An untitled 1975 photo by Michael Abramson
Located down the street from Holocaust Museum Houston and Asia Society Houston, HMAAC continues to hit it out of the park with exhibitions and programming that recognize the contributions of Black artists to American culture and the history of art, while reinforcing the modern adage, “Every month is Black History Month.”
The Bert Long, Jr. Spring Survey Exhibition is open annually to Houston-area emerging artists. This year, there are nine artists on view, and one of the artists will be chosen for the 2024 Bert Long, Jr. Prize which includes a $3,000 cash award and a summer solo exhibition in the Bert Long, Jr. Gallery. The quality of all of the artwork in this year’s survey is exceptional; from Ann Johnson’s intaglio prints on raw cotton; to Morgan Grigsby’s dramatic and sensual oil-on-canvas portrait “Bottle Girl;” to Christopher Paul’s Gullah-inspired sound, video, and sculpture installation “Great Was the Ecstasy.” Photography, lithography, and other mixed media are also represented in this wide-ranging survey.
Shavon Morris's 'Transfiguration,' collage on canvas, 2024
Pervs, Peppers, and the High Chaparral were three Black nightclubs located on Chicago’s South Side in the 1970s where photographer Michael Abramson, a white man, embedded himself with a Leica flash camera to document the scene. Dressed to the nines, the working-class crowds danced, smoked, and smooched to the sounds of underground funk and early disco. “Imagine Ernie Barnes’ Sugar Shack painting, but as photographs,” is how Blay describes this sexy collection of nocturnal craziness. “The result is an invaluable legacy of Black joy expressed in images of people in Black and queer spaces.”
Complementing Abramson’s photos, and taking its name from the classic 1978 song by Funkadelic, One Nation, One Groove explores the history of African American music — with nods to Houston’s own Archie Bell and Johnny Nash — as an expression of the human condition and a driving force for social change. The exhibition includes reprinted archival images of performances, advertisements, posters, and signs from several eras, including images of Houston’s own Arnett Cobb and Milt Larkin, as well as vinyl records, barbershop chairs, and hip-hop and jazz videos. QR codes throughout the installation lead to playlists of music referenced in the show.
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Len Cannon, Dr. Condoleezza Rice, Peyton Manning
Two-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback Peyton Manning was also on hand. Country music legend Lee Greenwood performed his iconic song, “Proud to Be an American.”
The celebration of Bush’s “selfless service, kindness, and civility, which serves as an inspiration for the leaders of tomorrow” was the largest so-called Presidential Salute yet, said a rep for the George & Barbara Bush Foundation. Some 600 guests were in attendance, helping raise a whopping $1 million.
In her remarks to the crowd as part of a panel moderated by KHOU anchor Len Cannon, “Rice reflected on the Bushes’ legacy, noting that people love the Bushes because they loved people and that they treated others with respect and honor,” said the foundation rep. “Manning said mentors like President and Mrs. Bush, who give back to the community and ‘walk the walk,’ make it easy to follow in their footsteps.”
Another memorable moment came when Pierce Bush, grandson of the former president and first lady, toasted his grandparents, reading from a handwritten note to him from his granddad. The note referenced going fishing on one of the president’s boats, which was auctioned off as part of the evening’s fundraising efforts. An anonymous buyer picked up the 2011 speed boat for $435,000.
Dinner was fit for a president, too. Maine lobster bisque was followed by hibiscus-glazed short rib, with Mastro’s famous butter cake as the wow-factor dessert. Fabulous wine pairings included Cellier des Chartreux Sauvignon Blanc “Blue” 2022 and Smith Devereux “IBEX” Merlot 2019.
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Bush Foundation CEO, Honorable Andrew H. Card, Jr.
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Lee Greenwood