Tag: Artists

Exploring the Vibrant Art Scene at Brownsville Museum of Fine Art: Current Exhibitions You Can’t Miss

Brownsville Museum of Fine Art

Art museums are vital for preserving and showcasing creative expressions that reflect human experience, history, and culture. They offer a space where visitors can experience the transformative power of art, sparking imagination, emotion, and intellectual curiosity. People are drawn to art museums for their ability to inspire, provoke thought, and connect individuals across time and place. Viewing masterpieces or contemporary works allows people to engage with different perspectives and cultivate a deeper appreciation for creativity. Art museums also provide a sense of tranquility and reflection, offering visitors a break from the fast pace of daily life while fostering cultural enrichment and understanding.

Recently I visited the Brownsville Museum of Fine Art to check out their latest exhibitions. They change frequently, so each visit is an opportunity to discover a new artist. Right now there are four exhibitions on view, each as unique as the experiences of the artist and all of them are a joy to experience.

I enjoyed Guillermo Vasquez’ The Journey, The Path, And The Quest because the paintings are larger than life and the colors are so vibrant. A big plus is that it’s an outdoor exhibit, so that if you’re in the area, you can enjoy it without going inside the museum. I also like José Antonio Chaurand’s Idiosyncrasy of Luck because of the overall theme of ‘luck.’ Is what happens to us a matter of luck, or circumstances?

If you love art, do yourself a favor and plan your next museum adventure at the BMFA. There’s still time to check them out since they’re on view until December 11. Museum hours and ticket information is available online.

Current exhibitions are as follows: (Brownsville Museum of Fine Art, 2024)

The Journey, The Path, And The Quest
Guillermo Vasquez
Exhibition Dates: November 8 – December 11

Originally from Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico, Vasquez graduated with a degree in Industrial Engineering from the Technological Institute of Matamoros. A self-taught painter, he began his artistic journey a decade ago, focusing on acrylic painting techniques. His skills were further refined through classes at BMFA with mentors Diana and Nerea Anzaldúa, who were instrumental in his development. As a committed member of the BMFA, he aims to create art that invites contemplation and intellectual engagement.

This exhibition offers viewers a journey through humanity’s evolution, from the origins of the universe to a utopian vision of society. Through large-scale acrylic paintings on treated wood, Guillermo Vasquez explores key moments such as the Big Bang, the rise of philosophy, the influence of religion, and societal transformations throughout history, including the Renaissance and the Enlightenment. By displaying the pieces in the BMFA garden, Vasquez seeks to create an engaging, accessible environment where the public can interact with art and reflect on our shared human experience.

Frutos Del Tiempo
Alonsa Guevara
Exhibition Dates: November 2 – December 11

Alonsa Guevara (b. 1986, Rancagua, Chile) is a visual artist based in Los Angeles, California. Guevara holds an MFA in painting from the New York Academy of Art (2014), and a BFA from the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile (2009). Guevara works primarily with painting, and her multidisciplinary practice extends to sculptures, installations, sound pieces, and video performance. Her works blur the lines between fantasy and reality while celebrating the connection between humankind and nature. As a Latin-American woman whose life has unfolded across three distinct countries—Chile, Ecuador, and the USA—Guevara’s art serves as an exploration of questions surrounding identity, belonging, and womanhood, offering her personal understanding and appreciation of beauty.

“Frutos del Tiempo” presents a variety of artworks by Chilean-American artist Alonsa Guevara, exploring the artistic and spiritual “fruits” that have emerged from her journey over the years. Featuring paintings and sculptures made from 2018 to the present, this exhibition invites viewers into a celebration of the beauty and complexity of the natural world, examining the deep connections between nature, humanity, and spirituality. As a Latin-American woman whose life has unfolded across Chile, Ecuador, and the USA, Guevara uses her art to explore identity, belonging, and womanhood. Her works offer a personal understanding of beauty, blending reality with fantasy to create an immersive, multi-sensory experience. With a ceremonial and ritualistic ambiance, her pieces pay homage to fertility, spirituality, and life cycles, commemorating the enduring connection between humankind and nature—one that has evolved and adapted through time.

Idiosyncrasy of Luck
José Antonio Chaurand
Exhibition Dates: November 2 – December 11

José Antonio Chaurand (b. Mexico, 1974) also known as JACH, is a visual artist, publisher, and economist. He obtained a bachelor’s degree in economics (1998) and continued his education in art history, journalism, graphic design, drawing, and cultural management as self-taught while running La Tempestad, considered by experts the fundamental magazine and media outlet of international art in México. (1998-2017)

The idea that the individual can forge his/her own destiny has become predominant around the world. This notion began during the Industrial Revolution, but became popular after the end of World War II propelled mainly by American mass media, and continued growing throughout the twentieth century. During the new millennia, Social media has become the receptacle for ‘‘prophets of human autonomy,” people attempting to profit by convincing others that success, happiness, and abundance are a decision and not a circumstance. The message has now become embedded in mostly all of our contemporary narratives, even reaching the spheres of health and longevity. This project aims to de-dogmatize this notion, manifesting that luck is a variable that must be included in every equation of the human endeavor; once randomness is acknowledged it is easy to see the myth of autonomy. The way luck works can be seen at plain sight, its idiosyncrasy has been revealed, yet we have chosen not to see it.

