Robert Fong reflects on five years at Museum of the Gulf Coast, prepares final farewell exhibit

Published 4:29 pm Friday, August 1, 2025

After five years of preserving and curating the stories of Southeast Texas, Museum of the Gulf Coast curator Robert Fong is preparing to close one chapter of his life with a historic photography exhibition, his last before retirement.

His final exhibit, which features rarely seen and original black and white photographs from the museum’s archives, is what he calls a “parting gesture” for the community and the museum he’s called home for the past five years. 

“I thought as I am moving out of the city, for me and the people who love Museum of the Gulf Coast as I do this was just an appropriate exhibition to do, and the photos we have in our collection are amazing.”  

The exhibit features historic images of local life, infrastructure and industry, such as panoramic views of the Gulf refinery, early pavement of the roads and old fur storage and home laundry services. Many of the images come from photographers like J.C. Watkins and Clarence Garrett, whose work captured the essence of Port Arthur’s evolution.

“I tried to select images that hadn’t been shown before,” Fong said. “We even chose to display original prints, imperfections and all,  because there’s something irreplaceable about seeing the real thing.”

Fong’s path to being a curator was anything but conventional. While originally attending Lamar University as a pre-med student before eventually earning a degree in film from the University of Texas. His early film career included assistant editing credits on cult classics like Killer Klowns from Outer Space and the Twin Peaks television series.   

After years in Los Angeles, Fong returned to Southeast Texas and began doing various video and advertising work before eventually getting recruited by Museum Director Tom Neal. 

Neal was originally the one who hired Fong after seeing his strong storytelling background. Just before the COVID-19 pandemic, he was invited by museum director Tom Neal to assist with digital installations. Within months, he was offered the curator position, a role he’s held since 2020.

“Everybody has their talents they bring to the job and Roberts is very talented, got all these different skill sets,” Neal said. “Anytime you lose somebody like that, there’s gonna be a kinda of hole here. We will miss him big time, but we will go on, that’s how these things go on.”  

One of his favorite memories was collaborating on several major projects, including a nine-month effort with artist Rita Manuel to document the region’s Zydeco music heritage. That exhibit will soon be re-exhibited in Opelousas, Louisiana.

“Port Arthur is lucky to have the Museum of the Gulf Coast,” Fong said. “It’s a special place and it always amazes people from all over the world who come here, and a lot of the time they come to pay respects to Janis Joplin, but they leave the museum with a larger understanding of all the amazing things and people that come back out of this area.” 

His decision to retire will bring him closer to his family as he plans to move closer to them. Fong will leave the museum and retire in late August. His exhibit “Historic Photos of Port Arthur” will run until Sept 6.