Kathy Sosa has been creating artworks for a few years that riff on the British government’s morale-boosting World War II encouragement to “keep calm and carry on,” often putting a Spanglish spin on the phrase: “keep calm y taco on,” “keep calm y fiesta on.” The latest installment in Sosa’s “keep calm y dream on” series — a mural on the side of la boulangerie, a bakery downtown — has a French twist. It features five rectangles, each reading “keep calm et macaron,” painted in the pastel shades of the delicate French cookies. The mural was inspired partly by the fact that Sosa, 66, loves the food at la boulangerie and had struck up a friendship with Sylvain and Sylvie Nykiel, the French couple who own it. Sosa suggested the mural as a way to draw attention to the business and to underscore the fact that it, too, represents a cultural blend, with the couple bringing French cuisine to San Antonio.



Artist: Kathy Sosa

Living in My Skin” speaks eloquently to the pain and metamorphosis our society is undergoing in this very moment, confronting its own centuries of racism, its own failure to see the value and the beauty of Black men’s lives. This in-the-moment mural captures the strength and the stories of men young and old, professional homeless, veteran and young teen.

Artist: Lionel Sosa

In front of the Texas Public radio headquarters, the name of the mural is “Los Colores De Los Nativos” “The colors of the natives," It’s all about the inspiration and the love the artist has to share with everyone through his art. Spreading positivity and resilience through tough times, the artist says "anything is possible so keep your head up there’s a whole world waiting for you to spread love unconditionally!"



Artist: Alan Calvo

Bernadette Peña, a local San Antonian social entrepreneur,  founded and created this series, “Nuestra Gente: A Tribute to Hispanic Innovators and Dreamers’ to highlight the global contributions and historical narratives of the Latino community. Through the art of imagery, children portray the notable figures of yesterday and today, bridging the generations of trailblazers to the leaders of tomorrow. The Nuestra Gente Tribute inspires the development of voice and agency through shared heritage, language, and diverse culture.

Artist: Bernadette Peña

Peacock Alley became a perfect example of the transformative power of art. The artist known as Scotch! created his first lively pastiche of color on the walls with his mural “Fly with the Peacocks,” behind 110 Broadway; now, behind the Burns Building on the 400 Block of Houston St. he takes flight in a different direction, because everything’s the same, except a little different. Scotch’s work is simultaneously invigorating and soothing thanks to its preforming lines and abstract shapes, colors and design elements.

Artist: Scotch!

This sculpture features the former communist leader of China, Chairman Mao Zedong, atop founding Soviet Premier Vladimir Lenin’s head. After months of negotiation, it arrived in San Antonio in March of 2022, arranged by James Lifshutz and installed on private property, here in La Zona. Coincidentally, just weeks before, the world had turned its focus to Russian military aggression due to their invasion of the Ukraine; this cast an entirely new light on the political resonances of the piece.
 
Its polished aluminum exterior and extraordinary size (4.5-tons and 21’ tall) arouse visitors’ curiosity from afar; stand closer and its imperfect exterior changes perception entirely. To be clear, it’s a satirical piece of art, aimed at criticizing communism; however shortly after installation, an attack occurred slightly damaging the misunderstood sculpture. Shocked at the violence against a piece of art, visitors began leaving small tokens of remembrance on its pedestal. The arts community responded with an outpouring of grief, disbelief and support and others…simply found it curious. Today, this sculpture is dedicated to those who remain in Ukraine, whose long days are uncertain - and to a future with peace .

“The Plein Air Exhibit,” a crowdsourced exhibition, began in response to COVID-19 to alleviate some of the hardships brought onto the art community by the pandemic. To help the community understand the impact that the arts make on our community, Centro and CAUSA (Culture and Arts United for San Antonio) teamed up to invite San Antonio artists to submit original artworks to be installed on business facades across downtown San Antonio. This open call titled “Power of Art in the Public Realm” took place in 2021 and received submissions from across San Antonio. The exhibit features over 30 large-scale 2D artworks. Two out of the ten large-scale projects have been installed at the Hyatt Regency and Hyatt Regency garage and can be enjoyed from Losoya street. the exhibition features a wide variety of art ranging from photography, painting, wood carving, sculpture, etc. this intentional decision to include a range of media is to increase the public’s exposure to a wide variety of art and offered exposure for artists not typically known for public art.

Artist: Various Artists

#SAISAMOR is amovement about sharing love, celebrating our city and helping our community. Martha Martinez-Flores created it during the COVID-19 pandemic mostly because she felt the tug at her heart to do more for her city. Since the launch in 2020, #SAISAMOR has raised over $20,000 from the sale of limited edition prints and other items to support our community in times of need.



