Archway Gallery Upcoming Exhibition Calendar
|
April 4 - 30, 2026 Fifty Forward Archway Gallery Celebrates Fifty Years of Artist-Led Creativity Read more here. Opening Reception Saturday, April 11, 5 - 8 p.m. Comments at 6:30 p.m. Complimentary Valet Parking and Light Refreshments |
|
APRIL 2026 EXHIBITION EVENTS
April 11 (Sat) |
Opening Reception (5 - 8 pm) and Comments (6:30 pm) |
April 12 (Sun) |
Rice String Quartet (6 - 8 pm) |
April 19 (Sun) |
AURA of UH (6 - 8 pm) |
April 26 (Sun) |
Opus 4 String Quartet (6 - 8 pm) |
|
May 2 - June 4, 2026 Poetics of the Mundane New Paintings, Collages, Ceramic Works, and Sculptures by Silvia PintoSouza and Jeff Forster Opening Reception Saturday, May 2, 5 - 8 p.m. Artists' Talk at 6:30 p.m. Complimentary Valet Parking and Light Refreshments |
|
Archway Gallery artist, Silvia PintoSouza, and Department Head-Ceramics at The Glassell School of Art, Jeff Forster, are focusing their dual exhibit on the transitory nature of life and of the scenes and objects that fire their imagination, capturing both a sense of permanence and of transition through their artistic media.
PintoSouza’s work transforms the common objects of our lives into something more lasting and meaningful. Starting with “real” subject matter, she creates an increasingly abstract work by simplifying or stylizing colors, shapes, and textures, often using many layers of much-diluted acrylic paint to build different tonal values. This permits her to push dark areas to the background and light ones to the foreground, evoking the many translucent curtains on a stage. PintoSouza chose to work in small formats, allowing her to use a wide variety of techniques that highlight her technical skill and attention to detail. “Small works of art offer flexible, practical, and stylish ways to make a statement and add color and texture to compact spaces,” comments the artist.
Forster’s work repurposes materials oftentimes inspired by cast-off agricultural and automotive parts he encountered in so-called “junk piles” during his childhood. Also, he often uses cast-off items during the building process, for example using packing materials as press molds, exploiting the negative spaces to make industrial-looking objects. In addition, he repurposes ceramic materials, such as kiln furniture, glaze waste produced in his studio, and pieces of clay from the reclaim barrel or wastepaper basket that he sees as having inherent aesthetic value. Forster is mindful of the environment—both in the sense of repurposing human-made detritus and of the profound impact of nature as a sanctuary and inspiration.
Silvia PintoSouza, a native of Colombia, received her Art and Design diploma from Byam Shaw School of Fine Art and Design (now known as Central Saint Martin’s School of Art) in London, UK. While in London, she met her husband, Marco, and moved with him to Rio de Janeiro, where she continued her training in metal printing, lithography, woodcut, and silkscreen. For the last 30 years, she has lived in Houston and has devoted herself exclusively to painting, with some sporadic escapes into ceramic. PintoSouza has exhibited her artwork in many solo and group exhibitions throughout the United States, Europe, and South America, and her artwork is included in collections all around the world. She joined Archway Gallery in May 2016. This is her fourth solo and two-person exhibition at Archway.
A native of rural Minnesota, Jeff Forster serves as head of the ceramics department at The Glassell School of Art, while maintaining an active studio practice. He has a BA from St. John’s University and an MFA from Southern Illinois University. He has exhibited nationally and internationally, winning awards including the Juror’s Choice Award in Ceramic Object/Conceptual Material and the Luis Jiménez Award for first place in Sculpture on Campus at Southern Illinois University. Forster was awarded the Helen Drutt Studio Fellowship with his residency at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft and completed residencies at Atelierhaus Hilmsen in Germany, Lone Star College–North Harris in Texas, the Armory Arts Center in Florida, and Guldagergaard International Ceramic Research Center in Denmark. Forster has served on the Artist-in-Residence Committee at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, the ClayHouston board, and the Fresh Arts Artist Advisory Committee. He also has been a board member for the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts for the 47th annual conference in Houston.
PintoSouza’s work transforms the common objects of our lives into something more lasting and meaningful. Starting with “real” subject matter, she creates an increasingly abstract work by simplifying or stylizing colors, shapes, and textures, often using many layers of much-diluted acrylic paint to build different tonal values. This permits her to push dark areas to the background and light ones to the foreground, evoking the many translucent curtains on a stage. PintoSouza chose to work in small formats, allowing her to use a wide variety of techniques that highlight her technical skill and attention to detail. “Small works of art offer flexible, practical, and stylish ways to make a statement and add color and texture to compact spaces,” comments the artist.
Forster’s work repurposes materials oftentimes inspired by cast-off agricultural and automotive parts he encountered in so-called “junk piles” during his childhood. Also, he often uses cast-off items during the building process, for example using packing materials as press molds, exploiting the negative spaces to make industrial-looking objects. In addition, he repurposes ceramic materials, such as kiln furniture, glaze waste produced in his studio, and pieces of clay from the reclaim barrel or wastepaper basket that he sees as having inherent aesthetic value. Forster is mindful of the environment—both in the sense of repurposing human-made detritus and of the profound impact of nature as a sanctuary and inspiration.
Silvia PintoSouza, a native of Colombia, received her Art and Design diploma from Byam Shaw School of Fine Art and Design (now known as Central Saint Martin’s School of Art) in London, UK. While in London, she met her husband, Marco, and moved with him to Rio de Janeiro, where she continued her training in metal printing, lithography, woodcut, and silkscreen. For the last 30 years, she has lived in Houston and has devoted herself exclusively to painting, with some sporadic escapes into ceramic. PintoSouza has exhibited her artwork in many solo and group exhibitions throughout the United States, Europe, and South America, and her artwork is included in collections all around the world. She joined Archway Gallery in May 2016. This is her fourth solo and two-person exhibition at Archway.
A native of rural Minnesota, Jeff Forster serves as head of the ceramics department at The Glassell School of Art, while maintaining an active studio practice. He has a BA from St. John’s University and an MFA from Southern Illinois University. He has exhibited nationally and internationally, winning awards including the Juror’s Choice Award in Ceramic Object/Conceptual Material and the Luis Jiménez Award for first place in Sculpture on Campus at Southern Illinois University. Forster was awarded the Helen Drutt Studio Fellowship with his residency at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft and completed residencies at Atelierhaus Hilmsen in Germany, Lone Star College–North Harris in Texas, the Armory Arts Center in Florida, and Guldagergaard International Ceramic Research Center in Denmark. Forster has served on the Artist-in-Residence Committee at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, the ClayHouston board, and the Fresh Arts Artist Advisory Committee. He also has been a board member for the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts for the 47th annual conference in Houston.
MAY 2026 EXHIBITION EVENTS
May 2 (Sat) |
Opening Reception (5 - 8 pm) and Artists' Talk (6:30 pm) |
May 3 (Sun) |
Carya String Quartet (6 - 8 pm) |
May 7 (Thurs) |
MusiqLab (6 - 8 pm) |
May 17 (Sun) |
Contempo (6 - 8 pm) |
FUTURE FEATURED ARTIST EXHIBITIONS
April 2026 |
Archway Gallery 50th Anniversary Exhibition |
May 2026 |
Silvia PintoSouza |
June 2026 |
Print Show in Collaboration with Print Houston |
July 2026 |
Archway Gallery's 18th Annual Juried Exhibition |
August 2026 |
Lisette McClung |
September 2026 |
Katherine Rodgers |