Archway Gallery Exhibitions - 2025
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Rhonda Radford Adams Michael Angell Gözde Kaya Hepişler Kay Sarver Eric Stiles New Visions, New Voices; Inspiring Connections Through Art April 5 - May 1, 2025 |
Archway Gallery proudly announces New Visions, New Voices, a group exhibition putting the spotlight on the work of five talented artists who are the newest members of the Archway family: Rhonda Radford Adams’s vibrant mixed-media collages, Michael Angell’s fantastical metal castings, Gözde Kaya Hepişler’s whimsical ceramic sculptures, Kay Sarver’s expressive oil paintings and portraits, and Eric Stiles’s striking abstract paintings. Each artist brings a unique style and perspective to Texas’s longest-running artist owned and operated gallery, which has fostered the growth of so many phenomenal Houston artists over the years. Timed to coincide with World Art Day in April, and the beginning of Archway’s 50th year, the exhibition celebrates the transformative power of art and reaffirms Archway Gallery’s mission to champion artistic exploration.
Throughout its history, Archway Gallery has served as a platform for artistic innovation and creative expression, fostering connections between artists, audiences, and the community. New Visions, New Voices continues this tradition by posing a question that resonates with artists and the global community at large: How can art inspire and connect us in our shared journey? This question anchors the exhibition, inviting each participating artist to reflect on his or her creative journey, and offering visitors an opportunity to engage with the art on a deeper level. Through their diverse works, the artists of New Visions, New Voices demonstrate how fresh perspectives enrich the collective narrative of Houston’s creative community.
Throughout its history, Archway Gallery has served as a platform for artistic innovation and creative expression, fostering connections between artists, audiences, and the community. New Visions, New Voices continues this tradition by posing a question that resonates with artists and the global community at large: How can art inspire and connect us in our shared journey? This question anchors the exhibition, inviting each participating artist to reflect on his or her creative journey, and offering visitors an opportunity to engage with the art on a deeper level. Through their diverse works, the artists of New Visions, New Voices demonstrate how fresh perspectives enrich the collective narrative of Houston’s creative community.
Introducing the Artists:
Rhonda Radford Adams creates mixed media collages that celebrate the healing power of color, blending paint with papers, fabrics, and ceramics to craft vibrant, textured works. Through integrative and expressive arts workshops, she inspires creativity, connection, and personal growth, highlighting art as a transformative tool for well-being.
Rhonda Radford Adams creates mixed media collages that celebrate the healing power of color, blending paint with papers, fabrics, and ceramics to craft vibrant, textured works. Through integrative and expressive arts workshops, she inspires creativity, connection, and personal growth, highlighting art as a transformative tool for well-being.
Michael Angell’s art explores The Imagination through a stream-of-consciousness approach, focusing on mythology/totemic, life in Mystery, and dream-time-existence. His bespoke and heirloom sculptures, largely cast in pewter, capture one-to-one the scale and detail of the original wax works, surpassing traditional bronze in many aspects. Designed for intimate spaces, the sage at heart, his art invites viewers into a world of fantasy, self-reflection, storytelling, and timeless wonder.
Gözde Kaya Hepişler, originally from Istanbul, Türkiye, is a ceramic artist whose work celebrates human diversity and cultural connection. Her creations, including colorful figurative sculptures and contemporary interpretations of the protective evil eye, invite viewers to explore the beauty of diversity, the joy of life’s interconnected stories, and the small moments of happiness that brighten everyday life.
Kay Sarver, Archway’s newest artist, is also a returning member. Archway is pleased to welcome her back. As a young child, Sarver was always drawing, usually creating some sort of grand scene with animals and trees. Her parents fed this passion by taking her to classes at the Museum of Fine Arts in Cincinnati. Sarver later attended the University of Cincinnati, where she majored in Fine Arts and embraced painting with oils. After a few years in college, and three year stay in Florida, she migrated to Houston where she continues to live and work as a visual artist.
Eric Stiles’s transition from technical airbrushing to to abstract painting represents a bold exploration of the intangible. His intuitive process allows his work to evolve organically, with layers of underpaintings adding depth and soul to each piece. Reflecting his artistic journey, Eric’s creations are both honest and uniquely original, inviting viewers to engage with the striking aesthetics and emotional resonance of his work.
Together, these artists reflect the spirit of New Visions, New Voices, adding their perspectives to Archway Gallery’s collaborative community of 34 members. This exhibition celebrates the creativity and innovation that have sustained the gallery for nearly 50 years, honoring its collective legacy while embracing its continued growth as a treasured space for art and connection to the community.
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Becky Soria Intimate Geographies March 1 - April 3, 2025 |
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Traversing the territory of the body, Becky Soria’s paintings exhibited in Intimate Geographies, a show at Archway Gallery, come into focus not as objective and impersonal but rather as intensely personal and intimate. While preparing for this exhibit, Becky Soria was aware of her involvement in an evolution that had become real throughout all her years of creating art. Concerned with sensitive issues about women and the world we all live in, she strove to represent the vast territory that is human experience through images that map those experiences to the topography of the physical and energetic human body. Her bodies are the surface below the surface of both the physical body and the body visualized by the Ego.
