By Louis Zylka
The 830 Times
A Selena-themed exhibit, Selena Con Tanto Amor, will open at the Del Rio Council for the Arts Firehouse Gallery, 120 E. Garfield St., on Friday, April 3, at 6 p.m.
For April’s First Friday Art Walk, the Firehouse will showcase never-before-seen photos of Mexican-American singer Selena Quintanilla-Pérez and her 1994 fashion show, “Selena Etc.” The photos and new sketches focus on the outfits she wore during performances. The exhibit will remain on display throughout April.
The event is free and open to the public, with food and refreshments available.
Del Rioan Matthew LeBroke, the event organizer, has hosted similar Selena-themed events in the past, including the Cumbia de la Flor Fest in 2023. He said this marks the first time he has collaborated with the Del Rio Council for the Arts to highlight Selena’s fashion career.
“We kind of often focus on her music, but nobody talks about the fashion side of it,” LeBroke said. “That is kind of a new thing to push people to learn more about her fashion and designs.”
Two featured guests will attend the event: Al Rendon, Selena’s photographer, and Martin Gomez, her fashion designer. Rendon will present 10 archived photos from Selena’s 1994 fashion show and a concert held the same day. Gomez will display three sketches of outfits Selena wore during performances, marking the first time those designs have been rendered in color, LeBroke said.
A Question and Answer session with Gomez will take place during the event, moderated by Michelle Gonzalez, with additional questions from the audience.
The exhibit will also feature two recreations of Selena’s outfits by designer Rio Gonzalez, along with five additional outfits Selena sold and other memorabilia collected by LeBroke over the years.
LeBroke said his passion for Selena began when his mother introduced him to her music, and it has grown as he learned more about her life and legacy. He said his goal is to bring unique events to Del Rio.
“Being able to bring something to Del Rio where people don’t have to travel to San Antonio or Corpus Christi, Selena’s home base, is kind of cool because we don’t always have those events,” LeBroke said. “That is what I wanted to do — to keep her memory alive in Del Rio.”
