Spanning 15 years of relentless creation, this exhibition unfolds as both a retrospective and a transition point. Pressley, once defined by prolific output and unrelenting artistic momentum, now stands at a crossroads, grappling with the weight of past work and the challenge of what comes next. The show brings together a selection of paintings and drawings that chart the evolution of an artist who, despite the feeling of diminished productivity, remains fiercely committed to reinvention.

“In recent years I’ve been haunted by my own past work,” says Pressley. “This exhibition isn’t about nostalgia—it’s about facing the echoes of what I’ve made and a step into something new.”

Through layered brushwork, fragmented compositions, and a dialogue between past and present styles, Only People Know Me reveals the tension between artistic identity and transformation. The works on view, some never exhibited before, offer a raw, unfiltered look at an artist who refuses to settle into repetition.

Curator’s Statement
"Calvin Pressley’s paintings merge subjective portraiture with abstract perspectives on the human form, drawing us into a deeply intimate lens on his lived experiences. Through a nuanced exploration of color's psychology, each work becomes a translation— his own language of visual and emotional poetry." 

–Barbara Felix

About the Artist
Calvin Pressley is a visual artist and educator whose practice spans over fifteen years of art making rooted in observation, memory, and everyday labor. He holds an MFA from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and a BFA from the University of Texas at San Antonio. 

Born into a military family, he spent his early years living in Arizona, England, Panama and North Texas before eventually settling in San Antonio, a city he now calls home. The strong family bonds and cultural rhythms of San Antonio life continue to shape his perspective, both in the studio and in the classroom. 

His work has been exhibited across Texas, Philadelphia, New York, and other U.S. cities. For the past two years, he has taught art full-time, building connections between creative practice and education. His journey into art required carving out space where little existed, a path that now fuels his commitment to mentorship and his studio momentum.