Free & Open to High School Students
MOSAIC Student Artist Program is currently recruiting students for our final spring session. This after-school program is a combination of studio practice, the business side of art and arts administration. An extension of the Contemporary’s educational programs, MOSAIC is committed to providing students with free access to quality arts education, encouraging high standards of achievement and fostering excellence and leadership.

Art Instruction:
This instructional session is designed for students interested in exploring oil painting as a new medium in a flexible, student‑centered art session where participants can work at their own pace while receiving guidance. Participants will receive hands‑on instruction ranging from developing an initial concept to advanced painting techniques.

Students have access to all materials at no cost.
No prior experience or skill level is required.

Schedule
MOSAIC session starts on April 16^th and concludes in May 16^th
The program follows an open‑studio format, giving students the flexibility to select the sessions/dates that best fit their schedules.

For information on specific available dates please see the application linked below.

Why join MOSAIC?
The MOSAIC Student Artist Program supports students as they explore creative paths and prepare for future opportunities in the arts. Whether you’re interested in becoming an artist, working in arts administration, or simply building your skills and confidence as an artist, MOSAIC offers free, accessible arts education designed to support your growth in a community of likeminded student peers.

Application requirements
The deadline to apply to this MOSAIC session is April 12 at 11:59 PM. Notice of acceptance will be sent Monday, April 13th
Applicants are required to submit a portfolio of work samples, and complete the application linked below.

Questions?
Contact our Education and Public Programs Manager Juan Zavala Castro at Juan@contemporarysa.org with the subject line “MOSAIC Inquiry” or call 210-985-3732.

Join the Contemporary for an afternoon of sustainable fashion fun in a Gender Affirming clothing swap. Get items out of your closet and give them a new life with someone new or with a personalized alteration. Contemporary will provide materials to sew, embroider, and otherwise alter items of clothing you bring or swap with someone else.  
 
Participants are asked to bring at least three freshly laundered clothing items in good, ready-to-wear condition to enter the swap. You can also bring items you want to alter and keep for yourself! 
 
This event is free and open to everyone with registration (link below).

Would you like to support exhibition programs like these? Consider donating $5 with your registration! 
 

Free & Open to High School Students

Have you ever wanted to illustrate your own comic? This “Drawing and Designing Comics” session is an introduction to the elements of visual storytelling, from character design to page layout and dialogue. Students will develop writing, drawing, and design skills and are encouraged to develop their personal style and voice. In addition to technical skills, an exploration of creative thinking, problem solving, and critical analysis will be studied.

Schedule
June 11 – July 18, 2025
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday: 9:00 am – 12:00 pm

No class: June 19, July 4

Location
Contemporary at Blue Star
116 Blue Star
San Antonio TX, 78204

Questions? 
Contact our Education and Public Programs Manager: Juan Zavala Castro at juan@contemporarysa.org or (210)-985-3732

Join the Contemporary and local artist Shelby Criswell in a day of art making “en plein air,” aka outdoors, along the river trail.

Shelby will demo some tips and tricks for landscape art in the Contemporary’s Education Space prior to art making outdoors. Participants are encouraged to bring folding chairs and picnic blankets to sit on and an umbrella. Drawing materials will be provided, but feel free to bring any other art supplies you might want to have on hand.

+ For this event, we’ll start in our Education Space (132 Blue Star). Meet us there! Our Education Space is located between our main gallery and Slab Cinema.

+ Free and open to the public with registration (link below)

 Are you an artist looking to secure funding for your next project? Join us for an informative workshop where you’ll learn the ins and outs of grant writing.

San Antonio grassroots organizations San Antonio Ethnic Society (SAEAS) and Contemporary Art Month (CAM) are coming together in partnership with Contemporary at Blue Star to bring back the Grant Writing for Artists 101 for Contemporary Art Month! We invite artists at all stages of their career to join this grant writing workshop designed to help understand the application and reporting processes, along with practical tips and tricks to help applications stand out among the crowd. The workshop will be lead by the Contemporary’s Director of Development, Elaine Leahy.

