Time Flies

"My Circus, My World" reception.

 It suddenly occurred to me that it's been a long while since I've posted anything here about the comings and goings we've experienced of late. Since getting our Arriba Arte Studios space at Tres Rebecas in January things have been very busy. We started the new year off with a circus themed art show, "My Circus, My World", where I sold a couple of pieces and got to see some old friends as well. Bonus! 

In February we put up pastel still life art for sale at the Tres Rebecas store. 

March found us at the National Association for Chicana and Chicano Studies Conference where we met some wonderful people from around the country. We also sold a good many Milagro de Monterrey books and one of my pastel still life paintings. The night before, I got a call from a private collector who purchased one of my paintings that I had been planning to sell at the conference. Not bad!

 Now it's April. We've learned a lot about putting together a schedule for our space. We've especially learned to pace ourselves so we don't burn ourselves out. We had planned another art opening this month but realized that would be out of the question. We've decided it would be best to reschedule for the summer. We did manage to put on a marionette variety show this past weekend at the San Antonio Museum of Art. Pammy and I felt really good afterward and are thinking about future marionette productions. 

Next on the calendar will be some Milagro de Monterrey booksigning at the Texas Book Festival this Saturday. Look for me in the San Antonio Story - En Nuestras Palabras section at the "Children's Tent" sponsored by the Latino Leadership for the Library Committee from 3:15 to 3:45 where I'll also be selling some art. 

Between now and the beginning of May we'll be prepping for a book signing and art show featuring the children's picture book "The Milagro de Monterrey which will take place at Tres Rebecas on May 4th. I will be painting new illustrations from the story based on unused sketches which will be for sale. Lots to do and we're grateful for it.

Marionettes and Midsummer Night

Spring Break brought a lot of work our way starting with some puppet building and soon followed by some set piece repair work for the San Antonio Metropolitan Ballet's production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" for which we have to refurbish a sleigh.

That show opens April 20th but on April the 7th we'll be presenting a marionette variety show at the San Antonio Museum of Art for the Family Day event. I've got a couple of new marionettes I will be building for that show. Busy, busy, busy!

The Snow Queen Props

These are some of the props and set pieces for the San Antonio Metropolitan Ballet's production of the Snow Queen which opens Saturday, November 3rd. Pammy and I were given some of the pre-existing props and set pieces that were used the last time the ballet was performed and cleaned, fixed and generally improved them. We're pretty happy with the results.

The letters needed some repair work. Considering they were made of foam core they held up pretty well but had a few stains and had come apart in some places. They were supposed to look like they were made of ice so I decided they should look like the Icey logo lettering. 

 I used soft foam for the "snow" cutting it with scissors to the desired frosty shape then hot gluing the pieces to each letter. I finished them off by painting the letters in whites and blues for that cold feeling.





 The sleigh was Pammy's baby. She used a combination of fabric, decorative trim and "jewels" to give it that regal look befitting a Snow Queen. Tis a thing of beauty!

Step One- Prime.

The cottage flat underwent a complete make over. It started off looking quite different and ended up looking like this. The challenge was not so much in the repainting of it but making a new roof for it which was somehow not attached to the flat and was lost. The wasn't a budget for a new roof so I had to get creative.

I managed to gather what remained of the foam used to dress up the "love letters" to create the thatched roof then painted it the appropriate colors. 

Step 2- Paint timbers.

Step 3- Paint greenery and flowers.

Step 4- Finished

This Island Earth Mutant

Metalluna Mutant. 18'x 24 'Acrylic on Board. Copyright Alberto Ramirez Jr. 2012.

Taking Prisoners at the Alamo

General Castrillon Takes Prisoners. 3'x5' Acrylic on Masonite. Alberto Ramirez Jr., 2002. 


The story of the Battle of the Alamo is a well known story. After a thirteen day siege, the Mexican army of a couple thousand storms the Alamo compound before dawn and wipes out the garrison of 200 or so Texians. 

What is not commonly known is that despite General Santa Anna's order to take no prisoners, there were some Texians that were taken prisoner presumably by General Castrillon. It has been suggested that one of the prisoners may have been Davy Crockett. General Castrillon brought the prisoners before Santa Anna hoping that they would be spared but Santa Anna immediately ordered them killed.

 Though the most recent Alamo movie produced by Ron Howard doesn't depict that exact scene it does have lone survivor ,Davy Crockett, briefly a prisoner but is soon ordered killed.      

Winter Tree

Winter Tree.  9"x 12"Acrylic on Canvas Board.  Copyright Alberto Ramirez Jr. 2012.

Panther Woman

F, Feline. 8 1/2"x11" Acrylic on Card Stock. Copyright Alberto Ramirez Jr. 2012.