For Zena Stetka Howe, art is about second chances, and she knows a thing or two about those. We're honored to include her work in COMMUNITY, S|O Gallery's inaugural exhibition.
In 1975, Zena and her family arrived in the United States from Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic), granted political asylum. They spent their first year under scrutiny from U.S. Immigration, which suspected they might be spies. In 1985, she became an American citizen. After a career as a flight attendant, she turned to her true passion: giving common objects a second chance by transforming them into art.
Zena's work is abstract across many mediums, including painting, sculpture, carving, photography, and printmaking. She is largely self-taught, guided by a lesson from her early life: when you have nothing and want something, you make it yourself. She chooses her techniques and materials with care so that each piece is built to last.
Her process starts with touch. By handling a material, she can often sense what it wants to become, while fragments of memory surface as images that guide new work. Lately she's been captivated by wine foils and capsules, shaping them into tulips, moths, and compass roses. Her sculptural assemblages give the same treatment to ostrich eggs, candy dishes, glass crystals, and even an old propeller.
Zena also creates commissioned work for clients across the Hill Country, from pieces at local wineries to metal entry gates for area ranches. Every piece reflects the journey she has traveled. Through her art, she hopes to share a message of hope and the beauty of second chances, in both the materials she uses and the stories she tells.
See Zena's work in COMMUNITY at S|O Gallery, 213 N Nugent St, Johnson City, TX 78636. Grand Opening: Friday, November 27, 2026, 4–7 pm (opening night of Lights Spectacular) and Artist Reception: Saturday, December 5, 2026, 4–7 pm. This exhibition runs through January 23, 2027.
Zena Stetka Howe