Category Archives: Previous Exhibits

Machistas Y Vanidad

machista2South Texas College’s Starr County Campus Library proudly presents “Machistas Y Vanidad,” an exhibit featuring artwork by Noel Palmenez. The exhibit opens Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014 and will be on view until May 9. A talk with the artist will be held on Feb. 13 at 1 p.m. at the STC Starr County Campus Library (Bldg. F), located at 142 FM 3167 in Rio Grande City. Admission is free and open to the public.

Palmenez’s exhibit titled, “Machistas Y Vanidad” or “Macho and Vanity,” is about one’s exterior, or how we wish for ourselves to be perceived. It also dissects what it means to be macho.

“The Machistas greatest weakness is the belief that they know it all, and the fear to ask a question or admit that they are wrong,” said Palmenez. “It is pride that keeps many men from living a more fulfilled life, and the fear of change. What is left is an ego-driven young man that is more than willing to take what he wants because there is no alternative.”

As for the role of vanity, though often seen as a negative quality, Palmenez chooses to view it as a great freedom and a way for women to express their identity and fearlessness.

“The time honored roles of men and women are beginning to change,” said Palmenez. “Men are gradually releasing the reigns of authority and letting women be a larger part of what happens within the workings of the world. A new voice is a good change, for it is not tied down to tradition, and a woman’s voice is genuine and real.”

“The subject matter of Palmenez’s exhibit is extremely pertinent to this region,” added STC Art Galley Associate Dawn Haughey. “Although the ‘macho’ or ‘machismo’ attitude can appear in all cultures, it seems to be especially ingrained in many Latino households. This type of mind set has a detrimental effect on families, marriages and children. Palmenez’s work speaks of the evolution of this negative tradition into something positive and hopeful. It is a message that needs to be heard.”

Palmenez earned a Master of Science degree from Texas A&M University and a Masters of Fine Arts from The University of Texas Pan-American in painting, drawing and sculpture. He currently teaches at The University of Texas-Brownsville.

STC’s Library Art Gallery exhibits regional, national and international artwork, explores new visions and theories of creativity, and introduces innovative artistic expressions to the South Texas region.

For more information, contact Terri Rosalez at mtrosalez@southtexascollege.edu or 956-488-5822; or Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488 or dhaughey@southtexascollege.edu, or visit http://lag.southtexascollege.edu.

Innocent Rhythm

lag-rythymthumbSouth Texas College’s Pecan Campus Library presents “Innocent Rhythm,” an exhibit featuring paintings by Anthony Rivera. The exhibit opens Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014 with an opening reception from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. The artist will also be demonstrating a live painting session on Thursday, Feb. 13 at 6pm in the painting studio room 115, Art building B. The gallery is located at 3201 W. Pecan Blvd. in McAllen. The exhibit will be on display through May 9. Admission is free and open to the public.

Rivera, 41, is an emerging, self-taught artist who is living with autism. His mother, Diana Rivera, helps prepare him for painting and assists him with monitoring his Facebook page and website.

Rivera paints with his hands while listening to music and his work reflects the music he hears. The result is “beautiful abstract expressions in vibrant colors,” said his mother, Diana.

He loves all genres of music, from Willy Nelson to Vicente Fernandez, BB King to Metallica. Rivera also has quite an extensive rock band t-shirt collection of about 1,000 shirts.

“Anthony Rivera’s exuberance and spirit are seen within his works,” said STC Art Gallery Associate Dawn Haughey. “He creates abstract paintings in a bold color palette that can resemble fireworks, angels or glassy, moonlit water. The amount of work that Rivera creates is also astonishing; he is someone who can inspire us all.”

STC’s Library Art Gallery exhibits regional, national and international artwork, explores new visions and theories of creativity, and introduces innovative artistic expressions to the South Texas region.

For more information, contact Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488 or via email at dhaughey@southtexascollege.edu, or visit http://lag.southtexascollege.edu.

Purpose

lag-correaSouth Texas College’s Mid-Valley Campus Library Art Gallery presents “Purpose,” featuring artwork by Cristina Correa. The exhibit opens Thursday, Feb. 13, 2014, with an artist lecture at 6 p.m. The exhibit will be on view through May 9 at the STC Mid-Valley Campus Library Art Gallery, located at 400 N. Border in Weslaco. Admission is free and open to the public.

Correa earned a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from Texas Women’s University, is the lead art teacher for IDEA Public Schools and has been a member of the Texas Art Education Association supervisory panel for four years. She was awarded the prestigious Congressional Golden Brush award for excellence in art education in 2011 and has been a two-time recipient of the Target Excellence in Education grant. On the weekends she teaches painting at the Tipsy Canvas studios and gives art lessons regularly within the community.

While many people believe that artistry and creativity is a talent only some are born with, Correa is a passionate advocate for the capacity that every person has to develop as an artist. Her work is motivated by creative re-use of seemingly ordinary things and draws inspiration from her family, community, faith, travels, dreams and love of color.

“Correa’s determination and drive can be seen within her work,” said STC Art Gallery Associate Dawn Haughey. “She is an inspiring member of our artist community.”

STC’s Library Art Gallery exhibits regional, national and international artwork, explores new visions and theories of creativity, and introduces innovative artistic expressions to the South Texas region.

For more information, contact Lillian Carrillo at lillianm@southtexascollege.edu or 956-447-1288; or Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488 or at dhaughey@southtexascollege.edu, or visit http://lag.southtexascollege.edu.

Women’s Work

lag-debbiewilsonSouth Texas College’s Pecan Campus Library presents “Women’s Work,” an exhibit featuring etchings by Debbie Little-Wilson. The exhibit opens Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014 with an opening reception from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Talks with the artist will be held the same day at 1 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. at the Pecan Campus Library Rainbow Room, located at 3201 W. Pecan Blvd. in McAllen. The exhibit will be on display through May 9. Admission is free and open to the public.

Little-Wilson learned to create etchings in the traditional and classical method of dry point, aquatint and intaglio. After much experimentation, she now creates etchings made from her drawings and photos that have been altered, using solar plates and lithography. She then adds color and pattern to the etching using chine collé, a technique of cutting and adhering papers during the printing process. After the print has dried, she often hand colors it.

She uses her artwork to showcase the enduring strength of women. Wilson achieves this by depicting cowgirls, suffragettes, and women aviators, as well as other women who exhibit a sense of attitude and humor. Lately she has included women who are the “unsung” heroines of women’s history.

“Women who did the cooking, kept the gardens, washed the clothes, sewed the patches and buttons and other domestic chores,” Little-Wilson said. “These women may not have been center stage and noticed, but they play a crucial part in keeping the world, as we know it, rotating.”

Little-Wilson was born in Rochester, NY and studied art at the University of Texas at Austin. During her studies, she worked under the apprentice Nellie Buel, an award-winning artist and printmaker in Comfort, Texas. Her work has won many awards and hangs in both private and corporate collections.

“Ms. Little-Wilson’s work has a wonderful warm, vintage quality to it,” said STC Art Gallery Associate Dawn Haughey. “Her classic style perfectly complements her female subjects and the character and wisdom that they exude.”

STC’s Library Art Gallery exhibits regional, national and international artwork, explores new visions and theories of creativity, and introduces innovative artistic expressions to the South Texas region.

For more information, contact Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488 or via email at dhaughey@southtexascollege.edu, or visit http://lag.southtexascollege.edu.

Picturing America

lag-marycassatSouth Texas College’s Nursing and Allied Health Campus Library presents “Picturing America.” The exhibit opens Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014 and will be on view through Friday, May 9. The STC NAH Campus is located at 1101 E. Vermont Ave. in McAllen. Admission is free and open to the public.

Picturing America is an initiative of the We The People program of the National Endowment for the Humanities. The program was launched in 2002 and seeks to strengthen the teaching, study and understanding of America’s history and founding principles, according to the Chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, Bruce Cole.

STC’s Library Art Gallery exhibits regional, national and international artwork, explores new visions and theories of creativity, and introduces innovative artistic expressions to the South Texas region.

For more information, contact Jose Noriega at 956-872-3189, josen@southtexascollege.edu or Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488, dhaughey@southtexascollege.edu.

Restless Spirit

adrianSouth Texas College’s Technology Campus Library presents “Restless Spirit,” an exhibit featuring artworks by Adrian Luna. The exhibit opens Thursday, Sept. 26, 2013 and will be on view through Friday, Dec. 6. An artist lecture will be held at 5 p.m. on Oct. 3 at the Technology Campus Library, located at 3700 W. Military Hwy. in McAllen. Admission is free and open to the public.

Luna is a local artist whose paintings are inspired by color, animals, people, social and global turmoil. He believes that everything is connected via energy and his work reflects this through its erratic splashes and placement of color. He also holds an interest in spiritual and self-awareness journeys.

“Luna’s work holds a spiritual, mystical quality,” said Dawn Haughey, STC Library Art Gallery associate. “Some of his pieces also refer to an underground music culture, as is seen in his surrealistic painting of Frank Zappa. This is an intriguing group of work that is sure to peak the viewer’s interest.”

STC’s Library Art Gallery exhibits regional, national and international artwork, explores new visions and theories of creativity, and introduces innovative artistic expressions to the South Texas region.

For more information, contact Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488, or via email at dhaughey@southtexascollege.edu.

Unconscious Landscape

Delvis_6336South Texas College’s Nursing and Allied Health Campus Library presents “Unconscious Landscape,” an exhibit featuring artworks by Delvis Cortez. The exhibit opens Thursday, Sept. 26, 2013 and will be on view through Friday, Dec. 6. An artist talk will be held on Oct. 3 at 6:30pm at the college’s NAH Campus, located at 1101 E. Vermont Ave. in McAllen. Admission is free and open to the public.

Cortez’s current body of work was created through a transferring process called Decalcomania. This is a process in which diluted oil paint is spread across a large glass surface, and the canvas is pressed to the surface and then carefully peeled away. The technique produces smudges and blots of color which suggest turbulent skies, landscapes and/or abstract humanoid forms.

“Cortez’s recent work expresses the feeling of freedom and spontaneity that paint is so capable of achieving,” said Dawn Haughey, STC Library Art Gallery associate. “The fluid composition and muted tones of the work create a relaxing and introspective experience for the viewer.”

Cortez received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Texas-Pan American. He currently instructs painting parties at the Weslaco Museum.

STC’s Library Art Gallery exhibits regional, national and international artwork, explores new visions and theories of creativity, and introduces innovative artistic expressions to the South Texas region.

For more information, contact Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488, or via email at dhaughey@southtexascollege.edu.

Animating the Inanimate: Finding Stories within Objects

JerryLylesSouth Texas College’s Starr County Campus Library Art Gallery is proud to present “Animating the Inanimate: Finding Stories within Objects,” featuring paintings by Jerry Lyles. The exhibit will be on display from Sept. 6 to Dec 6, 2013 at STC’s Starr County Campus Library (Bldg. F), located at 142 FM 3167 in Rio Grande City. An artist lecture will be held on Oct. 3 at 1 p.m. Admission is free and open to the public.

In Lyles’ current body of work, he focuses on the objects that people collect and surround themselves with, and what they say about the person who collects them. Through his skilled still-life paintings, which incorporate color, form, value, shape and space, Lyles suggests a story within these objects that places the viewer in an active role in relationship to his work.

“Lyles’ current exhibition invites the viewer to make up their own stories,” said Dawn Haughey, STC Library Art Gallery associate. “He presents enticing, colorful imagery and then leaves the rest of the work up to the observer. This produces an internal interactive experience.”

Lyles received his Master of Fine Arts degree from the American University in Washington D.C. and works as an assistant professor at the University of Texas Pan-American.

STC’s Library Art Gallery exhibits regional, national and international artwork, explores new visions and theories of creativity, and introduces innovative artistic expressions to the South Texas region.

For more information, contact Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488, or via email at dhaughey@southtexascollege.edu.

Inventa La Vida (Invent Life): Works by Juan De Dios Mora

JuanMoraSouth Texas College’s Mid-Valley Campus Library Art Gallery presents “Inventa La Vida (Invent Life): Works by Juan De Dios Mora.” The exhibit opens Thursday, Sept 19, 2013, with an artist lecture held at 6 p.m. The exhibit will be on view through Friday, Dec. 6 at the Mid-Valley Campus Library Art Gallery, located at 400 N. Border in Weslaco. Admission is free and open to the public.

Mora’s detailed, black and white print work depicts characters interacting with devices that are poorly made, yet highly adorned. These customized inventions are made up of hybrid cultures of the Mexican-American border and are decorated with traditional imagery, food, objects, materials, banners and sayings. Through these devices, the artist expresses the characters inventiveness, resourcefulness and their strong will to survive. Mora’s surrealistic visions are filled with symbolic meaning and a hopeful optimism that our character will live on forever.

Mora was born in Jalisco, Mexico and immigrated to the United States in 1998. He received a Masters of Fine Arts degree with a concentration in printmaking from the University of Texas at San Antonio, and is currently an art instructor at the UTSA Art & Art History department.

“It’s inspiring to see characters of little means depicted so proudly by Mora,” said STC Art Gallery Associate Dawn Haughey. “When he portrays a man with a broom, the broom is then embellished with flags, wings, mirrors and a saddle. His work reflects the idea of making the most of what you have and never feeling ashamed of what you don’t. This series, although focusing on Mexican-American culture, is empowering to people of any race.”

STC’s Library Art Gallery exhibits regional, national and international artwork, explores new visions and theories of creativity, and introduces innovative artistic expressions to the South Texas region.

For more information, contact Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488, or via email at dhaughey@southtexascollege.edu.

Border Studies

borderstudiesSouth Texas College’s Pecan Campus Library and Humanities Texas will present “Border Studies,” an exhibition of images by eight gifted photographers and maps showing historical relocations of the border, highlighting the vitality of places, people, and patterns of culture along the Texas-Mexico border. The exhibit will be on display from Sept. 9 to Oct. 21, 2013 at the Pecan Campus Library Rainbow Room, located at 3201 W. Pecan Blvd. in McAllen. Admission is free and open to the public.

The Texas-Mexico border is more than a line between two countries. It is a realm unto itself with a culture of its own, shaped by the millions who choose to live and work there. The border is a cradle of hope—and anxiety—for the well-being of both Mexico and the United States.

STC’s Library Art Gallery exhibits regional, national and international artwork, explores new visions and theories of creativity, and introduces innovative artistic expressions to the South Texas region.

For more information, contact Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488, libraryart@southtexascollege.edu.