With a history that spans almost a third of San Antonio’s 300-year-life, the Witte Museum knew it wanted to play a central role in recounting the city’s story during its tricentennial year. President and CEO Marise McDermott says they began discussing the exhibitions—Gathering at the Waters, open through July 1; Connecting Texas, on display through September; and the larger Confluence and Culture, which opens March 3 and runs through early January—three years ago, working with scholars, American Indians, archivists, archeologists, educators and others to determine what a 300-year historical exhibition needed to include. “There’s no one way of thinking about San Antonio history,” McDermott says. “San Antonio is diverse at its founding. There’s also so much conflict here over three centuries. It could have torn the city apart but it bound it together.” Confluence and Culture is split into seven sections that depict different eras in the city’s story, from the establishment of the Missions in San Antonio beginning in 1718 and moving forward to present day. Throughout are various themes that continue to be important in San Antonio today, including family, food and religion, says Bruce Shakelford, the museum’s Texas history curator and one of the lead curators on the exhibit.
Guests enter through a room that will be filled with sounds and projections meant to represent different periods of time in San Antonio’s history. The Witte commissioned George Cisneros, Urban-15’s music and media director whose family has Alamo City roots that date back to the early 1900s, to create a collection of images, sights and sounds to set the tone for what’s to come.
Along with examining how the missions were built and what life was like for those who lived in them, this area will also look at how the Spanish missions and settlement influenced San Antonio’s economic and cultural development for decades to come. Interactive elements allow visitors to help build a wall at Mission Espada or to virtually construct early San Antonio by answering questions to determine where cathedrals and other structures should go. Expect to also see dozens of artifacts and paintings.
Along with paintings and multiple artifacts that pay homage to the city’s Tejano roots, this section will include a newly created jacal, or thatched-roof, adobe-style hut. Inside, an educator will share what life was like for Tejanos who lived in jacals in the 18th century. Once Confluence and Culture closes, the jacal will move to the South Texas Heritage Center for permanent display.
Upstairs in the main museum, Gathering at the Waters sets the stage for why San Antonio’s river drew inhabitants for thousands of years before the city was officially settled. This section of Confluence and Culture picks up where that exhibit leaves off and delves into the arrival of the Spanish in San Antonio, including what they might have brought with them and what they may have done when first settling.
Augmented reality in this area will allow visitors to use their phones or iPads to experience what the Alamo was like in the days leading up to the Battle. The Battle of Medina, which McDermott describes as an important but often overlooked event leading up to the Alamo, also will be discussed. Over 1,000 people were killed at the Battle of Medina, which took place when the adults who fought at the Alamo were children. Look for various artifacts showing how San Antonio has grown as a military city.
Expansion and Industrialization
This section focuses on the period following the Civil War
and uses artifacts, maps, photos and other pieces to look at why San Antonio became a hub in post-war years. Additional material here covers the Chili Queens, cattle barons, German settlers and others who impacted the economy, culture and growth
of the city during this time.
The Modern City
Starting with HemisFair 50 years ago, this final area of the exhibition looks at the cultural development of the city in modern years while also examining social justice issues and political history. Expect video clips and other digital displays, plus artifacts that touch on all pieces of San Antonio, including its culinary innovations.
Confluence and Culture: 300 Years of San Antonio History March 3-Jan. 6, 2019 Witte Museum, 3801 Broadway, wittemuseum.org
Also See: Gathering at the Waters: 12,000 Years of People (through July 1); Connecting Texas: 300 years of Trails, Rails and Roads (through Sept. 30)
3 More 300 Exhibits
San Antonio 1718: Art from Viceregal Mexico
Through May 13
The San Antonio Museum of Art presents more than 100 sculptures, landscapes, portraits, narrative paintings and objects (both decorative and religious) in this tricentennial exhibition that focuses on San Antonio’s first 100 years. Guests are invited to walk through sections that focus on people and places, the cycle of life and the church. Some works highlight well-known figures, such as military leaders and Spanish viceroys, while others tell everyday stories of families, nuns and soldiers. Presented in collaboration with Mexico’s Instituto Nacional de Antroplogia e Historia, some of the pieces included are on display in the U.S. for the first time. Learn more in our preview of the exhibition. samuseum.org
Through May 7
While many of the city’s tricentennial events focus on historic artifacts and works, this exhibition that spans six downtown arts venues includes only newly created pieces. Over 300 artists—who each live in or have a past connection to the Alamo City—were assigned one year in the city’s history and asked to use their medium to reflect. Artpace opened the exhibition with works inspired by 1718-1767 (on display through March 4). Blue Star Contemporary presents 1768-1817, on display through May 7. The Southwest School of Art chronicles 1818-1867, open through April 22. Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center presents 1868-1917, on display March 1-April 29. Carver Community Cultural Center follows with 1918-1967, open March 15-April 26, and the Mexican Cultural Institute closes out the exhibition with works inspired by 1968-2017, on display March 29-May 7. commoncurrents.org
Immersed: Local to Global Art Sensations
June 7 – Sept. 2
The McNay Art Museum’s Tobin Exhibition Galleries will pay homage to both the tricentennial and the 50th anniversary of HemisFair. Chris Sauter, a San Antonio native whose work has been exhibited throughout the city, was commissioned to create a piece specifically for the exhibition. Installations by Yayoi Kusama and Philip Worthington also will be on display along with a film by Andy Warhol. mcnayart.org