January | June 2022
I M P R ES S I O N S A McNAY MAGAZINE
HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM YOUR FRIENDS AT THE McNAY! On November 7, the Museum’s Board of Trustees and staff, along with our donors, community leaders, and McNay champions, celebrated the completion of the first phase of a transformational landscape master plan. On a picture-perfect fall afternoon, we reached a milestone for our now25-acre campus, and the timing could not have been better. According to new research on cultural institutions conducted during the pandemic, outdoors has become the new indoors in many ways, and museums with greater connectivity to nature can provide visitors with what they want more of in their lives right now: fun, emotional support, and a space to connect with others. Inspired by the great vision of our founder, Marion Koogler McNay, who saw beauty in art, architecture, and nature, the reimagined McNay campus now starts with an outdoor art park and continues with one of the finest indoor art museum experiences anywhere. This year, the McNay will continue to bring the healing power of art and nature to our entire community through an extraordinary lineup of spring and summer exhibitions. We kick off 2022 with a celebration of the work of Georgia O’Keeffe, an artist who found inspiration in the natural beauty of the plains of Texas, New York’s Lake George, the Gaspé region of Canada, and the fauna and flora of Northern New Mexico. Georgia O’Keeffe and American Modernism brings together major paintings and works on paper from public and private collections across the US by O’Keeffe and her contemporaries. Art and nature also inspired the art of established and emerging artists with strong ties to San Antonio. And in March, the McNay leans further into its commitment to community rootedness with Donald Moffett I Nature Cult I The McNay, a long-overdue celebration of a hometown hero. We close out spring and usher in summer with a group of community-driven exhibitions: The Tobin Collection of Theatre Arts exhibition, The Great Stage of Texas; Drawn in San Antonio—Today; and the continuation of the McNay series, Artists Looking at Art, featuring the art of McNay Museum Educator, Family Experiences, Jenelle Esparza, who, following her 2018 Artpace International Artist Residency, has created a permanent stoneware installation for San Antonio’s Metropolitan Methodist Hospital. And we plunge deeper into summer with Picasso and Braque: Radicals, the art of the pioneers of Cubism, Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, who over a century ago found inspiration for their artistic revolution in the natural beauty of the Mediterranean villages of Horta de Ebro and L’Estaque. We have so much to look forward to this year at the McNay. The completion of the first phase of our landscape transformation helped us all envision an even brighter future for the Museum defined by greater access to beauty, greater equity and inclusion throughout, and a greater focus on reflecting our community in everything we do. Thank you for your continued love and support of the McNay. Because of you, with every year we move one step closer to becoming San Antonio’s place of belonging.
McNay Director and CEO, Richard Aste, and McNay Board President, Don Frost, present remarks at the Phase I landscape master plan completion celebration.
Yours with boundless gratitude,
Richard Aste Director and CEO
MISSION
The McNay Art Museum engages a diverse community in the discovery and enjoyment of the visual arts.
VISION
The McNay will be San Antonio’s place of belonging, where the Museum’s expanding community is reflected in transformational art experiences.
CORE VALUES Integrity, Innovation, Excellence, Equity
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BOARD OF TRUSTEES As of 6.3.21
Don Frost President Amy E. Stieren Vice President Carolyn Jeffers Paterson Secretary
LANDSCAPE MASTER PLAN CELEBRATION
Brooks Englehardt Treasurer J. Bruce Bugg Jr. Darryl Byrd Caroline Korbell Carrington Graciela Cigarroa John W. Feik Walton Vandiver Gregory Rick Liberto J. David Oppenheimer Corinna Holt Richter Harriett Romo, PhD Bruce A. Smith Lucille Oppenheimer Travis Alice B. Viroslav, MD
EMERITUS TRUSTEES Curt Anastasio Laura Bertetti Baucum Steve Blank Toby Calvert Francisco G. Cigarroa, MD Barbara Seale Condos Betty Murray Halff† Marie M. Halff Sarah E. Harte Joan Buzzini Hurd Harmon W. Kelley, MD John C. Kerr Jane Stieren Lacy Peggy Pitman Mays† Bill McCartney Connie McCombs McNab Barbie O’Connor Allan G. Paterson Jr. Ethel Thomson Runion Kirk Saffell George F. Schroeder Thomas R. Semmes Alice C. Simkins Joe Westheimer
HOURS Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday
Noon–5 PM Closed Closed 10 AM–6 PM 10 AM–9 PM 10 AM–6 PM 10 AM–5 PM
Closed New Year’s Day, July 4, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. During Daylight Saving Time, grounds are open 7 a.m.–7 p.m. During Standard Time, grounds are open 7 a.m–6 p.m.
