Escape from the hustle and bustle of city life at the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center, where you can enjoy five miles of nature trails winding through native prairie, savanna, wetland, woodland, riparian habitats, and have ample opportunities for exciting wildlife sightings. Explore The Nature Center building, which features a Nature Shop filled with items for nature lovers of all ages, an interactive Discovery Room, Educational Exhibits, hands-on activities, live ambassador animals, biofacts, and a weekly botany display.
The Menil Collection Art Museum holds over 19,000 pieces of art that are displayed in the main building and often switched around several other types of art collected from the 1940s. The collection is significant in its European art, including paintings by Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso. The permanent collection highlights Arts of Africa, the Americas and the Pacific Northwest, the Ancient World, the Pacific Islands, Drawing, Medieval and Byzantine, Modern and Contemporary, Surrealism, and the permanent installation entitled Witnesses.
The Bayou City Art Festival is one of the top 200 iconic Arts Festivals in the world that showcases the works of several artists placed in 19 different categories at Bayou City Art Festival Memorial Park in the spring and at Bayou City Art Festival Downtown in the fall. Enjoy the vibrant arts community, where you can experience a high-caliber show and a culturally dynamic environment that displays an outdoor gallery of original works, one-of-a-kind art, world-class pieces, delicious food, great music, fun entertainment, and an opportunity to meet 280 select artists worldwide, all while creating a memorable and spirited good time with family and friends.