It’s Saturday, September 24, and artist Dan Houston and an array of helpers are busy setting up his various paintings in our condo Community Room. Houston, by the by, hails from Houston, Texas, and yes, his name was Houston when he moved there more than 30 years ago.
He’s a big chap and claims he developed his love of art as a small child, “creating his masterpieces with crayons on brown paper bags…on his mother’s walls.” He went on to attend the School of Visual Arts in New York City, where he graduated in 1965 before moving on to graduate in 1969 from the Cooper Union School of Art.
The influence of the abstract expressionist era is everywhere in his paintings and Glicee works: a bit of Milton Avery, a smattering of Jackson Pollock, a dash of Kline and colorful whispers of DeKooning. There’s a bit of something for everyone in the exhibition, and as I write, it’s taking shape for a reception sponsored by Genyne Edwards of “Woo Connections,” and June Perry of “Best Ed LLC.” Tomorrow, it moves on to the more spacious Renaissance Place, before being packed up and transported by van back to Houston. That’s a long haul no matter how you slice it, but in any event, it’s a moving feast for art-eyes.
Below me, on floor one, the scene is being set to the cool tunes of jazz legends, tunes the artist says, reveal “his innermost thoughts and ideas.” Of all the pieces displayed on easels throughout the room, my favorite by far is one in the modernist mode, a simple and elegant piece titled “Bounce.” It moves to a beat, and seems to be Houston at his best. Is it “pure” Houston? I don’t see any of the ’60s influences in this particular work, but that said, all viewers bring their own interpretations with them when they view art.
A slick little card trumpets that the work as “Architectural Wall Décor.” It’s way more than a device to fill wall space, but you can go to www.architecturalwalldecor.com for more information.
By the time you read this, Houston will be headed home to ah, Houston where his works hang in landmarks such as the Marathon Oil Company, as well as the art collections and galleries throughout the greater Houston area.
