Like a flip of a switch and its suddenly Fall weather. Sweaters aren’t just a novelty and we are one big holiday down. It also means fun and supportive galas, outdoor events, music on the lawn, premiere screenings, and workshops. With the nice weather comes more outdoor gatherings and mingling out back of the museum on the loading dock or patio engaged in deep conversation. Something about true fall transports me back to walking the brisk and chilly streets of Chicago and New York making an evening of the openings and performances. Bouncing block to block, dodging the wind to get to your destination. Bundled up from the cold to find yourself peeling the layers upon arriving at your next location warmed by the hospitality of the small gallery presenting and the comfort of your creative friends. We know that we almost conquered another year and it's time to be appreciative of that. There is too much to try and wrap our heads around all in one sitting right now, but one thing that is to prevail is the true inner warmth of your community. So let's pack away our daisy duke shorts, kick those flip flops under the bed, and get out there and see some great work! There is plenty of it coming at ya this week and here is the Hidden Agenda Hot Take!

Monday, 11/03

They Who Sound | 7:30pm - 9:30pm

Lawndale Art Center

From the brilliant minds of David Dove and Nameless Sound comes the weekly experimental music and sound series They Who Sound. Always a wonderful evening to hear a collection of local and national talent collaborate in new experiences. Monday night’s performances will showcase-

Jeremy Nuncio (Houston) - stage keyboard(s)
Leslie Scates (Houston) - dance, movement
Jesse Ward (Houston) - guitar

Aaron Gonzalez (Dallas) - double bass
Jason Jackson (Houston) - saxophone
Paty Lorena Solórzano (Houston) - dance, movement

Tuesday, 11/04

The Moth | 7:30 PM

River Oaks Theater | 2009 W. Gray

Everyone loves a good story and most definitely if its many within the historic river oaks theater! “The Moth Story SLAM is an open-mic storytelling competition in which anyone can share a true, personal, 5-minute story on the night's theme. Sign up for a chance to tell a story or sit back and enjoy the show! Tonight’s theme is… CHEAT: Prepare a five-minute story about deceit. Pulling a fast one or being played for a fool. Counting cards, forbidden flings, tax evasion, and adventures in plagiarism. Getting the gold medal by any means necessary. Shortcuts, headstarts, pulling strings, and taking the easy way out. Give us your traitors, your tricksters, your dirty rotten liars, your pumpkin-eaters”.

Cynthia Woods Mitchell Lecture Series-Liz Deschenes | 6PM - 8:30PM

Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for the Arts

U of H Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture and Design ARC 150

We love the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center and we love lectures so we know this is a sure thing. “Since the early 1990’s, Liz Deschenes has produced a body of work that emancipates photography from its conventional definition as a document and explores the material condition of the medium and its processes. Making use of the medium’s most elemental aspects, namely paper, light, and chemicals, Deschenes creates shifting surfaces that function as sculptural or architectural rather than photographic objects”.

Wednesday, 11/05

Talk with Dr. Simone Browne | 6:00 pm

Friends Gallery | 7040 Harrisburg

This discussion kicks off the beginning of the Glitch Lab Residency “Programming” November 5th - 8th. As part of the Glitch Lab Residency Exhibition this four day set of events is co presented by Edgelands Institute and Notice Coalition. “An art residency using socially engaged art to spark dialogue and amplify student and community voices around cultural narratives of safety in response to big tech and surveillance” From talks to workshops and zines there is a plethora of information to absorb. Funny enough about technology many of the links related to this event are broken, However Notice Coalition has some of the information and a bit on the programming and exhibition here https://thenoticecoalition.substack.com/p/the-notice-newsletter-october-2025

There is some RSVP suggestions for some of the events so perhaps DM them via instagram.

Thursday, 11/06

The Artist and the Book: Adriana Corral and Janaye Brown with Alison Hearst

The Museum of Fine Arts Houston | 1001 Bissonnet

This looks like one hell of an interesting lecture and conversation and I hope you are free this Thursday to attend. With curator Alison Hearst at the helm it's sure to be an inspiring evening.

“Artists have long used books as tools for education and inspiration. Increasingly, contemporary artists make books and research central to their artistic practice, mining the past in order to create new narratives. In this conversation, artists Adriana Corral and Janaye Brown speak with curator Alison Hearst about how books and research are vital elements of the creative process. Corral and Brown recently collaborated on a short film shot in West Texas that was commissioned by Ballroom Marfa. The film, I SAW THE MARKS THEY MADE AND THE WIND WAS BLOWING, makes its premiere as part of their talk”.

The de Menil House: Panel Discussion | 7pm - 8pm

The Menil Collection | 1533 Sul Ross

“In conjunction with the exhibition The Space Between Looking and Loving: Francesca Fuchs and the de Menil House, a panel of speakers reflects on the de Menil’s Houston house, its architecture and interior spaces, and how they lived with works from their collection.”

