A Famous Artist’s Hoop Dreams Come to Life at CAMH — Including a Fully Playable Roundball Court!

A Famous Artist’s Hoop Dreams Come to Life at CAMH — Including a Fully Playable Roundball Court!

Artist Trenton Doyle Hancock and friend (courtesy of Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston)

THE CONTEMPORARY ART Museum, Houston has a basketball jones.


(Courtesy of Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston)

CAMH COURT, a fully playable basketball court conformed to the dimensions of the CAMH’s Brown Foundation Gallery, designed by internationally renowned Houston artist Trenton Doyle Hancock, opens to the public this Saturday, March 18, at 11am. The day includes a Spring Community Celebration from 1-6pm and a reception following the CAMH’s Teen Council’s Fashion Show from 4-6pm.

Born in Paris, Texas, and a Houstonian since 2000, Hancock has said he believes artists possess superpowers. The pantheon of complexly rendered mystical creatures who populate his paintings, drawings and three-dimensional works — a population as varied as that of the Marvel universe — certainly attests to that statement.

Combining his fascination with action figures, board games and other children’s toys with the tropes and dogma of abstraction, Doyle’s art is intensely autobiographical and even brutal in its depiction and critique of racism, war and anti-intellectualism. It’s colorful and often very funny but pulls no punches.

In contrast, CAMH COURT is all about joy, a celebration of physicality and community, where visitors, including those under the age of 18 accompanied by a parent or guardian, are invited to check out an Adidas basketball from the museum’s front desk and dribble, pass and hook shot as Doyle’s wide-eyed, black-and-white-striped “Brickback” characters observe all of the action from baseline to baseline.

Throughout the exhibition’s run, which is timed to coincide when the NCAA Men’s Final Four lands in Houston this spring, the CAMH, Adidas and community partners will activate the court with special programming and events, including the CAMH BALL on April 29, the museum’s annual gala and art auction. (The dress code this year requires sneakers. No, we’re not kidding.)

CAMH COURT will be on view, and playable March 18-April 27.

Art+Culture
Leadership in Action: ‘Family, Community and Spiritual Connection’ Drives Success for Henry Richardson

How did you get to where you are today? The present moment is a combined history of my family, my time as an athlete, my passion for learning, and my desire to see the world be better. I grew up as a successful springboard and platform diver, however, an injury caused me to seek alternative treatments to heal my body. In that process, I discovered the power of yoga, exercise, meditation, mindset, and nutrition. This holistic approach eventually led me to open a Pilates and cycling studio called DEFINE body & mind. I opened studios around the nation, and after selling most of my business between 2017-2019, I was ready to explore how I could make an even greater impact on the wellbeing of our community. In 2023, I started actively working on a brand new multi-family/apartment concept called, Define Living. The idea focused on offering health and wellness services within a beautiful apartment setting to increase the wellbeing of our residents. Having a strong sense of community is the number one factor in living a happy life, so why not build a community where daily fitness, cooking classes, and social connection are the norm? We opened Define Living in March of 2024, and we couldn’t be happier with how things are being received. We are already looking at building more concepts like this in the Houston area and beyond.

Keep Reading Show less

Symphony Springs to Life with Floral-Fabulous Fete

Jacob Power and Priscilla Dickson

Chairs Brady and Zane Carruth, Brittany and Adam Clark

IT ALREADY FEELS like spring in Houston and the spring social season is here with it! 375 guests donned in white-tie flocked to The Post Oak Hotel for the annual Houston Symphony Ball, one of the city’s most anticipated and A-list galas.

Keep Reading Show less
Parties

THE TRUFFLE MASTERS is returning for its 11th year on March 3rd. Now a Houston tradition of sorts, the competition sees top chefs creating a dish using black truffles all benefitting Southern Smoke.

Keep Reading Show less