Houston's museum district

Southern Living, Feb 1999 by Ford, Gary D

There are two ways to tour the Houston Museum Districtwith and without kids.

The district includes 11 museums spread near South Main and treelined Montrose. It will take couples, or families with excited youngsters leading the way, two days to see this destination south of downtown. A destination? Kelli W Dunning, a spokesperson for the Contemporary Arts Museum, smiles. "It just happened that way," she explains. "When we opened in 1972, there wasn't a district, just The Museum of Fine Arts, the Museum of Natural Sciences, and the zoo. Now we're doing things together. The directors and marketing directors meet weekly and monthly. We're establishing ourselves as a destination."

A couple may want to start a district tour at the Contemporary Arts Museum (free), at Bissonnet and Montrose. The best exhibit, perhaps, is the building itself-a parallelogram of solid steel that looks as if it hides the front door. Look for the smaller triangle that floats above the entrance. Call (713) 284-8250.

Want to see more contemporary art? The Rice University Art Gallery commissions outstanding contemporary artists, either from Houston or from around the world, to create installations expressly for the gallery. It's located on the campus of Rice University at 6100 Main Street in Sewall Hall. Call (713) 527-6069.

Cross the street to The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, where construction is going on. The new Audrey Jones Beck Building is planned to open in early 2000, the 100th anniversary of the museum. Plan to spend about two hours browsing through the exhibits, and time your visit around lunch. The museum's Cafe Express serves delicious salads, soups, and sandwiches, and makes its own pastries. Don't miss the pecan tartlets.

Diners dine indoors or spread lunch on benches across the street in the Lillie and Hugh Roy Cullen Sculpture Garden. The museum is free on Thursday (half price if there's a ticketed exhibition). Regular admission is $3 adults, $ 1.50 ages 6 to 18 and seniors. Call (713) 639-7300. You'll have to drive about a mile to The Menil Collection,1515 Sul Ross, with its art ranging from antiquity to 20th century. It has a great collection of Byzantine works and features several special exhibitions annually. It's free. Call (713) 525-9400.

Take a look at the three exhibition galleries at Lawndale Art Center featuring nearly 500 Houston-area artists, 4912 Main Street. It's free. Call (713) 528-5858. The C.G. Jung Educational Center features a library, bookstore, and exhibitions at 5200 Montrose. It's free too. Call (713) 524-8253.

The Holocaust Museum Houston, 5401 Caroline Street, does a good job of relating the tragic era to children. While there, be sure and see the film Voices, featuring the experiences of Houstonians who survived the Holocaust, many as children. The free museum recommends youngsters of sixth grade and above as visitors. Call (713) 942-8000.

It's hard to tell who's having the most fun-kids or adults-at The Children's Museum of Houston, 1500 Binz. Without realizing it, kids learn about geography, economy, history, science, and technology through play. They romp in a Victorian playhouse; get their own "money" from an ATM to shop in a store; and milk a realistic-looking cow.

During the school year, school groups come in the mornings, so you may want to visit in the afternoon. Free family night is Thursday, 5 to 8 p.m. Avoid spring break, when the museum tends to be crowded. Admission is $5 per person, $4 seniors. Call (713) 522-1138.

From there, you can walk straight into the mouth of the Museum of Health & Medical Science, 1515 Hermann Drive. The giant mouth is where visitors begin their journey through the Amazing Body Pavilion, which takes them down the trachea, along the spine, and into a 1 0-foot brain. Adults learn as much as the youngsters. On Thursday, 4 to 7 p.m., the museum is free. Other times it's $4 ages 13 to 64, $3 ages 4-12 and seniors. Call (713) 521-1515.

You need several hours for Houston Zoological Gardens, 1513 North McGregor, stretching over 55 acres in Hermann Park. The zoo has just opened a new entrance featuring a gift shop. This spring, don't miss a new exhibit of koalas, seen at the Houston Zoo for the first time, as well as sun bears, the smallest of the bear species. Admission is $2.50 ages 13 to 64, $2 seniors, 50 cents ages 3 to 12. Call (713) 523-5888.

Nearby at the Houston Museum of Natural Science, 1 Hermann Circle Drive, plan to spend part of a day and an evening there. General admission is $4 adults, $2 ages 3 to 11. Don't miss the new,10-gallery John P McGovern Hall of the Americas, where you can explore an Aztec temple and a Plains Indian tepee.

Kids will like the museum's own McDonald's location. Take time to browse the gift shop, with origami art, hand-painted porcelain pins, and other jewelry. Items range in cost from $5 to more than $200. Step into the Wortham IMAX Theatre for its 8 p.m. show-the end of a day, or two, in the Houston Museum District. Call (713) 639-4629.

Houston Museum District: South Main Center Association, 1020 Holcombe Blvd., Suite 1300, Houston, TX 77030; (713) 790-1020.