We are definitely blessed by amazing museums in Houston to visit. Of course, there are the old standard big museums everyone has heard of but there are hidden gems among them that some of us don’t even know about (just like me!).
In the summers I have a camp called “artward bound” . I take my art camp students to a different museum each Friday and we explore. But we don’t just explore, we EXPERIENCE. Each kiddo gets a tote bag with a travel size easel, a sketchpad, a pencil bag with colored pencils, eraser and sketch pencils.
When I take my artist campers to a museum we meet outside and talk about what we are about to see and experience. I encourage them to ask them to consider the following while they explore the museum. “I wonder” “I see” “I feel” I tell them to find the paintings or creations that inspire them and to sketch what they see. We take photographs of those inspiring images for them to use later to complete their sketches. It’s an entire process I have them create. When I was researching camps around Houston and what they provided there wasn’t a single camp that focused on the learning related to the exploration of the museum. I wanted my camp to focus on the “art” and experiencing the art as “artists” themselves.
So Let’s Talk About Houston Museums . . .
There is of course the BIG ticket museum. The Houston Museum of Fine Arts. This museum is all about large permanent exhibits as well as amazing traveling exhibits that draw in members and non members alike for weeks.
Most recently took my students to see the M.C. Escher exhibited at the HMFA. They were mesmerized by the works of art and took a great deal of time taking in the various techniques and materials that were used by Escher for his work.
Breakdown:
Fees to enter? Yes there is a fee to enter or you can buy a year long membership. But you can also use your Bank Of America card to get one weekend a month entry free! They also have a special Thursday evening free special. Check the website for dates, times, hours and fees.
Address: 1001 Bissonnet St
Highlights: According to Wikipedia “It is one of the largest art museums in the United States.
- With the recent completion of an eight year campus redevelopment project, including the opening of the Nancy and Rich Kinder Building in 2020, it is the 12th largest art museum in the world based on square feet of gallery space.
- The permanent collection of the museum spans more than 6,000 years of history with approximately 70,000 works from six continents.
- The MFAH’s permanent collection totals nearly 70,000 pieces in over 300,000 square feet (28,000 m2) of exhibition space,placing it among the larger art museums in the United States.
- The museum’s collections and programs are housed in nine facilities. The Susan and Fayez S. Sarofim Campus encompasses 14 acres including seven of the facilities, with two additional facilities, Bayou Bend and Rienzi (house museums) at off site locations.
- The main public collections and exhibitions are in the Law, Beck, and Kinder buildings. The Law and Beck buildings have over 130,000 square feet (12,000 m2) of exhibition space.”
The Menil – A smaller yet more widely known museum than HMFA. The building is beautiful and quite modern. Nestled among ancient trees and lush landscaping and a variety of large sculptures.
Breakdown:
Fees to enter? The Menil is always free. Always. (Which is nice on your budget) Check the website for dates, times, and hours.
Address: 1533 Sul Ross St.
Highlights: Wikepida describes the Menil as “The Menil Collection, located in Houston, Texas, refers either to a museum that houses the art collection of founders John de Menil and Dominique de Menil, or to the collection itself of approximately 17,000 paintings, sculptures, prints, drawings, photographs and rare books.
While the bulk of the collection is made up of a once-private collection, Menil Foundation, Inc. is a tax-exempt, nonprofit, public charity corporation formed under Section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code. Additionally the Menil receives public funds granted by the City of Houston, the State of Texas, and the federal government through the National Endowment for the Arts.
The museum’s holdings are diverse, including early to mid-twentieth century works of Yves Tanguy, René Magritte, Max Ernst, Man Ray, Marcel Duchamp, Henri Matisse, Jackson Pollock, and Pablo Picasso, among others.
The museum also maintains an extensive collection of pop art and contemporary art from Andy Warhol, Mark Rothko, Robert Rauschenberg, Vija Celmins and Cy Twombly, Jr., among others. Also included in the museum’s permanent collection are antiquities and works of Byzantine, Medieval and tribal art.”
My students took their sketch pads and went to the sculpture room and got to work. They each found a sculpture they loved and created some of their own artwork to honor the original artists.
Houston Center for Contemporary Craft
This is a hidden gem for me that I was only “last year’s old” when I found it. This spot is just so different from the other ones. HCCC has exhibitions as well as educational programs AND they have ON SITE artists that have their own studio space where they work and welcome guests into their space to observe and learn and connect with them.
Breakdown:
Fees to enter? You can buy a membership for visiting but admission is free. Donation accepted.
Address: 4848 Main Street
Highlights: The exhibits are usually 3D works of art by local and out of town artists. There are usually one or two exhibits you can see. BUT the super cool thing about this museum is their artist in residence program. I think they have about 5 studios the artists use and it’s very cool to step inside and check out what they do.
In June 2021, the exhibit was cosplay costumes and the kids were in HEAVEN exploring the amazing creations and getting to sketch their favorites!
Here are two of the artists we met as we explored the studios. We got to watch them work, ask questions and occasionally try out their craft!
Has anyone here heard of the Czech Center and Museum Houston?
I had no idea that there was a museum that’s entirely dedicated to the people of Czechoslovakia. It’s this beautiful 3-story tall building just down the street from the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft and it is definitely a spot that should not be missed!
Its website boasts that, “The Czech Center Museum Houston celebrates Czech culture, history, art, and music, among diverse communities through educational programs, creative activities, and meaningful outreach.”