We invite artists at all stages of their career to join this grant writing workshop designed to help understand the application and reporting processes, along with practical tips and tricks to help applications stand out among the crowd.

Location: Education Space at Contemporary at Blue Star | 132 Blue Star (located between the Contemporary’s main entrance and Slab Cinema)

This event is FREE and open to all. Registration is required (link below).

+ Education Space, 132 Blue Star

Contemporary at Blue Star is excited to welcome visitors to “Back from Berlin,” an artist talk with two of the 2023-2024 Berlin residency program alumni artists, Theresa Newsome and Juan Carlos Escobedo. 
 
Since establishing the program in 2013, the Contemporary  annually selects four artists residing in Bexar County to take part in three-month residencies in Berlin, Germany in partnership with the renowned Künstlerhaus Bethanien.  
 
Join us as the 2023-2024 alumni artists reflect on their time in Berlin and share the work they created while in the residency. Light refreshments will be provided. 
 
Due to limited space registration is required (link below)!

+ This event will happening our Education Space (132 Blue Star). Meet us there! Our Education Space is located between our main gallery and Slab Cinema. 

Looking to learn a new skill or putting together a last-minute Halloween costume? Join the Contemporary in a beginner friendly sewing workshop. Participants will learn the basics of hand sewing and how to make fit alterations to clothing. Ideal for thrifted finds or to piece together a frightful look. Participants are encouraged to bring a shirt to alter, but materials will be provided

Educators can receive 1.5 hours of CPE credits for this program. For details contact our Education and Public Programs Manager at Juan@Contemporarysa.org

 

About the Instructor:
Andrea Izaguirre (b. Caracas, Venezuela) is a San Antonio based artist currently involved with the community through doing workshops with local museums. In 2023 she obtained her BFA from The University of Texas at San Antonio with a concentration in Printmaking. Her body of work involves different methods of printmaking, leatherworking, sewing and mixed media sculptures. Her artwork reflects a conversation between nature and the self, exploring topics of identity and culture through the intrinsic geometry and structure of plants and insects, and their symbolism.

+ Registration required (see link below). 

+ Educators can receive 6 hours of CPE credits for this program. For details contact our Education and Public Programs Manager at Juan@Contemporarysa.org

Learn about the possibilities of portrait painting in a workshop with exhibiting artist Leeanna Chipana. Following a presentation and demonstration, students will transfer an image of a Moche portrait vessel to a canvas. Using earth oil paint, participants will learn how to paint onto the canvas with an “old master” underpainting technique known as “grisaille” painting and finish their piece in full color.

Materials and light lunch will be provided.

About the Artist
Leeanna Chipana was born on Long Island, NY to an immigrant Quechuan-Peruvian father and American mother. She studied classical drawing at the Grand Central Atelier and received her MFA in painting from the New York Academy of Art in 2017. She has participated in group exhibitions at the Long Island Museum, the Heckscher Museum, Southampton Arts Center, Wausau Museum of Contemporary Art, Amelie A. Wallace Gallery of SUNY Old Westbury, and the Wilkinson Gallery.

+ Scroll down to RSVP

 

Celebrate our exhibition, Xicanx: Dreamers + Changemakers | Soñadores + Creadores del Cambio, and fund a bus during the Big Give at our Westside Lotería Night! The Big Give is a 24-hour fundraising event hosted by the Nonprofit Council, connecting nonprofits, like the Contemporary, in south central Texas with new and existing donors.

Join us for an evening of Westside Lotería, a game created by Xicanx featured artist Juan Miguel Ramos. This special event gives you a chance to win incredible art prizes from Xicanx artists while helping fund bus transportation for school tours and visits to the Contemporary.

Pay what you can at the door (suggested donation: $5) to get your card and join the game. All are welcome! We look forward to seeing you there and making a difference together!

Can’t make it? You can still support us by helping is spread the word or by donating directly to our Big Give page, located here.