ADMISSION McNay Members Children 12 and under Teens 19 and under Adults Students with I.D. Seniors (65+)
FREE FREE $10 $20 $15 $15
FREE admission for MILITARY, VETERANS, AND THEIR FAMILIES generously provided by USAA Foundation.
Richard Aste, Don Frost, and landscape master plan Beautification Fund Chair and McNay Board Vice President Amy Stieren, cut the ceremonial ribbon on November 7, 2021.
On November 7, we celebrated the completion of Phase I of the McNay’s multi-phase landscape master plan. This first chapter enhances the Museum’s outdoor experience with new sculpture, reimagined fencing, sustainable landscaping, and increased accessibility.
Entry to Main Collection Galleries is FREE on H-E-B Thursday Nights from 4–9 p.m., and every first Sunday of the month courtesy of Dickson-Allen Foundation.
Recipients of SNAP, WIC, and MAP receive FREE admission through Museums for All, a cooperative which encourages families of all backgrounds to visit museums. Simply present an EBT card and a photo ID.
A ceremonial ribbon cutting kicked off the return of Free Family Day, where 1,083 visitors were welcomed to our newly improved grounds. Outdoor art activities, lawn games, and more activated the campus and brought our mission to life.
COVER: Georgia O’Keeffe, Summer Days, 1936. Oil on canvas. Collection of Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; gift of Calvin Klein 94.171. © Georgia O’Keeffe Museum / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
City of San Antonio District 4 Councilwoman Dr. Adriana Rocha Garcia, Ph.D., gave heartwarming remarks during the ceremony.
HONORARY TRUSTEE
McNay Art Museum 6000 North New Braunfels San Antonio, Texas 78209 210.824.5368 mcnayart.org
Mrs. Nancy B. Negley
Free Family Day welcomed 1,083 visitors from across San Antonio.
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GEORGIA O’KEEFFE AND AMERICAN MODERNISM January 21–May 8, 2022 Frost Galleries and Lawson Print Gallery The beginning of the 20th century was a period of great change for America, demonstrated in the artistic movement known as American Modernism. American artists were inspired by the diversity of immigrant cultures, and in many cases, their own experiences as first-generation American citizens. Social norms and boundaries were challenged, and conventions on class, gender, religion, and race were increasingly blurred and redefined. American Modernists found unity in the disarray, and the diversity of the work they produced reflected the chaotic, rapidly evolving period in history. Georgia O’Keeffe is known as the “mother of American Modernism,” figuring prominently in the movement from the late 1910s onward. The synthesis of abstraction and representation in her work is a prime example of the movement, as well as the application of these disparate styles to the ordinary or conventional subject matter like still life, landscapes, and architecture. Like contemporaries Arthur Dove, Charles Sheeler, and Helen Torr, O’Keeffe blurred the natural and man-made, rendering landscapes, flowers, animal skulls, and rocks with the same precision as her images of houses, barns, and skyscrapers—at times reducing subject matter to fundamental shapes and lines, or focusing on individual elements with a wash of vibrant color. Georgia O’Keeffe and American Modernism is organized with a focus on a wider, more inclusive view of the development of American Modernism, combining key loans from the Whitney Museum of American Art and additional sister institutions with works from the McNay’s renowned collection. O’Keeffe is the thread that runs through the exhibition, her work evoking the spirit of American Modernism in its diverse subject matter and unique style. Georgia O’Keeffe and American Modernism is organized for the McNay Art Museum by Lyle W. Williams, Curator of Prints and Drawings, Curator of Modern Art; and Liz Paris, Collections Manager; with René Paul Barilleaux, Head of Curatorial Affairs. Major funding provided by Elizabeth Huth Coates Foundation of 1992 and the McCombs Foundation. Additional support provided by Frost Bank, Joanie and JR Hurd, Alice Simkins, and The Tobin Endowment.
