By Dr. Ricardo Romo
Ashley Mireles titled her cover art “Joan the Evangelist.” She considers Joan the Evangelists the patron saint of artists. Her work is currently in an exhibit at the Centro de Artes on Market Square. The exhibit is made possible through the support of the City of San Antonio Department of Arts & Cul- ture in partnership with the New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA).
Mireles is one of 28 artists selected for the exhibit as part of the first round of participants in NYFA’s Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program. This exhibit features the works of 26 San Antonio-based artists and three partner organizations. An interdisciplinary artist and educator, Mireles creates works based on her environment as well as social and political concerns. While producing drawings, prints, and murals for public consumption, she employs in her words, “both homage and social critique, along with humor.” Mireles uses an illustrative style to explore cultural issues, gender roles, and the human condition.
Mireles has exhibited nationally with a forthcoming public art commission to open in the City of San Antonio in 2020. Her artwork has been collected by the National Museum of Mexican Art, MexicArte Museum, Zuckerman Museum of Art, Texas Christian University Print Collection, the City of San Antonio, and the University of Texas Libraries Special Collections. Her work has been published in The American Statesman, Huffington Post, and Mitú.
Mireles continues to focus her practice on community access by developing and organizing creative workshops and other educational programming for regional arts institutions including Artpace San Antonio, where she serves as the Education Coordinator. She is also a founding member of Creative Women’s Alliance formed to create and support professional arts opportunities for women of color within the San Antonio arts community.
Previously, Mireles co- directed La Printeria, a non- profit printmaking organization located in the city’s Westside. La Printeria specializes in producing fine art prints for the artist community while training youths in the serigraph process.
Mireles is a young artist whom we expect to hear more about in San Antonio. While working full time at ArtPace directing their education programs, she spends her evenings and weekends completing a commission for a metal sculpture for Hardberger Park.
