Community Calendar

The NMSU Art Museum is excited to announce the opening of Mapping Spaces: Selections from the Lannan Art Collection at NMSU. This exhibition will showcase selections from the generous gift of 63 works of art from the Lannan Art Collection to the NMSU Permanent Art Collection in 2024. Mapping Spaces will open in the Contemporary Gallery on Thursday, June 11th, and run until September 5th, 2026.

After almost 65 years, with 27 of those spent in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Lannan Foundation closed in 2024. As part of Lannan’s closure, the Foundation gifted its remaining collection of more than 1,600 objects to 55 institutions, including the NMSU Art Museum. By adding these pieces to the UAM’s collection, this gift deepens the significance of the works by placing them into an academic context, where teaching, research, and public engagement further activate each of them. The NMSU Permanent Art Collection continues to evolve and grow not only as a repository of contemporary art objects, but also as a living resource that invites ongoing dialogue about the role of artists in shaping how the NMSU and Las Cruces communities understand our dynamic border region.

Featuring artists such as Claudia Andujar, Subhankar Banerjee, Max Cole, Pard Morrison, Victoria Sambunaris, and James Turrell, Mapping Spaces brings together a dynamic range of artists whose works explore landscapes and the environment, documentary photography, abstraction, and traditional art historical references. Together, this exhibition features artists at the center of the UAM’s mission, emphasizing the importance of continued support for art, research, and community-engaged practices in cultivating a creative ecosystem across New Mexico.

Join us for the opening reception on June 11th from 4:30-6:30 PM. The museum is open Tuesday-Saturday, 10am-4pm. Admission to all programming is free and open to the public. For more information and a detailed calendar with associated programs and dates please visit uam.nmsu.edu.

Is your fear of speaking in public holding you back from your full potential?
Is speaking stressful for you?
Do you wish you could stop worrying about your next presentation at work or in a class?

You're invited to visit a Los Chismosos Toastmasters club meeting, as our guest!

You will learn-by-doing, in a supportive and positive club setting that meets each Thursday on Zoom. The new "Pathways" program from Toastmasters International is designed to provide you with a safe, step-by-step way to learn public speaking skills.

You are free to select a "Pathways" track that most benefits you and aligns with your needs and interests.

When you join Toastmasters, you can stop worrying about your next presentation and get immediate feedback from experienced speakers. You'll discover a positive and supportive group, willing to help you take your first steps toward speaking with confidence.

You will benefit from Toastmasters by learning to:

--Find an immediate connection with your audience;
--Organize your thoughts logically for clarity;
--Energize your speaking with storytelling;
--Find your voice and your unique style to convey your best ideas.

Founded in 1984, Los Chismosos Toastmasters' membership includes faculty, graduate students, and staff at New Mexico State University as well as people in the business community, retirees, and those new to the area.

Come one, come all to a special screening of GRANITE RAPIDS MOON, the first narrative feature film ever to shoot the majority of its footage inside the Grand Canyon. The more people in the audience, the more funds will be raised for Asombro! At the screening, the group will be asked for a show of hands for those who heard about the event from Asombro, so raise them high! We need your help reaching our goal of at least 50 attendees. Tickets at mesillavalleyfilm.org
Fountain Theater in Mesilla (2469 Calle de Guadalupe)
June 17th and 18th @ 7:15 PM
This film was made with permission and oversight from the National Park Service using only the equipment that cast and crew could carry on our backs through 82 miles of hiking. In other words, we made a film while leaving no trace. It is a family-friendly movie, with no sex, nudity, violence, guns, drugs, or particularly harsh language.

This summer, the NMSU Art Museum welcomes the return of Louis Ocepek, local artist, former Department Head, and Professor Emeritus of the NMSU Department of Art for his solo exhibition: Homage to Then/Small Worlds. This exhibition opens June 11, 2026 and will be on display in the museum’s Mullennix Bridge Gallery through September 12, 2026. Please join us for the opening reception on June 11 from 4:30-6:30 pm.

Homage to Then/Small Worlds is a two-part exhibition of direct gravure prints, gouache paintings, and digital prints that pay tribute to a history of artistic influences and explore the abstracted physical world. Homage to Then comprises sixteen gravure prints and four gouache paintings, while Small Worlds features an array of acrylic and gouache paintings on paper and chromogenic prints. The detailed selection in Homage to Then/Small Worlds reflects on the aesthetics of time, space, and the perceptions of our physical and metaphysical worlds.

Louis Ocepek is an artist and designer born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. He studied design and fine art at Wayne State University, and earned his graduate degree from the University of Iowa in Iowa City. He was a professor in the art departments of Montana State University, Portland State University, and New Mexico State University, where he served as Department Head for several years while teaching additional courses in the NMSU Honors College. Ocepek works in a variety of media–exhibiting prints, paintings and hybrid works in national and international group and solo exhibitions. His work is included in the public art collections of Oregon, Washington, New Mexico and Texas. Ocepek is the author of Graphic Design: Vision, Process, Product and his design work has been featured in publications such as Graphis International and The Painter Wow!.