Artist: Martha Martinez Flores

Luis Valderas’ “Sky, Earth & Mariachi Lacho Over San Antonio” is part of Valderas ‘El Mariachi Lacho Series’ As an ongoing body of mixed media works, Valderas uses the image of his father, Horacio Sanchez Valderas, dressed in his 1930’s mariachi outfit as an icon and alter ego. Through him, he works to represent the Mexican-American hero navigating modern abstract arrays of socio-political structures and landscapes. Valderas’ compositions present the mundane settings of everyday life that represent the opportunity for him to challenge the perspective of the viewer and temporarily create a landscape. Valderas incorporates additional patterns, design elements, and details of the compositions and narratives are based on Meso-American icons, glyphs, myths and design sensibilities. By hybridizing these images (the already existing surface compositions such as billboards, advertisements, street wall graffiti, train boxcars, the glyph patterns, and the mariachi photo-cutout) he creates a dissonance of reality as well as a new landscape and time frame challenging the viewer to reconsider their position.



Artist: Luis Valderas

“The Last Parade” by muralist Rudy Herrera is the latest downtown public art project to be completed as part of Centro San Antonio’s “Art Everywhere” initiative. Standing 70 feet wide and roughly 100 feet tall, Herrera portrays integral aspects of his life in vibrant colors, honoring his wife, son and his heritage in the abstract work on the side of the Kress building on East Houston Street.



Artist: Rudy Herrera

Artist Sandra Gonzalez enjoys depicting images in her work that speak to family memories, celebratory experiences, and the rich and layered history of South Texas. Her paintings are often personal and emotional, reflecting the colorful Mexican American culture we are surrounded by here in San Antonio. This particular piece reflects a playfulness, punctuated with color and vibrancy; Gonzalez favors portraits like these and often includes native plants and Mexican textiles symbolic to her upbringing and often includes them in her large-scale works. 

Artist: Sandra Gonzalez

This mural speaks to the greater societal value that touch now has, whether literally embracing our loved ones or joining together in solidarity. It’s about unity, especially of BIPOC communities who historically and currently lead essential movements for change. It represents the middle space within invented binaristic divisions and serves as a reminder of the complexity of identity. The colors from a figure on one side are reflected in the figure on the other side–those who we see as different from us may not be so different after all. The silhouettes are representative of humanity as a whole and our universal similarities. As they come together, there’s a bigger picture in sight, a cosmic connection.



Artist: Suzy Gonzalez

Street Artist ‘Ghost’, had completed tours in Afghanistan and Iraq when he left the military in 2014. Art always had been part of his life, constantly drawing and painting throughout his childhood, even using his skills while in the military. Returning home, he struggled to reintegrate into society, and picked up a paintbrush. His work, such as “Wish You Were Here” appears as a cheerful postcard from afar; upon closer look, images of men in military uniform and calaveras peek out amidst colorful designs. Ghost  explains that it’s really about his life; his time in the armed services and the city and culture he missed so much. 
Artist: Ghost

Situated in the heart of what was formerly the ‘Laredito’ neighborhood, across from San Pedro Creek in downtown San Antonio, Rudy Herrera’s piece (XX) follows his long tradition of weaving a multitude of deep stories with a through-line of mystical crazy-cool symbolism. Steps away are the historic Alameda Theatre, the St. James AME church site and La Zona Cultural, the area is chock full of cultural history – and Herrera’s mural speaks to it all, inspiring many to grab a cold beverage and debate what it all REALLY means.

Artist: Rudy Herrera

Created by XFL star/San Antonio Brahmas linebacker (and visual artist) Jordan Williams, the goal was to create some joy and beauty in a place where the community gathers - and show how much art and football have in common. Williams says his journey as an artist began in childhood when his mother taught him to color; years later at Baylor, Williams needed an elective and took an art class. He says mural painting is similar to football; a vision – and teamwork - are necessary to make it happen. In reference to the mural, Williams says “I want them to feel my personality.”

Artist: Jordan Williams

This multi-sensory mural explores the theme of "play" and invites the viewer to experience this work through the mediums of dance, movement, music and poetry. The visual mural, inspired by Felix’s “The Glorious Way She Moves” artworks, will have multiple images of dancers, Xelena Gonzalez and Jeremy ‘Odious’ Williams moving in their own style. Words and phrases from an original song, “Are We There Yet” written by Poet Lauerate Sanderson and set to music by Eddy 'Versatile' Keyz, are incorporated within the mural via a QR code, adding an audio dimension to the art and allow the viewer to participate on multiple levels.

Artists: Barbara Felix and Andrea “Vocab” Sanderson

The artist known as Scotch! heads into a serendipitous new realm with his latest work, “Raise a Glass to Texas!” Scotch! decends from the family of Jose Antonio Navarro, and Ken Maverick decends from the family of Samuel Maverick - both men being delegates from the District of Bexar and who signed the Texas Declaration of Independence together. Combining history (the mural background features historic San Antonio photos and articles) and contemporary abstract shapes and colors with design elements, Scotch! proves that the past and the future can coexist.

Artist: Scotch!

With a distinct sensitivity to humanist expression, Claudette Hopkins' work applies movement and a sense of vitality to all of her works. She is essentially a storyteller; while most of her energy is used to create the female figure, telling the stories of people of all genders and backgrounds is her ultimate goal. Here she uses vibrant color to portray a dancer adorned in exquisite flora – and bring life “to the beautiful and strong Black women I have known throughout my life.”

Artist: Claudette Hopkins