SAN ANTONIO — On Saturday, Luminaria celebrated 15 years. The festival at HemisFair is named for the artistic displays of light but the music is just as big of a part of the celebration.
Shakespeare famously said art is a mirror. At Luminaria, the walls reflect light, music, and 15 years of San Antonio culture.
200 working artist worked for ten months to prepare for this year's Luminaria. Among the displays were large-scale art installations, film, dance, fine art, poetry, and of course, music.
“Most of these artists and painters and musicians are local,” Max Baca said while standing next to one of the exceptions to that rule.
For Baca, who plays 12-string Bajo Sexto for Texmaniacs, the reflection of his art came in the form of Dwayne Verheyden, a musician who came from an ocean away that Baca himself inspired from a young age.
"I was like, 7 years old watching him on stage, you know?” Verheyden said. “And now we've got to become friends, you know. We got to record with him. And so that's it's – it’s a special thing."
Dwayne Verheyden grew up in the Netherlands. His father introduced him to San Antonio music styles like Conjunto and he was motivated to learn to play the accordion after seeing Baca play alongside Flaco Jiménez near his hometown of Montefort. On Saturday, he played alongside Baca at Luminaria.
"For him to come all the way over here, you know, to participate in this art festival, it's just goes to show you how our music and our culture reflects," said Baca.
Dwayne was 17 when he started playing the accordion professionally in 2009. He's confident enough with the style that he can sing the Spanish songs in his native Dutch.
Luminaria's Executive Director Yadhira Hozano, was not surprised to see that kind of cultural blending.
"We want to showcase all of the arts, not just one genre, not just one ethnicity, not just one gender, not just one, you know, age group,” Hozano said. “Everybody can apply to be part of the festival."
but she says the heart of the festival is in the in-person experience where artist and audience reflect each other. Whether it’s on stage, on a canvas during a live mural painting or interactive art installation
“Just to experience the, you know, the direction of the crowd and then see all those people, you know, and just having fun and being on stage,” Verheyden said, “That's beautiful.”
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