Meet an Arts Lover

When you phone theFund’s office, and instead of getting Kathy, you think you hear the voice of a young Lauren Hutton… in fact, it’s theFund’s premier volunteer Lauren Moore. She’s got a wicked sense of humor, a firm handshake, and like theFund’s CEO Rod Rubbo, a passion for the guitar.




Name a recent arts event that you attended:
Pagliacci dress rehearsal. Clowns are frightening.


If you could be supremely talented in one art, what would it be? 
I would be an amazing talent on the guitar. Think Keller Williams one person exhibition as opposed to my current status as a three cord hack.


What drives you to work for the arts?
I greatly appreciate the arts and everything they bring to my home town. I am not, by any stretch of the imagination, an artist. My goal is to facilitate the expansion of a vibrant arts scene in San Antonio by assisting with day to day administrative tasks and fund raising efforts. Focus on your craft creative folks, and I’ll do the paperwork.  


How can art illuminate the connections between history and current affairs?
Historical accounts and interpretations help mold our understanding of current events. All art provides ample opportunity to explore the views of others while considering our own interpretations of their art and subject matter.  


What don’t you get done at home?
I have an eleven year old “Little” through Big Brothers Big Sisters who would love to do some more hiking.

Fantastic Fuerzas/Forces

photo by Dulce Pinzon

This Thursday  at  7:00 pm, get an intimate tour with local artists of Fantastic Fuerzas/Forces at the Guadalupe Gallery. 

Curated by Patty Ortiz, Fantastic Fuerzas/Forces is an exhibition that explores the influence and significance of comics in contemporary art. Whether political or poppy in approach, artists Juan Felipe Salcedo, Gustavo Higuera, Angel Rodríguez-Diaz, Dulce Pinzón, Nadin Ospina, Jaime Higa, Xavier Garza, Rafael Fajardo, Albert Alvarez, and David Almaguer combine fuerzas to present work that, while ironic or humorous on the surface, comments on “America’s mass media manipulation into marginal worlds.” The work of Mexico’s Dulce Pinzón sums up the exhibition nicely. Dressed as comic book characters and photographed in colorful surroundings, Pinzón’s unsung heroes (immigrant workers) appear suspended in the daily grind.

This marvelous exhibit received ink as a Critic’s Pick in the San Antonio Current.


You can also read an in-depth review by Kiko Martinez here >> 


“Fantastic Fuerzas/Forces” will put you in touch with your secret super identity just in time for the Halloween weekend.


The exhibit is free, weekdays 10am-6pm and Saturday 12-5pm, Guadalupe Gallery, 723 S. Brazos St., guadalupeculturalarts.org. On view through Nov 18.


The Guadalupe Cultural Center is one of 27 affiliates of theFund. Donations to theFund help provide financial operating support to qualified arts and cultural organizations.

Why I Pledged

This week is pledge drive for Texas Public Radio, and I am proud to boast that I’m volunteering on the phones. Even better, I pledged my sixty bucks and became a new member.


I'm a long-time devout listener of public radio, but I only recently moved to Texas, nine months and 26 days ago. For months after moving here, I listened to NPR programs online, or I listened to my old home station KALW online. Listening to the Bay Area local news, however, made me homesick. And while the programs on National Public Radio are phenomenal connecting me to national and global communities, they’re not local. They don’t inform me about my neighborhood or the issues of San Antonio, Texas. 


Shows like The Source, Texas Matters, and the Living Green podcast help pry my fingers off the West Coast. It’s been thrilling to hear about the evolving controversy over the Alamo and the Daughters of the Republic. Listening to Mayor Julian Castro reflect over his year in office with Terry Gildea enwrapped me, inspiring civic esteem. But most importantly, I am heartened to know that smart, serious journalism exists in my new hometown, and more is coming. 


This month TPR reinvigorated its commitment to bringing us comprehensive local, regional, national and international news. They’re improving their news service by providing more original news reports throughout the day. They’ve even hired a report to focus on the regional cultural and political issues involving the U.S.-Mexico border.


