Brown Foundation Gallery

June 13 - August 2, 2026

ArtWalk Opening Reception
Saturday, June 13, 2026
6 – 9 PM
Artist talk at 6:30 PM

GAC’s exhibitions are supported in part by a grant from Texas Commission on the Arts. Artist accommodations generously provided by Hotel Lucine.

Jasmine Zelaya
Tropical Depression

Jasmine Zelaya’s exhibition asks how a simple fruit shaped the history of Honduras and its people so profoundly that its effects are still felt today. Tropical Depression is informed by the artist’s research into the banana industry, the United Fruit Company, and U.S. corporate influences that changed the course of Honduras’ history. The destabilization of Central America by foreign influence remains relevant to her personally and prevails in oppressive systems impacting current and future generations. Floral motifs recur throughout Zelaya’s paintings, honoring to the names of women in her family. The patterns they created often obscure the figures’ expressive eyes and brown skin, prompting viewers to consider who is seen, who is overlooked, and how identity is layered and protected. She is interested in the process of assimilation and the tension between visibility and otherness, while celebrating the strength and complexity of Latina identity within public space. Through her work, Zelaya creates accessible visual narratives that honor lived experience, amplify marginalized voices, and reflect collective strength, solidarity, and resilience.

Jasmine Zelaya is a multidisciplinary Honduran-American artist based in Houston, Texas. Her work delves into themes of identity, assimilation, and the brown body through an intimate familial lens rich with color and symbolism. Zelaya is a graduate of the Kansas City Art Institute (BFA, 2006) and has exhibited at leading art spaces including Project Row Houses, the Blaffer Art Museum, the Louise Hopkins Underwood Center for the Arts, the San Antonio Museum of Art, the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, and the Cheech Center, Riverside Museum (CA). Her public art projects have become integral to Houston’s creative landscape, including Flower Face Room at Meow Wolf Houston, Twins at Main Street Marquee and Detroit Red at the Moody Center for the Arts. Her work, featured in numerous publications and private collections, continues to explore the beauty and complexity of Latinx identity in America.

jasminezelaya.com