San Antonio Area Foundation and the Artists At Work initiative will host a Sept. 21 event promoting the AAW program and celebrating the work of San Antonio’s arts community.

Partnering with the area foundation, three local organizations—Carver Community Cultural Center, Esperanza Peace and Justice Center, and Public Theater of San Antonio—were tapped to host six AAW artists and honor their contributions to San Antonio’s cultural development, a news release stated.

According to the release, each artist collaborated with a local social impact initiative to create an artistic interpretation of issues that they hope will foster more cultural equity and understanding across San Antonio.

The participating artists and their social impact partners are:

  • Azul Barrientos, a singer and songwriter who is using music as a means of healing, self-expression and storytelling in partnership with Domesticas Unidas, a group of women highlighting empowerment of local domestic workers
  • T’Bow Orlan Gonzales, a musician who worked with the Boys and Girls Club’s Eastside Clubhouse to create music to build community, provide inspiration and stress the healing power of music for local youth
  • Irene Chavez Galvan, a poet, playwright, storyteller and entrepreneur who worked with Arts in Play, a new local nonprofit that emphasizes the healing power of the arts in underserved communities
  • Tanesha Sumerset Payne, a movement artist who partnered with the San Antonio African American Community Archive and Museum to explore and document the history of Black resistance in civil rights-era San Antonio through her dance practice
  • Madeline Ramos, an artist who partnered with Corazon, a local day center and resource for homeless people, to promote community and civic engagement through art expression as a form of harm reduction
  • Mary Agnes Rodriguez, a painter, muralist and ceramicist who is working with the Historic Westside Residents’ Association and its Dignified Housing Campaign to produce artwork and imagery that reflects the community and advocates dignified housing for all

The event will include artist presentations and performances along with a discussion moderated by Andrea “Vocal” Sanderson, San Antonio poet laureate emeritus.