Photo: The Gite Gallery

As a child, native Houstonian Lloyd Gite was always fascinated by Africa. In 1976 he visited the continent for the first time. And he’s continued to return to its mesmerizing beauty and culture ever since.

He also fell in love with African art, he says it reminds him of African American art with its vivid colors and textures. Some of the pieces he brought back from that trip so impressed his friends that they begged him to bring them some back from his next trip. And so began his career as an art dealer. “I sold African art out of my home for years,” Gite recalls. While that was his passion, his career was television journalism. You may recall him from his 18-year career at KRIV-FOX 26. When he left there, he says it just seemed the perfect transition to open a gallery. After two years, The Gite Gallery moved into its current home, a 1943 two-story home in the Third Ward. It is both elegant and eclectic, with multiple rooms and brightly painted walls, and the most amazing paintings, sculptures, hand carved wooden statues, bronze sculptures, tribal masks and hats, brightly colored textiles, select vintage accent furniture and more, all from sub-Saharan Africa.

For more than two decades now, The Gite Gallery has sold African art and artifacts to Houstonians and collectors throughout the U.S. Including professional football players like Andre Johnson, Vince Young and Mario Williams, and NBA stars Avery Johnson, Grant Hill, and T.J. Ford. It is also a favorite place for well-known celebrities Loretta Divine, Danny Glover, Harry Belafonte, and Houston’s own Queen B, Beyonce Knowles, and her mom, Tina Knowles.

Beyond selling art, Gite says the gallery provides framing services and limited interior design services as well as consulting and procurement.

“We can sell it, frame it, and will hang it in your home,” Gite says. And while the gallery only handles African art and artifacts, Gite himself is a collector of all kinds of art. “You name it, I have it,” he says. His home collection has African American paintings and works from around the globe, including his many travels covering news of the world in such places as Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and the Caribbean. Yet his home-away-from-home, the charming Third Ward gallery housed in an old brick house, is where you will find the finest collection of African art in Texas. Even if you’re not conversant on the genre, you should stop in and soak up the beauty.

“We’re always open to people who want to come in and experience African art,” Gite says. Or drop by for some champagne and light bites every first Friday of the month to socialize amongst the treasures.

A word of advice — due to the ongoing 1-45 construction, the Alabama St. bridge is closed until early next year. You can call the gallery to get directions, but Gite says it’s pretty easy to follow the signs and use Emancipation or Elgin to reach the gallery.

The Gite Gallery
2024 Alabama St.
713.523.3311

by Marene Gustin