ON VIEW SEPTEMBER 7-8, 2023 ONLY: Artist Erika Alonso was inspired by a series of events that disrupted her usual routine, and the birds that she encountered along the way. A fire at her studio on Winter Street, a residency in the humbling expanses of West Texas, and an about-face straight to the bustling heart of Houston’s international airport … these changes made her face ever-shifting physical locations and, in turn, emotional states.

These experiences led her back to where she started as an artist: the simplicity and contrast of black and white. This is where her emotional landscapes, stripped down to their core, reveal themselves without the distraction of color.

Every piece in the collection mirrors her internal and external worlds, with many thoughts and stories behind each work. What color once concealed is now displayed in plain sight — the figures, birds, and creatures in her work step forward, confronting the viewer in all their expressiveness.