Dock Space Gallery and Lone Star Gallery Host FOTOSEPTIEMBRE Exhibitions By Latino Artists
Ricardo Romo Ph.D – Latinos In America

Two exhibits are featured as part of FOTOSEPTIEMBRE at Dock Space Gallery and Lone Star Gallery in San Antonio’s Lone Star District. Ricardo Romo’s Fifty Years Of Photography is on display at Dock Space Gallery, and Close to Home, an exhibit of the work of thirteen San Antonio photographers, curated by Ricardo Romo is featured at Lone Star Gallery. The photographers include Lead Artist Monica Saldana, Al Rendon, Joel Salcido, Enrique Navarrete, Kathy Vargas, Guillermina Zabala, Ramon Hernandez, Oscar Castillo, Chris Hernandez, Victoria Martinez, David Ortega, Gloria Cruz, and Ruben Chavez. 

FOTOSEPTIEMBRE, now in its 32nd year, has a long and colorful history. San Antonian Michael Mehl, a photography historian, festival entrepreneur, and founder of San Antonio’s FOTOSEPTIEMBRE, was living in Coyoacán, Mexico in the 1980s when he met Patricia Mendoza, a recent graduate of Universidad Iberoamericana who had a degree in Art History. Mehl had established a studio/atelier in Coyoacán, showing his work and that of other artists. Patricia served as director of Los Talleres, a private cultural center owned by the dancer Isabel Beteta, which was located just a few blocks from his studio. Mehl and Patricia soon became fast friends and project partners. 

Michael Mehl and Patricia Mendoza discussed creating an open, accessible photography festival—something Mehl envisioned like a féria popular (a popular fair)—independent of wealthy patrons or government directives. FOTOSEPTIEMBRE came to life in 1994, when Patricia Mendoza was named Director/Founder of the Centro de la Imagen in Mexico City. At the time, the United States had only one major biennial photography festival. Based on Mehl’s national/international presence as an artist/organizer/producer, Mendoza asked him to consider establishing the international component of FOTOSEPTIEMBRE. 

Mehl adapted and independently established FOTOSEPTIEMBRE in San Antonio in 1995 as a platform for photographers from across the community. Mehl and his wife Ann Kinser note that they founded FOTOSEPTIEMBRE as a “unique and eclectic forum for the exhibition and celebration of photography and photographically based art.” Mehl observed on his website that “It’s been a long and daunting thirty-some years of producing a festival every September and maintaining an archive of a very broad range of photographic expressions; all the while keeping FOTOSEPTIEMBRE private, independent, ongoing, and free.” Mehl’s FOTOSEPTIEMBRE eventually became the only version to adhere to the original purpose of a community-based, gatekeeper-free festival. Mehl and his wife Ann Kinser own all FOTOSEPTIEMBRE Trademarks and domain names. 

In its third decade, FOTOSEPTIEMBRE has become one of San Antonio’s major art festivals. It attracts regional, national, and international photographers who are currently showing their work in 30-plus exhibits at venues large and small. The openings start in late August and continue throughout September.

(Click here to read the full article on the FOTOSEPTIEMBRE website)

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About Ricardo Romo Ph.D – A Historian Behind The Camera

Ricardo Romo earned a B.S. degree from The University of Texas Austin; a M.A. degree in American History from Loyola University Los Angeles; and a Ph.D in American History from the University of California Los Angeles. A recognized urban historian, Romo has taught and published in the field of civil rights, Mexican American history, and urban history. His book, East Los Angeles: History of a Barrio, is in its 9th edition. He served as the fifth president of the University of Texas at San Antonio from 1999 to 2017. Romo currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors for Southwest Research Institute, Board of Directors for the Brackenridge Park Conservancy, and Board of Directors for Humanities Texas. He is a member and past Vice President for The Philosophical Society of Texas. He is also active as the cultural and political writer as well as editorial board member for La Prensa Texas, a bilingual newspaper in San Antonio. Among the awards and recognition that Romo has received are: Fellow at the Center for Advanced Studies at Stanford; the Clark Kerr Award for Distinguished Leadership in Higher Education from the University of California-Berkeley; the Outstanding Civilian Service Medal from the United States Army North; the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Texas Exes.

For Romo, photography has always been closely connected to his work as a historian. His interest in photography grew while he was a graduate student at UCLA, where he became particularly interested in documenting the murals and public art of East Los Angeles. Recognizing that much of this work was temporary, Romo began photographing murals as a way of preserving a visual history of artwork and communities that might otherwise disappear.

Romo’s photographs capture the cultural and social character of the places he encounters. His work has explored everyday life in San Antonio, small towns across Texas, Latino culture, public celebrations, architecture, markets, and communities abroad. Rather than simply photographing familiar landmarks, Romo approaches his subjects with the eye of both a historian and an artist, searching for unusual perspectives, symmetry, gestures, details, and moments that reveal something deeper about a place. 

His photographs have been exhibited through FOTOSEPTIEMBRE, the Witte Museum, the Institute of Texan Cultures, and other venues. His previous photographic projects have included documentation of Easter celebrations at Brackenridge Park, small towns throughout Texas, and communities in Guatemala.

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