Arts Alive San Antonio

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor

Luminaria, the nighttime, outdoor, contemporary arts festival is returning to the Hemisfair Park this fall, live and with new energy, ready to razzle-dazzle San Antonians with lights, dance, music, visual installations, poetry, theater and more. Some 45 Texas artists and groups, representing about 150 individual artists have signed up to participate.

“Through the pandemic, the arts were there for us. The arts continue to help us heal and it is my hope and the hope of all artists involved in this year’s Luminaria festival, that we come together as a community to celebrate life and experience joy and wonder that we’ve come to expect from this event,” said Luminaria’s executive director Yadhira Lozano in the press release.

As in previous years. before the pandemic changed everything, all art forms are represented, from visual arts, film and digital arts, to music, dance, theater and poetry.

Lozano explained that the decision was made to stick to Texas artists this time due to difficulties associated with national and international travel. In fact, most participating artists are from San Antonio, but some are from Austin and Dallas, and one is actually from New York but has long-standing ties to San Antonio. Submissions were judged by a five-member curatorial committee chaired by actor & visual artist Jesse Borrego. The other four judges are filmmaker Justin Rodriguez, R&B artist Jeremy Kingg, dancer Keli Rosa Cabunoc Romero, and visual artist/muralist Ariana M. Garcia. Four of the judges are also recipients of the Luminaria Artist Grants awarded earlier this year. 

Asked to mention some highlights of the multifaceted fest, Lozano immediately cited Flaco Jimenez, the conjunto master who “took conjunto into the mainstream.”

“If I have a stage, I am going to put him on that stage,” she said with a happy laugh. In his long career, Jimenez won six Grammy Awards, a Billboard Latin Music Lifetime Achievement Award, and a number of other music awards. He’s an iconic figure in Tejano-conjunto music.

Another artist she mentioned is the San Antonio barber known as Rob the Original, who has a huge online following thanks to his creative hair art and his ability to use all sorts of odd materials to create images. He can literally create a valid portrait on the back of a person’s head by skillfully and selectively shaving the hair. He owns a barber shop at 7708 Marbach Rd.

The other two highlights Lozano included in her selection were Austin-based singer/songwriter Patricia Vonne, a “pop-flamenco” artist, dubbed “Austin’s Renaissance Woman” by the New York Times; and a special tribute to Adan Hernandez who passed away in February. Hernandez was the painter behind the paintings featured in the popular 1993 crime movie, “Blood In, Blood Out.” Some of those paintings are being lent to Luminaria by the Hernandez family for this year’s festival. “They were never shown before,” noted Lozano.

Overall, art installations and music performers seem to be represented in bigger numbers than other artists. In addition to Jimenez and Los Texmaniacs, the Performance Art/Music category also includes Pop Pistol, URBAN-15, Ballet Folklorico Sol de San Antonio, Alyson Alonzo, Mariachi Las Altenas, Paula Cortez, Jeremy Kingg, Ila Minori, and others. Artists listed in the Art Installations category are Gabi Magaly, Gabriel Garcia, David D. Pena, Jillian Sortore & Carlos Perez, Jonathan Sims, dadaLab, and others, including Rob the Original.

Only one name is listed in the Poetry category – Eddie Vega, though the poetry event is also described elsewhere as “a poetry showcase led by Eddie Vega.” And under Theater, there are two names: DeAnna Brown and Marisela Barrera, both respected San Antonio writers and performance artists. Film  is represented by five artists, and this year fashion is part of the fest, too,  Casa De Ojos.

“I am so excited, the energy is so great this year,” said Lozano. “Everyone is eager to show all the works they have been working on during the past year-and-a half. And the entire community is so supportive. Here in San Antonio everyone mixes with everyone else.”