San Antonio Museum of Art

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.

DOCENT RECRUITMENT 📢 Come Curious, Leave Inspired! Embark on a journey of discovery as a docent at SAMA. Share your love for learning with visitors of all backgrounds—no formal art or history experience required! Lead tours, spark conversations, and inspire appreciation for the arts. Seeking both English and bilingual Spanish speakers. Applications closing soon! Apply online by July 31. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gt9z69Q2

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

Thank you, Ruben C. Cordoba, for the thorough review of “Ángel Rodríguez-Díaz’s: The Goddess Triptych Reunited” for Glasstire. The exhibition is on view through January 26, 2025. https://lnkd.in/grEA_7wW

This Juneteenth, we honor and commemorate the emancipation of enslaved Black Americans. Although the Emancipation Proclamation was issued in 1863, it was not enforced in Confederate-controlled territory until June 19, 1865 at the end of the American Civil War. The holiday’s name is a combination of the words “June” and “nineteenth.” Today the Museum is celebrating the work of Black American artist Edward Mitchell Bannister. In “After the Bath,” Bannister expertly depicts a pastoral scene in the Barbizon style: a group of geese leave their bath and walk into a barn, observed by a man and woman. Bannister’s work was driven by the desire to demonstrate Black excellence in painting, which some critics alleged was impossible. He was successful: in 1876, he became the first Black artist to receive a national award. Bannister’s skill is a testament to the importance of celebrating the legacy of Black arts and culture today. __ Edward Mitchell Bannister, American, 1828–1901, “After the Bath,” ca. 1891, Oil on canvas, 36 x 49 in. (91.4 x 124.5 cm), San Antonio Museum of Art, Gift of Harmon and Harriet Kelley, 94.61.