Michaelangelo in houston

Once-in-a-lifetime Houston exhibit offers rare glimpse inside the Sistine Chapel

There are few tourist attractions in the world as compelling and in-demand as Michelangelo’s iconic artwork in The Vatican. According to a recent report, more than 25,000 visitors flock to the Roman chapel daily to stare in awe at the frescoes that decorate the interior — most notably, the mind-blowing ceiling that was painted by Michelangelo between 1508 and 1512.

Yes, it is an experience being in the Sistine Chapel. (A year ago, a New Yorker article declared it can be too much of an experience, with shouting guards moving crowds along for “a fifteen-minute neck-craning exercise in mostly futile inspection.”) However, if you’ve ever wanted to visit the chapel, but didn’t have the means to go to Italy, the chapel’s most striking, immortal visions will be on full view right there in H-Town.

Starting on June 8, “Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition” will be unveiled for a two-month run at event space The Corinthian. Needless to say, the artwork won’t be the genuine article. Expect full-sized, photographed replicas of the artist’s vault frescoes, along with his 40-foot-high The Last Judgment, from the altar wall.

The works have been on display around the country and all over the world. Last June, it was in New York at the Oculus mall in Westfield World Trade Center. This isn’t the first time the exhibit has made its way to Texas: Two years ago, it had a fall run at The Women’s Museum in Dallas. (After this exhibit wraps up on August 16, it will run in Hangzhou, China.)

This exhibit is certain to hip many art neophytes to Italy’s High Renaissance period, as well as one of its most major players. But, more importantly, it will also give people the chance to take their time and view these pieces up close, to catch every nook and cranny of the imagery, the style, the intensity and, of course, the artistry enclosed in these paintings. You won’t need to be quiet, stick with your crowd and risk a sore neck in order to take in these beauties.

“Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition” may not be the real thing, but it’s as close to the real thing as stateside people will get. Consider this your chance to take in a piece of art history without angry guards barking orders at you, in air-conditioned serenity.

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Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel runs through September 3 at The Corinthian Houston. Tickets are $20, $15 for seniors and military, and $10 for students under 21. A limited number of VIP Reception tickets are available at $100 for opening night June 8, which includes cocktails and appetizers. For more information, visit the official site.

Giant photographic reproductions grace the walls.

Courtesy photo

Giant photographic reproductions grace the walls.

museums

MFAH expands

Houston museum acquires historic Masonic lodge property for new greenspace

Holland Lodge No. 1, A.F. & A.M./Facebook

The building at 4911 will be torn down for the new greenspace.

The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston has acquired a prime parcel to expand its campus in the Museum District. On Tuesday, December 23, the museum announced it has purchased a two-acre parcel of land at 4911 Montrose Blvd that will bring its total footprint to 16 acres.

Located just north of the Glassel School of Art, the property will be developed as a greenspace that will serve as a community lawn as well as be utilized for future museum events and parking. MFAH has retained landscape architects Nelson Byrd Woltz — the firm responsible for work at Memorial Park and the recently-opened Ismaili Center — to create the design for the new greenspace.

Museum of Fine Arts, Houston greenspace rendering A rendering offers a bird's-eye preview of the new greenspace.Image by by Cong Nie/Courtesy of Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

At this time, the museum does not have plans to build anything on the property, according to a press release.

To make way for the greenspace, the property’s existing building, Holland Lodge No. 1, will be torn down. Built in 1954 as a home for the oldest Masonic lodge chapter in Texas, the building features a sandstone mural facade. It has been for sale since at least 2005, according to a report in the Houston Chronicle.

Demolition on the site is expected to begin in spring 2026 with the greenspace opening in approximately two years, according to press materials. In addition to the Glassell School, the museum’s campus includes the Audrey Jones Beck Building, the Caroline Wiess Law Building, the Lillie and Hugh Roy Cullen Sculpture Garden, and the Nancy and Rich Kinder Building.

“We are delighted to contribute to Houston’s greenspace access with this new initiative, which will expand the museum’s 14-acre campus to a thoroughly walkable 16 acres,” Gary Tinterow, director and Margaret Alkek Williams chair of the MFAH, said in a statement. “While the primary objective for the purchase of this property is to secure land for any potential future expansion of the museum, our priority now is to create a welcoming community lawn. Thoughtfully designed by Nelson Byrd Woltz, one of the leading firms in sustainable landscape practice, the site will serve as public greenspace and provide additional parking for museum visitors.”

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