MISSION + strategic vision + HISTORY
Mission
The mission of Art League Houston is to connect the community through diverse, dynamic, and creative experiences that bring people together to see, make, and talk about contemporary visual art.
About Us
Founded in 1948, Art League Houston has radically evolved beyond the parameters of traditional art leagues. While keeping the core of the Art League model – a robust membership deeply committed to the value of visual art in contemporary life – Art League Houston embraces contemporary approaches related to art and culture to curatorial programming, community-building, art educational activities, and outreach to under-resourced communities.
Learn more about the initiatives and goals ALH has for its future in our 2022 Strategic Plan.
Core Values
Our role as a creative hub for multiracial, multigenerational, and multidisciplinary artists facilitates connections that generate new ideas, stimulate creativity, spark imagination, foster empathy, and drive social change through the arts. Art League Houston's diverse visual arts offerings, such as exhibitions, public art installations, artist talks, studio classes, free public events, arts education initiatives, and targeted outreach to under supported communities.
Inclusivity: We welcome all members of our diverse community and seek opportunities for interaction and access. Art - and therefore Art League Houston - is for everyone.
Creativity: We are passionate about the power of creativity to inspire individuals to action and to facilitate understanding among people. Creativity is at the heart of everything we do.
Learning: We provide opportunities for people to learn about art, themselves, and each other. Learning permeates all of our programs.
Service: We exist to benefit the Greater Houston community. We enrich people's lives, improve quality of life and contribute to the vitality of our city.
Evolution: We change and grow with our city and the arts landscape. We look to the future while celebrating our past.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Statement
As an organization and as individuals, we at Art League Houston (ALH) are raising our voices to support change and push back against all forms of racism, oppression and inequality in place in our country. We deeply condemn all acts of racism, oppression and brutality happening towards members of our global community.
We recognize our privilege as an arts organization, and that we must evaluate, develop and implement new policies that prioritize equity within the organization in order to effect positive social change outside the organization. We commit to work alongside individuals and groups who are already doing this work locally and around the country to stand up strongly against oppression, racism, inequality and brutality. We will continue to listen, support, and stand in solidarity with our vibrant and creative community of BIPOC artists, staff, supporters, and audiences who help make ALH a space where people come together through diverse, dynamic, and creative experiences to better understand the world.
In alignment with our core values of inclusivity, learning, and evolution, ALH advances diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility through the following actions:
Present artist-driven exhibitions and public art projects that support underrepresented artists and engage critical social, political, and cultural issues relevant to our community
Provide community-centered programs that serve a K through gray audience and foster connection, creativity, and positive social impact through the arts
Create platforms for artists to share their skills and practices as professional teaching artists
Prioritize equitable pay and provide professional development opportunities for teaching artists to support their long-term sustainability
Expand accessibility across all areas of the organization, including physical space, digital platforms, and communications
Intentionally create space for people living with disabilities across all programs and organizational activities
Invest in subsidized and free arts programming in communities that have historically had limited access to arts education
Maintain an Artist Advisory Board composed of artists, writers, curators, and creatives who help guide and shape ALH’s programming
Implement an equity-driven exhibition selection process that combines: 1) open call in an effort to be democratic; 2) artist advisory board input to ensure ALH is reflective and relevant; and 3) focused curatorial vision to foster a thoughtful and critical exploration of current issues.
Use inclusive language across organizational policies, including gender-inclusive pronouns in bylaws
Include the Chair of the Artist Advisory Board as a voting member of the Board of Directors
Maintain W.A.G.E. certification (since 2014) and provide equitable compensation to exhibiting artists
Build and sustain partnerships with community organizations, schools, and local and national collaborators to amplify diverse voices and strengthen accountability
Invest in staff development, retention, and equitable workload structures to support a healthy workplace culture
Provide foundational anti-racism training for staff to support a shared understanding of language, history, and practice
Implement a Strategic Plan that prioritizes equity, access, and inclusion across all areas of the organization, with a focus on the Art League School
Transition the Art League School to a Flexible Access, pay-what-you-can model to reduce financial barriers to participation
Strengthen data collection and evaluation practices to better measure impact, access, and equity across programs
Advance facility improvements that prioritize accessibility for all members of our community
Here are our next steps:
Increase awareness of ALH’s programs across Houston to reach communities not yet engaged
Continue expanding the Flexible Access model to ensure long-term sustainability while maintaining equitable access
Continue building a diverse and representative Board of Directors that can both advocate for and support ALH’s mission
Expand bilingual and multilingual programming, communications, and teaching artist capacity
Collaborate with local teaching artists to reimagine curriculum, centering voices and histories historically excluded from Western art canons
Build long-term funding strategies that prioritize equity-driven work, including free and subsidized programming
Integrate equity, accessibility, and sustainability into long-term campus planning and future facility development
History
Celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2023, Art League Houston (ALH) is one of Houston’s oldest non-profit art organizations. It was established in 1948 by a group of 16 women artists as a member organization whose mission was to design a building that would house a studio workshop and gallery for the continual exhibition of artwork by local artists.
