click to enlarge San Antonio Current Staff
UTSA Professor Emerita Ellen Riojas Clark raises a glass to the late Gregg Barrios.
Artists, activists, scholars, family and friends came together Friday night to celebrate the life and work of Texas treasure Gregg Barrios at Inkstravaganza — a fundraiser for literary arts center Gemini Ink hosted by the McNay Art Museum.
A Victoria native who landed in the orbit of Andy Warhol and his infamous Factory scene in 1960s-era New York City, Barrios was an avid and imaginative creator who found success as a poet, playwright and journalist. His diverse body of work includes the poetry collection
La Causa and the acclaimed plays
I-DJ and
Rancho Pancho.
Aptly dubbed “Rebel with a Cause,” the 21st annual event was emceed by writer and performer Marisela Barrera and included presentations by 2015 U.S. Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera and activist Rosie Castro, among others.
Addressing Barrios’ influence across the San Antonio creative community, Barrera shared the following on Gemini Ink’s Instagram account: “Gregg was a trans-media storyteller who served as a mentor to so many co-conspirators.”
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