Faculty member among four selected for Berlin Residency Program

Four local San Antonio artists have been selected to participate in the Berlin residency program at the
Kunstlerhaus Bethanien, a non-profit international cultural center in Berlin. Thanks to sponsors such as
Blue Star Contemporary Art Museum, UTSA, Palo Alto College, The City of San Antonio Department for
Culture and Creative Development, Guillermo Nicolas, and other private sponsors, these artists will live
and work in Berlin for three-month durations and continue the rich dialogue that San Antonio has been
fortunate to establish with Berlin.

The artists selected are Ricky Armendariz, Cathy Cunningham-Little, Karen Mahaffy, and Vincent Valdez.
At the end of each artists stay, their work will be presented in the exhibition venue of the Kunstlerhaus
Bethanien. This program is intended to advance contemporary art while establishing a dialogue between
artists and viewers on an international scale. This program holds importance for all of those involved as
well as a larger significance in the perception of San Antonio as a city recognized internationally for their
art scene.

When asked what spurred the involvement of Palo Alto College, President Dr. Michael Flores said, “I
think that San Antonio is a capital of creativity in a sense. It is a part of the fabric and essence of who we
are. So as a part of that, I think we need to both strengthen the fabric within our community and support
linking up with other cultural arts communities; and Berlin, by and large, is an epicenter of the arts within
Europe and has been for centuries. What a wonderful opportunity that we really need to take advantage
of, to have one of our faculty from Palo Alto College (Mahaffy) and also be part of the San Antonio Artists
community and participate in this exchange.”

Dr. Angelika Jansen-Brown also has played a key role in the planning and implementation of this program
by acting as a liaison between San Antonio and Berlin. When asked about her inspiration for the project,
she explains, “I’m very much involved, for years, in the arts. I had a gallery here in San Antonio and
when I gave it up, a decade or so ago, I had the opportunity to have an apartment in Berlin. Since I know
the Berlin art scene – I went for that, partially – and partially because the former mayor Phil Hardberger
had ask me to put a city relationship together with Germany. I did this in Dresden, the capitol of Saxony,
not far from Berlin, so there was a double interest of mine – to bring our artists that I knew from my
gallery to Germany because I know how important it is to go outside and come back, to have new
incentives and ideas.”

Photo Caption: Vincent Valdez, Dr. Angelika Jansen-Brown, Dr. Mike Flores, Karen Mahaffy, Ricky Armendariz, and Cathy Cunningham-Little.