Exclusive to the Jesse Trevino Museo Alameda Exibit .The exhibit featuring the San Antonio native artist's life work is on display until Feb. 10- 2010 Photo:Daniela Riojas
By Mike Sanch
In 1949, Tano Lucchese, a prominent and native San Antonio businessman, assisted in the establishment of, “The Alameda”, a movie palace that was dedicated to showing Spanish language entertainment.
Flash forward to 1991, and the building had became a dilapidated landmark in downtown San Antonio. However, with the help of several clairvoyant and determined individuals, the Alameda is once again catering to the public. The Museo Alameda is focused primarily on displaying art produced by the Hispanic, Mexican American, and Chicano experience. On April 13, 2007, the Museo Alameda proudly held the grand opening of its’ renovated permanent facility in bravura downtown San Antone.
The Museo Alameda location enjoys a rich history of performance arts and movie projections associated with numerous amounts of spice in Latin culture. So to continue and keep the dream alive for Mr. Luchese, who so desperately sought an outlet for the arts in San Antonio, the Museo Alameda has not strayed from expressing the Latino influence on the rich culture San Antonio hosts.
To continue on with the theme of presenting Latino arts, the Museo Alameda has teamed up with the Smithsonian Museum. Forming the largest museum in the nation dedicated to Latino arts and culture, and in addition is the official state of Texas Latino museum. The cooperation with the Smithsonian has formally been called, the Museo Alameda del Smithsonian. Their mission statement and intent is, “To tell the story of the Latino experience in America through art, history and culture.”
Museo Alameda is also the first museum (outside of D.C.) to be formally affiliated with the Smithsonian Institution. The collaboration allows the institutions to expand the exhibits, and present some of the most invaluable pieces of Latino culture and history. Tapping into the vast catalogues of art pieces from twelve of the Smithsonian institutions, the Museo Alameda has acquired a collection that has been prepared for your viewing pleasure. The Museo Alamada’s assortment of art is constantly being updated and exhibits are featured and rotated periodically.
At the Museo, patrons are treated to architecture that is art in itself. The bright and vibrant colors invite your soul to venture deeper into the building and discover the contents of this masterfully renovated building. The first room features a room with mounted projectors that displays movies and scenes of the historic Latin experiences. Visitors are literally surrounded by and enveloped by the scenes. The Museo presents the artifacts and art exhibits in a tasteful setup that inspires your body to want to roam back and forth in between exhibits.
The Museo’s architectural layout allocates a setup that the Museo Alameda describes as, “A Museo with no walls”. This intriguing concept is executed dramatically with bright pastel painted walls that seem to gently lead you down a path of discovery. The layout can be described as attractive and engaging. You truly have to see for yourself to experience the full effect the Museo presents.
The Museo Alameda is located directly adjacent to historic Mercado square, which provides the perfect atmosphere and compliments the cultural heritage. With its geographical location, the Museo is a milieu unique to San Antonio. So next time you venture downtown, make sure you stop by and take in the culture.
For more information including price and hours of operation visit: www.thealameda.org
By Jesse Trevino
Editor at Large
"Education rears disciples, imitators, and routinists, not pioneers of new ideas and creative geniuses. . . . The mark of the creative mind is that it defies a part of what it has learned or, at least, adds something new to it."
-Ludwig Von Mises (economist-philosopher) 
