Works collide in well-received finale of Artpace exhibition

“I think that’s what good art does — brings you together and allows you a platform to explore differences or explore ideas.” Rick Frederick, Tobin Center for the Performing Arts

Light and darkness. Modern womanhood. The Catholic St. Cecília and 19th century Guatemalan history.

These topics couldn’t be more different, but they came together Thursday night for the conclusion of Artpace San Antonio’s fall 2021 international artist-in-residence program.

Back in September, fall 2021 artists-inresidence Dan Herschlein, Shana Hoehn and Naufus Ramírez-figueroa began work on major projects with funding from Artpace, a nonprofit that supports regional, national and international artists in their creative endeavors. The product of about two months of hard work made its debut at Artpace gallery.

Patrons of a broad range of ages, some sipping alcoholic drinks courtesy of beverage sponsor Künstler Brewing, milled around the exhibit hall as they admired Herschlein, Hoehn and Ramírez-figueroa’s handiwork.

Inspired in part by home-invasion horror movies, Herschlein’s exhibit, “Plain and Sane,” centered on a structure resembling a house. The surrounding walls were strewn with black-and-white drawings and small clay moths. Inside the structure, two figthen

ures stood in a pantry handling sacks, an interaction that could be either collaborative or adversarial.

“Probably, it’s about how ideology and storytelling create your sense of self and

how you enact that sense of self,” Herschlein said.

In an adjacent room, Hoehn’s contribution to the show, “Folding, Floating, Fall

ing,” combined hood ornaments and pieces of furniture such as chairs, tables, and banisters with erotic physical features and forms to make a statement about the appropriation of the feminine for industrial purposes. Braids and disembodied legs were common motifs.

“I think a lot of it is really about disorganizing and disorienting symbols that I feel like are used by oppressors and (in) propaganda,” Hoehn said.

One floor up, Ramírez-figueroa’s “Cecília rebelde” drew on religious symbolism to allude to the story of Atanasio Tzul, a leader of the infamous Totonicapán Uprising. In 1820, the Maya, Tzul among them, attempted to overthrow Spanish colonists in Guatemala and were briefly successful. Legend has it that Tzul celebrated his victory by crowning himself king with the crown of St. Joseph and his wife, Felipa Soc, queen with the crown of St.cecília, according to Ramírez-figueroa.

The exhibit comprised five paintings, three small sculptures and an audio recording. The recording features poems — by an anonymous friend of Ramírez-figueroa who went by the pseudonym St. Ezequiel — that were adapted and performed by Julieta Garcia Reyes. The paintings, which depicted an array of colorful, angular shapes, were modeled on saints’ clothing patterns, Ramírez-figueroa said. Two of the sculptures, meanwhile, referenced imagery and objects often associated with St. Cecília, including a flower crown and thong sandals woven from palm fronds. The third, a conch shell, doubled as a set of speakers — the source of the recording.

“This story of rebellion is still a story that’s going around, a story that we still carry with us,” Ramírez-figueroa said of his interest in the subject matter.

The exhibits were wellreceived. Many attendees praised the amount of effort the artists, not to mention curator Natalie Bell and Artpace itself, had put into developing, designing, creating and displaying the exhibits.

Rick Frederick, the director of resident company and community engagement at the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, said he was a frequent visitor to the gallery. His husband is himself an artist and alumnus of Artpace’s residency program.

“I think that’s what good art does — brings you together and allows you a platform to explore differences or explore ideas,” Frederick said. “That’s why we always love coming to the lectures, just to be able to be part of that conversation.”

The opening reception was followed by an artist talk featuring Herschlein, Hoehn, Ramírez-figueroa and Bell.

Photos by Ronald Cortes / Contributor Guests view the work of Naufus Ramírez-figueroa on Thursday at Artpace in San Antonio as the gallery unveiled exhibitions by fall 2021 international artists-in-residence Ramírez-figueroa, Dan Herschlein and Shana Hoehn.

From left, artist Naufus Ramírez-figueroa, Shana Hoehn and Dan Herschlein, conduct a panel discussion Thursday at Artpace in San Antonio. They’ve explored San Antonio and created artwork since September.

Ronald Cortes Visitors explore the work of Shana Hoehn on Thursday at Artpace in San Antonio. Many attendees praised the efforts of the artists, along with the hard work of curator Natalie Bell, and Artpace in developing, designing, creating and displaying the exhibits.