Houston Center for Photography Acquires New Museum District Home

The Houston Center for Photography (HCP) has signed a purchase agreement for a property at 1150 Bissonnet Street in Houston's Museum District, securing a permanent home for the 45-year-old nonprofit. The one-acre site features two 1920s-era buildings designed by William Ward Watkin, founder of Rice University's architecture program. HCP plans to adapt the buildings into a center for photography exhibitions, education, and public events while preserving their original character. The new campus will offer 11,295 square feet—more than double the 5,000 square feet at HCP's current Alabama Street location—and will include an artist residency apartment, darkroom, and makerspace. Executive Director Anne Leighton Massoni stated the move honors the buildings' history while creating spaces for future generations. HCP has raised $1.5 million of its $10 million capital campaign, launched in 2024. Founded in 1981 as an artist-run cooperative meeting in a Montrose church, HCP incorporated as a nonprofit in 1982 and moved to 1441 West Alabama Street in 1984. The Bissonnet campus is expected to open in late 2027, with construction continuing into early 2028.