Breakdown:
Fees to enter? Fees vary depending on age and membership
Address: 4920 San Jacinto Street
Highlights: the second floor has a ballroom available for rent.
There is a small “dressing room” where you can dress up in traditional Czech clothes. The third floor is full of art and exhibits and fun and engaging things for kids.
The staff is super friendly and spent all the time we wanted with us! It’s a must see for off the beaten path museums!
We loved the mural in the parking lot. And we got to see a beautiful traditional dress on the mannequin on the third floor.
Houston African American Museum of Culture
Breakdown:
Fees to enter: Always free- donations appreciated
Address: 4807 Caroline Street
Highlights:
You will find rotating exhibitionsAt this small little set aside off the beaten path Museum. This weekend was Juneteenth and there were some huge amazing exhibitions as well as activities that were available.
The importance and the need for a museum that is specifically geared towards the African-American community is of the utmost importance especially here in Texas. There are some permanent paintings that are tremendous and impactful and the rotating exhibits if they have are also very much worth your time. They also have a fabulous gift shop area with a lot of homemade local and out of town art to purchase.
There is a permanent exhibit there called the Jazz Church of Houston. Here is what the website has to say about it. “…is an endeavor by artist Tierney Malone to create a temporary institution dedicated to collecting and sharing the story of Houston’s musical tribe.
While there are museums in Texas dedicated to music, a space does not exist that chronicles the jazz history of Houston. The name “Jazz Church” drew its inspiration from the Church of John Coltrane in San Francisco.
Established in 1970, the church uses John Coltrane’s music as an expression of worship. The Jazz Church of Houston is a secular temple that will serve as a communal gathering place for like-minded people to listen, learn and celebrate jazz music and culture in Houston.
Outside the museum the day we went the artist Deliat Martin had just painted the image of a woman who was recently murdered.
The image is of a student sketching a picture that intrigued her at HMAAC.
The Jazz Church of Houston’s patron saint is a Texas tenor legend. Arnett Cobb. He is the standard bearer for all those who came after him. He made Houston his base of operation instead of New York or LA, as many of his contemporaries have done.
He mentored the next generation of jazz musicians who followed in his footsteps to New York. he is the model of rugged individualism that often characterizes Texans. He survived many physical challenges to pursue his passion of making music.
He was hospitalized for a year from a car accident, and used crutches for the rest of his life. He never let his physical challenges prevent him from playing for audiences around the world. “-Tierney Malon, via jazzchurchhouston.org
Once again I had no idea, until recently, that this building existed and that it had such a cool vibe to it! It’s definitely a place that you have the opportunity of renting for a party or a training or other kinds of venues and it’s a beautiful new building. But it also hosts many artists and residents that are there on a grant they are paid to work and teach others who come in to explore their area.
After opening in 2021, In their own words they shared “…the center offers expanded programming and exhibitions and celebrates the strength and beauty of diverse perspectives and people.
Have in person events as well as online events they have exhibitions film Knights and so much more opportunities for exploration. The museum also has summer camp experiences for kids as well!
One of its very unique features is actually part of the architecture. While standing outside the front entrance just under the built in covered awning a light mist began to cascade down from above. The kids were thrilled to feel the cool mist and curious where it was coming from. After we toured the center we stopped on the second floor to admire the view.
As we were looking out the giant landscape windows we were standing just above the awning at the front entrance. It was covered in grass! Like a living floor of foliage. It was beautiful. And that’s when the misting station started. It appears that the mist was watering the grass and that some of the mist flowed down over the walls onto the ground below. It’s just a very beautiful serene moment.
Breakdown:
Fees to enter: Always free- donations appreciated
Address: 1370 Southmore Blvd.
Highlights:
The artist in residence program is always my favorite! I love getting to see new types of art as well as getting to personally interact with the artists! I always have so many questions for the artist of a piece of work. I like to know where their inspiration came from, I want to know how something was achieved. So many things go through my mind. The opportunity for myself AND my artist campers to be able to interact with the masterminds of the craft is a golden opportunity!
These pics are from our last visit where we met with two different artists in the middle of creating installations for the center.
Their mission is “The Center of African American Military History (CAAMH) inc., dba Buffalo Soldiers National Museum (BSNM), is dedicated to exploring and displaying the stories and contributions of African Americans in the military by way of performing and visual arts, educational programming and exhibitions.”
Breakdown:
Fees to enter: Varies depending on age – check the website for specifics.
Address: 3816 Caroline Street
Highlights: This museum is dedicated to the first black professional soldiers in a peacetime army. Members of this army were made up of varied backgrounds including former slaves and veterans from service in the Civil War.
I’m not going to lie, the favorite then the kids found in this Museum was the room where they could dress up like soldiers and act out their own little mini place. I think the kids spent 45 minutes trying on the different costumes and uniforms and engaging in multiple dramatic theatrical performances. Lol it was a lot of fun and while it’s not a very large Museum the kids definitely learned a lot and had a good time in the process.
As you can see there are a ton of amazing museums here in the city of Houston. If you live here, take a chance and pick one every couple of weeks and explore. If you’re from out of town I highly recommend heading up to one or two of these museums while you’re here visiting.
If there’s a particular Museum that I didn’t highlight here please feel free to let me know I’m always looking for new and interesting places to go for myself or with my art camp students!