Georgia O’Keeffe, Leaf Motif, No. 2, 1924. Oil on canvas. Collection of the McNay Art Museum, Mary and Sylvan Lang Collection, 1975.45 © Georgia O’Keeffe Museum/ Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
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Georgia O’Keeffe, Evening Star No. V, 1917. Watercolor on paper. Collection of the McNay Art Museum, Bequest of Helen Miller Jones, 1989.36. © Georgia O’Keeffe Museum/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Virtual Talk: Georgia and Ida The O’Keeffe Sisters Tuesday, February 8 | 6 PM
Overshadowed by her older and more famous sister, Ida O’Keeffe was also a gifted American Modernist artist. Sue Canterbury discusses the dynamic life of Ida O’Keeffe and recently rediscovered artworks. Canterbury is the Pauline Gill Sullivan Curator of American Art at the Dallas Museum of Art, and curator of the 2018 exhibition Ida O’Keeffe: Escaping Georgia’s Shadow. Register at mcnayart.org/events. Arshile Gorky (American, 1904–1948) Composition with Vegetables, ca.1928. Oil on canvas. Collection of the Blanton Museum of Art, The University of Texas at Austin, Gift of Albert Erskine to the Mari and James A. Michener Collection G1974.6. © 2021 The Arshile Gorky Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
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"THE WORLD TURNS. DAY DEEPENS TO NIGHT. PEOPLE MULTIPLY. FLORA AND FAUNA SURRENDER LAND AND A PLACE IN THE SUN. THE ARTIST, THE SCIENTIST, AND ALL PERSONS OF GOODWILL ARE CALLED ON TO ACT AS PROTAGONIST AND PROTECTOR OF THE NATURAL WORLD. THIS IS NATURE CULT." -DONALD MOFFETT Opening March 17, the McNay presents a ground-breaking exhibition centered around the artistic and curatorial vision of Donald Moffett. Working closely together over the past year, Moffett and McNay Head of Curatorial Affairs, René Paul Barilleaux, conceived an interwoven presentation of the artist’s paintings, artworks from the McNay’s modern and contemporary collection, and material drawn from the artist’s personal collection. Donald Moffett / Nature Cult / The McNay is the artist’s first museum presentation in his native San Antonio. Moffett’s exhibition begins in the AT&T Lobby, welcoming visitors into the Museum, initiating an immediate experience with the artist’s work. His painting is incorporated onto an expansive wall watercolor, floating over an image enlarged from a McNay collection object. As their work together progresses, Barilleaux took a moment to ask Moffett a few questions about his relationship to the McNay and plans for this project. RPB: Donald, this exhibition is your first museum project in your hometown. How does it feel to come full circle, exhibiting your paintings in a museum that influenced you so greatly? DM: I often told my gallerist in New York, Marianne Boesky, “I don’t care about showing in Berlin. I don’t care about Zurich. I don’t care about Chicago or St. Petersburg. I just care about the McNay in San Antonio.” And look at us now! Every once in a while, you get exactly what you want. RPB: Can you point to specific works in the McNay collection that had significant impact on you? DM: The McNay’s exquisite Seurat drawing is the work I stood before when I was young and had the thought, “Maybe I could become an artist.” And I’m not making that up. Donald Moffett | Nature Cult | The McNay is organized for the McNay Art Museum by René Paul Barilleaux, Head of Curatorial Affairs, with Donald Moffett. Lead funding most generously provided by Ewing Hassel Endowment. Major funding is provided by Stephanie & Tim Ingrassia and The Flora Crichton Visiting Artist Fund. Additional funding provided by Marianne Boesky Gallery, Anthony Meier Fine Arts, Lora Reynolds Gallery, and Chuck & Anne Parrish.
Donald Moffett photographing shorebirds off the banks of Staten Island, New York. Photograph by Gayle Brown.
RPB: The exhibition includes three components—your artwork, selections from the McNay’s collection, and things that you have collected personally. Have you worked in this way before, merging your paintings and sculptural objects with those of other artists, and with material from your home? DM: NEVER! The challenge is daunting, thrilling, and risky. RPB: Your art addresses nature, the environment, and the challenges posed every day as we move through the world as humans. Have you always had an interest in these topics, or has that developed in time or more recently? DM: Right down the street from here, I took degrees from Trinity in art and biology (focusing on ecology) in the 70s. Art and Science. Capital A, capital S. These twin disciplines have framed my world and all that I make of it.
Conversation: Minding the Gap: Art and Ecology Collide Thursday, April 21 | 6 PM
Seurat drawing in the McNay Collection that prompted Moffett to consider becoming an artist. Georges Seurat, Silhouette de Femme, ca. 1882-84. Conté crayon on paper. Bequest of Marion Koogler McNay, 1950.137.
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An artist and an ecologist walk into a museum. Witness the collision as artist Donald Moffett converses with scientist and bird expert Jennifer Smith, PhD. Moffett and Smith nurture common ground between visual art and environmental science, sharing perspectives about overlapping topics of birds, South Texas, and migration. Register at mcnayart.org/events.
Donald Moffett, Lot 020619 (nature cult, fertile blue), 2019. Pigmented epoxy resin and acrylic on wood panel support and steel. Courtesy of the artist and Marianne Boesky Gallery, New York and Aspen. © Donald Moffett
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MEET THE McNAY INTERNS We’re excited to welcome three new amazing interns to the McNay’s curatorial and education teams. Each brings a unique dynamic to our growing McNay family.