Coexistence, My Ass! Premiere with Filmmaker Amber Fares and Jackson Allers | 7pm

River Oaks Theater | 2009 W. Gray

Look, I know we post a lot on the Hidden Agenda about the River Oaks Theater but the programming is top notch! Not only does this film look charged full of real world conflict and energy but it asks a lot of questions for us to answer internally. “COEXISTENCE, MY ASS! follows activist-comedian Noam Shuster Eliassi as she creates a comedy show by the same name. Shot over five tumultuous years, the film traces Noam’s personal, professional and political journey in tandem with the region’s steady deterioration. Raised in a bilingual Israeli-Palestinian village — the only intentionally integrated community in the country — Noam grows disillusioned with traditional peace activism. She pivots to stand-up and quickly attracts attention across the Middle East. But as her star rises, everything around her falls apart. With biting satire, Noam pushes her audiences to face difficult truths that aren't always funny but do remind us that another reality is possible.

Featuring a post-screening discussion presented by Ice House Radio with director Amber Fares + Jackson Allers, moderated by Rania Batrice”.

Friday, 11/07

50th Anniversary Part II, Special Reception | 5pm - 7pm

Moody Gallery | 2815 Colquitt St.

The final installment of the 50th anniversary Moody Gallery celebration is upon us! With the reception this Friday and the open house Saturday. Celebrating Betty Moody and her decades of outstanding programming comes as naturally as breathing the air around us. A staple of excellence and the finest of our blue chip galleries, Moody Gallery has sculpted the Houston art scene as we know it and produced some of the most notable artists we have today. Free up your schedule and see you on Friday!

Open House Saturday, November 8, 3-5 pm

Gallery Talk with Betty Moody 4 pm

Claire Ankenman • William Christenberry • Dornith Doherty • Joseph Glasco • Stephen Greene • Jerry Jeanmard • Luis Jiménez • Bethany Johnson • Andrea Rosenberg • Jay Shinn • Ellen Tanner • Sherry Tseng Hill • Sarah Williams

Take Back Your Data with Paraspace Books, 6pm - 8pm

Friends Gallery | 7040 Harrisburg Blvd.

Join Paraspace Books and Friends Gallery with the more than relevant workshop Take Back Your Data. Join the evening for hands on tools for digital privacy and data protection. This workshop is free to the community and its encouraged to be a BYOD ( Bring Your Own Devices ). Two great spaces geared for the betterment of the community part of the Glitch Lab Residency.

Saturday, 11/08

Hillerman + Magsamen Family Day Button Extravaganza | 1pm-3pm

Foto Fest, Silver Street Studios | 2000 Edwards Street

The Hillerman and Magsamen branded Family Day at FotoFest is this Saturday, November 8, from 1 to 3 PM! Geared for the whole family this free workshops allows the participants to build and create their own buttons from the everyday objects around us. Led by exhibiting artists Hillerbrand+Magsamen, guests will create personalized buttons using their own collage designs. Collage materials are provided, and you are welcome to bring your own photos for a unique touch. Afterward, explore the art and photography exhibition, nothing is precious, everything is game. A great exhibition and fun event to bring your whole brood too and you’ll get some kick ass buttons!

The Orange Show 44th Annual Gala

The Orange Show HQ | 2334 Gulf Terminal Drive

Live Reggae music by The Legendary Wailers featuring Junior Marvin, wild costumes, collectors getting tipsy, and a guaranteed good time. Buy a ticket, volunteer, become a plus one, but be sure to support and participate in that auction. The Orange Show is our homegrown beloved non profit and they do so much for our creative community. I always look forward to attending this Gala and party and certainly hope you are able to make it. Start creating your costume, the party is this Saturday night!

Dacamera Stop Look Listen | 3pm - 4pm

The Menil Drawing Institute | 1412 Main St.

This casual Saturday afternoon event is sure to calm the inner torment of the week. DACAMERA Young Artists presents an afternoon concert responding to and in collaboration with the Menil Drawing Institutes’s exhibition Lines of Resolution: Drawing at the Advent of Television and Video. Come for the music and check out this fabulous show if you haven’t already. Come by again if you have and watch more of the video works by some of the most exceptional video artists curated in this mesmerizing exhibitions. We reviewed Lines of Resolution after its opening at the beginning of October. Check it out here and here for more information on this Saturday's event.

Untitled, 2025 wood, aluminum, cloth 14" x 8" x 6"

Comfort Zone: Katy Heinlein

Front Gallery | 1412 Bonnie Brae St.

The spectacular Katy Heinlein is back! Heinlein presents a series of sculptural studies based on the gestalt theories outlined in a deaccessioned library book Color, Form and Space by Faber Birren

While the book offers some fascinating discussions about human perception, the artist found the visual examples to be dry and dull. She gives us her own reimagined visuals based on Birren's theories of color form and perception (ie: color is more important than shape).

These recent sculptural studies are a departure from Heinlein's previous large-scale, physical works. The downsizing is a direct reaction to a personal life shift in scale as result of her recent move from Houston to Pittsburgh where buildings, mostly built before 1930, are smaller and more compact.

The works in Comfort Zone are meant to be experienced in domestic space, like Front Gallery where they can be perched atop a mantel and nestled into the intimate space.

Cool Breeze / Hot Takes