Hillerbrand+Magsamen: nothing is precious, everything is game
Hillerbrand+Magsamen:
nothing is precious, everything is game
On View
On View
October 8–November 22, 2025
Gallery Hours
Wednesday – Saturday
12 PM – 5 PM
Location
Silver Street Studios
2000 Edwards Street
Houston, TX 77007
Exhibition
Exhibition
nothing is precious, everything is game is the first career survey of Houston-based artist duo Stephan Hillerbrand and Mary Magsamen. Collectively known as Hillerbrand+Magsamen, the duo transforms the everyday into something extraordinary—turning household items, family rituals, and domestic environments into profound reflections on art, life, and togetherness. Their creative practice embraces a playful and inclusive approach to artmaking, rejecting notions of elitist exclusivity in the art world.
Carried by this playful spirit, nothing is precious, everything is game unfolds through a collection of photographs, videos, sculptural objects, and performances spanning the artists’ career. Highlights include Air Hunger (2001), which explores intimacy and trust through the act of blowing and sharing chewing gum bubbles; House/Hold (2012), a series of staged family portraits reflecting on consumerism and suburban life; and Expand (2024), a project that transforms fragments of the artists’ own home into digitally processed images probing memory and transition.
nothing is precious, everything is game runs concurrently with an exhibition at George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) titled 147 Devices for Integrated Principles, on view until January 2026. nothing is precious, everything is game and the IAH presentation are curated by Steven Evans and Madi Murphy.
Programs
Programs
The artists’ sense of whimsy is present throughout the exhibition and in supporting programming. Visitors can collect specially designed stamps—modeled after Japanese eki stamps—in a printed exhibition guide, attend a live cinema performance, and join the fun at an art-themed bingo night featuring game cards and prizes made by the artists themselves.
The artists’ sense of whimsy is present throughout the exhibition and in supporting programming. Visitors can collect specially designed stamps—modeled after Japanese eki stamps—in a printed exhibition guide, attend a live cinema performance, and join the fun at an art-themed bingo night featuring game cards and prizes made by the artists themselves.
Reception for the Artists
October 11, 2025 | 2 PM
Silver Street Studios, 2000 Edwards Street
Free admission with RSVP
Community Visions: A Houston Arts Mixer
October 16, 2025 | 6–8 PM
Silver Street Studios, 2000 Edwards Street
Free admission with RSVP
Mountains Performance with Kirk Lynn
October 18, 2025 | 7 PM
Brown Auditorium Theatre at MFAH, 1001 Bissonnet Street
Paid tickets required
Artist-led Tour
November 1, 2025 | 11 AM
Silver Street Studios, 2000 Edwards Street
Free admission with RSVP
The Family that Plays Together…
Music Performance with Nameless Sound
November 1, 2025 | 6–8 PM
Silver Street Studios, 2000 Edwards Street
Free admission with RSVP
Bingo Bonanza! with the Artists
November 7, 2025 | 6 PM
Silver Street Studios, 2000 Edwards Street
Paid tickets required
Family Day Activities
November 8, 2025 | 1 PM
Silver Street Studios, 2000 Edwards Street
Free admission with RSVP
About the Artists
About the Artists
Hillerbrand+Magsamen are the collaborative artistic team of Stephan Hillerbrand and Mary Magsamen, a husband-and-wife duo based in Houston, Texas. For over 25 years, they have been making work together that blends photography, video, performance, sculpture, and installation—all grounded in the messiness and beauty of everyday life. Often featuring their own children and home as material, their projects playfully reimagine the ordinary, transforming domestic rituals and consumer clutter into poetic, humorous, and sometimes absurd acts of resistance and reflection.
Their work has been exhibited nationally and internationally at institutions including the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, Portland Museum of Art, the Everson Museum, and many others. They have received support from the Sustainable Arts Foundation, Houston Arts Alliance, Mid-America Arts Alliance, and the Austin Film Society, among others.
When not making art together, Stephan is a Professor at the University of Houston’s School of Art, and Mary is the Manager of Public Programs at the Menil Collection.
FotoFest Major Institutional and Individual Support
Funders
Institutional Support for nothing is precious, everything is game provided by Houston Endowment; Texas Commission on the Arts; The Powell Foundation; Phillip and Edith Leonian Foundation; John R. Eckel, Jr. Foundation; The Susan Vaughan Foundation; and The Wortham Foundation.
Individual Support for nothing is precious, everything is game provided by Judith and Gamble Baldwin; Wendy Watriss and Frederick Baldwin; Katy and Michael Casey; Jereann Chaney; Janavi Mahimtura Folmsbee and Chris Folmsbee; Frazier King and Mary Axelrad; the FotoFest Board of Directors; and contributors to the FotoFest Annual Fund.
Image Credit
Hillerbrand+Magsamen, A Device to Restrain Contempt, 2019. From the series 147 Devices for Integrated Principles, 2018–20. Courtesy of the artists.
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