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Titled "Going Home," Carla J. Clay is known for her use of color. (Carla J. Clay)
The 20th annual Austin Studio Tour has come to a close, showcasing 530 locally-based artists and their take on the paths that brought them to the city. With the mission of engaging and connecting "creatives that help define the culture of our city," the tour dove all over the East and West to showcase the color in Austin.
Though their work is no longer on display, here are a few Austinite artists to keep your eye on.
Lea Alvarado
Lea Alvarado started her artistic journey when she was just 5 years old in her hometown of Queretaro, Mexico, where she has since been named a prodigy, moved to Austin at 12 years old. Attacking the socio-political issues facing the 20-year-old's generation, Alvarado has won awards from the YAM State Capitol Exhibit and the Governor's Gallery and says she wants to "portray that there is right and wrong in everything."
Lucas Aoki
Born in Córdoba, Argentina, Lucas Aoki started painting in one of the most beloved styles of the city—mural art—after his 2010 move to Austin. Through his whimsical characters that spark curiosity, Aoki has done projects for ACL Festival, SXSW, Alamo Drafthouse, Microsoft and more over the past eight years.
Brock Caron
A native Austinite and Texas State University BFA recipient, Brock Caron is a painter, sculptor and illustrator who works on all types of media.
Focusing on early American life, sights that might be familiar to Hill Country-dwellers, and "small towns untouched by a fast-paced world," Caron spends his free time similarly—with a beer and a bit of cash leftover for the jukebox. Caron is currently a member of the nonprofit arts organization Contracommon in Bee Cave, Texas.
Holly Cerna
Exploring social impacts of technology, the colors of emotion and light as a representation of the soul, 23-year-old Holly Cerna is a painter that works through color theory. Her depictions of daily life transcend the everyday experience, showing common objects of middle-class life while keeping the magic behind them alive.
Carla J. Clay
Using bright and lively colors to convey the native elements of Texas that inspire her most, El Paso native Carla J. Clay's interpretation of Native American symbols influences her work. With a background in computer engineering, art has always been her first love, and her work can be seen at The People's Gallery in Austin.
Ariel René Jackson and Michael J. Love
Focusing on the Black past and the Black future, Jackson and Love both have Austin ties as University of Texas alumni. Jackson, who was born in Louisiana, holds her afro-creole roots true in her video, audio and performance art mediums. Jackson teaches Expanded Media at UT and the entry won the 2021 Tito's Prize.
Kristen Newcomer
A paper artist who is inspired by nature, culture and literature, Kristen Newcomer loves to read and lives with her sons and husband here in Austin. From the Blanco river flowing south in San Marcos to Lake Travis here in city limits, Newcomer's paper works show her devotion to keeping Austin beautiful. Newcomer does commissions in hopes of strengthening connections to others.
Brian Phillips
Reflecting the beauty and resilience of his home state, Brian Phillips' treasure is made from another man's trash. Converted from reclaimed wood, Phillips celebrates reassembly, imperfection and rejection reaching a new life just like his motto: "Have fun. Enjoy Life."
Alison Hightower Suttle
Using her expertise as a native Texan, Alison Hightower Suttle captures memories of the Lone Star State in her signature folk style. Highlighting the diversity that lives here, Suttle's overhead view of the city shows vignettes of individuals who share the special days she depicts.
Tom Jean Webb
Born in London in the early '80s, Tom Jean Webb found the romantic landscape he spent his childhood imagining in the American Southwest, leading him to continue his journey between realities. Shown together, Webb's paintings inform each other and create a unique land unlike our own but not far from it. Webb is now based here in Central Texas.
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(Jordan Vonderhaar/The Texas Tribune)
The Texas Senate Democratic Caucus is urging Gov. Greg Abbott to call an emergency special legislative session to consider a variety of gun restrictions and safety measures in the wake of a mass school shooting in Uvalde that left 19 children and two adults dead this week.
