The San Jacinto College community had a chance to celebrate all things artistic Nov. 5-7 when the three academic campuses hosted a wide range of events for Fine Arts Week 2019: Celebrate the Americas.

Jeff McGee, the South Campus Fine Arts Department Chair, said the plan to showcase the College’s arts programs through a “unified concept” was developed by the Fine Arts Council, a district-wide group.

“The idea is to bring attention to the fine arts areas on all three campuses while providing entertaining, educational, and interactive programming to the SJC community,” he said.

On the Central Campus, events included a hands-on printmaking workshop, a steel band concert featuring Pan Virtuoso Liam Teague, and a gallery reception closing the art exhibition We Are Here, Here We Are. The reception included a performance and dance lessons from the Houston Hepcats, who were there on behalf of the Houston Swing Dance Society.

Alesandra Bull and Ross Reagan lead the dance lesson and taught participants how to Shim Sham.

“It’s super fun,” Bull said. “Anyone can swing dance. It’s not something that you have to have a musical talent for.” 

Participant Mia Garcia, an art student, said she found it fun to “learn something new.” 

“It was hard, it was tiring,” Garcia said, “but it was a good experience.”

On the South Campus Campus, an interdisciplinary Arts Festival offered a leather cuff workshop, a gallery talk with the artist behind the BrainTree exhibition, as well as a Lunch & Learn with UHD graphic design faculty. Moreover, live entertainment included an interactive Hula lesson, a performance of The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail, and a Native American dance performance with Greater Promise for American Indians.

The North Campus treated attendees to a speaker series with topics ranging from the funeral customs of Houston and the customs of Dia de Los Muertos to New Orleans Jazz funerals. The presentation included a live musical performance from Dixieland Quartet. Also, event participants visited the art gallery to view Dia de los Muertos: A Celebration of Life, Culture, and Creativity before moving to a Day of the Dead festival in the lobby of the Fine Arts Center.

Meanwhile, McGee said he hopes attendees leave the events with “new knowledge and experiences.”

“An education is not just about studying for tests,” he added. “Hands-on and experiential learning are equally important.”

Ana Lara contributed to this report.