060 VIRGIN AUSTRALIAMAY 2017
ITH ITS COBWEB of
overpasses, geometric
skyline and miles of
billboard advertising,
Houston is a sprawling
tribute to the culture
of consumption and
the machine aesthetic
that dominated 20th-
century American design. Yet the charm of this classically
muscular Texan city lies in a diferent kind of physicality: an
array of idiosyncratic installation art, which has a pulse that
equals any of the world’s great creative capitals.
You can put your finger on it, literally, by finding the Big
Bubble — an innocuous red button beside Mosbacher Bridge
(formerly Preston Street Bridge) on downtown’s northern edge,
that sends a bubble of compressed air into the river when
pressed. “It's not a labelled piece of art,” says its local creator
Dean Ruck, “it's just something that people discover.”
After you’ve watched the river dance and maybe surprised
a passer-by or two, cross north-east over Bufalo Bayou for the
next discovery: a 10-metre-high Charlie Chaplin statue looking
down over his fellow subjects in a nondescript industrial area. The
work of Texas native David Adickes, the sculpture yard houses
Charlie alongside the heads of presidents, dictators, The Beatles
and other key figures who have taken the 90-year-old’s fancy.SHOP
The trendy inner-city suburb
of Montrose is home to
Houston’s alternative streak.
Walk along Westheimer Road
and browse vintage stores
for a range of second-hand
designer clothes and shoes
for men and women. Bufalo
Exchange (2901 South Shepherd
Dr; http://www.bualoexchange.com)
and Pavement Clothing ( 1657
Westheimer Rd; +1 713 528 5500)
alone will keep keen shoppers
busy for hours. A block further
west, between Dunlavy and
Woodhead Streets, is a haven
of antiques stores, culminating
in the Westheimer Flea
Market (1733 Westheimer Rd;
http://www.westheimerfleamarket.com),
which has been buying and
selling homewares since 1970.
Space Montrose ( 1706
Westheimer Rd; http://www.space
montrose.com) has an original,
eclectic range of arts and gifts.
For an authentic pair of Texas
cowboy boots, visit RJ’s Boot
Company (3321 Ella Bvd; http://www.
rjboots.com) where Rocky
Carroll has custom made
boots for the last seven US
presidents, the British royal
family, and Elvis.A mural highlighting
Houston’s colourful
side. OPPOSITE
PAGE, CLOCKWISE
FROM LEFT Vintage
t-shirts on a rack at
Space in Montrose;
the shop’s interior;
iron sculptures
stand tall at Eclectic
Menagerie Park.
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Street-side antiques
on Westheimer Road.