UPCOMING EXHIBITION
DORF Presents
Homeward Bound
A group exhibition featuring artists Josue Bessiake, Esther Marie Hall, and Bárbara Miñarro
A multidisciplinary inquiry into the evolving and expansive concept of home, articulated through sculpture, installation, and textile-based practices that foreground memory, materiality, and embodied experience.
Esther Marie Hall, Conduit Last Exit, 2026, image courtesy of the artist and DORF.
Opening Reception:
Friday, February 27, 2026 | 7:00–10:00 pm.
Pre-Reception Cocktail Hour at Carpenters Hall | 5-7 pm. RSVP HERE
Performance: Josue Bessiake and curatorial fellow Jesus Trevino | 8 pm.
Exhibition Dates:
February 27 – May 23, 2026
Location:
DORF at Zilker Point, 218 South Lamar Blvd., Suite 140, Austin, TX 78704
Open Saturdays:
12:00–5:00 PM
DORF is proud to announce Homeward Bound, a group exhibition featuring artists Josue Bessiake, Esther Marie Hall, and Bárbara Miñarro, each exploring the layered and deeply personal concept of “home”.
Through sculptural works built with found, secondhand, and donated materials, the artists examine nuanced interpretations of what makes a home. Bessiake reflects on its physical structure, Miñarro explores embodiment and belonging within one’s own body, and Hall approaches home as an existential state of being.
The exhibition is accompanied by a text by DORF curatorial fellow Jesus Treviño.
Josue Bessiake, If these walls would listen, 2025, handmade acrylic on canvas and wood combine with tar paper, 48”” x 48”, image courtesy of the artist and DORF.
“What does it mean to be home and what does it mean to be in pursuit of it when the ground beneath you is shifting?”
Bárbara Miñarro, Jorge, 2021, reclaimed jeans, dimensions vary, image courtesy of the artist and DORF.
ARTIST AND CURATOR BIOS
Josue Bessiake
Josue Bessiake is an Ivorian-American painter working across media. At the core of his practice is an interest in the structure of things. Treating his studio like a living laboratory to investigate what he terms "the ingredients of a phenomenon." Influenced by his itinerant upbringing, his work reflects his desire to connect with his environment.
Esther Marie Hall
Esther Marie Hall is a multidisciplinary artist focused on fiber and textile work. Born in Northern California and now based in Austin, Hall illustrates her cultural identity using traditional Filipino and American crafting techniques—such as weaving, embroidery, and quilting—to expand material language.
Bárbara Miñarro
Bárbara Miñarro was born in Monterrey, Mexico and lives in Austin, Texas. Working between two cultures, her practice explores the body in migration. Her soft sculptures and installations use the tactile memory of clothing, earth, and the body to express the emotional journey of migration.
Jesus Treviño
Jesus Treviño received an MFA from UT Austin and is the curatorial fellow for Homeward Bound. Raised on the U.S./Mexico border, his work addresses the erasure of history and displacement, along with their emotional and social effects. He currently runs the Flower Shop Art Residency, a program of Frontera Arts in Bloom in Brownsville, Texas.
Introducing The Carpenter Hotel x DORF – 2026 Programming Series
DORF is excited to partner with Carpenter Hotel in 2026 for a year-long collaboration supporting and highlighting artists through public programs, artist stipends, residencies, and artist-centered initiatives – strengthening a sustainable cultural infrastructure in Austin.
An announcement about our year of programming is coming soon.
Upcycled Purse Charm Making Workshop and Material Swap
with Bárbara Miñarro and Esther Marie Hall
Carpenter Hotel
Saturday, April 18, 2026 | 11-1 pm. (tentative)
Led by Homeward Bound artists Bárbara Miñarro and Esther Marie Hall. This two-hour, hands-on workshop invites participants to engage directly with the artists’ material practices, centered on fabric reuse and transformation.
The workshop offers an intimate opportunity to meet and mingle with the artists.
Tickets coming soon. Follow us on IG for updates!
Mother’s Day Painting Workshop
with Bárbara Miñarro and Esther Marie Hall
Carpenter Hotel
Saturday, May 9, 2026 | 11-1 pm. (tentative)
Led by Homeward Bound artist and Breakfast Friend founder, Bárbara Miñarro. This two-hour, hands-on workshop invites participants to engage directly with the artist’s material practice, centered on fabric reuse and transformation.
Attendees will paint on tote bags made from upcycled fabric to create their own hand-painted bag to take home at the conclusion of the session. The workshop offers an intimate opportunity to meet and mingle with the artist while learning about sustainable creative practices and the role of reuse in contemporary artmaking. Participants may bring their own tote bag or purchase an upcycled fabric tote at the event.
Tickets coming soon. Follow us on IG for updates!
Parking
Paid parking is available in the Zilker Point garage (near DORF entrance on Toomey Road) at $5/hour (max $30). Additional public paid parking is available along Toomey Road west of the building.
Accessibility
ADA accessible parking is available at Zilker Point garage, with elevator access to DORF. DORF is also accessible via S. Lamar Blvd’s sidewalks.
DORF’s gallery is wheelchair accessible and stroller friendly. Onsite restrooms are wheelchair accessible with baby changing stations.
Service animals and friendly animals of most kinds are welcome at DORF!
Please check in at the Reception Desk or email us with questions or for assistance.
DORF:
218 South Lamar Blvd.
Suite 140
Austin, Texas, 78704.
ABOUT DORF
Founded in 2018, DORF is an artist-run contemporary art space grounded in the belief that community and access are essential to cultural innovation. Through exhibitions, residencies, and fellowships, DORF provides a platform for artists and advocates whose work amplifies marginalized voices and advances social dialogue.
In 2024, DORF opened a new location at the Zilker Point building in a landmark partnership between public and private entities that allows DORF to occupy the space for $1 per year — a model that reflects its commitment to sustainability and equity in the arts.
We have received recognition in publications like Texas Monthly, Sightlines Magazine, The Austin Chronicle, Glasstire, Southwest Contemporary, and more, and received “Best New Experimental Art Gallery” in The Austin Chronicle.
For more information, contact us at dorf@dorfworld.org.
Acknowledgements
This program is supported in part by the City of Austin Economic Development Department, Texas Commission on the Arts, The Carpenter Hotel, University of Texas School of Art and Art History, and our generous donors.