Iman, Al Safa WAl Marwa: Faith in the Pilgrimage
Ibtisam Tasnim Zaman
Exhibition Dates: November 2 – December 11

Ibtisam Tasnim Zaman is a New York based Black Lesbian American, interdisciplinary, and conceptual artist. Originally from Tulsa, Oklahoma, Ibtisam moved at six years old to the UAE. This forced migration was shortly after 9/11, to escape the violence that Black Muslims, Muslims of color, and all immigrants are still facing today.

Ibtisam Tasnim Zaman’s solo exhibition, ‘Iman, Al Safa WAl Marwa: Faith in the Pilgrimage,’ is a feature of works that use figurative surrealism to narrate the layers of systemic structures. A constant state of revealing ‘manufactured nature’ through everyday life: in the mundane, journey to work, and overall culture of normalization. Zaman contrasts these dense realities, through depicting acts of intimacy, tenderness, paradox of motherhood, and love as acts of resistance in the midst of chaos.

Brownsville Museum of Fine Art
660 E Ringgold St
Brownsville, TX 78520

Madam Paleta Tequila: Hot New Tequila To Gift This Holiday Season

Madam Paleta Tequila ships to select states across the United States. Photo: Madam Paleta Tequila, used with permission.

Gift-giving during the holiday season is a cherished tradition that promotes warmth and connection. It’s more than exchanging items; it’s about expressing care, appreciation, and thoughtfulness. The act of selecting or creating a gift often reflects the giver’s understanding of the recipient’s preferences, creating a meaningful bond. While the holiday season can be bustling with commercialism, the true essence lies in the joy of giving and receiving. Whether it’s a handcrafted token or a well-chosen item, gifts serve as a tangible reminder of our relationships and the shared moments we celebrate together. With the holidays season just around the corner, it’s time to start thinking about gift giving ideas.

Today’s highlight is on the new Madam Paleta Tequila, a female-founded, award-winning tequila brand, rooted in Mexican authenticity that offers additive-free premium blanco flavor-infused tequilas. Crafted with 100% blue agave from Los Altos de Jalisco, Mexico, it ensures a smooth finish without the dreaded “tequila face.” (Madam Paleta Tequila, 2024)

Madam Paleta is the perfect choice for holiday gatherings and gifting to the tequila aficionado in your life. Why should Madam Paleta be a part of this year’s holiday gifting lists? What sets Madam Paleta apart from other tequilas?

Authentic Flavors:

  • Madam Paleta Tequila offers 3 authentic flavors inspired by the Mexican Paleta (popsicle) culture. There are no fake flavors, syrups or sugar-based enhancements – what you see is what you get, making it perfect for sipping, shooting, or mixing.
  • Grapefruit embodies a distinctive blanco tequila infused with natural grapefruit flavors and subtle notes of tart sweetness. 
  • Pineapple offers a refreshing and crisp taste full of flavor, reminiscent of a tropical getaway in every sip. 
  • Tamarind presents the distinct taste of tangy tamarind with an extra layer of boldness and authenticity.

Key Awards: 

  • Madam Paleta Tequila has already received industry recognition with prestigious awards, including the recent 2024 San Francisco World Spirits Competition Double Gold victory and “Best in Class” finalist nomination for Tamarind – the first flavor-infused tequila with this distinction. 
  • Madam Paleta also won gold medals for Grapefruit and Pineapple in the 2023 Pr%F Awards and gold medals for Tamarind and Grapefruit in the 2023 John Barleycorn Awards. 

Artwork Collaboration: 

  • The brand’s striking artwork and bottle design are equally intentional. Madam Paleta uses its bottle as a canvas, partnering with local artists for each production batch, showcasing bold, vibrant, and lively artwork as an opportunity to celebrate visionary women. The next artist they are partnering with for the new production batch is San Antonio, TX based Hispanic artist Alyssa Raymond.

Madam Paleta Tequila is available for purchase online with delivery available across the nation to select states. In-store purchases can be made at select retailers across Texas.

