Courtesy of Donna Miller.
For the upcoming festivities of the FIFA World Cup 2026 in Dallas, the Oak Cultural District has announced the dates of the Copa De Cliff Immersive Visitor Center and Artists Exhibition.
On select evenings from June 12 through July 18, the center will serve as a welcoming hub for guests to the neighborhood to receive information about nearby food spots, pubs, shops, and entertainment, plus free water and shade to cool off from the summer heat.
The project also coincides with Copa de Cliff on Wednesday, June 24, where from 6-10 p.m., three areas of the Oak Cliff Cultural District (Bishop Avenue, Jefferson Boulevard, and South Winnetka Avenue) will be activated with different programming to highlight the diverse history and culture of the neighborhood.
“And so what we thought would be good is in order to encourage people to come out for that day, that particular evening, why not have an information center that is temporary, that is open before, so that if visitors are coming in at the start of World Cup, early June, mid-June, that they could at least stumble upon us and come in and see the artwork that Art Garcia is doing,” District 1 arts commissioner Augustine “Tino” Jalomo said.
Garcia, a local sculptor, has curated work from himself and other Oak Cliff-based artists that revolves around the themes of sport, culture and identity. Featured artists for the installation include Kelly Allen, Jennifer Money Cowley, Elise Esquivel, Loretta Gonzalez, James Olney, Larry Pile, Pascal Pryor and Giovannia Valderas.
The space will transform into an interactive experience, including painted walls to represent team colors, foosball tables, and interior astroturf with the markings of a soccer field, Garcia said.
“So the information center not only supplies information for the active areas, but it also is promoting some of the artists that are in the district themselves … I enjoy being inclusive and involving other artists because that’s, after all, that’s what Oak Cliff is really about,” he said. “There’s so much creativity in and out of Oak Cliff anyway, that I just don’t want to push myself as being the only sculptor, artist from Oak Cliff. There’s many, many, many, many more, and I just want to help to promote that. It gives me great pleasure to be able to promote my colleagues.”
The Copa De Cliff Immersive Visitor Center and Artists Exhibition will be located at 509 W. Davis St., Suite 200. Here are the hours of operation for the center:
- June 12–13 from 5-10 p.m.
- June 19–20 from 5-10 p.m.
- June 24 from 4-10 p.m.
- July 10–11 from 5-10 p.m.
- July 17–18 from 5-10 p.m.
