows with people wanting to see these new pieces, and it was pure joy.
Hagood and Ledvina know they are great artists; not in a cocky or arrogant way, but they are very talented. Both have exhibited across the country and beyond and the works are consistently well-executed. Their works could very well find themselves on the wall of the Whitney Biennial in any given year, but moreover, they could give two shits. It's wonderful. They took works that could have sold for hundreds of dollars and priced them for almost nothing after expenses and gallery cut. It's like bitcoin of paintings. “I bought a brilliant painting of his or theirs at the Armory last year!” “Oh yeah, how fun! I traded my painting for a pair of Nikes at the laundromat.” They are successful and brilliant artists, yet it doesn’t matter what you think. It was truly one of the best opening energies of the year and an incredibly appreciated exhibition.
- Paul Middendorf
River on Fire
DiverseWorks
Pollution often hides in plain sight, subtly threading itself into the rhythms of everyday life until catastrophe strikes: explosions, fires, or even rivers set ablaze. River on Fire, curated by Ashley DeHoyos Sauder and presented at DiverseWorks, brought forth the ecological and human cost of environmental negligence. Rooted in the Gulf Coast’s legacy of industrial contamination, the exhibition explored the intertwined histories of pollution and resilience.
Lili Chin’s “Cetacean Blue” anchored the exhibition space, a multimedia installation that casts shadows of human interference over footage of Cape Cod’s marine life while Joe Robles IV’s nearby photographs presented moments of intimacy and celebration within Pasadena’s industrial wastelands, underscoring the enduring presence of community amidst environmental decay.
“Abyss,” Brandon Ballengée
River on Fire, Installation documentation, 2024. Photo: Sol Diaz-Peña. Courtesy of DiverseWorks.
Other works took a more visceral approach to the ecological impact. In “Abyss,” Brandon Ballengée displayed jars of preserved Gulf marine life, each specimen a silent testament to the destructive impact of oil drilling.
The show drew inspiration from the infamous Cuyahoga River fires, pivotal moments in the 20th century that catalyzed the modern environmental movement. Yet, there is context both local and global when it comes to climate change. We see it spill from factories, feel it in the air we breathe, and grieve the loss it brings. As I write this, fires burn across the Greater Los Angeles Area, strengthened so much by 80 mph winds that they become impossible to combat.
The smoke spreads, making it difficult for those in surrounding areas to breathe. Drawing from different inspiration, Manuel Alejandro Rodriguez-Delgado’s respirator installation delivers the mechanical sound of labored breaths, a chilling reminder of the vulnerability within us all in the face of air pollution, smog, smoke, and global pandemics rooted in respiratory viruses.
As climate crises intensify, exhibitions like this illuminate the intersection of art and activism, urging us to confront the reality we face sooner rather than later.
- Michael McFadden
Terrell James: Time and Tide
Josh Pazda Hiram Butler Gallery
Hiram Butler has served one of Houston’s beloved anchor blue-chip galleries for decades. In 2021, the gallery announced a name change to Josh Pazda Hiram Butler Gallery. Whether its Josh Pazda’s new role as co-owner, or new, bold and adventurous directions from the gallery over the years, the programming has been on-point. This brings us to this past summer’s exhibition from Terrell James, Time and Tide. James is one of Houston's respected “old guard” painters and I've followed her work since before I moved here in 2010. As a young curator and artist, I was introduced to her work at Charles Froelick Gallery in the mid-2000s. Her intriguing, large-scale paintings exuded a “Clifford Still meets Joan Mitchell” vibe with dark explorations of nature through abstraction. While there are many familiar aspects to her work from exhibition to exhibition, I'm always fascinated by the constant progression she makes as an artist. From sculpture, to printmaking in Berlin, to architectural elements blessing homes in the South, her body of work has the meat, potatoes, and creative exploration that we all want to see. James’ exhibition, Time and Tide, was tranquil and yet humming with energy. Works presented in the Pazda Butler space always have the benefit of the gallery’s natural light and open floor plan, and James’ work radiated within it.
Terrell James, “Insomnia’s Green Ledge”
Photo: Thomas DuBrock
The colors of her new paintings were so much brighter than those in many of her previous collections, and they moved like the warm waters of the sea over the round, ocean-molded rocks at the shoreline. I was exploring deep within the paintings, finding more and more moments to dive into. The works were reminiscent of landscapes of the Bay Area Movement era or even classic rolling European hillsides. The details found within the four edges of each work were both eloquent and provoking. There was a need for me to not just document the paintings that excited me, but to address the isolated pools of color inside the painting’s dialog. A grey mountainous shape that delicately kisses a rich green pasture-like shape; a gentle blue sound that reflects the colors of the sky above, all while simultaneously presenting as no more of a landscape than the bright orange-colored corner of Richard Diebenkorn. It was such a joy to be ignited in such a way. Hats off to Terrell James and Josh Pazda’s presentation of her works.
- Paul Middendorf
Theaster Gates: The Gift and The Renege
Contemporary Art Museum Houston
Gentrification is a relentless beast constantly repackaged as “change” regardless of whether it’s for the good of the “community” or the community of people who actually live in the area. The impact of the process has been a constant exploration in the practice of Theaster Gates, and Contemporary Arts Museum Houston highlighted this in The Gift and The Renege.
Co-curated by Ryan N. Dennis and Hesse McGraw, the sparse yet poignant exhibition surveyed works by Gates that highlight the conceptual root of his practice, reflecting the enduring strength of Black communities while acknowledging the very real costs of urban renewal.
Gates often intertwines his artistic expression with a nod to urban planning, but a more notable aspect of the exhibition is its symbolic starting point of Rebirth in Action, a collaboration between CAMH and Freedmen’s Town Conservancy that will “create artistic activations through artist residency programs, research fellowships, and exhibitions with the mission to share and honor the story of Houston’s Fourth Ward and to establish creative opportunities informed by its legacy and community stakeholders.”
Installation view of Theaster Gates: The Gift and The Renege at Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, 2024.
Photo by Alex Barber. © Contemporary Arts Museum Houston and Theaster Gates Studio.
In this exhibition, Freedmen’s Town served as both a subject and a symbol. Brick presses like “Stainless Labor” and “Analog Investments” pay homage to the handmade streets of Freedmen’s Town, laid by former slaves who transformed adversity into a foundation of dignity. These artifacts embody the community’s rich legacy, resisting the erasure often inflicted by gentrification and infrastructure projects.
With every salvaged material and poetic inscription, the exhibition invited reflection on the cyclical nature of displacement and the unyielding hope rooted in Black spaces. Gates’ vision gives dignity to the forgotten, reminding us that even in loss, there’s life worth honoring.
- Michael McFadden
Here are a few exhibitions we really enjoyed in 2024:
