South Texas art is alive

by Lourdes Czechowicz, Contributor

“Madre Land: South Texas Memory and the Art of Making Home” has opened as the latest exhibition to grace the first-floor gallery at Centro de Artes. The gallery at Historic Market Square finds pride in the narrative of the Latino experience through art, emphasizing the transnational Latino experience throughout South Texas. 

Madre Land is the brainchild of Curator Bonnie Cisneros, a proud Tejana, and centers on the popular Spanish phrase “mi casa es su casa,” or, “my home is your home.” Conceptually, the exhibit aligns with the Centro de Artes Strategic Plan, developed in 2017, to ensure the proper execution of the powerful vision of the center.

Cisneros features 27 artists in her show, with a range from ancestral healing to rasquache, or lower-class, Chicano realism. Particularly striking was Sam Rawls’ “En patio de mi casa,” a sort of optical illusion sculpture that creates movement similar to brushstrokes but with specks of confetti. Whimsical plexiglass mobiles descend from the ceiling as the 3D girls of confetti stay stuck in their fun for viewers to gawk at, creating an invitation into Rawls’ dreamy patio for some nostalgic fun. The piece invokes memories of childhood play with siblings, friends or cousins, a core part of every childhood recreated for spectation. Cisneros has made an incredible composition that proves South Texas artists are not to be overlooked.

Another highlight is Julysa Sosa’s gallery debut piece, “Altar de la Recamara: Mujer, Ollin and Memoria” or “The Altar of the Bedroom: Women, Movement, Memory.” A life-size recreation of a simple bedroom that allows viewers to truly enter Sosa’s world. A wooden bed frame holds a bed with a lovingly embroidered pillow, and a hat hangs off the bed post. Next to the bed is a metal window frame. On the other end of the room is a vanity full of personal items and wall hangings surrounding it, adding to the piece’s lived-in effect. 

Sosa’s piece is a great example of what many of the artists worked hard to do. She emphasized the beauty in the everyday, the importance of understanding the glory of one’s daily life. Cisneros hand-picked very powerful and well-timed pieces to showcase in this Fall/Winter display.

Located in historic downtown Market Square at 101 S. Santa Rosa Ave., this exhibit is open from Oct. 2 to Feb. 22, and is free to the public. The gallery is open Wednesday through Friday from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and weekends from 12-5 p.m. Venture downtown to become immersed in this eclectic collection of Tejano works.