Philana Li My name is Philana, and I am the Semmes Foundations Intern in Museum Studies this year. I recently received my Master of Arts in Art History from the University of Texas at Austin. My thesis focused on identity and transnationalism within Asian American diaspora and Asian American art exhibitions. My identity inspires my interests as a second-generation American born in California and moving to Texas for graduate school.
Rafael Fernando Gutierrez, Jr. My name is Rafael Fernando Gutierrez Jr., and I am the inaugural Douglass Foundation Intern in Curatorial Studies. I received my MFA in Studio Art (transmedia) from The University of Texas at Austin 2020. Broadly speaking, my research and art practice are viewed through the lens of scaffolding, observing visible and invisible supporting structures (such as language and form). My current research often examines digital context and its effect/ affect on subjective experience. In this way, I am considering the way blackness and brownness influences technology and the production of images on the internet and in real life. These inquiries have informed my interest in printed media, animated GIFs, glitch art, mimetic discourse, mixed reality performance, and augmented reality.
Lulu Castillo My name is Lulu Castillo and I am the Education Douglass Foundation Intern for the fall of 2021. I am an art history undergraduate student at UTSA, and I am mostly interested in community programs and their direct relation to public accessibility of the arts. The most rewarding part about working with education, is to see community engagement and the sincere fascination that can be seen in people’s faces during engaging education programs.
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Q&A WITH CONSERVATION TECHNICIAN, RHYS MUNRO The McNay is pleased to welcome Rhys Munro as the Museum’s first fulltime Conservation Technician, where she helps oversee the care of the Permanent Collection. We sat down with Rhys for an update on how she’s settling in. How would you describe the role of a Conservation Technician? It’s really about the dynamism of protection and stewardship of the myriad of artwork in the Collection. The day-to-day consists of everything from pest and climate control to cleaning outdoor sculpture, creating condition reports, hand-constructing weather covers for sculptures, unpacking artworks, and more. Handling the art is a really enjoyable part, and something I’ve always appreciated from my former role on the McNay installation team. What qualities are most important to this role? You have to be detail-oriented, a multitasker, and a problem solver. You end up using two disparate parts of the brain at once. You can be hyper-focused on the material nuances of an artwork and also need a more holistic view of its environment, storage, and unique care. Steady hands are also really important. Is there a particular project you’re excited about tackling? I just finished making a hail cover for the Tony Tasset Deer, which is a little over 20 feet in length. There are two layers to this cover; I sewed together thick moving blankets for the bottom layer, and attached a heavy water-resistant canvas tarp as the top layer. The next project I’m excited about is constructing a storage solution for Leonardo Drew’s Number 33A, which is a large wall sculpture constructed of found objects made up of 28 components. This will require measuring each piece and fabricating individual boxes out of coroplast and foam to house each component. Check out San Antonio Report’s ‘Where I Work’ series feature on Rhys at sanantonioreport.org.
THE GREAT STAGE OF TEXAS
March 3–August 14, 2022 Tobin Collection of Theatre Arts and Brown Galleries In March 2022 the McNay spotlights The Great Stage of Texas, celebrating stage, set, costume, lighting, and special-effect designers connected to the Lone Star state. Their engaging and profound work not only lives in the hearts and minds of Texans, but also entertains folks in theatres around the world. Montana Blanco is an award-winning costume designer now living in New York City and poised to make his Broadway debut next year. Having worked in the McNay’s curatorial office a decade ago, Montana is McNay family. Scott Blackshire, Curator of The Tobin Collection of Theatre Arts, recently spoke with Montana about his career and the theatre industry. SB: How do you describe what you do as a costume designer to those not in the theatre business? MB: Probably “storytelling” is the easiest way to talk about being a costume designer, a theatre artist. Our creative lives revolve around storytelling and understanding others’ humanity, and navigating empathy and catharsis, while making aesthetic decisions for the stage. SB: You worked as The Tobin Collection of Theatre Arts intern at the McNay for a while. How did that come about? MB: At Brown University I studied Public Humanities, looking at museum programs—asking how are stories told inside museums, and how do we engage the public outside museums? When I took an Intro to Set Design class to help me create exhibitions, I discovered the theatre, which completely unearthed my perception of what path I needed to pursue. After graduation I found the internship, a beautiful combination of where I was and what I now wanted to do.
