Arts Alive San Antonio

The biggie this weekend is the Luminaria Contemporary Arts Festival, which will once again light up the November darkness with light displays, music, dance, poetry, theater and art installations. The fest will officially open at 5:30 p.m. Saturday and continue all the way to midnight.

It is a bit unclear how many artists will be participating, as numbers cited range from 50 to 200, participants, mostly from San Antonio and other parts of Texas. The press release lists 43 acts/displays but that includes groups that operate under a single name. Actor Jesse Borregois the 2021 festival’s Honorary Curatorial Committee Chair, who shared curatorial duties with Keli Rosa Cabunoc Romero, Adriana M. Garcia, Jeremy Kingg and Justin A. Rodriguez.

The largest group of artists are in the Performance Art/Music category, including Alyson Alonzo, Ila Minori, Mariachi Las Altenas, Patricia Vonne, Paula Cortez, Pop Pistol and URBAN-15. Also included in this category are Ballet Folklorico Sol de San Antonio, Yanaguana River Singers, Bombasta, Jeremy Kingg and the famous Los Texmaniacs with the great Flaco Jimenez. Lots of power there!

Only two artists – DeAnna Brown and Marisela Barrera – are listed under “Theater” and only one poet’s voice will be heard, that of Eddie Vega. You’ll also see art installations by dadaLab, David D. Pena, Gabi Magaly, Gabriel Garcia, Jillian Sortore & Carlos Perez, Jonathan Lenhardt, Jonathan Sims, Nain Leon, Justin Parr & Adam Smolensky, and Of the Serpent. Yes, that last one is written correctly. You might have heard of them already in the news as the group’s installation/sculpture was stolen, with the thief driving off with the disassembled sculpture. All is well that ends well, as the saying goes, as the pieces have been recovered and the four Serpent artists were reported working on reassembling their work. And at the art gallery you’ll see a tribute to the late artist Adan Hernandez and the paintings he created for the movie “Blood In Blood Out.”

Additional categories include Film and Music/Sound/Video Projection, each with five artists/groups listed in each. And for the first time this year, a fashion house, Casa De Ojos, will present its designs.
(5:30 p.m. to midnight; Saturday, Nov. 13; Hemisfair Park, 434 S. Alamo St.; free; www.luminariasa.org)
You can read more about Luminaria in our article from Oct. 13, on this site. 

                .

A very different festival,the Yanaguana Indian Arts Festival will be taking place at the Briscoe Western Art Museum, also on Saturday but during daytime.  As the name suggests, the event marks Native American Heritage Month by celebrating the culture and artistic traditions of the tribes that helped shape San Antonio and the American West. The free, family-oriented fest includes storytelling, artist demonstrations, pottery, weaving and carving, in addition to Indian-inspired food. Workshops and lectures about Native American culture will also be part of the day. To begin with, there will be a blessing, followed by a ceremonial drum circle that everyone can join. As most San Antonians probably know, “Yanaguana” was the Payaya Indians’ name for the San Antonio River.

“Native Americans are a key component of the American West and one of the pillars of Western Art,” said the museum’s president and CEO, Michael Duchemin in a statement. “The Yanaguana Indian Arts Festival offers the opportunity to see, interact and celebrate with Native American artists and performers.”

Some highlights: Chickasaw Storytelling with Amy Bluemel; Pow Wow Dance and Drumming Performance; and Tim Blueflint Contemporary Native Flute Performances at 2 and 4:15 p.m.

Festival visitors can also visit the Briscoe’s permanent collection of Western Art and artifacts, including the current special exhibit, “Vaqueros de la Cruz del Diablo.” (Nov. 13, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.; 210 W.Market St., free; www.briscoemuseum.org)

At Artpace, they are ready to show the works by their Fall 2021 International Artists in Residence: Dan Herschlein (New York), Shana Hoehn (Texas)and Naufus Ramirez-Figueroa (Guatamala), all of which “explore dualities.” The public opening is scheduled for Nov. 18, 6-9 p.m., with an Artist Talk at 7 p.m. The three artists were chosen by guest curator Natalie Bell, who is Curator at the MIT List Visual Arts Center. All three projects sound interesting from the description in the press release. If you go, you’ll also have an opportunity to see another interesting exhibit, “Slowed and Throwed,” that will close Nov. 21. This one, features visual art inspired by the musical “chopped and screwed” approach perfected by the late DJ Screw from Houston.  (Artpace 445 N. Main, 78205; free; www.artpace.org)

