We’d expect to find images of cactus, rugged landscapes and ranch hands in an art exhibit called ”The Texas Aesthetic VI: Lone Star Heritage in Contemporary Texas Painting” Currently on display at Williams Reaves Fine Art gallery, ”Texas Aesthetic” has plenty of those. It also has a few surprises. There’s William Montgomery’s No Place to Hide II (Surveillance Blimp), showing a silver blimp floating above a river that winds through craggy mountains and vast, barren desert. Except for the hovering blimp, it’s a scene that could have been painted 100 years ago. With the surveillance craft in place, Montgomery pulls it firmly into the present. There’s also William Young’s surrealist piece The Source of the Brazos, which shows three birds sitting on a tree branch floating in the air. A teapot hangs from the unanchored branch, pouring water out onto the red dirt below which forms a stream that becomes the Brazos River. Some 16 regional artists participate in ”Texas Aesthetic,” the gallery’s sixth annual exhibit focusing on contemporary artists.
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, by appointment Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Through July 13. 2313 Brun St. For information, call 713-521-7500 or visit reavesart.com. Free.
Fridays, Saturdays. Starts: June 7. Continues through July 27, 2013
This article appears in Jun 14-20, 2012.