When I reflect on what my family pays for Internet and cable in conjunction with how much we truly value and listen to public radio, sixty bucks is easily prioritized as manageable. And for me, becoming a member of TPR is another step to embracing San Antonio as my new home--like getting a library card and registering to vote.


(*If sixty dollars is as much to you as it is to me, you’ll be encouraged to know that you can space your pledge out in monthly payments.) 

Texas Public Radio is one of 27 affiliates of theFund. Donations to theFund help provide financial operating support to qualified arts and cultural organizations.

We're Celebrating Five Solid Years

This Sunday marks theFund’s fifth anniversary. Hip-hip-hurray! 


In 2005, the Tobin Endowment rallied local companies, foundations, and individuals to raise more than $200,000 to launch theFund and support its first-year operating expenses. 


Here are some stats of which we’re mighty proud, especially given the economic recession:

In the past five years, theFund has facilitated over half a million dollars in contributions to its affiliated arts and cultural organization.

Forty-seven company partners host workplace campaigns, raising an annual average of $103,130.

The average employee gift is $64, and 94 cents of every dollar raised is reallocated to our 27 affiliates.

The San Antonio United Art Fund is the first and only united art fund in Texas. While we wish there were more, we’re happy to be the first.

Want to celebrate theFund’s birthday with us? Donate a gift of $60 or more, and you will receive theFund Card, which provides discounts and "FUNd Card only" performances and events with affiliated arts and cultural organizations. 

Meet an Arts Lover

Rod Rubbo is the President/CEO of the Fund, and he moved to San Antonio just for the job. Rod has decades of experience in arts management. Before the call to San Antonio, he was President/CEO of the Cultural Center for the Arts in Canton, Ohio for nearly 30 years. He was also General Manager of the Ohio Ballet, General Manager for the North Carolina Dance Theatre at the North Carolina School for the Arts, and Company Manager for the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre. Currently, he is a member of the Rotary club of San Antonio and the Cultural Alliance of San Antonio, and he is the new President for Luminaria, Arts Night in San Antonio.


Name a recent arts and culture event or exhibit you attended:
A screening of Children of the Revolucion at the McNay


If you could be supremely talented in one art, what would it be? 
Playing the Guitar


What drives you to work for the arts in San Antonio?
Exposure to some of the world’s best talent.


How can art bring communities together? 
Events like Luminaria build communities because people see and experience the arts together.

Art on the Hill, Trolley Along

Image courtesy of Tobin Hill Art Alliance

It’s the second Friday of the month and time for Art on the Hill, an art walk of Tobin Hill art galleries and studios. The crew from the Fund will be meeting up at High Wire Gallery at 6:00pm for the VSA art exhibit, and they’ll continue on via the free trolley. Venues include Serendipity ArtSpace, Galeria Santos, SAC Visual Arts Gallery, SAVA Exhibit, La Casa Rosa Art Studio, Tycoon Flats, Treasured Restorations, and the Gallery Josephine. We hope to see you there.

Mental Illness Awareness Week Art Show @ High Wire

In observance of Mental Illness Awareness Week, we want to share this video from our friends at VSA Texas: the State Organization on Arts and Disability.

Join VSA Texas in celebrating the nationally recognized Mental Illness Awareness Week (MIAW) at a thought provoking art exhibition, recognizing the artistic accomplishments of over a dozen artists with mental illnesses.

High Wire Art Gallery
Artist Reception is Friday, October 8, 2010 at 6:30-9:30pm
The show runs through October 28.

For more information contact Susan Beattie at 210-341-4979.

VSA Texas, the state organization on arts and disability works to create a society where people with disabilities learn through, participate in, and enjoy the arts. Their mission is to promote the creative power in people with disabilities by working with all community members to facilitate full access to the cultural and educational arts. VSA Texas is a member of the international network of VSA, an affiliate of The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.