The NMSU Art Museum is excited to announce the opening of Mapping Spaces: Selections from the Lannan Art Collection at NMSU. This exhibition will showcase selections from the generous gift of 63 works of art from the Lannan Art Collection to the NMSU Permanent Art Collection in 2024. Mapping Spaces will open in the Contemporary Gallery on Thursday, June 11th, and run until September 5th, 2026.

After almost 65 years, with 27 of those spent in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Lannan Foundation closed in 2024. As part of Lannan’s closure, the Foundation gifted its remaining collection of more than 1,600 objects to 55 institutions, including the NMSU Art Museum. By adding these pieces to the UAM’s collection, this gift deepens the significance of the works by placing them into an academic context, where teaching, research, and public engagement further activate each of them. The NMSU Permanent Art Collection continues to evolve and grow not only as a repository of contemporary art objects, but also as a living resource that invites ongoing dialogue about the role of artists in shaping how the NMSU and Las Cruces communities understand our dynamic border region.

Featuring artists such as Claudia Andujar, Subhankar Banerjee, Max Cole, Pard Morrison, Victoria Sambunaris, and James Turrell, Mapping Spaces brings together a dynamic range of artists whose works explore landscapes and the environment, documentary photography, abstraction, and traditional art historical references. Together, this exhibition features artists at the center of the UAM’s mission, emphasizing the importance of continued support for art, research, and community-engaged practices in cultivating a creative ecosystem across New Mexico.

Join us for the opening reception on June 11th from 4:30-6:30 PM. The museum is open Tuesday-Saturday, 10am-4pm. Admission to all programming is free and open to the public. For more information and a detailed calendar with associated programs and dates please visit uam.nmsu.edu.

New Mexico’s Mutual UFO Network Alamogordo Chapter meets at Otero Arts on 12th & Indian AVE at 11am on the 3rd Saturday of the month. We discuss Flying Saucers and our local aerial phenomenon experiences. Join MUFON for Coffee Cups & Flying Saucers a meeting of like-minded individuals with a common interest in sharing what we see in the skies. This free monthly meeting is open to the public.

Light Art Space is pleased to welcome Mata Ortiz potter Anna Trillo and her son, Adrian, to our garden space.

Friday, July 19th, 11 am – 4 pm, and Saturday, July 20th, 11 am – 3 pm.

Anna and Adrian will demonstrate the traditional pottery painting technique using human hair.
Her pottery will be available for purchase.

The 2026 Silver City CLAY Festival takes place June 15th – 20th.

Gallery Hours: Thursday 11-4, Friday and Saturday 11- 5, Sunday 11-3, First Fridays until 7 pm, and by appointment.

Silent Meditation every Mon/Wed/Fri from 12 - 1 pm, located at 424 N Main St., Suite 500

The 2026 Silver City CLAY Market takes place during the final weekend of the annual CLAY Festival, Saturday, June 20th, 10am-4pm and Sunday, June, 21st, 10am-2pm. Twenty southwest clay artists will be selling their hand crafted work in the historic Murray Hotel’s ballroom. Their pieces will display diverse building and decorating techniques and will range from functional to sculptural. There will be live music on Saturday from noon-2pm and food will be sold in the lobby of the hotel. Come mingle with artists while you shop for unique ceramic work to add to your home or gift to someone special. This event is free!

This summer, the NMSU Art Museum welcomes the return of Louis Ocepek, local artist, former Department Head, and Professor Emeritus of the NMSU Department of Art for his solo exhibition: Homage to Then/Small Worlds. This exhibition opens June 11, 2026 and will be on display in the museum’s Mullennix Bridge Gallery through September 12, 2026. Please join us for the opening reception on June 11 from 4:30-6:30 pm.

Homage to Then/Small Worlds is a two-part exhibition of direct gravure prints, gouache paintings, and digital prints that pay tribute to a history of artistic influences and explore the abstracted physical world. Homage to Then comprises sixteen gravure prints and four gouache paintings, while Small Worlds features an array of acrylic and gouache paintings on paper and chromogenic prints. The detailed selection in Homage to Then/Small Worlds reflects on the aesthetics of time, space, and the perceptions of our physical and metaphysical worlds.

Louis Ocepek is an artist and designer born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. He studied design and fine art at Wayne State University, and earned his graduate degree from the University of Iowa in Iowa City. He was a professor in the art departments of Montana State University, Portland State University, and New Mexico State University, where he served as Department Head for several years while teaching additional courses in the NMSU Honors College. Ocepek works in a variety of media–exhibiting prints, paintings and hybrid works in national and international group and solo exhibitions. His work is included in the public art collections of Oregon, Washington, New Mexico and Texas. Ocepek is the author of Graphic Design: Vision, Process, Product and his design work has been featured in publications such as Graphis International and The Painter Wow!.