Aug 01 Saturday
British artist Lucy Sparrow is internationally renowned for her unique and immersive installations filled with thousands of items, all meticulously handcrafted from felt. Through her work, Sparrow transforms everyday retail environments into playful, nostalgic, and tactile worlds that are both familiar and entirely new. Lucy Sparrow: The Beginning of Convenience, Sparrow’s first museum exhibition in the United States, will take visitors back in time through an immersive “time capsule” installation of a 1980s-90s Walmart-inspired supermarket.
Expanding on her extensive archival research practice, The Beginning of Convenience includes more than 20,000 individually hand-crafted and exquisitely detailed felt replicas of supermarket products, ranging from food and beverage items to beauty products and household goods typical of a not-so-distant past. Throughout the exhibition, Sparrow will explore a particular moment in history that she refers to as the “beginning of convenience,” a time when the rise of dual-income households in the 1980s necessitated consumer goods that prioritized speed and convenience over effort and taste. Changing roles within the household led to the development and proliferation of quick and easy consumer goods, such as microwave dinners, frozen foods, and out-of-the-box meals.
In addition to the supermarket experience, The Beginning of Convenience will feature a built replica of Sparrow’s studio – known as the Felt Cave – and a new self-made documentary that follows Sparrow’s work in the months leading up to the exhibition at the Momentary.
Free, no tickets required.
Chuck Ramirez (1962-2010) was a San Antonio-based artist with a reverence for material culture. For many years, his day job was as a graphic designer and art director for the Texas grocery chain H-E-B. In his commercial work, he helped sell products that lined store shelves and filled home pantries. Ramirez’s photographs will prompt viewers to consider that the goods people buy, consume, discard, or treasure are more than just things; they are evidence of life. In the photographs, the artist positioned material culture as reflections of humanity, community, memory, and loss.
In his artwork, Ramirez often recast commercial products as windows onto the people who consumed them. Ramirez’s affinity for everyday “stuff” was a continuous thread throughout his practice. The artist’s ability to find wonder in the ordinary takes center stage in this exhibition.
There’s always artmaking in the Hub! Pop in from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. for a spontaneous free Pop‑In Artmaking experience. Pop-In Artmaking transforms our teaching studios into flexible making spaces where guests can experiment with a rotating selection of tools and materials. Projects shift frequently; one day you might explore cardboard construction, make buttons or stickers, try simple screen printing, or take a spin on the pottery wheel. Designed for visitors of all ages, the Pop‑Up Studio invites you to drop in, try something new, and engage with the creative process in an informal, open-ended, hands‑on environment. Stop by to see what pops up, and you may discover your next favorite way to make art! Free, no tickets required.
Learn the basics of painting through a four-week modern take on the classic barn quilt. After a visit to America 250: Common Threads for inspiration, you’ll sketch ideas and explore simple color theory to mix vibrant hues to create quilt block patterns.
In the studio, a teaching artist will guide you as you plan your composition on paper, then measure, mask, and paint crisp geometric shapes on a large wooden panel.
Everyone will leave with a finished contemporary barn quilt that blends tradition, creativity, and their personal artistic style.
Explore acrylic painting through a bold, pop‑art style inspired by the colors, lines, and energy of Keith Haring. The six-week class begins with a visit to Keith Haring in 3D to spark ideas around movement, rhythm, and simplified figures.
In the studio, beginners follow step‑by‑step guidance to build animal and human figures, starting with simple stick forms and growing them into a strong composition. Students will learn key painting skills like color mixing, complementary color schemes, layering, brush control, and basic composition, while also experimenting with paint markers to add graphic lines and details. More experienced painters are welcome to develop their own ideas with individual support from the teaching artist.
Everyone will leave with a finished canvas painting that reflects the joyful spirit of Haring’s work and their own creative voice.
Tickets are $225 ($187.50/members and adults 25 and under). Reserve your spot online or with Guest Experience at (479) 657-2335 today.
All materials are included. Class runs August 8 - September 12.
Aug 02 Sunday
Keith Haring in 3D is the first exhibition to highlight Keith Haring’s work in three dimensions, inviting visitors to move through, around, and within his art like never before. In the course of his short life, Keith Haring transmitted across a dizzying range of creative channels: painting, sculpture, installation, video, murals, performance, printmaking, early digital art, and more. While Haring helped define the look and mood of the 1980s, he also saw clearly a future that has become our present.
Haring is typically thought of as primarily a two-dimensional artist, but Keith Haring in 3D focuses on a lesser-known and highly compelling aspect of Haring’s practice as a sculptor. He created hundreds of three-dimensional artworks, beginning with painting objects he found in the street. Eventually, Haring made monumental sculptures in wood and metal, and even a whole store for his art.
Haring was, above all, a master of line, with an instinctive ability to compose on multiple scales. Haring’s work in three dimensions has never been the focus of a major exhibition and has rarely been shown. Keith Haring in 3D will fill this gap in public understanding by showcasing a wide range of Haring’s works, including sculpture, totems and masks, skateboards, clothing, boomboxes, paintings, drawings, and even a 1963 Buick Special. The exhibition will be accompanied by a major book published by Phaidon/Monacelli.
Aug 03 Monday