Euclid Street Sculpture Garden

Anyone who's been house-hunting the in the Heights lately knows that land prices are going up, up, and up!  But deep in the heart of the Woodland Heights, you can find a small bastion against the real estate rat race: a sculpture garden on an empty lot.  The lot was purchased together by several neighbors to showcase the creations of Arnold Van Ek, a longtime Heights resident who immigrated to Houston from The Netherlands.

600 block of Euclid St.

Learn all about each piece in the sculpture garden by visiting Arnold Van Ek's website.  Van Ek, a self-taught artist, jokes that his artistic pursuits were "briefly interrupted by a career in the chemical engineering field."

The sculpture garden is a wonderful little green space for the Heights community to share.  While we were taking pictures, a mother and son stopped to explore.

Go check it out for yourself!

Do you know the muffler man?

After long hiatus, Yard Art of the Houston Heights has returned with a new look, and plenty more neighborhood treasures to share with you! 

My yard has a new look as well, thanks to Aaron, who surprised me this past Christmas with my very own (and first!) piece of yard art.  Mr. Muffler Man was made in a mechanic's shop in Arlington, Texas -- and Aaron carted him all the way back to Houston for me.  What a wonderful man! 

According to Roadside America, the original muffler men look nothing like the marvelous metal mutant that welcomes me with open arms every day.  Instead, they are giant fiberglass statutes that mostly date back to the 1960s, and feature classic characters such as Paul Bunyan and the Indian Chief.  But "muffler art men" like mine are also a recognized nationwide phenomenon, and they aren't hard to find on ebay if you would like one of your own.



Meet the Muffler Man.

My Muffler Man reminds me of one of my favorite yard art sightings in the Heights -- he's not a "muffler art man" per se, but perhaps a distant relative. 

Metal robot man on unicycle, out for a walk with robot man's best friend.

Find them on the 600 block of Arlington St.