Kerry Inman Buys Former Station Museum Building; Will Move Gallery

Houston’s Inman Gallery has confirmed to Glasstire that Kerry Inman has purchased the building at 1502 Alabama St., which was the longtime home of the Station Museum of Contemporary Art. Though there is not a firm timeline for the gallery moving out of its its current location in the Isabella Court building and into the new space, Ms. Inman has said that the gallery is planning a solo show for Darren Waterston in September-October of this year, and that they are “hoping that is [their] last show” in their current space.

Inman Gallery opened in 1990 and moved into the Isabella Court building in 2004. It debuted its first show (also of works by Darren Waterston) in the 4,000-square-foot space, which was designed by architect John Blackmon and features a main exhibition space, a smaller back room space, an inventory/gallery space, and offices, in July of that year. Throughout the gallery’s time in Isabella Court, Ms. Inman’s program has focused largely on working with and fostering the careers of local and regional artists, many of whom she has represented for years.

Of her choice to move her gallery out of its longtime home, Ms. Inman told Glasstire, “1502 Alabama has an amazing history as the Station Museum, and we are excited to move there; it is a really great next step for Inman Gallery. We will only be four blocks away from our current location and imagine coordinating events with the Isabella businesses, hopefully amplifying the area’s cultural offerings.”

To help design the interior of the 1502 Alabama building, which is approximately 8,460 square feet and is located about half a mile east of the gallery’s current location, Ms. Inman has hired the Houston firm Dillon Kyle Architects. She says their minimal ideas for the building include “highlighting the assets of the space — the pitched ceiling and the beautiful wood floors, while increasing the natural light inside.”

This move will make Ms. Inman’s gallery one of the largest in Houston. She says that more than half of the space will ultimately be offices and storage, and that the significant square footage will allow the gallery to have all of its storage on site.

When asked how the new building will allow her gallery’s program to grow, and what she looks forward to about the space, Ms. Inman told Glasstire, “1502 Alabama will allow Inman Gallery to have all of our activities under one roof, on site parking, and a very visible location. I’m excited about the challenges that the new space offers us, and hope to be a new destination within Houston’s arts ecosystem. I also look forward to having morning coffee across the street, and a beer after work around the corner.”

The future of the 1502 Alabama building has been in question ever since the Station Museum, which was known for presenting wholly unique and sometimes controversial exhibitions, announced it would close until further notice in November of 2022. The building’s situation was made even more uncertain after the death of the Station’s co-founder (and the building’s co-owner), James Harithas, in March of 2023.

Ms. Inman’s purchase of the building was made possible by the recent sale of another Midtown property she had purchased in 2012, the 23,000-square-foot Bermac Arts Building at 4101 San Jacinto St., which for years housed artists’ studios and the Community Artists’ Collective. Though the terms of sale of the former Station Museum building are confidential, property records show that as of January 2023 it was valued at $1,378,370. By comparison, the January 2023 valuation of the Bermac property by the city is $2,765,046.

Given the trepidation surrounding the future of the 1502 Alabama building, many in the Houston arts community will likely be excited that it will remain an art space, though there will also be some sadness that the sale of the building would seem to be the final death knell of the Station Museum.

For her part, Ms. Inman will think fondly about her time at Isabella Court: “I have absolutely loved having Inman Gallery at Isabella Court for 20 years, it has been an amazing home! I’m happy to see galleries and artist studios starting to fill up the Isabella spaces again!” The gallery’s departure from the building will mean that the newly opened Throughline Collective will be one of the last art spaces in the building. It also, however, will leave a vacancy with potential: a fully built-out gallery space with address recognition and a storied history, that could be, in theory, move-in-ready for the right tenant.