Midtown Houston Announces Completion of Public Art Installations in Midtown Park

HOUSTON (March 4, 2020) —  Midtown Houston has announced completion of their ‘art park,’ fulfilling an initiative that began in 2017, when Midtown Park officially opened to the public. Since then, Midtown Houston has invested generously in public art installations, with the two most recent works of art finalized just last month. This milestone comes fresh off the heels of the park being recognized by the Houston District Council of the Urban Land Institute (ULI Houston) with the Design of Distinction award for open space, in addition to the People’s Choice award. 

“Working with the four extraordinary artists commissioned by the Midtown Board has been an honor and a delight. Their talent and vision guided the transformation of everyday materials, such as glass, concrete, and aluminum, into a series of poetic interventions that add character and meaning to this remarkable place,” said Jessica Cusick, Lead Consultant on the project and founder of Cusick Consulting. 

Midtown’s art park fuses art with nature in vivid interpretations of the park’s natural features. The selected artists, all women, drew inspiration from nature, the neighborhood, and park visitors, along with key aspects of the park such as the “bayou” landscape to the scenic garden walk highlighting native plants and small inhabitants.

“We are thrilled to celebrate Houston’s authentic art scene by creating an accessible space that locals and visitors can engage in a variety of ways,” said Mechelle Phillips, Midtown Park Manager. “The arts are central to Midtown’s character, so our park now complements the large array of arts and cultural institutions, nonprofit organizations, businesses and artist studios that make up the area.”

Bright Dragons, designed by artist Krista Birnbaum, “celebrates the diverse assemblage of forests, prairies, wetlands, and bottomlands on display in the urban park,” says Birnbaum. Taking cues from the existing public art and urban life that provides the imagery of the area, Bright Dragons layers mural paint, digitally printed wall coverings, and prints on aluminum panels. The artwork starts below the park in the Midtown Park Parking Facility and winds up the stairs to the park level, evoking the surfaces of the city.

A complex mosaic portrait titled Mary-Am, is “a celebration of the subliminal feminine force present in nature and in all cultures and religions,” says artist Shahzia Sikander. “The female face’s emergence from the water and from within the painterly marks and gestures, and the portrait’s upward glance is symbolic of its soaring, inspiring premise, the human journey of creativity and strife in pursuit of truth.” The glass mosaic, with its bright colors and intricate patterns, completes the fountain located at the entrance to the park.

Additional art projects commissioned for the park include the 16-foot-tall mosaic depicting Houston’s flora and fauna designed by artist Dixie Friend-Gay, and two interactive concrete sculptures for the park’s play area, “Tall Ma” and “Little Ricky,” created by artist Sharon Engelstein.

Friend-Gay describes her mosaic mural as a piece that creates a sense of wonder, fun and adventure by catching the eye from a distance, while providing areas of interest up close. The use of flora and fauna native to the Texas Gulf area raises environmental awareness and allows viewers to enter the enchanting wonderland that makes up the local environment.

When describing her installations, Engelstein shared that the sculptures are specifically intended to engage visitors of all ages and backgrounds. 

“One need not know that they are looking at art to have an art experience, as it easily mirrors the experience of play and wonderment. Naturally when we encounter a peculiar object in the world we are often prompted to engage with it through evaluation, bewilderment, humor, recognition, or interaction,” said Engelstein. 

Houston boasts one of the largest concentrations of artists and arts production in the nation. By commissioning major works by Houston artists and facilitating ongoing opportunities for artists to engage in park programs, Midtown Park is a place that celebrates the remarkable creative community that nurtures some of the nation’s most inspired talents.

Midtown Houston is a state-designated Cultural Arts and Entertainment District. More. For more information on the latest art installations in Midtown Park, the artists who created them, or to schedule interviews, please contact Ashley Small at pr@oneworldstrong.com or 281-827-3419.