Current Highlights: What’s New at Contemporary at Blue Star This Summer

Installation view C& Center of Unfinished Business, HERE AND NOW at Museum Ludwig: Dynamic Spaces, Museum Ludwig, Cologne 2020, © Contemporary And, photo: Rheinisches Bildarchiv Köln, Cologne / Nina Siefke

The Contemporary at Blue Star is excited to announce three new exhibitions, The C&s Center of Unfinished Business, Kaysaypac: Portraits and Figures by Leeanna Chipana, and Cheng Xinhao’s Silver…and Other Elements. The summer exhibitions weave an unavoidable thread that sparks conversation around the history of colonialism, its presence in contemporary life, and encourages education and dialogue. They are currently on view until October 6, 2024. (Contemporary at Blue Star, 2024)

The C&s Center of Unfinished Business
Contemporary is thrilled to partner with C&, a multimedia platform for contemporary visual arts, to present the Center of Unfinished Business, a reading room that encapsulates an array of books that explore the persistence of colonialism in various ways, from its origins to how it effects people and places today. You’ll find texts on the way land and culture have been forcibly stripped from native people due to colonialism alongside texts that explore how empire-building also connects to fashion, 21st century capitalism, and more.

Launched in 2017, the Reading Room has traveled to institutions around the world. As it travels, the room integrates books from each of its host venues (and their collaborators), who add text that is relevant to the place the Reading Room inhabits. For the Contemporary’s iteration of this installation, we have partnered with the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center Latino Bookstore to include texts that touch on the themes of colonialism and borders that are present in the exhibitions in the surrounding galleries.

Kaysaypac: Portraits and Figures by Leeanna Chipana
Born in Long Island, New York to an immigrant Quechuan-Peruvian father and American mother, Leeanna Chipana draws from her Quechuan and American identity by incorporating Incan, Aztec, and Mayan iconography with classical European oil painting techniques and approaches. The blending and blurring of indigenous figures and Western techniques is an effort of disrupting colonial erasure by placing Indigenous-Latinx figures at the forefront of a very Euro-centric style of painting.

The exhibition title, Kaysaypac (pronounced cow-say-pak), a nod to Chipana’s Quechuan-Peruvian heritage, is a phrase often used while making a toast or a cheers and translates to “to live/to life.” Further cementing the presence of indigenous peoples, this sentiment incorporated into the title is a dedication to the descendants of the Incans continuing to live in community, surviving colonialism and violence.

Cheng Xinhao
Silver…and Other Elements
In this four-channel film, Cheng Xinhao investigates the Mang people’s (the indigenous people living at the border of Vietnam and China) adaptation to shifting borders and changing systems. To explore this moving borderline and the migration of its people, Xinhao follows the fluctuating use of currency.

These shifting borders create a state of in-betweenness and displacement—a sentiment many border communities around the world still struggle with, and yet adapt to. Xinhao’s video raises the question: what symbols are appropriated and survive under new regimes? Will they be incorporated into existing systems, or will new forms be created?

Contemporary at Blue Star
116 Blue Star
San Antonio, TX 78204

Public visiting hours during exhibitions:
Monday – Tuesday Closed
Wednesday 12p.m. – 5p.m.
Thursday – Friday 12p.m. – 8p.m.
Saturday – Sunday 10a.m. – 6p.m.

Admission is always free.

Photo: Contemporary at Blue Star, used with permission.

Spurs and Western Art: A Guide to the National Day of the Cowboy Celebration

Celebrate the legacy of the West at the Briscoe Western Art Museum this Saturday July 27, 2024. Photo: Briscoe Western Art Museum, used with permission.

It’s time to celebrate the legacy of the West – the cowgirls, the cowboys, and vaqueros at the Briscoe Western Art Museum’s National Day of the Cowboy celebration Saturday, July 27, 10a.m. – 4p.m. at the museum’s campus on the banks of the River Walk. (Briscoe Western Art Museum, 2024)

This free community event includes free admission to the museum and its exhibitions, as well as indoor and outdoor activities. This year’s event tips its hat to the role cowgirls play in the West while showcasing cowboy life, skills, art, and more. Cowboys and girls of all ages can enjoy live music, games, crafts, a chuck wagon with tasty cowboy treats straight from the trail, artist demonstrations, and hands-on fun. Pre-register in advance to enjoy the free Western fun.

One of the Briscoe’s most treasured annual events, National Day of the Cowboy highlights and preserves America’s cowboy culture and pioneer heritage. The day began in 2005 to celebrate and preserve the heritage of the American cowboy, cowgirl, and vaquero in the United States. The state of Texas declared it a day of honor in 2015 and the Briscoe annually hosts a free community day marking the occasion, throwing open the doors of the museum to honor the cowgirl, cowboy, and vaquero in us all.

