I AM BLACK HISTORY | Rick Lowe

Rick Lowe

Rick Lowe is Black History because he transformed art from an object into a civic strategy.

Born in Russell County, Alabama and now based in Houston, Texas, Rick Lowe is an artist, educator, and community organizer whose work bridges visual art and social transformation. Formally trained in the visual arts, Lowe has spent more than thirty years working both inside and outside traditional art institutions, participating in major exhibitions while simultaneously developing community based projects that reshape neighborhoods and policy conversations.

In 1993, he founded Project Row Houses in Houston’s historically Black Third Ward. What began as the revitalization of 22 abandoned shotgun houses became one of the most influential models of social practice art in the country. Today, Project Row Houses spans six blocks and integrates artist residencies, affordable housing, youth programs, and support services for young mothers.

Lowe describes his work as “social sculpture,” a concept inspired by Joseph Beuys, which views society itself as something that can be shaped creatively. Under his leadership, art became a tool for preserving cultural heritage, stabilizing neighborhoods, and strengthening civic life.

His influence extends far beyond Houston. In 1996, he developed the Watts House Project in Los Angeles. After Hurricane Katrina, he spearheaded Transforma Projects in New Orleans to engage artists in rebuilding the city. He collaborated on projects in Seattle, Charleston, Delray Beach, Dallas, and internationally in South Korea and Italy. His “Small Business Big Change” initiative in Anyang, Korea and Trans.lation: Vickery Meadow for the Nasher Sculpture Center further demonstrate his commitment to linking creativity with economic and community development.

Rick Lowe’s work has been exhibited nationally and internationally at institutions including the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, Museum of Contemporary Arts Los Angeles, Venice Architecture Biennale, Gwangju Biennale, Documenta 14, Museum of Fine Arts Houston, and many others.

His contributions have earned widespread recognition. He received the Heinz Award in Arts and Humanities, the Creative Time Annenberg Prize for Art and Social Change, and the MacArthur Fellowship in 2014. In 2013, President Barack Obama appointed him to the National Council on the Arts. He has served as a Loeb Fellow at Harvard University, a Mel King Fellow at MIT, and a distinguished visitor at Stanford. He currently serves as a professor of art at the University of Houston.

Beyond exhibitions and accolades, Lowe has deeply invested in Houston’s civic life. He has served on the Municipal Arts Commission, SHAPE Community Center, the Menil Foundation board, and numerous national arts boards. His leadership continues to influence how cities think about equity, housing, and cultural preservation.

Rick Lowe is Black History because he expanded the definition of art. He showed that creativity can repair what policy neglects. He proved that culture can be infrastructure.

Black History is not only written in museums. It is written in neighborhoods restored through vision and action. And Rick Lowe has been writing that history in Houston for more than three decades.