See 200 never-before-exhibited photographs in “Mardi Gras Galveston! — Phyllis Hand.” A society photographer, Hand documented the annual Tremont House Masked Ball from 1985 to 1998. Before you dismiss the exhibit as just a bunch of mug shots of Galveston’s elite, consider this: Hand shot the ultra-colorful balls in black-and-white, and she did it à la French street photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson. And while there are plenty of shots of smiling socialites, there are also more interesting images of diamond-and-fur-clad women clamoring for free Mardi Gras beads alongside their usually reserved husbands, who are all decked out in feathered masks and outlandish costumes. Noon to 5 p.m. Sundays, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays, through February 23. Buchanan Gallery, 220 25th Street in Galveston. For information, call 409–763–8683 or visit
www.buchanangallery.com. Free.

Mondays, Thursdays-Sundays. Starts: Jan. 19. Continues through Feb. 23, 2008

This article appears in Feb 7-13, 2008.