Beyond the Alamo

Exploring some of San Antonio’s less infamous attractions.

The Alamo. I’ll get it out of the way quickly because it’s the first thing that springs to mind about San Antonio. The River Walk, or Paseo del Rio. Let’s dispense with that one too, since it’s the second thing you’ll think of. I also hear that San Antonio has a basketball team, which shall not be named by this Phoenix Suns fan; I’ll let that one go too. These things I will discuss no further, since I chose not to visit them on my most recent trip to Texas, heading instead for some of San Antonio’s other worthy attractions. And I don’t mean SeaWorld or Six Flags.

I’ll admit to being a sucker for museums. The Smithsonian Institution in particular holds a special place in my heart because of the countless hours I spent there as a child on frequent family vacations. So, the occasion for my trip to San Antonio was the opening of The Museo Alameda, the nation’s largest Latino museum and a Smithsonian affiliate. A hot pink structure with stainless steel and aluminum overlay meant to resemble a luminaria, you won’t miss The Museo when you stroll through San Antonio’s historic Market Square.

The idea of the Smithsonian affiliate actually began in San Antonio back in 1996 when The Museo Alameda was conceptualized; now there are more than 150 affiliates across the country, including six in Arizona. As the gatekeeper of American art, history, science and culture, the Smithsonian has more than 136 million objects in its care. Affiliates have the opportunity to borrow items relevant to their particular museum, and bring some of the Institution’s educational outreach programs into their local communities.
The Museo Alameda, with 20,000 square feet of exhibition space housing 11 galleries, aims “to tell the story of the Latino experience in America through art, history and culture.” At the center of it all is the Smithsonian Gallery, home to the aforementioned loaned rotational exhibits. Two galleries will display long-term loaned objects from the nearby 1950s-era Alameda Theater, which was a central showcase for Spanish-language movies and their stars. A movement is afoot to restore the theater to its original 1949 splendor and expand it to include a performing arts center.

And if I like museums, I love museum gift shops. The Museo Alameda has one of, if not the absolute, best. Designed by San Antonio native and renowned artist Franco Mondini-Ruiz, it is modeled after a botánica, a small shop and gathering place, found traditionally in South Texas, that sells all manner of religious devotionals, herbs, knick-knacks and things you didn’t even know you wanted, but must have once you see them. The gift shop peddles much of the same. On this particular occasion, my traveling companions left with purses made of Coke cans and belts made from folded gum wrappers. One even purchased a very realistic looking, albeit resin-covered, plate of pancakes crafted by the shop’s designer. That you just don’t find every day. Mondini-Ruiz also has a permanent exhibition at The Museo, aptly named “Botánica” that replicates this experience on a small scale.

Continuing on the museum track, families with kids will especially enjoy the Witte Museum. With dinosaur bones, a mummy and life-size dioramas of Texas eco-systems among its permanent installations, the Witte is the quintessential field-trip museum. Changing exhibits study cowboys, fiestas and circuses. It’s a place for kids to explore and parents to remember those elementary school excursions. Learn how things work in the H-E-B Science Treehouse, where there are things to build, climb, ride and play with. Our group of 10 adults sulked like five-year-olds as we were reluctantly pulled away to head to the next stop.

Plans are currently underway to extend the River Walk to include a so-called “museum reach” — a four-mile stretch that would pass the old Lone Star Brewery, now home to the San Antonio Museum of Art, through Brackenridge Park, to the Witte Museum and the zoo. The anticipated completion date for this project is May 2009 and will make these lesser-visited sites easily accessible to visitors staying in hotels along the Paseo del Rio. The southern end of the river, the “mission reach,” will extend nine miles past San Antonio’s historic missions. In anticipation of the river expansion project, the Witte recently broke ground on a new South Texas Heritage Center.

A little off the beaten (and soon to be watery) path is the McNay Art Museum. The Spanish-colonial-revival-style home was built in the 1920s by Marion Koogler McNay. An artist herself, McNay had a keen interest in modern art, acquiring American watercolors and French impressionist paintings, as well as Pueblo Indian craftwork and Spanish colonial art.

Upon her death in 1950, the estate was left in trust to convert the home into a museum. In 1954, The McNay opened as the first museum of modern art in Texas. Today, the collection consists of more than 17,000 objects and includes works by modern European and American artists like Renoir, Gauguin, Van Gogh and Georgia O’Keeffe — and a few pieces by the museum’s namesake. It is undergoing a major expansion that will add 45,000 square feet of exhibit space to attract larger, prominent traveling exhibitions. In keeping with McNay’s belief that great art should be accessible to everyone, admission to the museum is free. A film on McNay’s interesting and sometimes tragic life is shown in the main building. 

For a taste of really modern art (it may have been created just yesterday), visit the Southtown Arts District, on South Alamo Street just south of Durango. It encompasses the diverse neighborhoods of King William, with its historic mansions; Lavaca, San Antonio’s oldest neighborhood; and the Blue Star Arts Complex, with artists’ living/studio spaces. Here, you’ll find folk art and photography, modern art and crafts. It’s a good place to stroll, dine, shop and sightsee, and to grab a souvenir that’s more meaningful and will last longer than an Alamo t-shirt or a tourist-shop sombrero.

Exploring some of San Antonio’s museums can give you a little more insight into the Alamo city and it’s diversity. Despite being the seventh-largest city in the U.S., San Antonio has managed to maintain a tight-knit, small community feel, which is evident when you leave the tourist hotspots and venture to explore its diverse neighborhoods, as well as its cultural and artistic offerings.

Above: Photo courtesy of SACVB/Tom Becker

Below: Photo courtesy of SACVB/Al Rendon

If you go…


San Antonio Convention and Visitor’s Bureau
203 S. St. Mary's St., Suite 200
210-207-6700
sanantoniocvb.com

Museo Alameda
101 S. Santa Rosa
(in Market Square)
210-299-4300
thealameda.org

Admission: $8 for adults, $6 for ages 55 and older and members of the military, $5 for students and children ages 4 to 11, free for children 3 and younger.
Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday and Thursday through Saturday; 12 p.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Wednesday. Closed Monday.
Upcoming exhibitions: “Southside/Westside,” an examination of the local neighborhoods that inspired artists Vincent Valdez and Alex Rubio (through December 16); and “Azucar: The Life and Music of Celia Cruz” presented by the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History (September 10 through December 31).

Witte Museum
3801 Broadway
210-357-1900
wittemuseum.org
Admission: $7 for adults, $6 for ages 65 and older, $5 for children ages 4 to 11, free for children 3 and younger.
Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday and Wednesday through Saturday; 12 p.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Tuesday. 
Upcoming exhibitions: “On Parade: Fiesta in the 1920s,” celebrates San Antonio’s most famous tradition (through October 7).

McNay Art Museum
6000 N. New Braunfels
210-834-5368
mcnayart.org
Admission: Free, but a $5 donation per adult is suggested.
Hours: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday; 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., Thursday; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday; 12 p.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday. Museum grounds are open to the public from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. (7 p.m. during daylight savings) for picnicking and strolling.
Upcoming exhibitions: Call or visit website for information.

Southtown Main Street Alliance
210 S. Alamo
210-226-0888
southtown.net
Art walks take place every first Friday and second Saturday. The area is accessible by trolley (take the blue line to the King William district) from downtown or the River Walk.