SB: Did working with The Tobin Collection of Theatre Arts influence you and the creative direction your life took? MB: Yes, absolutely! I knew that this was one of those rare moments in life where you’re aware in real time how special it is. The internship was a way to buttress my education and increase my exposure to the theatre arts. I think Eugene Berman’s artwork has stuck with me in terms of his ability to convey emotion and storytelling. Conversely, I love the Robert Israel drawings, their rectilinear feel. Despite their differences both Berman and Israel helped me discover my own creative process. The Tobin Collection of Theatre Arts gave me freedom to develop my own approach to design. SB: The McNay is excited about your Tobin Distinguished Lecture on March 3, 2022—what will you talk about? MB: I’m excited to share my journey as a theatre artist because my career path and the work I do are unique. And I’ll speak about what it means to be a designer of color, and what it means to design for people of color. All these elements come together in my practice. SB: What’s next for your work, storytelling, and the theatre industry? MB: What I hope is that the industry is heading towards a place of access to storytelling. Theatre artists can move forward and make what happens within the theatre walls progressive, but we also have to consider the public, the people for whom we’re making art. My hope for the future is that these elements synthesize in a way that allows for broader, bigger, more meaningful storytelling. This exhibition is a program of The Tobin Theatre Arts Fund. The Great Stage of Texas was conceived by R. Scott Blackshire, PhD, Curator, The Tobin Collection of Theatre Arts; and organized with Kim Neptune, The Tobin Theatre Arts Fund Assistant Curator, The Tobin Collection of Theatre Arts.
Photograph by Lauren Mueller
Tobin Distinguished Lecture: Montana Levi Blanco Thursday, March 3 | 6 PM
Montana is a costume designer from Albuquerque, New Mexico. Prior to attending Yale School of Drama, Blanco was the Robert L. B. Tobin Curatorial Intern at the McNay. His credits include the production The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World AKA The Negro Book of the Dead (2016), The House that Will not Stand (2018); and A Strange Loop (2019). His designs are also featured in current exhibition The Great Stage of Texas. Register at mcnayart.org/events. This lecture is a program of The Tobin Theatre Arts Fund.
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PICASSO & BRAQUE: RADICALS
May 25–September 4, 2022 Lawson Print Gallery
Cubism is defined as a way of making art that replaced traditional perspectives by challenging the very idea of how we see, and is one of the greatest artistic developments of the twentieth century. Characterized by fractured viewpoints, abstracted forms, and works that defy long-accepted notions of dimensionality, Cubism can be intellectually challenging but also beautiful in how it reflected the dynamism, rhythm, and questioning of norms that marked much of the early 1900s. With masterpieces by the two pioneering rebels of Cubism— Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque—the exhibition will also feature works by other twentieth-century artists who took inspiration from their revolutionary ideas, including John Marin, Fannie Hillsmith, Texas artist Bill Reily, and others. Picasso and Braque: Radicals is organized for the McNay Art Museum by Lyle W. Williams, Curator of Prints and Drawings, Curator of Modern Art. Lead funding is generously provided by the Elizabeth Huth Coates Foundation of 1992.
Pablo Picasso, L’Homme à la Guitare (Man with a Guitar), 1915. Engraving. Collection of the McNay Art Museum, Gift of the Friends of the McNay, 1968.9. © Estate of Pablo Picasso/ Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Fannie Hillsmith, The Chair, 1960. Collage with cut-paper, found objects, and graphite. Collection of the McNay Art Museum, Museum purchase with funds from Alice C. Simkins, 1998.18.
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Georges Braque, Still Life with Pipe, 1930. Oil on canvas. Collection of the McNay Art Museum, Mary and Sylvan Lang Collection, 1975.23. © Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ ADAGP, Paris
LETITIA HUCKABY’S KOINONIA
On view through March 6, 2022 AT&T Lobby
Letitia Huckaby’s Koinonia is on view in the AT&T Lobby through the end of Black History Month. Black History Month reflects on the more than 400 years of Black history in the United States and highlights the accomplishments and vitality of Black Americans. Through her work, Huckaby addresses years of inequity for Black people in the United States. The girls whose silhouettes are depicted in Huckaby’s installation at the McNay recall the killing of young girls in the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama on September 15, 1963. Public response to the bombing, including a telegram from Martin Luther King, Jr. to Alabama Governor George Wallace, galvanized the civil rights movement and contributed to the passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The title of Huckaby’s installation, Koinonia (pronounced koy-NOW-nee-uh), is a Greek word for Christian fellowship or the act of coming together as community, and references both the 16th Street Baptist Church and the coming together of activists and community members following the bombing.
Thanks to the support from a generous, anonymous gift for artwork in memory of celebrated Texas artist, Madeline O’Connor (1931-2002), the McNay acquired Huckaby’s Koinonia for the Museum’s collection. Letitia Huckaby: Koinonia is organized for the McNay Art Museum by René Paul Barilleaux, Head of Curatorial Affairs. This exhibition is a program of The Flora Crichton Visiting Artist Fund.
