Sam Coronado was a pivotal Texas-based Chicano artist, printmaker, educator, and cultural organizer whose career reshaped the visibility and infrastructure of Latino and Chicano art in the United States. During 2010-2020, Harriett and I donated more than 200 Chicano art prints, many of them printed at Coronado Studio, to SAY Sí, a youth art program in San Antonio’s Westside. On June 13, SAY Sí will host an art fundraiser with our donation. The majority of the prints on sale come from our donation of Serie prints by Coronado Studios. Harriett and I were good friends with Sam Coronado, and I am including a short essay about him here.
Sam Coronado, Detail, “End of the Cycle.” Courtesy of SAY Sí. Donation from Harriett and Ricardo Romo.
Born in Ennis, Texas and raised in a working-class Mexican American family, Coronado’s early experiences—including agricultural field labor and his service in the U.S. Army—grounded his lifelong commitment to community and access. He dropped out of high school in 1964 to join the U.S. Army and completed his GED in the military. Upon an honorable discharge from the Army in 1967, he pursued higher education through the G.I. Bill, earning an Associate degree in drafting and design from El Centro College.
Oscar Mayo, “Cholo.” Courtesy of SAY Sí. Donation from Harriett and Ricardo Romo.
Coronado completed a BFA from the University of Texas at Austin in 1975, where he co-founded the Chicano Art Students Association. He was also a co-founder of the Mexic-Arte Museum in 1984, which was designated the state’s official Mexican and Mexican American art museum in 2003. This effort marked a major step in establishing institutional recognition for Latino art in Texas. Equally significant was Coronado’s role as an institution builder and advocate for Latino artists.
Sam Coronado in his Montopolis [Austin] Studio. Photo by Ricardo Romo.
Initially working in painting, Coronado discovered his affinity for printmaking in the early 1980s, particularly serigraphy. This medium, based on pushing ink through a metal screen, became central to his artistic and political commitment. Coronado’s work blends Chicano visual traditions with elements of social realism and popular culture, often addressing themes of Mexican American culture, history, and social justice. In the late 1980s, we worked with Coronado as art investors, buying over 750 prints to provide the resources for him to create a new studio.
Art Historian Tatiana Reinoza wrote that Coronado’s greatest intervention in the Chicano Art movement came in 1993 with the founding of Serie Project, a nonprofit printmaking residency program that awarded competitive fellowships to artists wishing to explore printing techniques with the assistance of a master printer. Inspired in part by Self-Help Graphics in Los Angeles, the Serie Project created a collaborative environment where artists worked with a master printer to produce editions that were both accessible and culturally resonant.
Quintin Gonzalez, Courtesy of SAY Sí. Donation from Harriett and Ricardo Romo.
The Serie Project, noted Reinoza, hosted more than 300 artist residencies and has introduced a new generation of artists to a graphic tradition of historical importance to the Chicano art movement. The roster of resident artists includes Malaquias Montoya, Vincente Valdez, Rubio, Ester Hernández, César Martínez, Celia Alvarez Muñoz, Juan Sánchez, Diógenes Ballester, Scherezade Garcia, and others. The Serie Project has generated a significant archive of Chicano and Latino printmaking.
Coronado’s prints and paintings have been exhibited nationally and internationally and are held in major collections, including those of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Notable works such as “Baile de Calacas I” and “Tejano Santa” reflect both Coronado’s cultural iconography and broad public reach.
In parallel with his studio and organizational work, Coronado was a dedicated educator. He began teaching at Austin Community College in 1986 and became a full professor in the Graphic Arts Department in 2004, mentoring generations of artists while reinforcing the role of printmaking as both a technical and cultural practice.
Simeen Ishaque, “Emblems.” Courtesy of SAY Sí. Donation from Harriett and Ricardo Romo.
Coronado’s legacy lies not only in his own artwork but in the networks, institutions, and opportunities he created. By integrating artistic production with cultural activism, he helped establish a sustainable ecosystem for Chicano art—one that expanded access to artists and to collectors, nurtured emerging talent, and secured a lasting place for Latino visual culture within American art history.
Margarita Cabrera, “Iron Will.” Courtesy of SAY Sí. Donation from Harriett and Ricardo Romo.
SAY Sí is a nationally recognized nonprofit arts organization located in the Westside of San Antonio that provides free, creative after-school programs for middle and high school students across the city. Through visual arts, media arts, and performing arts, students develop artistic skills, leadership, and confidence, all in preparation for higher education and professional careers. SAY Sí’s mission is to ignite the creative power of young people as forces of positive change while valuing artists, empowering marginalized communities, and advancing culture.
El Paso, Texas artist Jesús “Cimi” Alvarado, “Yoliztli.” Courtesy of SAY Sí. Donation from Harriett and Ricardo Romo.
SAY Sí offers long-term programming, allowing students to participate for up to seven years in creative activities. Across its three studios, students work closely with teaching artists who are active professionals in their respective fields. In addition to their teachers, middle school students receive guidance from high schoolers, known as mentors, fostering a learning environment rooted in collaboration and peer-to-peer learning.
Sam Coronado, “El Quinto Sol.” Courtesy of SAY Sí. Donation from Harriett and Ricardo Romo.
The studios and curriculum follow a project-based structure, and students engage in long-term projects that focus on self-expression and critical thinking. Students are encouraged to develop their own artistic voice and grow as active contributors and leaders in their communities. Projects culminate in public exhibitions, live performances, film screenings, and even public art projects and installations.
In addition to their youth programming, SAY Sí offers many public events, such as their annual Block Party, where local organizations, businesses, artists, and community members come together for a day of celebration, creativity, and free programming for attendees of all ages and neighboring residents.
Brooklyn, New York/Kingsville, Tx artist Benjamin Valera. “Heart is at Home.” Courtesy of SAY Sí. Donation from Harriett and Ricardo Romo.
All of these programs are rooted in SAY Sí’s Mission Statement: To ignite the creative power of young people as forces of positive change. By valuing artists, empowering marginalized communities, and advancing culture, SAY Sí creates spaces where San Antonio youth are encouraged to imagine, create, and lead.
Joe Lopez, “Anguish.” Courtesy of SAY Sí. Donation from Harriett and Ricardo Romo.