Art Texas

Deep in the
Art of Texas
Creativity thrives in downtown Lubbock
STORY BY JANIS TURK ■ PHOTOS BY RUSSELL GRAVES
In Living Color:
LHUCA Executive
Director Karen Wiley
poses at the Graffiti
Education Building,
which houses a
variety of public
art classes. The
facade was painted
by Joey Martinez.
Students in a pottery
class are throwing clay
in a warehouse studio.
Next door, others are
creating stained glass
pieces. Across the street, a local flamenco
dance troupe is rehearsing
in a black box theater. A young violinist
entertains guests perusing an
exhibition of multimedia art installations
spaced around a gallery.
Just another weekend in a
trendy Dallas or Houston arts district?
No, it’s a Thursday night in
downtown Lubbock.
Battling an outdated reputation
as simple cotton-and-cowboy
country, Lubbock is surprising
many visitors; over the past couple
of decades, the city has developed
into quite the artistic hub.
Credit is due in large part to the
creation of the Louise Hopkins
Underwood Center for the Arts
(LHUCA), a visual and performing
arts campus. LHUCA (locally pronounced
Luka) began as the dream
of patron Louise Hopkins Underwood,
who, at age 92, remains
actively involved.
“I’ve wanted this since I first
came to Lubbock in 1942,” she says.
“I was raised on theater and the
arts in New York and Dallas, and it
made such a difference in my life.
When I moved here to Lubbock, I
missed all that culture. Lubbock
needed the arts so desperately, and
that motivated me to take action.”

One such example is Lubbock resident Yvonne
Beyond LHUCA
Garro Mendoza, who has been crafting at the
facility for the past two years. “I spend every possible
hour that I can here. Since I work during the
day, I’m grateful for the open studio time in the
Other cultural and
historical attractions
in Lubbock worth
checking out:
IF YOU GO
Artistic Vision: LHUCA founder
Louise Hopkins Underwood visits a current
exhibit in one of the center’s galleries.
Louise Hopkins
Underwood
Center for
the Arts
511 Avenue K
(806) 762-8606
lhuca.org
A Creative Core
Initially, Underwood and her partner in the
project, Neal Hanslik, planned only to launch a
theater. But before long, the idea of a larger
center began to take shape. “It all started around
my dining room table,” Underwood says.
The pair and other patrons toured the Dallas
arts scene to get ideas and advice—culling such
suggestions as renovating and repurposing
existing spaces instead of building a center from
the ground up.
LHUCA’s first acquisition was a defunct fire station,
which the city donated in 1997.The structure’s
two engine bays now function as an exhibit hall
and a 159-seat performance and film venue (ap-
has nine structures that span a four-block area.
The main building, which houses four galleries
and the theater, is open to the public Tuesday
through Saturday free of charge. Fee-based classes,
including clay, oil painting, watercolor, and
playwriting, are offered in the other spaces.
“There’s always something exciting happening
here,” says Roger Holmes, whose nearly 40
years of clay experience
made him a solid
choice to manage
the clay studio. “It
is rewarding as a
working potter to
TOP RIGHT: KENDRA STREY (2)
evenings. They have on hand most all the supplies
I need for my art, like glazes and clay, and they fire
my pots for me. Roger’s advice on my projects has
been priceless,” she says.
Coming Together
Community interest in art isn’t limited to LHUCA.
The popular monthly First Friday Art Trail connects
creative spirits throughout the city. Shops, restaurants,
and galleries stay open late, allowing the public
to enjoy art, music, food, and wine on the first
Friday evening of each month. When the program
launched in 2004, organizers noted about 25 attendees.
Today, the events regularly draw 3,000–4,000
visitors to mingle at 16–18 venues; free trolley service
links the goings-on downtown.
LHUCA’s four main art galleries, four artistsin-residence
studios, the clay studio, and a
couple of other spaces are trail stops. Quilters,
potters, glass artisans, woodworkers, photographers,
performers, and others offer their
wares and good conversation. “One regular
participant told me she had to
quit making LHUCA her first stop
because she had such a good time
All Heart: (From left) Clay Studio
Manager Roger Holmes leads a pottery
class. Erika Pochybova-Johnson’s design
graces one of the heart sculptures on the
LHUCA campus.
Silent Wings Museum
Learn about glider
planes and the WWII
pilots who flew them
from recorded battle
stories and a broad
collection of artifacts.
(806) 775-3796; silent
wingsmuseum.com
Buddy Holly Center A giant art installation
fashioned after Holly’s distinguishable black
eyeglasses marks this museum’s entrance.
(806) 775-3560; buddyhollycenter.org
Museum of Texas
Tech University
Enjoy collections in
humanities, the
arts, and social and
natural sciences,
plus a planetarium.
(806) 742-2490;
www.depts.ttu.edu/
museumttu
Science Spectrum
and Omni Theater
This discovery museum
recently opened
a 4,000-square-foot
kids’ zone. A movie
theater and other
exhibit sections
entertain the older
set. (806) 745-2525;
sciencespectrum.org
American Wind
Power Center and
Museum Many of
the 150-plus
water-pumping
windmills on
display date back
to the 1800s.
(806) 747-8734;
windmill.com
—Kendra Strey
here that she never made it to
the other places along the trail,”
propriately called the Firehouse Theatre). LHUCA
have access to a
Holmes recalls.
later transformed other old municipal buildings
facility like this,
While the First Friday program has
and abandoned storage rooms, warehouses,
and to see people
proven its entertainment value, LHUCA
even a former dairy. Today, the LHUCA campus
develop as artists.”
Executive Director Karen Wiley notes that
perhaps a more important impact is its ability
to unite the community.
“Art shouldn’t stop with a painting hung on
a wall,” she says. “Art is powerful. It helps build
relationships, whether it’s when two strangers
build a friendship while learning to throw a pot, or
when kids from different backgrounds come together
for a dance workshop. Art makes it happen.” ✪
Janis Turk is a freelance writer based in Seguin.
The People’s Passion: Resident dance troupe El Ballet
Folkloríco Nuestra Herencía rehearses. Large-scale metal
sculptures fabricated by Will Cannings feature designs by
other local artists, including one (above left) by his wife,
Shannon, and another (right) by Charise Knudson.
For more information about Lubbock, call (800) 692-4035 or
go to visitlubbock.com. Free roadmaps are available at your local
AAA Texas branch. For free AAA TourBook information and
TripTik routings, visit a branch or go to AAA.com/travel.
Copyright © 2012 AAA Texas, LLC. All Rights Reserved. Reproduced by Permission.