The San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts (SAMFA), an accredited collecting institution in Tom Green County that has served San Angelo since 1981, has announced plans for its grand reopening. According to the museum’s website, the facility has been undergoing a roof replacement as well as some interior repairs and remodeling. The collection was moved to a secure location during construction. For additional context, Glasstire reported in September on Laura Romer Huckaby’s appointment as interim executive director at SAMFA. In that piece, Tom Gregg, Chairman of the Board of Trustees remarked, “we have full confidence in Laura, and we’ll move forward to celebrate our beautiful new roof.” Now, the roof nears completion.
San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts’ new copper roof. Photo: Precision Construction & Roofing
“Under our beautiful new copper roof,” begins a press release from SAMFA, “we’ll premiere exciting events, world-class exhibitions, and reimagined programming.” The celebrations will commence on January 19, 2024, when there will be a free public reception from 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., complete with live music and refreshments. This event will mark the debut of two exhibits, N.C. Wyeth and the Golden Age of American Illustration and Microscape: A Studio Art Quilt Associates Global Exhibition.
Illustration for Edna Ferber’s “Cimarron” by N.C. Wyeth. From the Joel and Suzanne Sugg Collection.
The first of these exhibitions is billed by the museum as an “intimate selection of works from the collection of Joel and Suzanne Sugg [that] features seldom-seen paintings by N.C. Wyeth (1882 – 1945), the patriarch of the Wyeth dynasty of painters.” Also included in the show are works by Mr. Wyeth’s contemporary, Frank Schoonover (1877 – 1972), and their teacher, Howard Pyle (1853 – 1911).
Microscape, meanwhile, features a selection of colorful art quilts that recreate microscopic images from the physical world. The exhibition was organized in partnership with the Studio Arts Quilts Association, which, according to their website, “is dedicated to promoting the art quilt and the artists who create them.”
The festivities at SAMFA continue beyond the opening reception. The museum’s Love to Learn workshop series will return with The Art of Block Printing by Becky Strout on January 4, The Art of Cooking with Chef Nicole Rousselout McDuffie on February 9, and The Art of Ceramic Vases with Michelle Cuevas on March 16 and 23. Register for these classes on the SAMFA website.
Also, on February 9, the museum will host the Five by Seven Art Show and Sale in its meeting room. The event will run from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. and will feature what the SAMFA website calls, “perfect, affordable small-space art for your home or office” that was “created by local and special-guest artists.” Tickets to the event are $20 at the door or online.
Finally, on March 3, the San Angelo Chamber Music Series will present the Paradise Winds Reed Quintet: The Sound of San Angelo and N.C. Wyeth’s Southwest in Music. According to the press release, this concert was “inspired by culture, commerce, and developments representing 100 years of San Angelo’s growth and the American experience.” Tickets may be purchased online or at the door. General admission is $12.
To reserve a spot, or for more information on any of these events visit the SAMFA website.
1 comment
CONGRATULATIONS TO LAURA HUCKABY on her new appointment as interim director of the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts. (Hope you become the PERMANENT Director!)
I had the privilege of working with Laura as a participant and award winner in the Fifth Biennial Richard and Pam Salmon Sculpture Exhibition, juried by James Surls in 2017. My sculpture, “Transgression”, presented some difficulties, not being especially out of doors safe for children to climb on!! As we were about to leave San Angelo after all the festivities were over, I received a call from Laura asking me if I could possibly return to the sunken garden park and “fix” my sculpture? When we returned, we discovered the problem: the bronze “bone” clapper of the bronze mask like bell hanging from the lentil of the doorframe, was dangling by just a few wires. Laura and other artists suggested reinforcing not only the clapper but the hook at the lentil. I accepted their advice gladly since I had very little experience at that time with out of doors sculpture, its vulnerability to human activity and just plain weathering over a two year period. We went to several stores and purchased all the 16-18 gauge copper wire we could find. We did a massive wrapping of parts to secure the bell and clapper without totally malfunctioning the bell effect! Laura and the staff under her direction were immensely kind, patient, helpful and understanding. Thanks for a job well done and again congratulations on an appointment well deserved!!