San Antonio Museum of Art

Join Classical Music Institute’s Chamber Connexions on Friday, October 4 at the San Antonio Museum of Art for a concert inspired by the themes in Amalia Mesa-Bains’s “Archaeology of Memory.” This program will showcase exceptional musicians from across the country, performing works by renowned composers such as Gabriela Lena Frank, Juan Pablo Contreras, and Robert Schumann. Your ticket includes entry to the special exhibition "Amalia Mesa-Bains: Archaeology of Memory," light bites, and one complimentary drink. Purchase your tickets today: https://lnkd.in/gaA_JG9J

On view now: “Amalia Mesa-Bains: Archaeology of Memory” “Archaeology of Memory” is the first major retrospective to explore the historically significant work and career of Amalia Mesa-Bains. The exhibition features forty works created by the Chicana artist between 1991 and 2024 in a range of media, including altar-installations, codices, and prints, and featuring a new large-scale sculpture on view for the first time in SAMA's presentation. On view through January 12, 2025. Purchase your tickets: https://lnkd.in/gk6X4e2t _ Installation view of Amalia Mesa-Bains, ‘The Virgin’s Garden’ from ‘Venus Envy Chapter II: The Harem and Other Enclosures,’ 1994/2022. Mirrors, moss, hand-painted armoire, handmade book with painted images, clothing, found objects, and capes by Christiane Parker.

Mark your calendar! In Dialogue: Art and Environment with James Prosek and Kelly Lyons Friday, September 27 | 6:00–7:00 p.m. Join us for a discussion of the intersection between art and ecology with artist James Prosek and Dr. Kelly Lyons, Professor of Biology at Trinity University. In partnership with The Nature Conservancy in Texas, and in celebration of TNC’s milestone of one million acres protected in Texas, SAMA will host Prosek and Lyons for a thought-provoking conversation moderated by Chet Garner, creator and host of the celebrated Texas travel program "The Daytripper." Register: https://lnkd.in/gu6DVxK7 James Prosek, "Downy Paintbrush, Texas Bluebonnet, and Black Spine Prickly Pear, Ozona and Marfa, Texas (Specific Objects No. 2)," March 2023, Graphite, watercolor, and gouache on paper,11 3⁄4 × 23 in. Image courtesy of the artist © James Prosek

Upcoming Artist Talk 💬 In Dialogue: Archaeology of Memory with Amalia Mesa-Bains and Tomás Ybarra-Frausto 🗓️ Friday, September 20 | 6:00–7:00 p.m. Artist Amalia Mesa-Bains, PhD, and independent scholar of Latina/o arts and culture Tomás Ybarra-Frausto, PhD, will explore the themes in Mesa-Bains’ work and place it within the broader context of contemporary and Chicano art movements. Register: https://lnkd.in/gXGSRupT

Today is #NationalDogDay! 🐕 Next time you visit the Museum, try to spot these dogs throughout the galleries. — “Bowl,” Puente del Arzobispo, Spain, Europe, 18th century, Earthenware with tin glaze; copper, cobalt, and iron in-glaze decoration, height: 5 1/2 in. (14 cm), diameter: 9 1/2 in. (24.1 cm), San Antonio Museum of Art, Gift of Dr. Ric Bradford, Houston, Texas, 2012.34. “Dog,” Chinese, Han Dynasty, 206 B.C. – 220 A.D., Earthenware with pigments, height: 20 7/8 in. (53 cm), width: 18 1/2 in. (47 cm), San Antonio Museum of Art, Gift of Faye Langley Cowden, 92.14.8. “Jicara Bowl,” Mexico, ca. 1960, Lacquered and carved jicara (calabash), San Antonio Museum of Art, The Robert K. Winn Collection, 85.1.683. “Seated Dog,” Veracruz, Pre-Columbian, ca. A.D. 550-950, Earthenware with black tar pitch, h. 10 7/8 in. (27.6 cm); l. 12 in. (30.5 cm), San Antonio Museum of Art, The D. Joseph Judge, M.D. Collection donated by the Judge Family, 2001.38.4. Asher Brown Durand, “Haystack Mountain, Vermont” (detail), 1852, American, 1796–1886, Oil on canvas, 30 1/4 × 42 1/4 in. (76.8 × 107.3 cm), San Antonio Museum of Art, given in memory of Mrs. Henry Drought, by exchange, 86.57.2. “Dog Motif Stirrups,” Cochamba, Bolivia, South America, late 19th century, Wood and iron, h. 7 in. (17.8 cm); w. 5 in. (12.7 cm); d. 9 in. (22.9 cm), each, San Antonio Museum of Art, Gift of Peter P. Cecere, 2000.31.7.a-b. “Dog Mask,” Ecuador, South America, ca. 1978, Painted wood, San Antonio Museum of Art, Purchased with funds provided by the Friends of Folk Art and Folk Art Acquisition Funds, 90.44.

