--- title: The Preface and Promise of Discovery Green’s Art Lab description: Discover how Discovery Green's Art Lab supports Houston artists through mentorship and innovative public art projects, enhancing community engagement and culture. image: https://knowledge.codaworx.com/hubfs/Screenshot%202026-08-04%20at%203.25.50%20PM.png --- [![Logo-CODAworx](https://knowledge.codaworx.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Logo-CODAworx.png?width=82&height=45&name=Logo-CODAworx.png "Logo-CODAworx")](https://knowledge.codaworx.com/codazine) [CODAworx Home](https://codaworx.com) # The Preface and Promise of Discovery Green’s Art Lab [By Tianshu Zhang](https://knowledge.codaworx.com/codazine/author/tianshu-zhang) 2 min read Aug 4, 2026 ##### Share - - - - [mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20https://knowledge.codaworx.com/codazine/discovery-green&body=Check%20out%20https://knowledge.codaworx.com/codazine/discovery-green&media=https://5964602.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/5964602/Screenshot%202026-08-04%20at%203.25.50%20PM.png](mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20https://knowledge.codaworx.com/codazine/discovery-green&body=Check%20out%20https://knowledge.codaworx.com/codazine/discovery-green&media=https://5964602.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/5964602/Screenshot%202026-08-04%20at%203.25.50%20PM.png) Houstonians have cultivated a profound appreciation for the public art program at Discovery Green. Since launching in 2008, Discovery Green has exhibited 26 temporary large-scale public art installations, presenting each free of charge. Millions of visitors have encountered these transformative works, making Discovery Green a key player in the cultural life of the city. For many young visitors, these installations serve as an inaugural encounter with the art world. While museum walls whisper, “don’t touch,” Discovery Green’s ethos proclaims: “Come explore!” ![Hello Trees Uploaded by Daily tous les jours](https://knowledge.codaworx.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Hello%20Trees%20Uploaded%20by%20Daily%20tous%20les%20jours.jpeg?width=2048&height=1365&name=Hello%20Trees%20Uploaded%20by%20Daily%20tous%20les%20jours.jpeg) For years, installations brought Discovery Green into collaboration with accomplished artists from around the world. Yet Houston’s own artists possessed extraordinary talent while often facing systemic barriers in accessing the resources and experience necessary for large-scale public works. The progression was clear: Discovery Green needed to nurture the artistic voices that call Houston home. Art Lab emerged as Discovery Green’s response. Through intensive mentorship and hands-on experience, the program equips Houston artists with the practical skills essential for capital-intensive public art projects while fostering a more equitable landscape and elevating regional artists onto the national stage. When Kathryn Lott joined Discovery Green Conservancy as Park President in 2023, she sought to immerse herself in the park’s programming legacy. What emerged was both sobering and inspiring: the fund that had traditionally supported artistic programming was exhausted. The challenge demanded innovation. Against considerable odds, Discovery Green found new funding pathways and Art Lab received full funding from a national foundation in its inaugural year. Such immediate and comprehensive support for a program of this magnitude is unprecedented, signaling that the vision behind Art Lab struck a chord in the philanthropic community. Art Lab has emerged as one of Discovery Green Conservancy’s most ambitious and energizing initiatives. In the first year, 63 Houston artists applied to become inaugural Art Lab Fellows. From this pool two were selected: Karen Navarro, a photographer who transforms a two-dimensional artform into three-dimensional sculpture, and Gerardo Rosales, whose folkloric paintings celebrate inclusion and cultural heritage. Both collaborated with internationally acclaimed artist-engineer [Jen Lewin](https://knowledge.codaworx.com/codazine/meet-the-maker-jen-lewin), whose large-scale interactive sculptures merge nature and technology to create immersive public experiences. While mentoring the fellows, Lewin installed [*Atlas*](https://www.codaworx.com/projects/atlas-16382) — 24 oversized moths suspended from oak trees along the Brown Promenade. Between November 2024 and February 2025, more than 550,000 visitors moved beneath the canopy, discovering artworks that were not merely beautiful but responsive, shifting in sound and light as audiences passed through. ![Atlas Uploaded by Jen Lewin Studio](https://knowledge.codaworx.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Atlas%20Uploaded%20by%20Jen%20Lewin%20Studio.webp?width=2399&height=1600&name=Atlas%20Uploaded%20by%20Jen%20Lewin%20Studio.webp) The impact of such moments of surprise and joy defies quantification. Encountering the unexpected awakens us to new possibilities and opens our eyes to others. This represents Discovery Green’s treasured role within our city – a place where people can remember the world’s inherent beauty, feel the joy of human connection, and develop the civic pride that exposure to Houston’s culture engenders. As the program’s first cycle reached completion, Discovery Green proudly presented Karen Navarro’s *Chroma Collective*, a project she developed through the program with mentorship from Discovery Green, Jen Lewin, Weingarten Art Group, and the Houston-based architecture and design firm Metalab. ![54808170459\_d1eab2752a\_k](https://knowledge.codaworx.com/hs-fs/hubfs/54808170459_d1eab2752a_k.jpg?width=2048&height=1366&name=54808170459_d1eab2752a_k.jpg) The artist’s role is to express the universal through their specific personal viewpoint and experiences. Similarly, Discovery Green creates common meaning and nurtures Houston’s community culture through the lens of individual experiences. 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All Rights Reserved. ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Tianshu Zhang", "url" : "https://knowledge.codaworx.com/codazine/author/tianshu-zhang" }, "dateModified" : "2026-08-04T22:33:00.740Z", "datePublished" : "2026-08-04T22:33:00.000Z", "headline" : "The Preface and Promise of Discovery Green’s Art Lab", "image" : [ "https://knowledge.codaworx.com/hubfs/Screenshot%202026-08-04%20at%203.25.50%20PM.png" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://knowledge.codaworx.com/codazine/discovery-green", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://knowledge.codaworx.com/hubfs/codaworx-background-transparency.png" }, "name" : "CODAworx" } } ```