This collection of abstracted but viscerally real figures grapples with her and our collective experience that is a culmination of all her years that connect art, our travails, and concerns for life itself. Soria dedicated herself to representing her journey of 40 years as an artist in these works of intimate geography.
Her artistic journey also interweaves explorations of humanity’s cultural history, nature and the evolution of feminine archetypes. Soria fuses prehistoric art, mythological themes, with the influence on her as a young girl of her father’s collection of pre-Colombian art. She also draws on historical goddess figures as archetypal representations of an increasingly empowered postmodern woman. In the works of this show, Soria has used mostly acrylic paints, some charcoal, and in certain works, incorporated cardboard, rope, and paper.
This collection of abstracted but viscerally real figures grapples with her and our collective experience that is a culmination of all her years that connect art, our travails, and concerns for life itself. Soria dedicated herself to representing her journey of 40 years as an artist in these works of intimate geography.
Her artistic journey also interweaves explorations of humanity’s cultural history, nature and the evolution of feminine archetypes. Soria fuses prehistoric art, mythological themes, with the influence on her as a young girl of her father’s collection of pre-Colombian art. She also draws on historical goddess figures as archetypal representations of an increasingly empowered postmodern woman. In the works of this show, Soria has used mostly acrylic paints, some charcoal, and in certain works, incorporated cardboard, rope, and paper.
Becky Soria, an American born in Bolivia, began her artistic career in the 1980s. She studied painting in the studios of South American artists, and with the artist and philosopher Dr. Fernando Casas. She also attended The Glassell School of Art in Houston, Texas. Her works are included in corporate and private collections in the US, Europe, Canada, and South America.
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Chris Alexander and Guest Artist Deborah Ellington Reliquaries February 1- 27, 2025 |
This exhibition by glass artists Chris Alexander and Deborah Ellington delves into the paradox of glass as a medium. Glass can appear transparent and opaque, solid and fractured, protective and delicate. It is a substance that holds within it the memory of its creation, reflecting the process and the hands that formed it. This complexity forms the heart of “Reliquaries,” an exhibition having to do with the nature of art, memory, and human experience.
A reliquary, traditionally a vessel for sacred relics, is a container that holds something revered and significant. In this exhibition, Alexander and Ellington reinterpret the concept of the reliquary through the lens of glass. Their works are not only physical containers but also metaphors for the sacred human impulse to create. The art embodies emotion and the passage of time, reminding us of the changing nature of the world and our attempts to find our place within it.
The creation of this body of work involved a unique investigation of media, process and intent. Attention was focused on determining how the glass could best express the artists’ narratives. The pieces invite the viewer to contemplate the shifting nature of reality, our collective history, and the intimate experiences that shape us. Chris Alexander and Deborah Ellington’s works offer an opportunity to connect with the sacred, the precious, and the ephemeral in our own lives.
Chris Alexander has been working in glass over thirty years. She learned traditional stained glass through a three-year apprenticeship with master glass artist Patricia Vloeberghs in Atlanta, Georgia. She holds degrees in architecture from University of Virginia and Georgia Institute of Technology. After working in commercial architecture for a number of years, she now focuses her studio art practice on work in stained glass, fused glass, and mixed media. She is the resident artist at Harmony Stained Glass in Pasadena, Texas, and has been a member artist of Archway Gallery for four years.
Deborah Ellington graduated from Albion College with a degree in Art Education, later obtaining an M.A. in Painting from the University of Michigan and an MFA in Ceramics from Sam Houston State University. After college, she taught K-12 in Michigan. She later took on significant roles in higher education, serving as an art professor and department chair at Lone Star College North Harris. She eventually transitioned to an instructional dean position, at Lone Star College Montgomery. Deborah has never stopped teaching. Even after retirement, she teaches fused glass workshops at Harmony Stained Glass in design, color, painting, and mold making. As a working artist, Deborah shows her art at Silver Street Studios, a part of the Sawyer Yards studio complex, in Houston, Texas.
A reliquary, traditionally a vessel for sacred relics, is a container that holds something revered and significant. In this exhibition, Alexander and Ellington reinterpret the concept of the reliquary through the lens of glass. Their works are not only physical containers but also metaphors for the sacred human impulse to create. The art embodies emotion and the passage of time, reminding us of the changing nature of the world and our attempts to find our place within it.
The creation of this body of work involved a unique investigation of media, process and intent. Attention was focused on determining how the glass could best express the artists’ narratives. The pieces invite the viewer to contemplate the shifting nature of reality, our collective history, and the intimate experiences that shape us. Chris Alexander and Deborah Ellington’s works offer an opportunity to connect with the sacred, the precious, and the ephemeral in our own lives.
