The Tobin Center for the Performing Arts in San Antonio, Texas, is not just a venue for performances. The center's art initiative often includes rotating art exhibitions, installations, and collaborations with local artists, reflecting the vibrant and diverse artistic community of San Antonio.
The initiative focuses on enhancing the cultural experience for visitors by showcasing a variety of artistic expressions, from contemporary visual art to more traditional forms. It often features works by local, regional, and sometimes national artists, providing a platform for emerging and established talent alike. These exhibitions in public spaces of The Tobin are curated to complement the performing arts events at the center, creating a rich, immersive experience for audiences within.
Additionally, The Tobin Center may host special events and programs related to its art initiatives, such as artist talks, workshops, and community outreach activities. Creatives & Cocktails, Firehouse Lounge Pop-Up Exhibits, and tours aim to engage the public, foster a deeper appreciation for the arts, and contribute to the cultural fabric of San Antonio.
Overall, the art initiative at the Tobin Center plays a crucial role in enhancing the cultural vibrancy of the center and the broader community, creating a dynamic environment where visual and performing arts intersect.
Spaces throughout the building, are available during events and by appointment.
CURRENTLY ON VIEW
Presented by The Art Initiative of the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts
Kaldric Dow is a contemporary American artist whose layered collage paintings and prints challenge traditional narratives around identity, dignity, and Black representation. Working at the intersection of portraiture and social commentary, Dow reclaims and reframes the visual legacy of Black culture through expressive figuration, found imagery, and textured abstraction.
This exhibition presents a curated selection of Dow’s collage-based works that explore the beauty, strength, and complexity of Black lives. Each portrait is a deliberate act of cultural preservation and affirmation—integrating cut paper, textiles, and painted elements to form vibrant compositions that both celebrate and critique. Through these dynamic surfaces, Dow evokes a history often overlooked or misrepresented, offering instead a space for reflection, resilience, and pride.
Dow’s work invites viewers to look deeper—beyond the face, beyond the frame—to consider how identity is constructed, who gets to be seen, and what it means to be remembered.
“My work is about dignity. It’s about presenting people—my people—as they are: complex, powerful, and full of life.” — Kaldric Dow
The Art Initiative and the Tobin Center are proud to highlight Dow’s powerful vision and amplify the vital conversations his work inspires—at the crossroads of art, activism, and lived experience.
