Submissions are in for the Texas Biennial 2007, which will be held in four Austin exhibition spaces March 1-April 15, 2007 (Talk about post-partum depression: big art show comes down on tax day? Sigh.). Now the jurors — including our own Kate Green of Artpace — must identify the standouts from hundreds of entries. Green is joined in her deliberations by Ursula Davis from Austin’s Blanton, Fairfax Dorn of Ballroom Marfa, Valerie Cassell Oliver of the Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston, and John Pomara, artist and assistant professor at the University of Texas at Dallas. This geographically representative panel might prevent a repeat of what appeared to be a Central-Texas bias in the 2005 Biennial (given that the welcome event was inaugurated by five Austin galleries and pulled off with no small amount of panache, I’m not criticizing, just observing). On the other hand, I’d hate for them to catch the San Antonio spread-the-love-too-thinly virus; the first Biennial showed a wide range of strong work by 36 emerging artists, and my hopes are high for the 2007 return. For more info, visit Texasbiennial.com. Read a review of the 2005 show, “Digital-induced angst and sensory overload,” March 10, 2005, at Sacurrent.com.

Okay Mountain, a Texas Biennial 2007 host, participated in the Johnson Courts bungalow exhibition at CAM 2006, thanks to CAM co-director Anjali Gupta, who reached out to galleries in Austin, Portland, Dallas, and Brooklyn for the show. Gupta will exert an even bigger influence on next year’s CAM: Blue Star Executive Director Bill FitzGibbons has invited her to curate Blue Star 22, the art space’s annual CAM show. The tentative opening date for CAM 22 is June 29, 2007.

But there is a new face around Blue Star: Sculptor David Isenhour picked up where Tico Perez (who is, ahem, now working in the Current’s retail-sales department) left off. In his position as Gallery Preparateur and Facilities Manager, Isenhour will also work on Blue Star’s educational-outreach programming, says FitzGibbons.

Isenhour is one of the artist-tenants at the Lone Star Art Space, FitzGibbons’s new studio suite that has joined the growing art crowd on South Flores — Gallista Gallery, one9zero6, Salon Mijangos, Fl!ght, and L.A. David’s new Arte Cosmico Studio (Lone Star is also where FitzGibbons’s wife, realtor Ann FitzGibbons, hosted a recent fundraiser for the fledgling New Era Democrats). FitzGibbons would like to open a doorway between the adjacent Salon Mijangos warehouse and his space for art openings; he says to look for an event sometime after Christmas.

Right — that’s months away. For something fresh to do this week, swing by Galeria Expresion in Centro Cultural Aztlan’s new digs, 1800 Fredericksburg Road in the Deco District. The group show, curated by Richard Arredondo, includes work by Ricky Armendariz, Alex Rubio, Dayna de Hoyos and more. Call 432-1896 for hours and info.

This article appears in Oct 18-24, 2006.