Photo Session & Writing Workshop That Could Be Me Saturday, January 29 | 11 AM-3 PM
By illuminating figures behind her signature floral patterning, Letitia Huckaby simultaneously reveals their silhouette and masks their identity. In partnership with the artist, workshop participants engage in a short photoshoot and reflection. Participants receive a print and the artist may use images for future artworks. Register at mcnayart.org/events
Photograph by @pencilonpapergallery
DRAWN IN SAN ANTONIO—TODAY
February 2–September 11, 2022 Butt Paperworks Gallery
This exhibition, co-organized by Lyle W. Williams, Curator of Prints and Drawings, Curator of Modern Art, and Rafael F. Gutierrez Jr., our first Douglass Foundation intern, will introduce the McNay audience to a cross-section of drawings and other works on paper by San Antonio artists who are part of a long drawing tradition in our city, and challenge the very definition of what a drawing can be. The exhibition is being organized as a boost in the arm to our artist community after a very long period of pandemic stress, and has developed organically with artists nominating eachother for inclusion. Drawn in San Antonio—Today is organized for the McNay Art Museum by Lyle W. Williams, Curator of Prints and Drawings, Curator of Modern Art; and Rafael Fernando Gutierrez Jr., the inaugural Douglass Foundation Intern in Curatorial Studies. Lead funding is generously provided by the Elizabeth Huth Coates Foundation of 1992.
Soomin Jung Remmler, When you think of me., 2021. Graphite, colored pencil, gouache and fluorescent gouache on paper. Courtesy of the artist.
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SPOTLIGHT CELEBRATES A DECADE OF CREATIVITY
On view through May 8, 2022 Patio Gallery
In celebration of Spotlight’s 10th anniversary, the Education team sat down with 2018 Spotlight participant, Jamie Mayes—a senior at Alamo Heights High School and current McNay Teen Art Guide. Q: Tell us about your Spotlight experience. A: Spotlight was a personal highlight of 8th grade. I was taking an art portfolio class at Alamo Heights Junior School. Inspired by Georgia O’Keeffe, we used recycled wood and we made our own canvases and frames. Each member of our class chose a color and we painted monochromatic shadows of flowers, leaves, and skulls. We focused on O’Keeffe’s attention to detail and vibrant colors. Q: What was it like to see your painting in the gallery at the McNay? A: Spotlight was the first time to ever showcase my art. It was a rewarding experience to see all our art as a collective hanging up on the walls of the beloved McNay. Walking through the gallery, it was fun to see other students’ takes on the project. The community of support from our parents and teachers made me feel proud to be an artist. Q: Why is Spotlight important to students? A: Spotlight gives students the opportunity to share their art that would’ve otherwise been kept at home on a shelf. This exposure early on gives young people confidence in their work and something to look forward to. Spotlight made me feel more connected in the art community, which inspired me to pursue art through high school and be more involved in the McNay. Q: Any advice for students and teachers getting ready for this year’s Spotlight? A: Don’t be afraid to personalize your piece and embrace the task. Spotlight at 10: K–12 Artists Embrace the McNay is on view through May 8, 2022. Major support for Spotlight is provided by the Charles Butt Foundation, Semmes Foundation, Inc., and Texas Commission for the Arts. Additional funding is most generously provided by the Elizabeth Huth Coates Charitable Foundation of 1992.
ARTISTS LOOKING AT ART: JENELLE ESPARZA
February 2—August 7, 2022 Garden Level I
McNay Museum Educator for Family Experiences and accomplished artist, Jenelle Esparza, is featured in the latest Artists Looking at Art (ALA), a series created to salute the vitality of the contemporary art community in the San Antonio area. Head of Curatorial Affairs, René Paul Barilleaux, sat down with Jenelle to learn more about the work on view this season.
RPB: If you have to give one piece of advice to an emerging artist, what would that be? JE: I still consider myself an emerging artist in a lot of ways, but I suppose I would say to a younger artist that your voice matters and to find your community who supports you.
RPB: Jenelle, I know that you are exhibiting new work as part of our Artists Looking at Art series. Can you share some details? JE: Of course. I’m exhibiting a new series of textile pieces depicting imagery and patterns that respond to “hyper-local” histories within the South Texas region. The pieces are abstract representations of earthly and bodily experiences that have been recorded within a landscape. RPB: What do you think makes our artist community so vibrant in San Antonio? JE: I’ve been part of the San Antonio artist community since I moved here in 2008, and I’ve always loved it because of how independent it can be. I noticed there were a lot more artist-run spaces here compared to other Texas cities, and I loved how much support they receive from everyone. I’ve helped my partner, Rigo, run Presa House Gallery for the past five years and it feels great to be able to provide a unique space for artists to experiment and exhibit their work. RPB: How has this new work pushed your artistic practice? JE: This new textile project has allowed me to highlight hidden histories of Mexican American, Tejano, and Indigenous narratives in my home region of South Texas, and has also allowed for more experimentation into weaving techniques. I started weaving for my Artpace residency in 2018 as a conceptual piece for that exhibition, but I really took to the language of weaving and continue to include it in my art practice. 14
Photograph courtesy of the artist.
