Creative Newcomers to Watch — Emerging Artists Get a Priceless Chance at The Woodlands Waterway Arts Festival

Editor’s note: This is the second story in a series on The Woodlands Waterway Arts Festival.  

For most artists, the first festival is a leap. At The Woodlands Waterway Arts Festival, it’s also a spotlight. The nationally acclaimed festival, set for Friday, April 10 through Sunday, April 12, will showcase the work of 200 artists. Among them are six artists making their first appearance through the festival’s Emerging Artist category, which helps new talent break into the art festival circuit.

Each year, The Waterway Arts Festival reserves space for these first-time exhibitors, removing barriers like cost, setup and promotion. “Many talented artists haven’t had the opportunity to exhibit or sell their work in a professional setting,” says Jenny Carattini-Wright, executive director of The Woodlands Arts Council, the group behind the festival.

The goal is to give these emerging artists a real festival experience where they can learn, connect with collectors and build confidence. It also helps strengthen the future of the arts community.

Let’s take a closer look at three of the six Emerging Artists who will be making their debuts at this year’s Waterway Arts Festival. You can find their booths near each other in Town Green Park.

Francisco Acosta

Booth 195

Francisco Acosta‘s art journey began in architecture. After graduating in 2006 and working in the field for several years, he traveled through Europe and Mexico. That experience sharpened his eye for art and design. 

He began by creating pieces for family and friends, and inquiries to purchase his work soon followed. Later, while working in construction and interior design, he helped source art for clients from galleries in Los Angeles. That exposure proved pivotal.

“Getting to interact with artists and galleries was really inspiring,” Acosta says. “It made me realize that the pieces I’d been creating as a hobby might actually have a place in the art world.”

Acosta and his wife moved to Houston three years ago. Since then, he’s had more time to focus on creating art.  

He works with everyday materials like plaster, wood and paint, transforming familiar elements into something unexpected. “My work is abstract, so one of the things I enjoy the most is seeing how differently people react to it,”he notes.

For Acosta, each piece is personal. “I feel like I leave a bit of myself in every work,” he says.

Sushmitha Din

Booth 197

Sushmitha Din is a design engineer at a semiconductor company in Austin. She began her art journey at age 12, exploring it alongside other hobbies. Over time, art became the passion that stayed, even after a decade-long hiatus. She recently returned to her artistic practice. 

Din works across mediums, bringing an engineer’s precision to her process. “My artwork, spanning both watercolor paintings and intricate origami, is inspired by these quiet observations of the natural world,” she says. 

Her work unfolds in a deliberate, methodical way, shaped by close attention to detail.

Din works from home and approaches her practice with flexibility, often creating in short, focused stretches. 

“While I don’t follow a strict routine, I try to think about art every day and work on my paintings when my mind feels clear,” Din says. “I usually work on a painting for a couple of hours at a time.”

Evan Hunt

Booth 201

Native Texan Evan Hunt earned a master’s in art education from Rice University and now teaches art in Conroe ISD. His work was recently exhibited at The Woodlands Arts Council as part of a show of art educators.

“In my classroom, I often share my works in progress so students can see that art is a process, not just a finished product,” Hunt says. 

For most of his life, Hunt worked primarily in realism. In recent years, he shifted toward a more stylized approach, using acrylic on canvas to blend realistic forms with intricate patterns and decorative elements.

Hunt paints in his free time, creating only a few pieces each year. For him, the festival represents more than five years of work, making the opportunity to show it particularly meaningful. “There’s something special about spending an entire weekend immersed in creativity and conversation,” he says.

His work draws heavily from Art Nouveau, especially Alphonse Mucha and Gustav Klimt. He also incorporates influences from stained glass and abstracted realism.

Stay tuned. This series continues with three more Emerging Artists making their debut at this year’s festival.

The Woodlands Waterway Arts Festival takes place Friday, April 10 through Sunday, April 12. Tickets are available here in advance and at entrances along the Woodlands Waterway and in Town Green Park the run of the arts fest.