Weekend Art Roundup

A few notable art exhibitions are opening this weekend, here's a rundown of the highlights.

New American Talent returns to the Arthouse with its twenty-fourth annual juired exhibit. NAT:24 has been juried by Hamza Walker, the Curator and Director of Education for the Renaissance Society at The University of Chicago; he will be at the museum on Saturday at 3pm for a discussion about the latest exhibit. Past New American Talent exhibitions have featured emerging contemporary artists with work in a variety of mediums. Out of the twenty six artists selected to be in this year's show, twelve live and work in Texas. Admission to the talk and the Arthouse is free. New American Talent: 24 runs through August 23.

Also opening on Saturday is Lucha Libre Mexicana, a new exhibit in the newly remodeled Pump Project Art Complex Gallery space. The show will feature original masks and Lucha memorabilia as well as art, short films, and photography inspired by the spectacle that is Mexican wrestling. Saturday's opening runs from 8-11pm and there will be a late night afterparty with music from His Astroturban and film projections from Jose Calavera. Lucha Libre Mexicana will be on display at the Pump Project gallery through July 18; the gallery is open on Wednesdays from 1-6pm, Saturdays from noon-5pm, and by appointment.

The latest exhibit at the Blanton Museum of Art opens on Sunday. In keeping with the Blanton's mission to recognize significant contemporary Latin American art, the new show, Francisco Matto: The Modern and the Mythic, will be the first comprehensive American exhibit of the modernist Uruguayan artist. The show will feature paintings and sculptures from over fifty years of the artist's career. A collector of Pre-Colombian art, Matto's modern paintings of cityscapes and contemporary life pay tribute to the rich history of Latin American art. His shapes are bold and his color pallet shares a striking resemblance to the work of Piet Mondrian. Francisco Matto: The Modern and the Mythic runs through September 27 at the Blanton.