University Star

San Marcos has a diverse population and is filled with a thriving artistic culture.

The city, however, could not boast an art gallery comprised of local work among its list of attractions.

The Soda Tooth Contemporary Art Gallery, located on Ranch Road 12, is changing that.

The creators of the gallery have worked to join artists both professional and student to present modern art to the San Marcos community throughout the past semester.

Soda Tooth Contemporary, founded and operated by three Texas State seniors, is structured to serve as an outlet for students and the community to show and see contemporary art.

Directing the effort are communication design seniors Bobby Scheidemann, public relations director, and Lucas Conrad, gallery director. Natalie Moore, studio art senior and financial director, completes the team of art promoters.

Soda Tooth has presented four shows to date, with a fifth to debut before the month’s end, pressing toward its goal of showcasing the work of unsung artists throughout San Marcos.

“The gallery on campus is great, but it doesn’t give local and student artists much of a chance to show their work,” Conrad said. 

The Soda Tooth creators credit their roots for inspiration, with a previous student-run project as a founding influence.

210 Studio was providing artists throughout the community an opportunity to present their work in a collaborative setting during the summer last year. It was this display of unity which sparked Conrad’s interest.

“The art department has no common bond, so I thought (210) was doing something really great,” Conrad said.

Conrad said he and the other founders were eager to start their own project once 210 Studio closed, presenting San Marcos with another endeavor toward art appreciation.

Soda Tooth Contemporary is set to launch its next community outreach through an art education program aimed toward children aged kindergarten to seventh grade.

Soda Tooth's after school experiment in art education, named SMart Box: Art Education for Kids!, is designed to provide children a hands-on experience and get the community further engaged in contemporary art.

Program participants will be given the materials and assistance needed to create their own contemporary art under the direction of Texas State alumni and current students.

Danny Garcia, Texas State alumus and freelance photographer in Austin, is set to work as one of the program’s instructors. Garcia said he hopes the program will provide children with the opportunity to explore an interest in creating art.

“We’re teaching art classes that aren’t arts-and-crafts-y,” Garcia said. “Hopefully we can make a difference.”

Amber Jones, communication design senior, said her position as instructor for the endeavor sprung from a desire to explore art education professionally and to share the interest she developed as a child.

Jones said she hopes the program will be a fun opportunity for children not interested in sports and other after-school activities, a desire she said is shared by local parents.

Dan Olson, San Marcos resident and father of four daughters, said a program that encourages artistic development for students is a rare find in San Marcos.

“My daughters don’t want to play volleyball or be cheerleaders,” Olson said. “They’d much rather sit in a room and draw. That creativity is something all parents should nourish in their children and capitalize on.”

The SMart Box program is set to begin its after-school lessons in February, if adequate funding is acquired.

“We want to provide the community with as much art as it can be exposed to,” Conrad said. “We want to see this through.”