Chris Alexander has been working in glass over thirty years. She learned traditional stained glass through a three-year apprenticeship with master glass artist Patricia Vloeberghs in Atlanta, Georgia. She holds degrees in architecture from University of Virginia and Georgia Institute of Technology. After working in commercial architecture for a number of years, she now focuses her studio art practice on work in stained glass, fused glass, and mixed media. She is the resident artist at Harmony Stained Glass in Pasadena, Texas, and has been a member artist of Archway Gallery for four years.
Deborah Ellington graduated from Albion College with a degree in Art Education, later obtaining an M.A. in Painting from the University of Michigan and an MFA in Ceramics from Sam Houston State University. After college, she taught K-12 in Michigan. She later took on significant roles in higher education, serving as an art professor and department chair at Lone Star College North Harris. She eventually transitioned to an instructional dean position, at Lone Star College Montgomery. Deborah has never stopped teaching. Even after retirement, she teaches fused glass workshops at Harmony Stained Glass in design, color, painting, and mold making. As a working artist, Deborah shows her art at Silver Street Studios, a part of the Sawyer Yards studio complex, in Houston, Texas.
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Maksim Koloskov Brushstrokes: Streetscapes, Style, and Skyline January 4 - 30, 2025 |
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For years, Houstonians may have spotted award-winning artist, Maksim Koloskov—a tall, slender man—capturing life on the move. Whether sketching fellow passengers on a bus, painting on a street corner, or drawing in a park, he reflects life unfolding around him in vibrant, impressionistic watercolors. From skylines and city streets to the sleek runways of Houston’s Fashion Week, Koloskov transports the viewer to the heart of H-Town, revealing a dynamic city alive with color and movement.
With his spontaneous approach, Koloskov sketches and paints his subjects on the spot, preserving everyday moments and fleeting encounters that we often overlook. Each piece carries the freshness and immediacy of Koloskov’s first impression, transforming familiar and seemingly ordinary urban scenes of Houston into evocative works of art.
Koloskov’s work isn’t confined to Houston. His watercolors of Spain, captured during his creative vacations there, were featured in a solo exhibition in Spain, which led to an interview on Radio Nacional de España. He is set to return to Spain for another solo show in summer 2025.
A graduate of Moscow’s prestigious Architectural Institute (MARCHI), Koloskov’s Russian heritage and classical Beaux-Arts training deeply influence his artistic vision. After moving to Houston in 1995, he blended his architectural expertise with his artistic pursuits, working for renowned design firms like Gensler and Rottet Studio. His architectural illustrations have earned him accolades, including awards from the American Society of Architectural Illustrators (ASAI) and “Cocktail Napkin Sketch” contests from Architectural Record. His work has been featured in major publications such as Architectural Record, Texas Architect, San Diego Magazine and hyperlapse inspiration videos for ELLE Decor.
In addition to architectural and urban themes, Koloskov’s fashion illustrations have appeared in London-based fashion magazines FABUK and LAZIN, and he was a featured artist in the London fashion magazine Goldfoil. His watercolor paintings are housed in the permanent collections of several hotels across Texas and Virginia, including Cavalry Court (College Station, TX), Texican Court (Irving, TX), Maple Terrace Residences (Dallas, TX), and the historic Hotel Weyanoke (Farmville, Va). Koloskov is a member of the American Society of Architectural Illustrators and the Watercolor Art Society Houston.
With his spontaneous approach, Koloskov sketches and paints his subjects on the spot, preserving everyday moments and fleeting encounters that we often overlook. Each piece carries the freshness and immediacy of Koloskov’s first impression, transforming familiar and seemingly ordinary urban scenes of Houston into evocative works of art.
Koloskov’s work isn’t confined to Houston. His watercolors of Spain, captured during his creative vacations there, were featured in a solo exhibition in Spain, which led to an interview on Radio Nacional de España. He is set to return to Spain for another solo show in summer 2025.
A graduate of Moscow’s prestigious Architectural Institute (MARCHI), Koloskov’s Russian heritage and classical Beaux-Arts training deeply influence his artistic vision. After moving to Houston in 1995, he blended his architectural expertise with his artistic pursuits, working for renowned design firms like Gensler and Rottet Studio. His architectural illustrations have earned him accolades, including awards from the American Society of Architectural Illustrators (ASAI) and “Cocktail Napkin Sketch” contests from Architectural Record. His work has been featured in major publications such as Architectural Record, Texas Architect, San Diego Magazine and hyperlapse inspiration videos for ELLE Decor.
In addition to architectural and urban themes, Koloskov’s fashion illustrations have appeared in London-based fashion magazines FABUK and LAZIN, and he was a featured artist in the London fashion magazine Goldfoil. His watercolor paintings are housed in the permanent collections of several hotels across Texas and Virginia, including Cavalry Court (College Station, TX), Texican Court (Irving, TX), Maple Terrace Residences (Dallas, TX), and the historic Hotel Weyanoke (Farmville, Va). Koloskov is a member of the American Society of Architectural Illustrators and the Watercolor Art Society Houston.