The museum’s National Day of the Cowboy Celebration includes:

  • Free event and museum admission and activities for the whole family, including the museum’s 14 galleries and the McNutt Sculpture Garden.
  • Cowpoke games and crafts, where you can create your own cowboy hat and spurs, play horseshoes, make your own stick pony and try your hand at barrel racing. All arts and crafts are free and supplies are provided.
  • Cowboy music with The Barditch Hippies, playing live in the museum’s McNutt Sculpture Garden, where the fantastic bronze sculptures and lush, shady greenery are the perfect backdrop for cowboy fun.
  • Authentic chuck wagon cooking with free samples of peach cobbler, along with food truck grub and tasty barbeque available from Cake ‘n Que to satisfy any hungry cowpokes.
  • Demonstrations of how to craft the essential tools of the cowboy trade by members of the Traditional Cowboy Arts Association.
  • Lassos and fun with local rodeo cowboys and the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo and watch roper Cowboy Doug dazzle and delight with roping demonstrations.
  • Western art brought to life through live demonstrations:
    • Watch acclaimed, award-winning cowgirl artist Mary Ross Buchholz demonstrate illustration techniques using charcoal to create realistic imagery, sharing how to artfully capture Western scenes.
    • Enjoy a live sculpting demonstration by Jason Scull, one of the Cowboy Artists of America working to authentically preserve the culture of Western life through fine art.
    • See Texas cowboy artist Mike Capron showcase how he authentically portrays ranching and cowboy scenes.
  • Special appearances by Miss Rodeo Texas 2024, Ashlyn Williams, San Antonio River Walk Princess Annette Flores and Marina the Turtle, visiting to remind everyone “stuff the boat” to support this year’s Communities In Schools supply drive. Bring school supplies to National Day of the Cowboy and help Marina stuff the boat to benefit local children.
  • A display of escaramuza attire – what the talented women who participate in charreadas wear as they perform – and a local rider answering questions about what it’s like to be an escaramuza.
  • Storyteller Antoinette Lakey bringing the story of Mary Fields, the first African American woman stagecoach driver, to life. For many years, Fields traveled the West with her pet eagle, never losing a single horse or package. Hear her story as Lakey reads from “Fearless Mary: Mary Fields, American Stagecoach Driver.” A community leader, researcher, and dramatist, Antoinette Lakey currently serves as Artistic Director for Teatro Anansi, an organization with a mission to connect, celebrate and commemorate African American theatre, performing arts and history within the greater San Antonio community.
  • Cowboy poetry with poet Don Mathis, sharing his original poetry about the National Day of the Cowboy.
  • A look back at what it was like to be a trail rider and a black cowboy with a storyteller dressed in period attire, sharing about life in the West in 1875.
  • Nature’s beauty and resilience on display during the museum’s summer exhibition, Survival of the Fittest: Envisioning Wildlife and Wilderness with the Big Four, Masterworks from the Rijksmuseum Twenthe and the National Museum of Wildlife Art. The exhibition’s title references Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species, which had a revolutionary impact on how people from Western cultures envisioned our relationship with the other animals on Earth. A special mini-drawing lab also offers step-by-step instructions to draw animals and landscapes.

Briscoe Western Art Museum: Preserving and presenting the art, history and culture of the American West through engaging exhibitions, educational programs and public events reflective of the region’s rich traditions and shared heritage, the Briscoe Western Art Museum is located on the San Antonio River Walk at 210 W. Market Street in the beautifully restored 1930s former San Antonio Public Library building. Named in honor of the late Texas Gov. Dolph Briscoe Jr. and his wife, Janey Slaughter Briscoe, the museum includes the three-story Jack Guenther Pavilion, used for event rentals and programs, and the outdoor McNutt Sculpture Garden.

Paul Kane’s Travels: A Cultural Odyssey through Indigenous North America

‘Paul Kane’s Travels in Indigenous North America’ by I.S. MacLaren explores the life, times, and challenging legacy of 19th Century Canadian artist Paul Kane. Photo: Amazon

McGill-Queen’s University Press announces the release of the four-volume publication “Paul Kane’s Travels in Indigenous North America: Writings and Art, Life and Times” by I.S. MacLaren, the first comprehensive survey of Paul Kane’s (1810–1871) life and work in more than fifty years. Kane’s field sketches made between 1845 and 1848 constitute the first visual record of Indigenous life all the way from the Great Lakes to the Pacific Ocean by a Non-Indigenous artist. (Bow Bridge Communications, 2024)

Beginning his research three and one-half decades ago, MacLaren, professor emeritus at the University of Alberta, provides a singular opportunity to examine the impacts of Kane’s travels in Indigenous North America through his writings, art, life, times, and complex legacy. A meticulous, panoramic examination, “Paul Kane’s Travels in Indigenous North America” also studies the artist’s legacy in terms of his contemporaries’, his technique, and the complicated history of the source of the works. The author examines Kane’s travels and output by focusing on four areas of study: history of the fur trade, book publishing history, art history, and ethnohistory.