This fall, SAMA will present the first retrospective exhibition of the influential Chicana artist and cultural critic Amalia Mesa-Bains, who pioneered the genre of altar-installations. Presenting work created between 1991 and 2024, “Amalia Mesa-Bains: Archaeology of Memory” features over forty works in a wide range of media and celebrates Mesa-Bains’s important contributions to the field of contemporary art.   On view September 20, 2024–January 12, 2025. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gk6X4e2t   — Amalia Mesa-Bains: “Queen of the Waters, Mother of the Land of the Dead: Homenaje a Tonatzin/Guadalupe” (detail), 1992; mixed mediainstallation including fabric drape, six jeweled clocks, mirrorpedestals with grottos, nicho box, found objects, dried flowers, dried pomegranate, potpourri; 120 x 216 x 72 in.; courtesy of the artist and Rena Bransten Gallery, San Francisco Amalia Mesa-Bains: “Queen of the Waters, Mother of the Land of the Dead: Homenaje a Tonantzin/Guadalupe,” 1992. Photo: Daria Lugina.  #sanantoniomuseumofart #sanantoniotx #amaliamesabains #archeologyofmemory

These towering figures appear like richly textured stone monuments rendered with abstracted forms and bold outlines. Standing side-by-side, the figures nearly merge as their gazes and hands meet. Austin-based artist Luis Gutierrez grew up in Mexico City and draws from precolonial Mesoamerican symbolism as well as Chicano culture in his artwork. This work is on view until Sunday, October 20, in Round II of “Lovers & Fighters: Prints by Latino Artists in the SAMA Collection.” — Luis R. Gutierrez, “Untitled,” 1994, American, born Mexico, 1951, Screen print, Gift of Ricardo and Harriet Romo, 2011.1.2.9, © Luis R. Gutiérrez

August is Xicanx Month, a city-wide celebration and commemoration of the Chicano Arts Movement that holds its roots in San Antonio. This work, “Mnesic Myths,” by Xicana artist Alma Lopez, draws inspiration from Aztec imagery. Here, a woman kneels over a sleeping woman, reminiscent of the tragic myth of the lovers Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuatl. Around the two figures are floral and aquatic imagery, butterflies, and a brilliant rainbow, further linking this work to images found in Aztec codices and reinterpreting them within a modern Xicanx context. This work is on view until Sunday, October 20, in Round II of “Lovers & Fighters: Prints by Latino Artists in the SAMA Collection.” _ Alma Lopez, “Mnesic Myths,” 1999, Screen print, 30 x 22 in. (76.2 x 55.9 cm). San Antonio Museum of Art, gift of Ricardo and Harriett Romo, 2012.31.7. © Alma Lopez.

August at SAMA— Learn more about upcoming events and programs: https://lnkd.in/gkb4ByF3

The modern Olympic games, starting today in Paris, were derived from the ancient Greek Olympic games, which were held every four years during a religious festival honoring Zeus. The Greek world was rife with athletic competitions, including four-horse chariot races, such as the one depicted on this drinking cup. Chariot racing was as expensive as it was dangerous. As such, it was largely relegated to upper-class aristocrats who could afford to maintain a team of horses, and sponsoring a winning chariot team was one of the highest accomplishments a man could boast. This vessel presents a stylized image of a chariot race, resplendent with floral motifs and dolphin imagery, and showcases the precarity of the sport, with charioteers leaning over their horses. — “Cup with racing chariots and a Gorgoneion,” Greek, Ca. 520 B.C., Terracotta, black-figure technique, Height: 4 1/8 in. (10.4 cm); Diameter: 10 1/16 in. (25.5 cm); Diameter with handles: 12 3/4 in. (32.4 cm); Diameter of foot: 4 in. (10.2 cm), San Antonio Museum of Art, Gift of Gilbert M. Denman, Jr., 86.134.49.