December brings a convergence of artistic visions to Austin's galleries and museums. This month features everything from the dramatic realism of Spanish Baroque oil painting to contemporary works in handmade paper, found objects, and layered textiles.

The shows span intimate portraits paired with women's own voices, satirical reinterpretations of advertising's glossy promises, and works that honor Indigenous plant wisdom through digital innovation. This month’s exhibitions invite viewers to appreciate not just what's shown, but how it's made and what those processes reveal about power, memory, and connection.

West Chelsea Contemporary

Group Exhibition: Licensed to Thrill — Now through December 21
Charlotte Rose and the Connor Brothers return to Austin with Licensed to Thrill, a sleek examination of desire and the carefully crafted performances that surround it. Rose tears down advertising's glossy veneer by reimagining commercial fantasies to reveal darker truths about mortality and longing. The Connor Brothers transform vintage nostalgia into cutting satire, their pulp fiction-inspired pieces merging fact and fantasy with clever word play.

Davis Gallery

Group Exhibition: Cornucopia: Annual Holiday Show — Now through January 3
This diverse holiday exhibition brings together more than 30 artists working across painting, collage, and mixed media, offering viewers a spectrum from whimsy to profound introspection. The show features vibrant Western cowboy figures by B Shawn Cox alongside Danny Cabading's haunting self-portraits; plus, Lauren Jaben contributes delicate collage work, and other artists create complex three-dimensional pieces assembled from found objects.

Austin Public Library

Robin Kang: The Light That Grows Here — Now through January 4
The Light That Grows Here weaves native Texas plants, ancestral textile practices, and digital technology into works that honor the healing power of nature. Informed by her studies with master weavers worldwide and her initiations into Amazonian shamanic practices, Kang transforms the act of weaving into ritual, inviting viewers to contemplate how craft can reconnect us with ecological wisdom and the unseen intelligence of the plant world.

Wally Workman Gallery

Priscilla Robinson: Between — December 6 through January 4
Robinson works at the intersection of handmade paper and fused glass, drawing inspiration from her dual studios in Austin and Taos. This exhibition focuses on the ambiguous "between spaces" — where opposites meet and transition — and their relationship to the natural world. The artist combines handmade paper, glass, metal, and polycarbonate into fragments that interconnect to form cohesive artwork. Robinson's layered constructions feel substantial and dense, evoking the texture of flower petals or sculpted clay. Her pieces pulse with movement, suggesting flowing rivers or autumn leaves caught in the wind.

Women & Their Work

Barbara Felix: The Glorious Way She Moves — Now through January 15
Felix has created a multi-sensory celebration of women across generations, cultures, and lived experiences, rooted in her Black and Latina heritage and inspired by her mother's enduring friendships. Felix paints movement-based portraits of women she knows, meets, or admires — each one a tribute to the joy that women embody as acts of resistance. Each piece is paired with audio recordings of the women themselves, sharing stories of struggle, empowerment, and hope.

Photo courtesy of West Chelsea Contemporary

Collage, vintage advertisements, and clever wordplay are blended in Licensed to Thrill at West Chelsea Contemporary

Blanton Museum

Group Exhibition: Spirit & Splendor: El Greco, Velázquez, and the Hispanic Baroque — Now through February 1
Featuring almost 60 paintings, Spirit & Splendor charts the evolution of Spanish art over 150 years. The exhibition pulls from the Hispanic Society Museum & Library's collection, presenting masterpieces by El Greco and Diego Velázquez alongside José de Páez and Melchor Pérez Holguín, painters who brought the Baroque vision to Spain's American territories. The show offers a rare chance to see works from one of the world's most important collections of Hispanic art, showcasing the emotional intensity that made Spanish Baroque painting legendary.

Art for the People Gallery

Group Exhibition: The Edge of Everything — Now through February 21
The Edge of Everything gathers 17 artists inspired by the quiet observations of everyday life. The exhibition captures the subtle textures of our surroundings through diverse perspectives and mediums. Among the featured artists are Alessandra Posada, who brings over two decades of experience in ink, watercolor, and sculptural objects. Luke Smith's oil paintings celebrate nature and adventure, and Paul Moncus explores the human condition through portraiture.