02/01/2020
In 1979, William Steen and Mel Chin opened the storefront adjoining the studio they shared at 1511 Congress Avenue on the north side of downtown. It was a seedy neighborhood, with fights and hookers and late night meals at Annie’s 24-Hour Barbecue House next door. They called the place Studio One and they showed not only their own work, but also that of friends and acquaintances, including James Reaben, John Peters (who’d later become world famous as Mark Flood), and the Art Guys, who flooded the gallery and lowered its lights for a one-day installation piece. Steen and Chin intended a semi-private space that would operate completely without compromise, rather than the non-profit model that would soon proliferate in Houston and elsewhere. “I don’t want to go through that grant business,” Steen remarked, “with paperwork and the review boards. I don’t expect anyone showing here to pay my rent, either, and I don’t take any commission. This is a place where artists can show their work pretty much on their own terms.” (photo courtesy Michael Galbreth)
