In a week full of openings, exhibitions and art fairs came the announcement of one of the most exciting art initiatives in years: the city’s first open-air exhibition devoted to public art.
Building on an existing art program, the KTX Biennial was spearheaded by Friends of the Katy Trail executive director Amy Bean and Katy Trail Art director Amanda Dillard Shufeldt, who have previously partnered with the Dallas Museum of Art and the Nasher Sculpture Center to bring art into nature.
Slated to unfold along the 3.5-mile corridor of the Katy Trail in 2027, the Biennial will debut next April during Art Week. Curator Jovanna Venegas is already hard at work refining a theme inspired by sci-fi writer Ursula K. Le Guin’s short story “Vaster than Empires and More Slow.”
“It’s a story about a group of explorers that go to this undiscovered planet to map it,” says Venegas, who also serves as the curator of the SculptureCenter in Long Island City, New York.
“One of the explorers begins to feel the emotions of the forest, and in turn, the forest is feeling the emotions of the explorer. I thought it was a beautiful metaphor of the encounter of the visitor with this strange artwork. There are many people (on the Katy) who are art lovers, but I hope there’s this other set of people who use and love the trail who can have this chance encounter with the work.”
Slated to remain on display for 18 months, the first Biennial will feature 10 to 12 new and previously commissioned works across various media, including painting, performance art and sculpture. Drawing from the same kind of energy that made New York’s High Line a must-see, the idea of showing art on the trail evolved out of a need to bring art to the people during the pandemic.
As museums still wanted to connect with their audience, the trail’s executives formed an advisory board that included notables such as Vivian Li, Jed Morse, Jeremy Strick, John Runyon, and Howard Rachofsky (among others) to help display work in an ongoing series of temporary shows.
The organization is now ready to turn a local landmark into an artistic destination. Once the first Biennial completes its run, a new curator will inherit the space with a fresh vision.
Bean encourages everyone to visit the Katy Trail and experience the show firsthand: “The goal is not to change the trail or transform the trail; it’s really to embrace what is already there. It’s such a treasured destination that people use for a variety of reasons. This is another opportunity to have free and accessible world-class art for all to come across in an unexpected setting.”