Art Spark Texas

Women Veterans Strong
2024-12-14 08:00 - 09:00, 2025-01-11 08:00 - 09:00 (America/Chicago)
A virtual group for women vets to connect, create, and converse.
We are reading The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron and meeting once a month to discuss each chapter.
Starts September 14th.
Two options: Meet either second Saturdays from 8-9 am or second Wednesdays from noon-1 pm.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83168620735?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 831 6862 0735
Passcode: [REDACTED]

Professional Learning with Dr. Tina Curran
2024-12-14 15:00 - 17:30 | Rosedale School, 7505 Silvercrest Drive, Austin, TX, 78757, United States
Professional Learning with Dr. Tina Curran, December 14th 3-5.30pm in person.

In this professional learning workshop with Dr. Tina Curran participants go through a creative dance lesson experience, deconstruct it through reflection, and introduce backward design and provide a template for lesson planning that participants can use.

The lesson will include Language of Dance which has been useful for English Language Learners and mixed ability learners.

Dr. Tina Curran is the director of UTeach Dance at the Department of Theatre and Dance. She oversees the preparation and professional mentorship of students in the B.F.A. in Dance: Dance Studies Optionpursuing their Texas dance teacher certification, acts as a liaison with the College of Education and oversees educational initiatives within the program and in the dance education community. Her areas of research explore dance literacy, living dance legacy and teacher preparation and professional development. Dr. Curran is a co-founder, with Ann Hutchison Guest, of the Language of Dance Center (USA). She conducts LOD certification courses and workshops nationally and internationally. She is a faculty member of the Dance Education Laboratory at the Harkness Dance Center in New York City where she offered courses in the Language of Dance, Dancing History/Living Legacy, topics in dance pedagogy, and transformational teaching. She has facilitated training, presented workshops and given interactive keynotes at numerous locations including the University of California Santa Barbara, Brigham Young University, New York University, Royal Academy of Dance and Roehampton University in the United Kingdom, Taipei National University of the Arts, El Centro Nationale des les Arts in Mexico City, New York City Department of Education, National Dance Education Organization, Dance and the Child International, International Council of Kinetography Laban, Dance History Scholars, Center for Educator Development in Fine Arts, Texas Dance Educators Association.
Dr. Curran received a B.F.A. in Dance from The Juilliard School, an M.F.A. in Choreographic Theory and Practice from Southern Methodist University and a Ph.D. in Teaching and Administration from New York University. Her certifications include: Language of Dance Certification Specialist, Teacher of Labanotation and American Ballet National Training Curriculum.

Art Spark TX Radio Hour Show
2024-12-16 14:00 - 15:00, 2024-12-23 14:00 - 15:00
Tune in every Monday at 2:00 PM CT to the Art Spark TX Radio Hour live on the Austin airwaves at KOOP 91.7 FM or streaming at https://koop.org/program/art-spark-tx-radio-hour/
Bringing inclusive discussion of topics important to the disability community & beyond!

Art Spark TX Radio Hour Show
2024-12-30 14:00 - 15:00
Tune in every Monday at 2:00 PM CT to the Art Spark TX Radio Hour live on the Austin airwaves at KOOP 91.7 FM or streaming at https://koop.org/program/art-spark-tx-radio-hour/
Bringing inclusive discussion of topics important to the disability community & beyond!
Ring in 2025 with our annual poetry show! Live poet round table hosted by Christina Culverhouse and featuring local and visiting poets.

Texas Veterans Strong Creative Network
2025-01-09 10:30 - 11:30, 2025-02-13 10:30 - 11:30, 2025-03-13 10:30 - 11:30 | Virtual
Join us for this monthly virtual creative network that connects Arts Organization, Veteran Organizations, and Creative Veterans to share ideas, network, and collaborate to elevate and support or creative Texas Veterans. Together, we are strong!
Register to receive the meeting link: tps://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMrdOmgpzMsHNYYU-Wv-UyUGYxf7d6OvDrU

The Lion & Pirate Open Mic - Virtual
2025-01-12 13:00 - 14:30
The Lion & Pirate invites you to our virtual inclusive open mic for writers, performers, and musicians! As always, we’re open to work in any genre: music, spoken word, improv, skits, storytelling, dance, poems or prose… Anything you can perform!
🗓️ **When**: Sunday, January 12th, 2025
🕖 **Time**: 1:00 – 2:30 PM CDTWe invite you to our first open mic of 2025, Sunday, January 12, 1-2:30 pm on Zoom. During this time, we’d like to invite your feedback about the future of the Lion & Pirate. Some questions we’re considering as organizers:

How did you feel about the in person/ virtual hybrid event in December? Would you like to do more open mics like this?
Making each L&P run smoothly is a two-person job. Who has interest in co-hosting, even if it’s just for one event (not a long-term commitment)?
Are there changes you’d like to see to Lion & Pirate? Do you want things to stay the same?

