World's Greatest Architects

World's biggest names in architecture salute Gerald Hines for creating the impossible

It's doubtful that there has ever been a gathering of the world's leading architects more potent than the one that took place at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts in honor of developer Gerald Hines' 90th birthday.

The Hines Architecture Forum brought together Robert A.M. Stern, John Burgee, Cesar Pelli, Gene Kohn, Henry Cobb and Jon Pickard, who discussed Hines' role in transforming the nature of commercial development worldwide. Led by architectural critic Paul Goldberger, the conversation focused on Hines' accomplishments and his passion for architectural greatness.

Famed architect Frank Gehry was supposed to have joined the conversation, but recent back surgery led his doctor to prohibit him from boarding an airplane.

Mingling with VIP guests and the architects backstage before the program Hines remarked, "Well, at 90 years of age, this is a great accolade in my history and so I look forward to hearing what these architects have to say about our activities."

"Does this man look like a man who is 90 years of age?," Stern quipped while visiting with the definitely youthful Hines. "I've already marked my calendar for his 100th."

The standing-room-only crowd in the 2,600-seat theater was welcomed by Patricia Oliver, dean of the Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture at the University of Houston, where the following night a birthday bash took place.

The 90-minute love song to Hines could best be summed up by Goldberger's introduction in which he quoted from an article that he wrote on Hines in 1976.

"Hines is a new breed of builder who appears determined to do what the real estate industry has always insisted was impossible, to make serious architecture pay," he wrote for the New York Times. "Hines is at once a money-making developer and a serious architectural patron."

Then Goldberger said, "Thirty-nine years later nothing has changed — except that Pennzoil Place is no longer the latest Hines project but a piece of architectural history . . . the building that more than any other has influenced real estate development going forward."

He praised Hines for his "enthusiasm and discipline in an almost perfect equilibrium."

Sarofim Hall at the Hobby Center was full to the rim with 2,600 attendees at the Hines Architecture Forum.

News, Shelby, Hines Architecture Forum, Sept. 2015, Hobby Center

Photo by Fulton Davenport/PWL Studio

Sarofim Hall at the Hobby Center was full to the rim with 2,600 attendees at the Hines Architecture Forum.

inspiration

don't get burned

Talented performers fire up new store and training facility in Houston

Supplies for fire performances to open in Houston in 2025.

Photo by Matt Hellman

Kira Bailey performs with fire fingers.

Have you ever wanted to juggle, swallow, or dance with fire? Houston will soon be home for a place that sells the gear and offers lessons in that art.

Chris and Kira Bailey of the Solar Rain Performance Troupe have been firebending for audiences for more than a decade, as well as running their own online store for tools of the trade, TheOddPropShop. In 2025, they plan to open a combination storefront and workshop for Houstonians to enter and practice the fiery arts.

"Having a physical location allows us to connect with our customers on a more personal level that can’t be replicated online — which is especially important for building props that performers must trust with their lives," the Baileys wrote in an email. "Because of that, we’re building this workshop to become a space to create and test products, and invite our customers in when they want custom-made props. We go through a long trial-and-error with each of our new ideas, often using affordable items from Temu to build our prototypes, and then improve our designs until they’re ready to sell."

The space will be located in Kemah and is scheduled to open in the second half of the year. It will be a combination storefront, living space, and workshop area that will serve aspiring fire performers in a variety of ways. The Baileys will sell their signature fire bubblers, fire jump ropes, and sun wheels that are perfect for both professionals and hobbyists.

The brick-and-mortar OddPropShop will serve as a hub for greater Houston's performance community. Interested first timers will be able to take classes, while established performers can try out new routines and equipment. According to the couple, Houston is home to a significant community of fire artists.

"We wanted to be in a city that not only has a great arts scene and supportive creative community, but is also in a location where we could quickly and easily get the materials we needed to build our props," the Baileys wrote. "Houston was the only place that checked all those boxes. We were also personally drawn to Houston because many of our friends and fellow performers live in the city. In many ways, Houston already felt like home."

In addition to the tools of the fire trade, TheOddPropShop will sell costumes and accessories such as leather and stone jewelry. These small pieces of flair help add to the pagan ambience of the overall fire package.

performing-arts shopping fire performers