Paul Kane, a portraitist based in Toronto, set out from the city in 1845 for Lake Huron and Wisconsin. From 1846 to 1848, he continued to the upper Great Lakes, the Prairies, across the Rockies, down the Columbia River, and through Oregon Territory to Puget Sound and Vancouver Island. MacLaren reconstructs the colonial processes that turned Kane’s unique descriptions and depictions of Indigenous peoples into benighted stereotypes, teaching contemporary readers valuable lessons about what we thought we knew about Kane and his art, how he let himself be turned into a detractor of Native Americans, and how society endowed him with authority that was not always warranted. 

Kane has been called the founding father of Canadian art, and his “Wanderings of an Artist among the Indians of North America” (1859) is considered a classic of Canadian literature, albeit a controversial one if viewed from a contemporary perspective. More recently, he has been vilified as having misrepresented and exploited his subjects.

“Paul Kane’s Travels” features reproductions of nearly all Kane’s sketches—many published for the first time—and many of his studio paintings, as well as transcriptions of his field writings. The writings, which show the artist to have been a curious traveler fascinated by Indigenous lifeways, contain no negative references to Indigenous people. MacLaren’s work also features a transcription of manuscripts not in Kane’s handwriting (by unknown scribes), the text of the first edition of “Wanderings of an Artist,” an updated catalog, and detailed maps of Kane’s routes. Through the author’s in-depth research, the publication offers scholarly and first-hand understandings of the lives and histories of the real people Kane described and depicted while providing an authoritative biographical portrait of the artist. Thanks to family descendants’ support, MacLaren has identified 26 Indigenous people depicted in the portraits.

Publication Specifications
2,408 pages, 9 x 12”, 4-volume set, full color throughout | Cloth 9780228017479
$450 CDN / $375 USD | Available for purchase here.

Experience Xicanx Dreamers + Changemakers at Contemporary at Blue Star

Contemporary at Blue Star presents Xicanx: Dreamers + Changemakers | Soñadores + creadores del cambio. Photo: Contemporary at Blue Star

Contemporary at Blue Star is honored to present Xicanx: Dreamers + Changemakers | Soñadores + creadores del cambio, opening Friday, June 7, 2024, from 6p.m. – 9p.m. at the Contemporary. The opening night will also include a performance by Robert Jose Gonzalez at 8p.m. As the exhibition title suggests, the artists in this exhibition are dreamers and changemakers. Of Mexican American origin, they self-identify as Xicanx, a term that crosses national borders and gender lines to encompass a multi-generational experience. This exhibition uses the term Xicanx to refer to Chicano, Chicana, and Chicanx. The term reflects those who fought for and claim this designation and incorporates the ‘X’ from the Spanish transcription of the Nahuatl sound ‘ch.’ Nahuatl is one of the major Indigenous languages in Mexico. The ‘x’ on the end signals gender-neutral and non-binary inclusivity. (Contemporary at Blue Star, 2024)

Opening Night: Friday, June 7, 2024 | 6p.m. – 9p.m.
Performance by Robert Jose Gonzalez at 8p.m. | Free and open to the public
On View: June 7, 2024–October 6, 2024

The original conception of this exhibition came from a desire curators Jill Baird and Greta de León had to share the overlooked histories of American civil rights, including the Chicano/a civil rights movement of the 1960s and 70s, called El Movimiento. The installation at Contemporary at Blue Star is particularly significant due to El Movimiento’s roots in San Antonio, and the West Side of the city. From fighting for labor rights to equality for students, the work of San Antonio activists (and artists) played a crucial role in El Movimiento.

Some of the artists in Xicanx, began their work as part of El Movimiento. Much of the artwork created during this time sought to do the very things that this exhibition does: educate about the social inequity of Xicanx peoples, their history, and the importance of their culture. Other artists define themselves through their indigenous roots, and a younger generation expands the idea of Xicanx Art while continuing the work of addressing personal, social, and political issues of today.

In their curatorial statement, Baird and Greta note the importance of this work, “Artists were a major and critical part of El Movimiento over 50 years ago, and they continue to be strong activists fighting for equality and against racism and discrimination. Being Chicano or Xicanx* is an identity all of the artists in this exhibition choose. It is more than being just Mexican American; it is accepting the responsibility to fight for their community, their culture and their civil rights. The artists in this exhibition are dreamers and changemakers.”

Alongside the artwork are quotes, speeches, or sayings from prominent Xicanx authors, scholars, and exhibiting artists. A projection displays the work of murals across the United States, showcasing the reach and breadth of Xicanx voices in public art.

Xicanx: Dreamers + Changemakers | Soñadores + creadores del cambio was originally produced and presented by the Museum of Anthropology (MOA) at UBC and The Americas Research Network (ARENET), and curated by Jill Baird, former Curator of Education, MOA + Greta de León, Executive Director, ARENET. The presentation at Contemporary at Blue Star has been organized in collaboration with Mary Heathcott, Executive Director Contemporary at Blue Star; Jacqueline Saragoza McGilvray, Curator and Exhibitions Director, Contemporary at Blue Star; and Jon Hinojosa, President, CREO Consulting.