And of course, we’ll be making time for a proper round robin style open mic and hope you’ll bring a poem, song, story, or other performance (or two) to share.
No need to sign up, just come to the meeting and we will round robin.
Join us on Zoom:
Email info@artsparktx.org to receive the zoom link

The Lion & Pirate Open Mic - Virtual
2025-02-01 19:00 - 20:30 | https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85231105344#success
The Lion & Pirate invites you to our virtual inclusive open mic for writers, performers, and musicians! As always, we’re open to work in any genre: music, spoken word, improv, skits, storytelling, dance, poems or prose… Anything you can perform!
🗓️ **When**: Saturday, February 1st, 2025
🕖 **Time**: 7:00 – 8:30 PM CDT
Join our co-host Amy Litzinger, as she and Laura Perna launch our co-hosting Lion and Pirate Open Mic project!
and remember, next month we will be writing together, and then a hybrid gathering in April at the Art Spark studio location on San Bernard!
Please sign up Here to speak/read/sing:
If you have any questions, please email Celia at celia@artsparktx.org
PLEASE NOTE: Zoom link to the open mic here

Call for Entries: Expressions 2025 Exhibition
2025-02-07, 2025-03-03 | Barshop Jewish Community Center, 12500 NW Military Hwy #275, San Antonio, TX, 78231, United States
Mental Illness Awareness Week is an annual national observance that a 1986 presidential proclamation created to recognize “the urgent need to educate the American public about mental illnesses and their treatments.” The 2025 Mental Illness Awareness Week activities will be held from Oct 5, 2025 – Oct 11, 2025. During this week, millions of Americans will honor the challenges of mental illness, as well as celebrate the recoveries they or their loved ones have embraced.

Art Spark Texas is hosting “Expressions” our annual Mental Illness Awareness Week art exhibition at Barshop Jewish Community Center of San Antonio Texas through the month of October with an art opening on Thursday, October 23rd from 5:00-8:00 pm.

Art Spark Texas invites all artists ages 18+ in San Antonio and surrounding areas with a mental health diagnosis to submit artwork to the exhibition. There is no entry fee and 2D and 3D works in all media are eligible. The exhibit will be on display at Barshop Jewish Community Center in San Antonio in October 2025.
Fill out the linked registration form to participate:
Expression Call for Art 2025
Please contact our organization or Expressions Exhibit Coordinator Susan Beattie at 210-908-1776 if you have any further questions.

Veteran Writing Workshop: Writing in Harmony: The Collective Voice in Fiction
2025-02-08 13:00 - 15:00 | Virtual
Characters in stories are not always confined to solitary existences. They exist in groups, in congregated masses, in what we might term as collectives.
These collectives might be construction workers, or a platoon of soldiers, or a classroom filled with twelfth-graders. They might be a grocery co-op, or a neighborhood social group, or even a barrel of monkeys or a pride of lions. In this session, we will generate fiction that gives narrative voice to a collective within a story while showing how a single, articulate murmur might emerge from this group consciousness. Register today! Open to all skill levels. Free for current and prior military members. Register at Eventbrite
Taught by Clayton Bradshaw-Mittal.
Clayton (they/them) is a queer, previously unhoused veteran who holds an MFA and a PhD in Creative Writing. They teach Creative Writing at Gannon University and are the Managing Editor of New Ohio Review and No Place is Foreign Editor at Another Chicago Magazine.

Vibrancy Exhibition
2025-02-10 08:00 - 16:30, 2025-02-12 08:00 - 16:30, 2025-02-19 08:00 - 16:30, 2025-02-26 08:00 - 16:30, 2025-03-05 08:00 - 16:30, 2025-03-12 08:00 - 16:30, 2025-03-19 08:00 - 16:30 | Austin Lighthouse for the Blind, 4512 S Pleasant Valley Rd, Austin, TX, 78744, United States
Vibrancy is a group exhibition that brings together 3 Austin-based artists who explore visual harmony, color and light in their work. Hosted by Art Spark Texas, this group show includes works created across multiple mediums; including painting, photography and digital processes.

