Three Distinct Exhibitions Explore Environment, Service, and the Human Experience Through Textile and Sculptural Art
ROCKPORT, Texas – Rockport Center for the Arts (RCA) invites the public to experience three compelling exhibitions opening during its late summer and fall season. Featuring internationally recognized fiber artist Doerte Weber, emerging Corpus Christi artist Ian Manseau, and acclaimed glass artist and mixed-media sculptor Peter Mangan, these exhibitions explore themes of environmental stewardship, personal history, and the human experience through innovative approaches to contemporary art.
Visitors are invited to discover each artist's unique perspective while experiencing the diverse range of media and ideas that continue to define RCA's exhibition program.
“Through weaving, glass, metal, stone, raku ceramics, and more, Weber, Mangan, and Manseau transform process into meaning, ” said Catey Arnold, Barrow Foundation Curator of Exhibitions. “Together, these exhibitions reveal the remarkable ways materials can hold memory, reflect place, and make unseen experiences visible.”
Doerte Weber | Material Conversations: Woven in Place
Presented by: FieldGuide Financial
August 8 – September 27, 2026
H-E-B Gallery
Reception: Saturday, August 8 | 5–7 PM
Internationally recognized fiber artist Doerte Weber transforms everyday and reclaimed materials into intricate woven works that examine our relationship with the natural world. Drawing inspiration from travel, current events, and the landscapes around her, Weber creates richly textured pieces that blend traditional weaving techniques with contemporary environmental themes.
Originally from Germany and now based in Texas, Weber's artistic practice is deeply influenced by the pioneering women weavers of the Bauhaus, the groundbreaking early twentieth-century German art and design school that revolutionized modern architecture, craft, and design. While many Bauhaus women were steered into the weaving workshop, they transformed textile art into an innovative fine art form through experimentation with color, materials, and abstraction. Largely self-taught, Weber embraces that same spirit of exploration, continually pushing the boundaries of textile materials to tell stories that connect people through shared experiences.
Material Conversations: Woven in Place, presented by FieldGuide Financial, brings together a new body of work by Doerte Weber that reflects on coastal living through material, process, and form.
Using traditional weaving techniques alongside repurposed and contemporary materials, Weber moves domestic textiles into a broader artistic context, where structure becomes visual language and material becomes quiet connector.
The presentation draws from the rhythms of summertime spent at the water, spaces of retreat, and the familiarity of shared environments—while remaining attentive to the conditions that shape them.
Rather than contrasting these experiences, Weber allows them to exist in conversation, where material memory and environment are interwoven with a sense of balance and continuity.
Weber and Rockport Center for the Arts have developed a meaningful relationship over the past several years. She has twice served as a Penny Redmon Visiting Lecturer, leading workshops in April 2024 and February 2025. The Penny Redmon Visiting Lecturers Series brings nationally and internationally recognized artists, authors, and scholars to RCA to share their expertise through lectures, workshops, and community engagement.
Her husband, acclaimed photographer Ansen Seale, presented the solo exhibition Rising Tide, Shifting Sand: A chronicle of Change in Texas at RCA in 2024, while his mother, Jan Seale, the 2012 Texas Poet Laureate, and his brother, Avrel Seale, an accomplished author and genealogist, have both led writing workshops through RCA's literary arts program. Together these collaborations reflect a longstanding creative partnership between the Seale family and RCA.
Weber's work has been exhibited throughout the United States and internationally and is included in numerous public and private collections.
Ian Manseau | Residue
September 5 – November 8, 2026
McKelvey Charitable Fund Gallery
Reception: Saturday, September 12 | 5–7 PM
Ian Manseau's Residue will incorporate larger pedestal-dependent works, selected vessels from the Residue (1.0), for a scaled down showing, presenting the smaller vessels similarly laid out in military formations. The exhibition examines the lasting human impact of military burn pit exposure—large open-air sites used to dispose of waste on overseas bases that have since been linked to serious long-term health concerns for many veterans. By incorporating donated uniforms directly into each piece, Manseau transforms symbols of military service into poignant reminders of memory, sacrifice, resilience, and the unseen physical and emotional burdens many service members continue to carry long after returning home.
Originally from New Hampshire, Manseau served nearly fourteen years in the U.S. Air Force, retiring as a Technical Sergeant after serving in support of Operation Enduring Freedom at Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan. Manseau’s work bridges personal experience, social issues, and contemporary ceramic practice.
Peter Mangan | Illuminating Nature
September 4 – November 22, 2026
Jeanie and Bill Wyatt Gallery
Reception: Saturday, September 12 | 5–7 PM
For more than three decades, sculptor Peter Mangan has created works combining metal and glass to explore identity, memory, relationships, and the human experience. His sculptures use the human figure and natural forms as a starting point for examining the experiences, emotions, and connections that shape who we are. His work has been exhibited and collected throughout the United States, Europe, and Japan.
Together, these exhibitions celebrate the diverse voices shaping today's contemporary art landscape while inviting visitors to consider the experiences that shape us all. Whether through the landscapes and environments that surround us, the lasting imprint of service and sacrifice, or the memories, relationships, and emotions that define our identities, each artist offers a unique perspective on what it means to be human. Through exceptional craftsmanship and deeply personal storytelling, these exhibitions encourage reflection, conversation, and a renewed appreciation for the connections that bind us to one another and to the world around us.
About Rockport Center for the Arts
The 1.2-acre Rockport Center for the Arts campus is located in the Rockport Cultural Arts District and features multiple galleries, classrooms, a sculpture garden, and The ROCC conference center. RCA is dedicated to supporting the arts through exhibitions, education, outreach, and community engagement. Admission to the galleries is always free. For more information, visit rockportartcenter.com or call (361) 729-5519.