Fall is around the corner and museums and art centers throughout the Texas Panhandle and West Texas have announced recently opened and upcoming exhibitions. Among the shows are several that focus on past and present regional artists.
Guadalupe Hernandez, “Amor de Madre”
Earlier this month the Ellen Noël Art Museum in Odessa opened Con Cariño, a solo show of works by Guadalupe Hernandez. The exhibition is a tribute to the artist’s parents, who immigrated to the U.S. to create a better future for their family. Mr. Hernandez’s papel picado-style pieces illustrate moments of his family’s journey and the various jobs his parents worked to support their children.
Con Cariño will be on view from August 23 through December 1, 2024.
Mohamad Hafez & Ahmed Badr, “Um Shaham,” 2017, mixed media, 28 x 21 x 28 inches
This fall the Amarillo Museum of Art is presenting two exhibitions centered on empathy. Shades of Compassion, which opened last week, is a photo show featuring 41 international artists whose work invites compassion. In September, the museum will open Unpacked: Refugee Baggage, a multi-media installation by Syrian-born, New Haven, Connecticut-based artist and architect Mohamad Hafez and Iraqi-born writer Ahmed Badr.
Shades of Compassion will be on view through December 29, 2024, and Unpacked: Refugee Baggage will be on view from September 6, 2024, through January 5, 2025.
Tom Lea, “Rio Grande,” 1954, oil on canvas, 22 1/4 x 32 inches. El Paso Museum of Art, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Robert W. Decherd in honor of Isabelle Thomason Decherd and H. Ben Decherd, 1996.10.1
In early September, the El Paso Museum of Art will present Tom Lea and Contemporaries. The exhibition features landscapes, portraits, and murals by El Paso native Tom Lea. Mr. Lea was one of the most prolific Southwest artists of the 20th century. He painted murals throughout the U.S. and was an artist correspondent for Life magazine during World War II. Later he illustrated and wrote the novel The King Ranch, which tells the story of the famous Texas ranch. The exhibition will also include works by Manual Acosta, Lois Denton, Fremont Ellis, Leola Freeman, Carl Hertzog, Peter Hurd, Ada Miller, Audley Dean Nicols, Urbici Soler, and Henriette Wyeth.
Also in September, the museum will debut Coyotek, a solo show by Jorge Rojas. The exhibition will include interactive installations, photography, videos of performances, and a site-specific corn mandala.
Tom Lea and Contemporaries will be on view from September 4, 2024, through January 26, 2025, and Jorge Rojas: Coyote will be on view from September 13, 2024, through January 26, 2025.
Julie Speed, “Fall,” 2024, gouache & collage. 40 x 60 inches. Courtesy of the artist
Ballroom Marfa has announced that in late September it will present more than 70 works by local artist Julie Speed. The Suburbs of Eden will showcase the artist’s paintings, collages, and gouaches.
The organization writes, “Speed confronts universally shared experiences and stories, clothing her figures in humanity itself. Torsos and limbs are transformed into scenes of war, politics, architecture, and nature. We are consistently reminded of our shared history as human beings. Speed wants us to be aware of our time on this planet, understand our relationship to it and to each other, and know that the universe is watching.”
Julie Speed: The Suburbs of Eden will be on view from September 20, 2024, through February 2, 2025.
Zoe Leonard, “Al río / To the River (detail),” 2016–2022, gelatin silver prints, c-prints, and inkjet prints. © Zoe Leonard. Courtesy of the artist, Galerie Gisela Capitain, and Hauser & Wirth
In October, during the 37th annual Chinati Weekend, the Chinati Foundation will open Al río / To the River, an exhibition of photographs by Zoe Leonard. Leonard’s work explores the cultural, social, political, ecological, and economic landscapes along a 1,200-mile stretch of the Rio Grande/Río Bravo. The exhibition is accompanied by a two-volume publication, edited by poet Tim Johnson, designed by Joseph Logan, and published by Hatje Cantz.
Al río / To the River will be on view from October 12, 2024, through June 2025.
William Lester, “Rocks and Cedar,” 1941, oil on masonite. Private collection.
Also in October, the Grace Museum in Abilene will present four concurrent exhibitions William Lester: True to Form, Texas Regionalism Revisited, Coreen Mary Spellman: In Her Own Right, and Hard Times Come Again No More: Depression Era Photography.
True to Form, is a solo exhibition of the work of William Lester, a draftsman, painter, printmaker, and art educator. Lester was born in Graham, Texas, and later moved to Austin where he worked in the art department at the University of Texas. The exhibition includes works from 1930 to 1970 from public and private collections.
The additional exhibitions provide context for True to Form. Texas Regionalism Revisited presents works by Texas Regionalists Jerry Bywaters, Alexandre Hogue, Thomas Stell, Harry Carnohan, Coreen Spellman, and William Lester, among others. In Her Own Right is a deeper dive into works by Ms. Spellman, including paintings and prints. And Hard Times Come Again No More is a photography exhibition illustrating the dire situation of the Dust Bowl era.
William Lester: True to Form will be on view from October 19, 2024, through February 22, 2025, and the accompanying exhibitions will be on view from October 19, 2024, through February 8, 2025.