San Antonio artist Douglas Galloway is presenting his own work at his studio at 103 Lone Star Blvd. in Southtown. His series “Submerged” is a collection of 50 new works that reflect on Hurricane Katrina’s devastating flooding, but, on a deeper level, “explore the decisions and struggles we all face when going through dark times in our lives.” (Opens Sat. Nov. 13, 6-10 p.m.; 103 Lone Star Blvd.; www.douglasgallowaystudio.com)

There’s always plenty of music around and across San Antonio, too much in fact to mention everything. So, what you see here are some selections. But here’s one that shouldn’t be missed: a new orchestral suite “Black Neon Rose” by local composer Nathan Felix, composed for four harpsichords, strings and choir. Just to remind you, a harpsichord is a large, furniture-size instrument, the precursor of the piano. The four that will be used for this concert hosted by the San Antonio Museum of Art, have been built by San Antonio master Gerald Self. The concert was originally scheduled for early September but was postponed. (7 p.m. Nov. 12, SAMA’s Great Hall; 200 W. Jones Ave.; tickets $10-$15; www.samuseum.org)

Tribute bands are popular and one that recreates the Beatles’ repertoire is bound to be a hit. The Fab Four – The Ultimate Tribute will be at the Tobin Center Nov. 12. Get ready for “Yesterday,” “Hey Jude,” and, you know, all the rest. (Nov. 12, 8 p.m.; tickets $34.50 – $62.50; tickets@tobincenter.org or call 210-223-8624)

America 50^th Anniversary will finally be seen and heard from the Tobin stage Nov. 14, after three previous postponements. Despite its name, the guys who formed this rock band met in London in the late 1960s, and the rest, as they say, is history. Most Americans probably know their most famous song “A Horse With No Name.” (Nov. 14, 7:30 p.m.; This is not a tribute band; it’s the real thing; for tickets see above.)

And here’s a concert that guitar lovers will not want to miss: Tommy Emmanuel will perform his guitar magic at the Charline McCombs Empire Theater Saturday night. (Nov. 13, 8 p.m., 226 N. St. Mary’s St.; tickets $32.50-$59.50 210-226-3333; www.majesticempire.com)

Ray Wylie Hubbard whohas been an important figure in country/Americana music for decades, is celebrating his 75^th birthday with an appearance at the legendary Gruene Hall, Friday (Nov. 12, 8 p.m.; $20; Green Hall, 1281 Gruene Rd., New Braunfels; 830-606-1281, www.gruenehall.com)

And Jimmie Vaughan, the brother of Stevie Ray Vaughan will show his blues guitar chops at Sam’s Burger Joint (Nov. 14, 8 p.m.; $35; 330 E. Grayson St.; 210-223-2830; www.samsburgerjoint.com)

The WeFlamenco Festival is still going on, with Night in Old San Antonio Dinner & Show at the Spanish Governor Palace (Nov. 12, 7 p.m); Perserverancia Flamenca Performance by the Raices de Arte Espanol Studio INov. 13 at 2 p.m.), and a guitar jam and brunch at the Carmens de la Calle Café (Nov. 14, 12:30 p.m.); www.facebook.com/weflamencofest.

Another dance event will be presented by Alamo City Performing Arts, at the Majestic Theater Sunday, featuring the Alamo City Dance Company and the Alamo City Symphony Viva. The performers are young people still learning their craft, but they are led by experienced professionals. The program to be presented, “Spanish Sketches,” is choreographed by Susan Trevino, a former dance program leader at the University of the Incarnate World. Guitarist, Johnny Pena will join the orchestra for Rodrigo’s nostalgic “Concierto de Aranjuez.”  The afternoon performance will end with Rimsky-Korsakov’s famous “Capricio Espanol.” (Nov. 14, 3 p.m.; Majestic Theater, 224 E. Houston; tickets $30-$35; www.majesticempire.com)

Austin Bat Cave and Gemini Ink, San Antonio’s Writing Arts Center, are joining forces for a storytelling event at the Carpenter Hotel in Austin, that will feature program director Florinda Flores-Brown  and San Antonio poet Eddie Vega along with Austin writers Adam Soto and Leticia Urieta. All four will tell and share stories. No more was included in the announcement. Proceeds support Austin Bat Cave’s free creative writing programs for young people. (Nov. 18, 7 p.m.; Carpenter Hotel, Austin; tickets at https://bit.ly/3qqn2nJ; for more info contact Gemini Ink at info@geminiink.org)