Glasstire

Brandon Zech talks with Glasstire's new Editor-in-Chief, Gabriel Martinez, about what makes a good work of art, how music, writing, and art differ, and why artists should know art history. "Every artwork is in dialog with art history, and I think it's important for artists to contextualize where their work stands in that conversation. It becomes shorthand, because you're using these past iteration...

Leslie Moody Castro talks with Harrison Guy about Houston's Fifth Ward, his Urban Souls Dance Company, and what keeps him motivated to build community in the city.  "Our projects are based on this thought process that memory builds the monument. The way that we look at it is that if you don't have a lot of assets in your community, because they're gone, for a lot of different reasons beyond your c...

Jessica Fuentes, William Sarradet, and Brandon Zech discuss memorable art happenings, exhibitions, and events from 2023. "For a long time, and even still now, the art world has been caught up in the idea of a single genius, a singular voice, and the prestige of a solo exhibition. But I think coming out of the pandemic there was this need for community and coming together, and perhaps the amount of...

William Sarradet talks with Houston's Sarah Welch and Fort Worth's Raul Rodriguez about the nature of zine festivals and the landscape of self-publishing in Texas. "I think being in Texas has actually put us at a good advantage for doing self-publishing work because there are so many major cities in the state...We've done some out of state stuff, but I think the events we do in Texas are often the...

Jessica Fuentes, William Sarradet, and Brandon Zech discuss recent shows they've seen across Texas, the opening of new galleries in Houston, Austin, and Wimberley, and the art news that's been making headlines this fall. "In a lot of ways, Jeremy Strick's retirement from the Nasher Sculpture Center isn't surprising — we've talked recently about how we're kind of at a turning point where organizati...

Jessica Fuentes talks with Dallas' Darryl Ratcliff about the rise of unions for arts and culture workers. "Ultimately, we're all served by a more engaged public, and we're all served by taking care of people. And I know that our large institutions and their supporters want to do that, and sometimes it is up to us as artists, as culture workers, as people who are more on the ground, to help lead th...

William Sarradet talks with Eric Schnell about what it's like to live, work, and run a ten-month residency program in Galveston. "Galveston is exactly the right size, where you can hold the whole island in your brain at one time. If it were bigger, that wouldn't be possible." See related readings here: https://glasstire.com/2023/10/22/art-dirt-talking-with-artist-galveston-artist-residency-directo...

Brandon Zech talks with special guest Jon Revett about life in the Texas Panhandle and about the 50th anniversary of artist Robert Smithson's "Amarillo Ramp." "Smithson is using the land to give you a place to re-view the land and see it from a different point of view and think about it in a different way." See related readings here: https://glasstire.com/2023/10/08/art-dirt-amarillo-ramp-cadillac...

Jessica Fuentes, William Sarradet, and Brandon Zech discuss exhibitions they've seen so far this fall, including shows at The Warehouse, Ruby City, Inman Gallery, the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, and beyond. "If you're going to use a kooky installation technique for a show, you've got to go all or nothing." See related readings here: https://glasstire.com/2023/09/24/art-dirt-discussing-...

To wrap up the summer, Jessica Fuentes and William Sarradet discuss what this season's hottest blockbuster says about our current moment. "The film has this incredible potency, but somehow it very neatly ties up what it aims to do...which is totally fine, but I feel like there's some need to find out what happens next, because we just spent a year waiting for this movie to come out and now it's ov...

Jessica Fuentes and Brandon Zech discuss our recent loss of numerous influential Texas art legends, and talk about the implications of Frieze's acquisition of The Armory Show and EXPO CHICAGO. "The people who are building a future in Texas are very much committed to being here and working here and buffing up and adding to the Texas art scene." See related readings here: https://glasstire.com/2023/...

Leslie Moody Castro and Brandon Zech discuss what's been happening in the art world this summer, including Sotheby's buying the Breuer Building in NYC, an increase in museum admission prices, and the Dallas Museum of Art picking an architecture firm to redesign its building.  "One element of this new design is a major almost floating contemporary art gallery at the top of the museum...this design...

William Sarradet talks with Dallas artist Andrea Tosten about calligraphy, her artwork, and her new position at the Oak Cliff Cultural Center. "I think my main point of being in this position is to get city dollars into artists' hands — public hands." See related readings here: https://glasstire.com/2023/07/30/art-dirt-talking-with-artist-andrea-tosten If you enjoy Glasstire and would like to supp...

