Houston is a city that has been defined by its waterways, and their interactions with the people who live here. Much like potter, the city sits watchful over the bayous and considers the careful balance of earth and moisture – will the rains bring green growth and cool breezes, or will they overwhelm the streets and risk flooding our homes? With careful hands, we continue on in our work to shape and form the city, day by day. But we're not alone in that work – Houston is invariably shaped by its connections to its neighbors.

Situated at the mouth of the Trinity River, which runs over 700 miles, the city is fed directly by the stream of people, ideas, and resources that have made it the fourth most populous city in the nation. But no city can be fully described by the contents of its borders. We have to also look upriver, to the tributaries that have brought fertile soil downriver to us, enriching our lives.

Texas Tributaries is a juried group exhibition of artists from Texas and its neighbors. Organized by ClayHouston, the show explores contemporary ceramic work from this unique part of the country. How are we connected by clay? How do we create community across distances? And how do these elements combine to nourish creative soil?

Texas is a state caught in-between classifications. Are we part of the South? The Midwest? The West? In some ways, we're all of them and none of them at the same time. In presenting this exhibition, we're looking to understand the region's ceramics artists, and the unique connections they share as residents and neighbors of Texas.

Texas Tributaries will run from November 13th to December 4th at Monterosso Gallery in Houston, Texas. Please join us on Friday, November 13th, from 5-7pm for our opening event and presentation of awards by juror Anna Mayer.