In its early years, ALH sponsored many exhibitions and lectures including the annual “Spring Arts Festival” in the exhibitions hall of the Shamrock Hotel. By the fall of 1953, the organization had become a non-profit organization, signed-up its 300th member, and staged the first ever outdoor art fair at Hermann Park.
By 1956, ALH had raised enough capital to build its first permanent building, which was designed by architect Paul Elliot and built on property leased to them at 906 Tuam St. After 11 years, the land was sold and in 1968, ALH purchased and moved into two connected, circa 1920s houses located at 1953 Montrose.
Founded in 1968, the Art League School provides the Houston community with dynamic, accessible, affordable, and high-quality studio-based visual arts instruction through classes and workshops led by professional artist instructors. Each year, over 1,200 adult students of diverse backgrounds, skill levels, and ages enroll in over 120 classes and workshops in painting, drawing, watercolor, ceramics, printmaking, mixed media, collage, jewelry and other media, as well as gain access to exhibitions, lectures, public programs, and artist talks that enrich their training as artists.
By 1973, ALH had registered its 780’s members and celebrated its 25th anniversary. By 1983, the organization established the Texas Artist of the Year Award as a dynamic project documenting Contemporary Texas art history. The award recognizes artists who have demonstrated exceptional creativity and outstanding achievement, and whose work has had a significant and positive impact on contemporary visual art in Texas. Six years later, ALH expanded the award to include the Texas Patron of the Year for extraordinary individuals whose efforts have helped advance the work of Texas artists.
In 1990, ALH established its free Healing Art program for adults living with HIV/AIDS, and in 1995, expanded the program to serve the needs of adults living with other severe illnesses including cancer, multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia, and physical disabilities.
Fifteen years later in 2005, ALH kicked off a capital campaign to raise $1 million toward a new 7,000-square-foot contemporary building. During the fundraising campaign, the organization invited Dan Havel and Dean Ruck to create Inversion, a temporary installation using the old ALH building. In 2007, the new ALH building (designed by Houston architect Irving Phillips) has its grand opening.
A year later, ALH established ArtBound!, a free curriculum-based, in-school integrative arts program designed to address the gap created in children’s education when funding for the arts is lacking. The program is ongoing and takes place during the school year. ArtBound! is unique in its format as ALH establishes residencies in targeted schools and assigns its own trained Teaching Artists to work directly with the classroom teachers.
By 2012, ALH had established a community driven, public art program designed to invigorate Houston’s lower Montrose Boulevard and the surrounding neighborhood. Projects include the Funnel Tunnel by Patrick Renner and 360 Degrees Vanishing, a permanent installation on the front façade of the ALH building featuring a large-scale beaded tapestry.
In 2013, ALH expanded the annual award series to include the Lifetime Achievement Award in the Visual Arts to biennially celebrate artists who have made a long-term commitment and outstanding contribution to the visual art world in Texas.
A year later, ALH established the Summer High School Studio Art Intensive, a scholarship-based summer program offering rigorous, in-depth studio art instruction for high school students (ages 14-17).
In 2019, ALH established Insta11ations, a city wide public art initiative in partnership with the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs featuring 11 artist projects challenging traditional notions of public art in innovative, playful and critical ways across each of Houston's 11 city council districts. Later that year, ALH launched Catalyzing Creative Aging, a free 12 week program serving older adults in Houston’s Fifth Ward featuring sequential art workshops and culminating in an exhibition. Additionally, ALH expanded the Lifetime Achievement Award to biennially honor visionary and artistic leaders in the community.
In 2020, ALH launched Creative Healing, a new multi-year partnership with the Center for Performing Arts in Medicine (CPAM) within the Methodist Hospital system to provide creative video content for patients at Methodist hospitals, as well as synchronous virtual art classes for administrative staff and clinicians.