Contemporary at Blue Star presents exhibitions with artists from San Antonio and around the world sharing their global perspectives that encourage understanding, empathy, change, and action, fulfilling our mission to inspire, nurture, and innovate. Like most non-collecting contemporary art spaces, the Contemporary contributes fresh insights and perspectives on larger issues affecting society and culture by highlighting trends, movements, and conversations happening in art. Admission to the Contemporary is always free.

Contemporary at Blue Star
116 Blue Star
San Antonio, TX 78204
(210) 227-6960

Public visiting hours during exhibitions:
Monday – Tuesday CLOSED
Wednesday 12p.m. – 5p.m.
Thursday – Friday 12p.m. – 8p.m.
Saturday – Sunday 10a.m. – 6p.m.

Al Rendon, Raúl Salinas, 1987. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Briscoe Summer Film Series 2024: Schedule, Tickets, and Highlights

Killers of the Flower Moon is one of the movies that will be featured in this summer’s Briscoe Summer Film Series. Photo: Briscoe Western Art Museum, used with permission.

Stampede into the Briscoe Western Art Museum for a wild summer of survival. From hands-on workshops and book signings, film screenings and conversations about wildlife and conservation to the museum’s beloved National Day of the Cowboy celebration, the Briscoe is the place to be to survive this summer. (Briscoe Western Art Museum, 2024)

Opening June 14, venture where nature’s beauty and resilience take center stage during the Briscoe’s summer exhibition, Survival of the Fittest: Envisioning Wildlife and Wilderness with the Big Four, Masterworks from the Rijksmuseum Twenthe and the National Museum of Wildlife Art.

Survival of the Fittest:  June 14 – September 8

The exhibition’s title references Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species, which had a revolutionary impact on how people from Western cultures envisioned our relationship with the other animals on Earth. In the post-Darwin era, a group of classically trained painters now known as the “Big Four” emerged and helped establish a vision of wildlife and nature that remains with us today. German Richard Friese (1854–1918) is the Big Four’s elder, followed chronologically by Swede Bruno Liljefors (1860–1939), German Wilhelm Kuhnert (1865–1926), and German-American Carl Rungius (1869–1959).

The Rijksmuseum Twenthe in Enschede, Netherlands, and the National Museum of Wildlife Art are the only two museums in the world to hold masterpieces by each member of the group. Survival of the Fittest brings together the best paintings from these two esteemed institutions for the first time. Along with the 45 works featured in the exhibition, the Briscoe will feature eight works by Robert “Bob” Frederick Kuhn (1920-2007), on loan exclusively to the Briscoe to showcase how Kuhn – one of the most prolific American wildlife artists – was greatly influenced by the Big Four. Separately, the Briscoe’s permanent collection includes “Rainbow Rams” by Carl Rungius, giving everyone 54 wildlife works to explore.

The Briscoe is hosting a preview party to open the exhibition, followed by a series of events that feature the exhibition curator and other special guests. Opening events include:

• Survival of the Fittest – Exclusive Preview Party
Thursday, June 13, 6p.m. – 8p.m.

The event includes complimentary valet, beer, wine, specialty cocktails, and light bites. Tickets are $25 for museum members and Contributing and President’s Society membership tiers receive two tickets. Museum members may upgrade their membership by calling 210.299.4499. Nonmembers may purchase tickets for $35. Tickets are available online.

• Survival of the Fittest: A Tour on the Wild Side
Exhibition tour and book signing with curator Adam Duncan Harris
Friday, June 14, 1p.m. – 2p.m., included with museum admission

Enjoy a tour of the exhibition with curator Adam Duncan Harris as he dives into the lasting impact of the Big Four and places their paintings in an international context – and how these paintings invite visitors to reflect on their relationship with the natural world. Harris will also sign copies of his book, “Survival of the Fittest: Envisioning Wildlife and Wilderness with the Big Four, Masterworks from the Rijksmuseum Twenthe and the National Museum of Wildlife Art,” available in the Briscoe’s Hendler Family Museum Store.

• Film Screening, Conversation and Tour: The Role of Artists in Wilderness Conservation – “There is a Place on Earth”
Curator Adam Duncan Harris and filmmaker Ellen van den Honert
Saturday, June 15, 1:30p.m., included with museum admission

Dive into the role artists play in wilderness conservation through “There is a Place on Earth,” Dutch filmmaker Ellen van den Honert’s beautiful and poetic journey around the world, meeting artists and conservationists who share extraordinarily creative work and a commitment to the environment. Following the screening, Harris and van den Honert will answer audience questions, then lead a tour of the exhibition.

