National Hispanic Heritage Month: Serigraphs from Coronado Studios’ Project and Master Printer Sam Coronado at Austin Convention Center

September 30, 2021

AUSTIN, Texas – The Austin Convention Center Department is honoring National Hispanic Heritage Month by recognizing the inspiring contributions of Latino master printer and artist Sam Z. Coronado. His exclusively selected serigraphs from the Coronado Studios series are part of the brilliant collection of exhibits and visual arts at the Austin Convention Center.

Sam Coronado (1946 – 2013), founder and creator of the collaborative workshop Coronado Studios, advocated for the awareness of cultural diversity in the community and advanced the fine art of Serigraphy, a printmaking process. He founded the Serié Project to promote Serigraphy and as a platform that allowed established and emerging Latino artists to reach bigger audiences. This platform helped spread the influence of Latino artists and empowered their creativity by connecting them to the medium of printmaking, a long-established staple in the history of Hispanic visual art.

“This collection at the Austin Convention Center is part of an artist residency program that was created by the late Coronado,” said Carla Nickerson, Austin Convention Center Department Program Manager, Community Services, and art program facilitator. “His focus was introducing the printmaking process to Mexican and Latino visual artists, and openly invited other artists.”

Coronado was also the co-founder of the Mexic-Arte Museum, the state’s official Mexican and Mexican-American art museum located in Austin.

Centered around Coronado’s Dos Mundos, a 14 x 20-inch screenprint, the collection includes six other works by Latino artists as part of the Coronado Studios’ Serié Project. They are located in the Austin Convention Center, on the first floor, South (Cesar Chavez) seating and pre-function area near Exhibit Hall 1.

Also included in the Coronado Studio Serié at the Austin Convention Center are:

• Liliana Wilson’s Quinceañera, a 2008 screenprint that is 21 x 16 inches • Ruth Leonela Buentello’s Baby Daddy, Spring Love Come Back to Me, a 30 x 22-inch 2012 screenprint • Rigoberto Gonzalez’ Cielo Azul, a 2013 screenprint that is 30 x 22 inches • Margarita Cabrera’s Iron Will, a 28 x 35-inch screenprint • Mauro Garza’s Corazon de Azteca, a 22 x 16-inch screenprint created in 2000 • David Moreno’s Mona Maya, a 21 x 15-inch screenprint created in 2000.

The visual arts collection at the Austin Convention Center Department encompasses 33 exhibits and installations by 30 different artists that are designed into the building, parking garages, and in the Palmer Events Center.

“The art collection embodies our goal to represent, showcase, and echo the unique cultures and heritages of Austin and the Central Texas region,” said Trisha Tatro, Austin Convention Center Department Director. “We take great pride and ownership of how our programs and overall operations reflect our community.”

Some art exhibits are part of the AIPP (Art in Public Places) program, with several iconic pieces commissioned as part of the capital improvement budget for the original construction of the Austin Convention Center and subsequent additions. In addition to AIPP, the Austin Convention Center Department began acquiring additional works by regionally accomplished artists which can be found in various spots throughout the facility.

The wide range of art media in the Austin Convention Center collection includes acrylic, aluminum, canvases, copper, digital photography, dye-cuts, framed art prints, glass, murals, oil, limestone, salvaged and recycled materials, screenprints, tile, and zinc-plated steel.

For more information about the art collection and artists on display at the Austin Convention Center Department go to www.austinconventioncenter.com/visual-art-collection/.

About the Austin Convention Center

The Austin Convention Center is a LEED® Gold-certified and GBAC STAR™-accredited facility. Located in the heart of downtown, the Austin Convention Center Department operates the Austin Convention Center and Palmer Events Center. The Austin Convention Center Department is comprised of 301 full-time staff positions and is an enterprise department for the City of Austin. As an enterprise department, ACCD is not funded by property taxes, sales taxes, or through transfers from the electric and water utilities. Over 10 million people have attended 6,000+ events, including over 900 conventions, at the Austin Convention Center since it opened in 1992.

About the Palmer Events Center

Nearly 4 million people have attended 1,200-plus events since The Palmer Events Center opened. The Palmer Events Center is proud to have achieved both Global Biorisk Advisory Council® (GBAC) STAR™ accreditation and LEED Gold certification, demonstrating the facility’s commitment to health and safety and energy and environmental design. There is also a 4-story, 1,200-space parking garage adjacent to the Palmer Events Center.