Yadhira Lozano prepares to address the crowd at a previous year’s Luminaria. She is the first Latina to lead the high-profile arts organization. Credit: Christian Möller

Executive Director Yadhira Lozano is gearing up for her third year of San Antonio’s multimedia arts blowout, Luminaria. Founded 15 years ago by then-mayor Phil Hardberger, this year’s one-night extravaganza has a distinct role to play in our cultural landscape.

“Luminaria serves to inspire visitors and residents with the wonders of all of the arts,” said Lozano, the first Latina to lead the organization. “We seek to elevate San Antonio onto an international arts map — that we are on par with other artistic cities across the world, that we can become an arts destination and fuel a creative economy where we all benefit: our live music venues, bars and restaurants, theaters, hotels and especially our artists.”

A native of San Antonio, Lozano returned to her hometown after spending decades working in arts administrative roles in Los Angeles, most recently as communications director at the Autry National Center.

After two colleagues relocated to San Antonio to open the Briscoe Western Art Museum, that organization eventually made her an offer that she couldn’t refuse.

So, in 2013, she found herself back home amongst her extended family. She then served multiple roles at the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center, including festival director of the Annual Tejano Conjunto Festival and as a special projects coordinator at the National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures (NALAC).

After spending so much of her career in Los Angeles, Lozano was struck by the limitations and hardships arts professionals endure in the Alamo City’s severely underfunded arts sector.

“Artists do not enjoy high pay or salaries. Locally, there are few opportunities to work full time in the arts, and many move out of town for more financially stable opportunities,” she said. “We need to do better so that artists and arts administrators enjoy equitable pay and benefits.”

Lozano says that when she began her tenure at Luminaria, it was abundantly clear that the arts community was calling for more diversity, better representation of the city’s demographics and opportunities for emerging artists to have a public platform.

“I task my staff and curators to actively scout talent,” she said. “We attend art openings, live music events, plays and network out in the field as much as possible. This has led to artists, especially artists of color, to realize they are welcome and wanted on our stages. Supporting Artists become Featured Artists and network across genres, age ranges, ethnicities, genders.”

Thus Luminaria’s reach expands every year.

“Advocacy and transparency have defined my role at Luminaria,” Lozano said. “So many people absolutely love the festival but in order to make the festival come to life, we need funding. Serving on the city’s Arts Commission representing Council District 3, I am at the forefront of how our city is changing to meet the needs of the arts community. Letting our elected officials know our challenges as well as our successes is vital. From federal to state and local, our representatives need to know how much our economy relies on the arts.”

To that point, Visit San Antonio released a report stating that the hospitality industry brought in $19 billion to San Antonio in 2022, according to Lozano. The arts contributed 12% to that total.

Lozano’s primary goals for her continued tenure include creating more paid opportunities for local artists. All local Luminaria artists are currently paid, thanks to a two-year National Endowment for the Arts Rescue Grant.

Additionally, she wants to form new partnerships, including with artists and organizations located near Luminaria’s office in St. Paul Square.

“We seek to elevate this cultural arts destination located on the historic East Side, where countless major Black artists have performed,” Lozano said. “We cannot do this all alone. We need to work together and keep building on the work of those who have come before, and those that are still fighting the good fight to have our arts and culture be respected, appreciated and well-funded.”

What should we expect from this year’s event?

Forza Dance from NYC did its own fundraising to travel to San Antonio to perform at Luminaria. URBAN-15 will be activating a procession with Little Amal, a puppet symbolizing Syrian refugee children which is currently traveling the world. Contributors to the literary quarterly Voices de la Luna will be reciting quinceañera poetry in celebration of the magazine and Luminaria’s 15th anniversaries.

Beyond that, a Tex-Mex showcase features local favorites Los Texmaniacs with special guests who include living legend Flaco Jimenez and Dwayne Verhayden of the Netherlands.

“We will have all the lights, lasers and digital art people have come to expect,” Lozano said. “Luminaria is an immersive experience. You have to come and experience it in person to feel the love, dedication and inspiration of our great city.”

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This article appears in Oct 18-30, 2023.