Jessica Fuentes and William Sarradet discuss their visits to Dallas-Fort Worth's newly opened Meow Wolf location. "One of the things about truly great art is that it changes every time you revisit it; you bring something new to it, you see something new in it, and you get to continue to explore it in various levels over an extended period of time." See related readings here: https://glasstire.com/...

Brandon Zech talks with Ann Graham, who for the past ten years has run Texans for the Arts, about the ins an outs of art funding policy and how to advocate for art in your community. "At Texans for the Arts, we know that the arts are essential to our lives, so how do we bring that passion and commitment to the fore so citizens can get engaged, artist leaders and artists can get engaged, and electe...

William Sarradet talks with Lauren Shults, who is a Glasstire contributor and a reporter at the "Fredericksburg Standard-Radio Post," about writing, art, and what it's like to live in a smaller, Hill Country town. "In smaller Texas towns, the social fabric is a little more tenured; people know each other — there’s a history that’s not getting wiped away with every generation." See related readings...

Leslie Moody Castro and Brandon Zech discuss a recent decision by the Supreme Court, which ruled against The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. "Forget about separating the art from the artist. Instead, can you separate the art from its intent?" See related readings here: https://glasstire.com/2023/06/04/art-dirt-is-the-supreme-courts-andy-warhol-ruling-bad-for-artists If you enjoy Glasst...

Jessica Fuentes and Brandon Zech discuss "The Art of Making It," a 2021 documentary that explores the underside of the art world. "A lot of issues the documentary points out are just issues in the world, period." See related readings here: https://glasstire.com/2023/05/21/art-dirt-what-does-it-mean-to-make-it-in-the-art-world If you enjoy Glasstire and would like to support our work, please consid...

William Sarradet talks with Nick Barbee about his artwork, his founding of the Galveston Art Lending Library, and why he decided to settle in the city. "The longer you stay on the island without going over the causeway, you become more relaxed and move at a different sort of pace." See related readings here: https://glasstire.com/2023/05/07/art-dirt-a-conversation-with-galveston-artist-nick-barbee...

Brandon Zech and Leslie Moody Castro break down the trends they found at the 2023 Dallas Art Fair. "Faux naïf surrealist figuration is the era we are solidly in right now." See related readings here: https://glasstire.com/2023/04/23/art-dirt-reporting-from-the-dallas-art-fair If you enjoy Glasstire and would like to support our work, please consider donating. As a nonprofit, all of the money we re...

Brandon Zech talks with artist and public art specialist Tommy Gregory about the possibilities and pitfalls of making a public art project. "I think that art can be pretty, but it also should be challenging. It should make people think and look at the world differently, and that's always been my motivation." See related readings here: https://glasstire.com/2023/04/09/art-dirt-what-you-dont-know-ab...

Brandon Zech talks with Houston artist Janavi Mahimtura Folmsbee, who recently completed a large-scale installation in Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport, about the possibilities and pitfalls of making a public art project. "They don’t teach you business 101 in art school." See related readings here: https://glasstire.com/2023/03/26/art-dirt-what-you-dont-know-about-public-art-part-1 I...

Jessica Fuentes and William Sarradet discuss the art they saw and the art spaces they visited in Laredo, McAllen, Corpus Christi, Rockport, Harlingen, and beyond. "One of my favorite things about traveling around Texas and going to different museums and galleries is seeing works by familiar artists in different spaces, because each space adds to the context and perception of the work, and can real...

Leslie Moody Castro talks with Dallas artist Vicki Meek about her Nasher Sculpture Center fellowship, for which she and a group of artists are researching, documenting, and interpreting the history of the Tenth Street Historic District Freedman’s Town in Oak Cliff.  "I wanted to be able to have a group of artists tap into this community, which is currently under siege in Dallas. We don't know whet...

Jessica Fuentes and William Sarradet discuss their recent visit to Laredo, McAllen, Corpus Christi, Rockport, Harlingen, and beyond. "Today we're talking about some of the people we met through the museums, the institutions, the cultural organizations, and the collectors of South Texas." See related readings here: https://glasstire.com/2023/02/12/art-dirt-a-visit-to-the-valley-south-texas-part-1 I...