Located @ AUSTIN LIGHTHOUSE , TRAVIS ASSOCIATION FOR THE BLIND4512 S Pleasant Valley Rd, Austin, TX 78744 Hours: 8:00AM – 4:30 PM, Exhibition dates: Feb 7- April 4

Call for Art- Community Exhibition Spaces
2025-02-17 10:00 - 10:30 | Art Spark Texas, 1152 San Bernard St., Austin, TX, 78702, United States
Deadline: Ongoing
This call for art is open to all Texas artists with a disability, Texas veteran or current military member artists, and any senior artist 55 and over.
Art Spark Texas curates solo and group exhibitions at a few locations around Austin. These spaces are suitable for framed work with wire across the back for hanging. (Currently we have one community space available)

Austin Lighthouse for the Blind – Southeast Austin
We can hang around 15-20 pieces (depending on size) at this space on a two-month rotation.

Community-Gallery-Entry-Form
Or contact Jerry at jerry@artsparktx.org or 512-454-9912

Therapeutic Art
2025-02-27 15:30 - 17:00 | Caldwell County VFW Post 8927, 7007 US-183 Hwy, Lockhart, TX, 78644, United States
For all military veterans and active duty.
Free therapeutic art classes/meet ups on the last Thursday of each month from 3:30pm to 5pm.
At Caldwell County VFW Post 8927.
Address: 7007 US-183, Lockhart, TX 78644

The Lion & Pirate - Virtual Writing Group
2025-03-02 13:00 - 14:30 | Virtual
For our March gathering, we’re going to try writing together!”
🗓️ **When**: Sunday, March 2nd, 2025
🕖 **Time**: 1:00 – 2:30 PM CDT
Here is what our first-ever writers’ group will look like:

Get settled and say hi to everyone (like usual).
Laura will screen share and read a couple of writing prompts.
Time for questions.
Free write for 30 minutes (it will go faster than you think)!
Read us what you wrote or tell us about your experience (only if you want to)!
Debrief: how was this? What worked? What do you want to see done differently next time?

In the interest of keeping things accessible to all, we’ll be very interested to find out how we can use the virtual space to accommodate everyone. So please, fill out the form below, or get in touch any time to let us know what you need to write comfortably in this space.
Let us know you are coming: Here
If you have any questions, please email Laura at lperna@txdisabilities.org
PLEASE NOTE: Zoom link for Sunday’s event here

Spring Break Photography Internship
2025-03-17 10:00 - 14:00, 2025-03-18 10:00 - 14:00, 2025-03-19 10:00 - 14:00, 2025-03-20 10:00 - 14:00 | Virtual
Spring Break Photography Internship
March 17-21st, 10am-2pm (ages 15-22)
Art Spark Texas is looking for young adults with disabilities interested in our photography internship! To be considered participants should apply by March 1, have 1 reference letter and a strong interest in Photography. Once chosen, those students who complete the entire 20 hour internship will receive a $50 stipend. Limited space is available!
Application Here

The Thorn (Audio Described)
2025-03-20 19:00 - 22:00 | Bass Concert Hall, 2350 Robert Dedman Drive, Austin, TX, 78712, United States
Thursday, March 20 – Austin
7:30 pm – The Thorn
Describer: Luke Stollings
The Thorn tells the epic story of love for the world and the spiritual battle for all humanity. Often described as cirque meets the passion, The Thorn is an immersive show with live music, drama, aerial acts, movement arts, modern dance, and special effects.
Texas Performing Arts – Bass Concert Hall
2350 Robert Dedman Dr,
Austin, TX
For Tickets: Tickets Here!

JK's Just Kidding Variety Hour (Audio Described)
2025-03-20 19:30 - 21:30 | trinity street playhouse, 901 Trinity Street, Austin, 78701, United States
Thursday, March 20 – Austin
7:30 pm – JK’s Just Kidding Variety Hour
Describer: Celia Hughes
Let’s come together and celebrate the changing seasons as a community. Please join us for JK’s Just Kidding, a seasonal variety show featuring artists across mediums hailing from Austin and beyond. We have performances by drag artist and performer Gothess Jasmine, composer Graham Reynolds, ballet dancer Alexandra Achieng Ligawa, comedian and actress Lee Eddy, and film artist Lauren Sanders aka Low Pressure Salesman. And so much more! hosted by jkjk, aka Jenny Larson and khattieQ
Trinity Street Playhouse
901 Trinity Street
Austin TX
For tickets: Tickets Here!