26th ANNUAL PRINT FAIR Saturday, April 30 | 10 AM–5 PM Sunday, May 1 | Noon–5PM Leeper Auditorium
After going virtual in 2021 to celebrate its 25th anniversary, the McNay Print Fair returns in 2022 as the only event of its kind in the state and region. Our 26th anniversary event will be held in the Leeper Auditorium with more than a dozen dealers showing and selling hundred of works of art, and sharing their vast knowledge of works of art on paper with the community. In addition to a return to an in-person presence, the fair will also include, by popular demand, digital content as well, including interviews with participating dealers. Come and hone your collecting skills, meet and learn from highly respected dealers, and maybe go home with a new treasure.
OUTDOOR BE WELL SERIES TAKES ROOT
STORYTIME FLOW
WEDNESDAYS 6:30–7:30 PM March 16 / April 20 / May 18 / June 15
FRIDAYS 10–11 AM January 14 / February 11 / March 11 / April 8 / May 13
Take an evening breather to strengthen the connection between mind and body through calming techniques. Attend outdoor yoga, a sound bath, or a musical experience in conjunction with breathing exercises. BYOM – bring your own mat. Pay what you wish. Registration recommended at mcnayart.org.
Move and flow through a read-a-loud story time that pairs movement with children’s stories. Designed for pre-school-aged learners, this program includes a short art-look afterwards.
“I didn’t realize how genuinely de-stressing the experience of being outdoors, in the beautiful McNay grounds, and engaged in yoga breathing and practice would be. I left feeling like I had experienced a massage for my mind, body, and spirit.” - Be Well Participant
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ANNUAL PATRON PARTY On October 26, 2021 we brought back the annual Patrons Party event for the first time since the pandemic began, celebrating our Patron Circle members and donors, offering an exclusive preview of the exhibition Wayne Thiebaud 100: Paintings, Prints, and Drawings. Guests enjoyed cocktails, appetizers, and live music on the grounds of the historic mansion and museum. If you are interested in supporting the Museum at the Patron Level or higher, please visit mcnayart.org/patroncircle or call 210.805.1728. Members support the Museum’s mission to engage a diverse community in the discovery and enjoyment of the visual arts.
Anne and Paul Krause with Kari and Brooks Englehardt
Joanie and JR Hurd with LouCelia and Don Frost
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Dr. Ricardo Romo, Dr. Harriett Romo, Lana Shafer Meador, Matt Meador, and Edward Hayes
Michael and Lainey Berkus
Cheech Marin at the McNay Inaugural Luncheon May 2022
Chaired by
Jordana Decamps Mathews
More information to follow.
Thursday, January 20, 2022 6:30 PM-9:30 PM PRESENTED BY Neiman Marcus San Antonio AND
Valero GALA CO-CHAIRS Betty Lou Sheerin Kate Sheerin
DIRECTOR and CEO Richard Aste
The McNay gratefully offers free admission for active military, veterans, and their families thanks to the support of the USAA Foundation. With the support of USAA, the McNay has welcomed over 3,000 military community members at no cost.
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VIEW & VOTE ACQUISITIONS Since the first View & Vote in 2003, the McNay Contemporaries affiliate member group has helped to acquire 26 contemporary works of art for the Museum’s collection, including examples by Sandy Skoglund, Vik Muniz, Whitfield Lovell, Ed Kienholz, and Radcliffe Bailey. At this year’s event, four works of art were selected by two artists with strong ties to the San Antonio region: Alejandro Diaz and Anthony Francis. Anthony Francis is a San Antonio-based photographer whose work focuses on shared experiences, representation, uplifting communities, and challenging established definitions of portraiture.
Francis’ photographs are the result of a collaboration between artist and sitter— Francis explains that his process aims to redistribute the power of the artist and provide the sitter with greater autonomy. Alejandro Diaz, a San Antonio native now based in New York, often incorporates humor to explore themes of consumerism, pop culture, politics, and the commodification of Mexican culture. Beginning with his cardboard sign series from the early 1990s, for which he received international acclaim, Diaz frequently incorporates text in his work.
