LibGuides: Art: Art Appreciation

New Art & Photography @ SAPL

Arts Events

Come into your library for arts events just for teens and adults.

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San Antonio Express Art News

Local Art News from the San Antonio Express-News

NYT Arts and Culture

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Welcome to the Arts

Art Appreciation is for those interested less in academic research and more in just learning about art for personal pleasure.

Search Our Databases

Search our databases to locate magazine and journal articles about art.

Gale In Context: Biography This link opens in a new window
Search biographies with related full-text articles from hundreds of periodicals, as well as tens of thousands of images and links to hand-picked web sites. Discover more about your favorite artist.

Books and Media of Interest

California Design, 1930-1965 by Los Angeles County Museum of Art
The first comprehensive study of California mid century design. California in the mid 20th century had a bold and lasting influence in ceramics, furniture, graphic design, and our collective imagination. Explore your favorite forms and the history of their development.
I for Imagine by by Marc Riboud & Catherine Chaine
Don't know your Z's from your A's in photography? This gorgeous alphabet of images by Marc Riboud will teach you a new way of reading photography - by portraying a word, a gesture, and the image that holds it in place.
Art of the Digital Age by by Bruce Wands
A comprehensive survey of Digital Art over the past three decades. From classic computer art to interactive collaborative online art, explore how art has expanded from traditional museum settings into cyberspace.
The River Spectacular by essays by Wendy Weil Atwell
Have you taken a recent stroll down the Riverwalk Museum Reach? Explore the 12 artists commissioned to create site specific public art that flows with light, sound, and reflection along the river.
Sister Wendy's 1000 masterpieces by by Wendy Beckett
A great introduction to art masterpieces. Paintings selected include Wendy's explanation of the work's subject and techniques. Each work of art includes information on the gallery or museum where the work is housed.
Themes of Contemporary Art by by Jean Robertson and Craig McDaniel
An excellent overview of contemporary art from Oxford Press. Organized by theme, this book explores how identity, the body, time, place, language, science and spirituality shape our art.

Websites of Interest

The Following web sites provide information about viewing and appreciating art in San Antonio. Visit and enjoy art around town in person, and check out our page on Art at the Library for what the San Antonio Public Library has to offer.

Southwest School of Art
The Southwest School of Art is a leader in arts education, offering studio programs for adults, children and teens. Classes and workshops are taught by local, regional and national artists; the school will offer a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree starting in the fall of 2013.

The school also organizes contemporary art exhibitions, lectures and concerts and is our partner in developing the Marie Swartz Art Resource Center.
Fotoseptiembre
This international photography festival features more than 100 local exhibits during September. The galleries, museums and online exhibitions are eclectic forums for photographic artists and photo enthusiasts from around the world. Check out photographs in the Central Library gallery space and beyond.
Blue Star Contemporary Art Center
A Southtown tradition and hotspot for First Friday that is "Inspiring the creative genius in us all."
Glasstire
Taking a road trip and want to check out regional art? Glasstire is a website about the incredible variety of Texas visual art - you can find art news, nearby exhibits in Austin, Houston and Dallas, and insightful articles.
McNay Art Museum
McNay Art Museum has a strong collection of 19th- and 20th-century European and American paintings and sculpture by significant artists ranging from Paul Cézanne to Auguste Rodin. They also have a teacher resource center to foster arts appreciation.
Museo Alameda
The Museo Alameda, an affiliate of The Smithsonian Institution, is the nation’s largest Latino museum.
PASA - Public Art San Antonio
Enjoy art as you walk around downtown, along the riverwalk, even in public parks. Public Art San Antonio brings art to some of your favorite places.
SA Hearts - Department for Cultural and Creative Development
Do you love art? The City of San Antonio's Office of Cultural Affairs has links to many arts organizations, a featured artist of the month and an art calendar for the city.
San Antonio Museum of Art
SAMA emphasizes the art of the Americas including pre-Columbian, Spanish Colonial and Latin American folk art. The exhibits also include Greco-Roman Art, and a new Asian art wing.
The Holocaust: Learn and Remember
Website dedicated to The Holocaust: Learn and Remember. Listing Events throughout San Antonio.
CAM - Contemporary Art Month - 2018
Every March, during Contemporary Art Month (CAM), San Antonio artists and curators present the best our community has to offer at galleries, museums, performing arts spaces, schools, restaurants and stores.
Luminaria: Arts Night in San Antonio
Held in November, Luminaria is San Antonio's night-time annual celebration of art and artists. Overseen by San Antonio's creative leaders, it is free of charge and showcases all art forms in an outdoor setting and inside various venues downtown.
Americans for the Arts
Mission is to serve, advance, and lead the network of organizations and individuals who cultivate, promote, sustain, and support the arts in America. Connecting your best ideas and leaders from the arts, communities, and business, together we can work to ensure that every American has access to the transformative power of the arts.
Arts Blog USA
Art blog from Americans for the Arts