Spain brings up a lot of different images for a lot of different people. For many young travelers it’s a man carrying a cooler of cheap brew down the street yelling “cervesabeer!”, but the MFAH and its partners are going beyond that. The lasting images of 15th to 18th century Spain are showcased in the MFAH exhibition, Portrait of Spain: Masterpieces from the Prado. The MFAH is kicking off the exhibition this Sunday, December 16th, with a street fair celebrating all things Spanish. From 1 – 4 p.m., Sunday December 16th the Beck Building Main Street entrance will be fully ... Read More »

It is said that the low points in life are what makes the high points that much sweeter. We experience this sensation all the time on a smaller scale. Like when you showed up to that Christmas party and you didn’t know anyone else there so you got a drink and a plate of food which you sat awkwardly alone to eat, staring out into the crowd of people you didn’t know, feeling like an awkward loser. So when that girl you haven’t seen since high school shows up you greet her like she was your best long lost friend, ... Read More »

As the year rapidly approaches its conclusion (which some believe might actually be the last we’ll have on earth), many of you are probably worrying that you haven’t been charitable enough with your lives. I’m one of you, but fear not, for we bring good news. This holiday season, you can be philanthropic AND party at the same time. Houston’s Black Sheep Agency is hosting its 3rd annual Tweet Drive party on December 12th at 7 p.m., an event that will benefit the children and families of the  Houston Area Women’s Center. Getting into the party is easy: Bring in ... Read More »

By: Erin Dyer CO Big or CO Home! COHouston– a community-driven initiative to support, promote, and celebrate our city’s local creativity– presents its first-ever Pop-Up Festival at Fitzgerald’s (2706 White Oak) this Sunday, Dec 2. Come out for a benefit featuring live music, food, arts and craft shopping, friends, and guaranteed fun. Admission for the all-day event– from 11am to 630pm– is FREE; however, a $10 suggested donation would benefit the bands and C2Creative, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to supporting Houston’s creative community. Artists, crafters, and makers include: Abbie Drue Designs, Artist Andy, All That Dangles + Knots&Leather, BeerSox by ... Read More »

Photo Credit: Paul Hester/Akbar Baloch By: Amanda Hart Voices Breaking Boundaries, a local grassroots nonprofit arts organization, is putting on a “Homes and Histories” walkable art show this Saturday in Houston’s historic Freedmen’s Town. The show will begin at 2pm and end at 4pm on Saturday, December 1st. Artists will include Akbar Baloch, Tina Dismukes, Amanda Hart, Paul Hester, Jibran Jawaid, Autumn Knight, Babette Niemel, Robert Pruit, Sehba Sarwar, Kaneem Smith, Koumankele African Dance & Drum Ensemble and many more. Voices Breaking Boundaries (VBB) had this to say about the event: VBB invites you to cross borders in a journey ... Read More »

By: Erin Dyer An irregularly issued magazine with unique content, FOUND Magazine, hits Houston at the end of this month as part of its 10th Anniversary Tour– “My Heart Is An Idiot.” FOUND Magazine is composed of various love letters, poems, photos, diary entries, prison letters, personal notes, and more; with origins varying from Los Angeles to Louisiana, Sweden to North Korea and beyond. These original ephemera included in the magazine are submitted by their finders, who discovered them on the street, in a used couch, in a library book, or somewhere of the like. The magazine and its corresponding ... Read More »

There are no excuses for anyone missing out on good food next week, and if you visit Grand Prize Bar, you’ll have the opportunity to enjoy food from many local restaurants. It isn’t just the spirit of the holidays that has Grand Prize hosting a slew of chefs, but also to help raise money to support the Original OKRA Charity Saloon. All food sales go directly to supporting the Charity Saloon. Each day of next week, there will be a new chef from a local restaurant, for six days straight. The food festivities begin on Monday, and will end on ... Read More »

If you haven’t caught it yet, this weekend will be your last chance to catch local theater company BooTown’s live rendition of the 90’s cult-classic movie Empire Records as Damn the Man. The show, which, for those of you who aren’t familiar with the original movie, is about a “coming-to-age-in-a-record-store tale” about a group of unique misfits who are united by a cause. The performance of Damn the Man will be at Houston’s first independent record store, Cactus Music, which is obviously fitting (and so “meta”), and should make for a unique performance. I can just imagine the theater company ... Read More »

By: John Pluecker Towards the end of City Council Meeting: Performed Participatory Democracy last night at Palm Center, a young boy behind me whined, “This is so weird.” I tend to agree. The emotional climax of the show was one of the most bizarre moments I’ve experienced in a while: a political consultant reading a surrealist think-piece on local politics on behalf of a local council member, interspersed with praise songs from the choir of the evangelical Iglesia de Ríos de Aceite, set in the courtroom of local African-American political powerhouse, Judge Zinetta Burney. All the while the directors of ... Read More »

All Aboard Skateboard Art Show: Tomorrow, November 2nd, Alicia Merner will be hosting the All Aboard Skateboard Art Show, which will benefit A.Skate Foundation, a registered non-profit that teaches children with autism how to skateboard. How cool is that? The show is at the El Rincon Social, which is located on 3210 Preston Street. The event begins at 7pm, and will last until 11pm. The show will feature 55 local artists’ work. The artists have been given blank skateboards, and set loose, allowing for full creativity and expression on one of my favorite art mediums: the underbelly of skate decks. ... Read More »