Anthony Francis, Ma, San Antonio, This and/or That, San Antonio, 2019-20. Inkjet print. Collection of the McNay Art Museum, Museum purchase with funds from the McNay Contemporaries, 2021.35. © Anthony Francis
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CUMULATIVE GIVING, HONORARIUMS AND MEMORIALS Cumulative Gifts, July 1, 2021 – September 30, 2021 $500,000 and Above Bank of America $25,000 and Above El Paso Museum of Art Heart of Neiman Marcus Foundation Fund Howard and Betty Halff Fund The USAA Foundation, Inc. Valero Energy Foundation $10,000 and Above Mr. and Mrs. John C. Brozovich Mr. and Mrs. Charles E. Cheever Jr. Mr. Chris Cheever Mr. and Mrs. John Feik Dr. and Mrs. Robert L. Jones Kerr Family Charitable Foundation Mr. and Mrs. Allan G. Paterson Jr. Texas Commission on the Arts The Tobin Theatre Arts Fund $5,000 and Above Mr. and Mrs. William C. Carrington Mr. and Mrs. Jim Dicke II Mr. and Mrs. Brooks Englehardt Destiny and Sean Maddox Mr. Todd A. Romano Mr. William Scanlan Jr. Trudy and Ed Moore Charitable Fund $2,500 and Above Darrell and Jodi Kirksey Foundation Mr. and Mrs. Michael Humphreys John Newman Family Charitable Fund The Jesse H. and Susan Oppenheimer Foundation $1,000 and Above Clifford N. Alprin Amy Shelton McNutt Charitable Trust Anne Zanikos Art Conservation Dr. Mary Arno Mr. and Mrs. William Baine Mr. and Mrs. Bill Been Boone Household Dr. and Dr. Vivian Bucay Dr. Clare E. Carey Mrs. Gwen R. Cowden Lynn Finesilver Crystal Mr. and Mrs. Robby Felder Susan Toomey Frost and Craig Bunch Jane Welch and Raymond Goldstein GPM Life Insurance Company Mr. and Mrs. Claiborne B. Gregory, Jr. Mrs. Sally Halff Mr. and Mrs. Jay S. Haselwood Dr. and Mrs. Jay H. Heizer Terri and Glenn Huddleston John E. Dempsey Fund Dr. Johnny Clay Johnson Mr. and Mrs. Chris Karcher Ms. Barbara C. Kyse Mr. and Mrs. David Lefton Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey R. McManus McNay Art Museum Diana Morehouse
Mr. and Mrs. Charles R. Myers Dr. James F. Nelson Mr. Guillermo C. Nicolas and Mr. Jim Foster Mr. Tim Seeliger and Mr. Bradley J. Parman Rikli Family Foundation Trust San Antonio Children’s Museum Mr. and Mrs. George Schroeder Mr. and Mrs. Greg Seiler The Arch and Stella Rowan Foundation The Steven Alan Bennett Charitable Fund Mr. and Mrs. James H. Travis Dr. Elly Xenakis Employee Benefits Business Partners AIM Partners in Education Services Alamo Community Colleges Ancira Enterprises, Inc. Catto and Catto LLP City of San Antonio DOCUmation KIPP Texas Northside Independent School District Our Lady of the Lake University Saint Mary’s Hall St. Mary’s University SWBC Texas A&M University - San Antonio TMI Episcopal Trinity University University of the Incarnate Word University of Texas at San Antonio
GIVE THE GIFT OF MEMBERSHIP Give the gift of new experiences and memories that last a lifetime with a McNay membership. All proceeds directly support the McNay’s mission to engage a diverse community in the discovery and enjoyment of the visual arts. Visit mcnayart.org/join for details.
July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2021 HONORARIUMS In Honor of Mr. René Paul Barilleaux The Steven Alan Bennett Charitable Fund In Honor of Mrs. Betty Lou Sheerin and Ms. Kate Sheerin Mr. Guillermo C. Nicolas and Mr. Jim Foster MEMORIALS In Memory of Mr. Robert Burns Mr. Chad Carey and Mrs. Katharine Carey McNay Docent Council Richard and Carolyn Wiggins In Memory of Ms. Sue Storm McNay Docent Council In Memory Mr. W. Lawrence Walker Jr. Lynn Finesilver Crystal In Memory of Mr. William E. Woods McNay Docent Council
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ADD MONET, PICASSO, OR RENOIR TO YOUR GUEST LIST Entertain your guests in style alongside an internationally renowned art collection during your private event. Choose between the sleek, modern Stieren Center for Exhibitions or the historic main collection building to make any wedding reception, rehearsal dinner, corporate cocktail party, or celebration unforgettable. For pricing and availability, please call 210.805.1782 or email rentals@mcnayart.org. To view the McNay’s Special Events brochure, visit mcnayart.org/rentals.