• Watercolor Workshop: A Study of the Animal Form
A hands-on session for all skill levels with artist Teal Blake
Thursday, June 20, 6p.m. – 8p.m., $25 for members, $45 for non members

Award-winning artist and member of the Cowboy Artists of America Teal Blake returns to the Briscoe for a night of watercolor painting, guiding inspiring artists and providing instruction in how to portray the animal form with watercolor paint on paper. The workshop is for all skill levels and watercolor kits, brushes and paper are included. Pre-registration is required.

Following the Survival of the Fittest opening events, the Briscoe will be the place to be throughout the summer. Other activities on tap include:

Make this Summer One for the Books: Literary Cinema
The Briscoe’s Summer Movie Series explores western movies based on popular novels on the third Sunday of June, July, and August. A short presentation begins at 1p.m., followed immediately by the screening. Each movie is included in general museum admission, with complimentary beer courtesy of Ranger Creek Brewery, wine and movie snacks. Pre-registration with an online museum admission ticket purchase is encouraged to save your seat. Museum members may enjoy the series for free as part of their Briscoe membership.

o Briscoe Summer Film Series: Giant (1956)
Sunday, June 16, 1p.m. – 4p.m., included with museum admission

Spend a Giant Father’s Day at the Briscoe with dad enjoying this classic American epic brought to life with Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor, and James Dean. All attendees will be entered to win a trip to stay at the Hotel Paisano in Marfa, Texas, where Hudson, Taylor and Dean stayed during filming, and tickets to the Museum of the Big Bend in Alpine, Texas. Tickets may be purchased online.

o Briscoe Summer Film Series: News of the World (2020)
Sunday, July 21, 1p.m. – 4p.m., included with museum admission

Based on the 2016 novel by Paulette Jiles, Tom Hanks portrays an aging Civil War veteran who must return a young girl who was taken in by the Kiowa – and raised as one of them – to her last remaining family. Everyone who attends the screening will receive a free copy of the book. Tickets may be purchased online.

o Briscoe Summer Film Series: Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)
Sunday, August 18, 1p.m. – 4p.m., included with museum admission

Directed by Martin Scorsese and based on the non-fiction book by David Grann, this Oscar-nominated film shares the story of a series of murders of members of the Osage after oil was discovered on tribal and. The movie stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro and Lilly Gladstone. Come to the movie with three books to donate to the San Antonio Independent School District Foundation’s Book Buddies program and receive a free copy of “Killers of the Flower Moon,” filling your bookshelf while sparking a love of reading for SAISD children in grades K-8. Tickets may be purchased online to guarantee your seat.

The Briscoe presents its annual National Day of the Cowboy celebration on Saturday, July 27, 10a.m. – 4p.m. at the museum. The free community event, which includes free admission to the museum and its exhibitions, features indoor and outdoor activities across the museum’s River Walk campus for cowpokes of all ages to enjoy and explore the west. This year’s celebration spotlights cowgirls and their role in roping, riding and taming the West to inspire young cowgirls – and cowboys – to follow their western dreams. Saddle up with your family and head west for a free day of fun you won’t forget.

 

Call for Luminaria 2024 festival artists now open

Interested artists can apply online to be feature in this year’s Luminaria. Photo by Mike Farquhar, courtesy Luminaria

Attention artists: Luminaria recently put out a call for artists for their next Luminaria Contemporary Arts Festival tentatively scheduled for Saturday, October 19, 2024. The locations is TBA later but all interested artists are welcome to apply online.  (Luminaria, 2024)

Visual artists, theater performers, digital artists, installation artists, musicians, poets, and all other form of artists interested in showcasing their artwork at the Luminaria Contemporary Arts Festival 2024 can apply. There are stages and buildings eagerly waiting to be filled with the talented work of a few creative and passionate artists to be selected by extraordinary curators.

Applications will be evaluated by a curatorial committee made up of local working artists and art experts. Featured Artists will be notified in April followed by site-visits, consultations, mentorship, a photo shoot, spotlight videos, media interviews, and networking opportunities. A public announcement of the festival line-up will be held in September.

Luminaria is a dynamic nonprofit arts organization dedicated to producing and promoting the arts to the city of San Antonio. Luminaria is an inclusive organization celebrating the visual and multimedia arts in San Antonio through public engagement and active support for artists. It was founded in 2008 by local arts advocates wanting to create a communal celebration for the city’s arts organizations and artists. Since adopting a new strategic plan in 2021, Luminaria is dedicated to the innovative interpretation of San Antonio’s culture, history, and environment through creative placemaking and site-specific arts integration. Luminaria coordinates with anchor arts institutions, cultural and heritage organizations, and other community partners to foster a vibrant and internationally resonant arts culture in the city.

