Can you believe it’s already been five years since the Nancy and Rich Kinder Building opened at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston? This space has quickly become one of the crown jewels of our city’s Museum District, and to celebrate its anniversary, MFAH has unveiled not just one, but four dynamic permanent presentations drawn from its collections. Each one explores a different theme — energy, car culture, materiality, and jewelry as sculpture — and together, they showcase the breadth and brilliance of modern and contemporary art today.
Behind the Wheel
This exhibition dives into America’s long-standing love affair with the automobile. Growing up, so many of our experiences — road trips, family outings, even just cruising around town — are tied to car culture, and the artists here interpret that history in fascinating ways. From Ishimoto Yasuhiro’s evocative black-and-white photographs of Chicago’s streets to Chakaia Booker’s powerful rubber tire sculptures, Behind the Wheel feels nostalgic, celebratory, and a little bit critical all at once. It reminds us that cars aren’t just machines — they represent independence, identity, and even community.
Fabia De Sanctis and Ugo Sterpini for Officina Undici, Cielo, Mare, Terra Buffet,1964, walnut, metal, and two Fiat doors ofthe 600 prima series, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, the Dennis Freeman Collection, museum purchase funded by the Caroline Wiess Law Accessions Endowment. © 1964 Fabio De Sanctis. Photographer: Kent Pell
Energy
Teresita Fernández, Caribbean Cosmos, 2022, glazed ceramic mosaic tiles,the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, museum purchase funded by the Caroline Wiess Law Accessions Endowment. © 2022 Teresita Fernández
Houston is often called the energy capital of the world, so it feels only right that MFAH would explore this theme through the lens of art. Energy highlights its many forms — from the natural to the industrial to the unseen forces around us. You’ll find everything from photographs of oil refineries and vast electrical sites to the mesmerizing natural power captured in Richard Misrach’s Pink Lightning and Teresita Fernández’s cosmic works. What really stood out to me was how these pieces manage to balance beauty and intensity, moving from pure awe to a powerful reminder of energy’s ability to both sustain and destroy.
Material Presence
Here, artists break away from the traditional “rules” of painting and sculpture to experiment with materials in ways that feel fresh and alive. Think LEGO® bricks used to reinterpret Monet’s Water Lilies,(a colorful lego display that’s my favorite) or Sam Gilliam’s sweeping canvases that don’t hang flat but instead drape and move through space(featured image above). This installation is about art that makes you stop and consider not just what you’re seeing, but what it’s made of and how that changes your experience of it. For me, it’s such a reminder that creativity has no limits. Whether it’s plaster, plastic, canvas, or paper, in the right hands it all transforms into a beautiful tool for expression.
The Jewelry of Dorothea Prühl
And then there’s the jewelry. I have to admit, this one had my heart the moment I heard about it. Dorothea Prühl, a German artist celebrated worldwide, transforms wood and metal into breathtaking sculptural pieces that feel more like wearable art than accessories. Inspired by the natural world — think birds, wings, flowers — her necklaces and brooches are bold yet delicate, simple yet incredibly complex. Thanks to a promised gift from the Rotasa Foundation Trust, MFAH now holds the largest collection of her work in the world, which is such a treasure for Houston. Whether you’re a jewelry lover or simply someone who appreciates craftsmanship, this exhibition is not to be missed.
Dorothea Prühl, Flowers from Augustenberg
(Blumen aus Augustenberg), 1989,
alder wood and string, the Museum of Fine Arts,
Houston, promised gift of the Rotasa Collection
Trust. © Dorothea Prühl. Photo: Helga SchulzeBrinkop
Together, these four presentations celebrate everything the Kinder Building represents — innovation, curiosity, and the joy of seeing the world in new ways. If it’s been a while since your last visit, now is the perfect excuse to plan a trip. Stroll through the galleries, soak in the creativity, and remind yourself of how lucky we are to have world-class art like this right here in Houston.
I’ll definitely be making time to wander through, and I hope you do too. See you at the museum!
For more details, visit mfah.org.