In a letter released Saturday morning, all 13 Senate Democrats demanded lawmakers pass legislation that raises the minimum age to purchase a firearm from 18 to 21 years old. The Uvalde gunman was 18 and had purchased two AR-style rifles which he used in the attack.
The caucus is also calling for universal background checks for all firearm sales, “red flag” laws that allow a judge to temporarily remove firearms from people who are considered an imminent threat to themselves or others, a “cooling off period” for the purchase of a firearm and regulations on high capacity magazines for citizens.
“Texas has suffered more mass shootings over the past decade than any other state. In Sutherland Springs, 26 people died. At Santa Fe High School outside Houston, 10 people died. In El Paso, 23 people died at a Walmart. Seven people died in Midland-Odessa,” the letter reads. “After each of these mass killings, you have held press conferences and roundtables promising things would change. After the slaughter of 19 children and two teachers in Uvalde, those broken promises have never rung more hollow. The time to take real action is now.”
Such laws are unlikely to gain traction in the Republican-controlled Legislature, which has a track record of favoring legislation that loosens gun restrictions. Only the governor has the power to call lawmakers back into a special session for emergency work.
Asked about a special session at a Friday press conference in Uvalde, Abbott said “all options are on the table” adding that he believed laws would ultimately be passed to address this week’s horrors. However, he suggested laws would be more tailored toward addressing mental health, rather than gun control.
“You can expect robust discussion and my hope is laws are passed, that I will sign, addressing health care in this state,” he said, “That status quo is unacceptable. This crime is unacceptable. We’re not going to be here and do nothing about it.”
He resisted the idea of increasing the age to purchase a firearm, saying that since Texas became a state, 18-year-olds have been able to buy a gun.
He also dismissed universal background checks saying existing background check policies did not prevent the Santa Fe and Sutherland Springs shootings, which both happened while he has been in office.
“If everyone wants to seize upon a particular strategy and say that’s the golden strategy right there, look at what happened in the Santa Fe shooting,” he said. “A background check had no relevance because the shooter took the gun from his parents…Anyone who suggests we should focus on background checks as opposed to mental health, I suggest is mistaken.”
Since the massacre at Robb Elementary School, the governor’s comments about potential solutions have centered around increasing mental health services, rather than restricting access to firearms.
This story has been edited for length.
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(Project Connect)
Designs for stations along Project Connect’s Blue Line were presented this week, giving a detailed look at what part of the rail system extending from downtown to the airport could look like.
The planned stations that have gotten the latest focus include Waterfront, Travis Heights and Lakeshore stations past Lady Bird Lake.
At the Waterfront station, the preliminary design aims to prevent visual obstructions and save on costs. This is accomplished by a transit guideway that will lower from the bridge to a level station.
Heading onto East Riverside Drive, the light rail faces a curve requiring a slow down to about 10 miles per hour.
The Travis Heights station could involve relocating a pedestrian crosswalk zone at Alameda Drive to Blunn Creek. Since light rails can't effectively operate on a steep grade, this allows the transit guideway to avoid that.
From there, the rail will extend to the Norwood Park area, and though it will reach along the right-of-way zone, the park will be able to remain open.
A view of the Blue Line by Lady Bird Lake. (Project Connect)
The line involves some coordination with the Texas Department of Transportation. That's because the department is working on an intersection that will have to be built before the phasing of the section of the Blue Line involving an I-35 crossing.
When it comes to the safety of cyclists and walkers, design ideas include a pedestrian hybrid beacon by East Bouldin Creek that would provide a protected signal to cross. And for the intersection TxDOT is carrying out, Project Connect is working with them on pedestrian access across the intersection. It could involve shared use paths along the street and crossings beneath it.
This summer, the public can expect 30% of design and cost estimates to be released. Though the project was $7.1 billion when voters approved it in November 2020, the latest estimates factoring in inflation and supply chain constraints show it could ultimately be upwards of $10 billion.
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