Music community app connects artists everywhere

Touring musician Brandon Taj Hanick founded Indie Town and invites bands and artists to book better tours and strengthen their DIY communities at home and across the world. Photo: Google

After two decades of releasing albums and touring in the U.S. and Europe with bands King of Prussia, Future Lives, and more, Athens, Ga. songwriter Brandon Taj Hanick has co-founded Indie Town, the completely free, invite-only app that lets independent bands and artists easily find, connect and share with one another. (Indie Town, 2023)

Calling it “the first international DIY artist community,” Hanick co-founded the app to help bands and artists connect, book shows and tours together, and share their creations without the burden of repressive algorithms or pay-for-play schemes. 

Unlike existing social media platforms, Indie Town is exclusively built for musicians and artists. Featuring easy-to-create music and video players on profiles, the app lets artists search for community members by genre, location or name, listen to members’ music, check out photos and videos, send messages, and become friends.

“After touring and making albums for years, my friends and I knew there was something missing for DIY bands and artists: An easy way to meaningfully connect the people we’d meet on tour who are creating thriving, interesting music scenes,” said Hanick.

“Community is important to artists, but there wasn’t a digital indie town square,” he continued. “So we built a place to reflect the DIY spirit that drives creativity and creation through collaboration.”

Since Indie Town’s soft launch in November 2023, artists and music community members from all over the U.S. and 13 countries, including The U.K., Brazil, Sweden, Canada, Spain, Portugal, South Africa and Czech Republic, have joined the community.

Indie Town streamlines community-building by integrating music and video players from Bandcamp, Spotify, YouTube and Soundcloud, so bands can easily create their profiles – which serve as mini-websites – in about 90 seconds.

Bands choose from genres like lo-fi, hip hop, glam or bedroom, plus 50 more. “Artist community” users include DIY venues, small labels, zines, videographers and studios, among others. 

What early members are saying:

“Indie Town will be transformative in helping bands alleviate some of the headaches of booking. It’s something we’ve needed for a long time and I’m stoked about what it will mean for touring musicians!” – Athens, Ga. songwriter/musician Annie Leeth

“Independent bands make our world more beautiful and weird, so we shouldn’t be forced to use artless, celebrity-obsessed platforms to connect with other artists. Indie Town is built for DIY artists, by DIY artists.” – Porto, Portugal songwriter/singer Vasco Batista (Big Summer)

Indie Town is available on the App Store, Android Store, and web. Interested artists can request an invite. 

 

 

Upcoming new book release: ‘The Wandering Pianist’ by Congyu Wang

‘The Wandering Pianist’ will be released December 27, 2023. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Memoirs and biographies can be so inspiring to read because they remind us that achieving a dream takes time, dedication, patience, and most of all, hard work. Indeed, nothing in this world comes easy but it does come with an immense feeling of satisfaction. If you are a music lover and enjoy biographies of artists, today’s upcoming new book release might interest you. “The Wandering Pianist” is the inspiring biography by Congyu Wang about living up to his name, though far from the aspirations his parents had for him. It is a story of resilience, faith, and unbridled passion and ambition.

Congyu Wang is an internationally renowned soloist who has garnered acclaim as a recitalist, accompanist, and chamber musician. Born in Singapore, he started playing the piano at the age of 3 under the tutelage of Sylvia Ng. He was selected for a scholarship that enabled him to attend the prestigious École Normale de Musique de Paris, where he studied with renowned French pianists Jean-Marc Luisada and Odile Cartelin-Delangle. His new book “The Wandering Pianist” is a heartfelt reminder that no dream is too big, and no obstacle is insurmountable if one’s passion is unyielding. This book will leave you inspired and deeply moved, proving that the pursuit of dreams is worth every sacrifice, every tear, and every note played. It will be released December 27, 2023 through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other book sellers. (Congyu Wang, 2023)

“The Wandering Pianist” – He defied his family’s expectations and society’s norms. From the very beginning, Congyu Wang was a true underdog, not a musical prodigy, and even once dismissed the piano as being “for girls.” However, one teacher, one movie, and a new status in his young life will drive him to wanting to become a pianist.

Despite the relentless pressure to conform to traditional education and career paths, Congyu’s heart was set on pursuing this dream. Forced to escape the pressure cooker that he was living in, he embarked on a courageous quest that led him to studying at the prestigious École Normale de Musique de Paris on a scholarship at only sixteen years old. His journey wasn’t a fairy tale in Paris, though; it was daunting and sometimes heart-wrenching.

From being homeless and hungry on the cold streets of Paris to navigating the challenges of pursuing his musical ambitions, Congyu’s story is one of resilience, faith, and an unshakable passion for the piano. His encounters with piano masters who he looks up to are set against the backdrop of adversity, heartache, and rejection.

Through the highs and lows, Congyu’s journey is a testament to the power of hard work, passion, luck, and dedication in bringing talent to life. From the depths of despair to finding God’s grace, he emerges not only as a concert pianist but also as a symbol of hope, determination, and the pursuit of dreams against all odds.

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Congyu Wang. Courtesy photo, used with permission.
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