“INVASIVE SPECIES 2” Literary Panel and Open Mic Night
PRESENTED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH HOST PUBLICATION
As INVASIVE SPECIES 2 expands beyond the gallery and into literature, this evening brings together writers and artists whose practices explore identity, survival, womanhood, and the complicated ways we move through the worlds around us.
Moderated by Annar Veröld, a Honduran-American artist and the publisher of the small, women-led press Host Publications, the conversation will feature Jasmine Games, Julie Poole, and Katy Horan. The panel will engage with themes from the exhibition and consider how identity, lived experience, and the body inform writing and art.
The conversation will include readings from each panelist, followed by an open mic for members of the community to share their own work.
Treats will also be provided by Zucchini Kill, a woman-owned bakery offering vegan, gluten-free, and soy-free treats in 100% compostable packaging. Named in homage to Bikini Kill and the feminist punk pioneers who came before them, Zucchini Kill brings feminist community, creativity and a little delicious disruption to the evening.
All are welcome. Scroll for more details.
“Jessica with Lev” by Kate Biel
WHAT’S ON VIEW
Exhibiting artists: Vy Ngo, Virginia L. Montgomery, Tiffany Katarina Smith, Kate Biel, Kate Gonda, Kemi Yemi-Ese, Christine Garvey, Lovie Olivia and Alexis Hunter.
INVASIVE SPECIES 2 is a multidisciplinary exhibition and series of programming, led by Austin-based artist, educator and curator Alexis Hunter.
Open for one month only, the show features eight women-identifying artists whose practices explore the many contradictions, complexities and lived experiences of womanhood — bringing together perspectives shaped by immigration and displacement, motherhood, estrangement, race and queerness, disability and survival, femininity and beauty, ecology, healing, transformation and utopian possibilities of the future.
An invasive species is not inherently invasive. Its designation depends on where it is, how it arrives and what it changes. In an ecosystem shaped by male-dominated systems, women have historically been treated as outsiders, disruptions, or threats when entering spaces that were not built for them. In a 2019 study of 18 major U.S. art museums, only 12.6% of the artists represented in their collections were women. INVASIVE SPECIES 2 asks what happens when those so-called disruptions take root, adapt and change the ecosystem around them. Who gets to decide what belongs? Who gets to decide what is invasive? And what new ways of life might emerge when the boundaries of an ecosystem begin to shift?
The original INVASIVE SPECIES was curated by Hunter and Jacqueline Overby in 2023. What began as a group exhibition has grown into a network of more than 25 women artists, writers, filmmakers and cultural workers across Central, Southeast Texas and beyond. For its second edition, INVASIVE SPECIES establishes new territory beyond the gallery, entering two additional cultural ecosystems: cinema and literature, through collaborations with Hyperreal Film Club and Host Publications. Programming includes a week of horror screenings at Hyperreal Film Club from October 12–16, curated by Faiza Kracheni with support from Cynthia Muñoz and a literary panel and open mic at 1900 E 12th on October 17, moderated by Annar Veröld and featuring Jasmine Games, Julie Poole and Katy Horan.
As part of Future Front’s ongoing Community Studio exhibitions, INVASIVE SPECIES 2 reflects the journey of Austin-based multidisciplinary artists through the city. The exhibit’s curator, Alexis Hunter, is an active member of Future Front’s Curatorial Advisory.
ABOUT THE PANELISTS
Moderator
Annar Veröld
Annar Veröld (she/her) is a Honduran-American artist and the publisher of the small, women-led press Host Publications. She proudly co-founded and curates the feminist reading series I Scream Social and co-hosts the literary podcast The Host Dispatch. When not making books or attending readings, you can find her performing with the Austin Civic Wind Ensemble.
Speaker
Jasmine Games
Jasmine Games (she/they) is a Black, queer poet, theatre maker, and educator born in Dallas, raised in Houston, and rooted in Austin, TX. Her work lives at the intersections of poetry, performance, and social justice, where she uses words and theatre as tools for healing, disruption, and transformation.
She serves as Artistic Director of The Poet House, home to every.Word Poetry and Courageous Cadence, and as Director of Education & Social Justice at The VORTEX. Through these roles, she produces and directs theatre, hosts open mics, and leads writing and performance workshops in poetry, playwriting, devised theatre, and applied theatre.
An award-winning artist, Games received the 2021 Sexton Prize for Poetry for her debut collection, Somebody’s Daughter. She is also a Winifred Ward Scholar and a finalist of the 2025 Blackberry Peach National Poetry Slam and the 2025 Right2Write Poetry Slam Festival.
Speaker
Julie Poole
Julie Poole (she/they) was born in Seattle, Washington, and raised in the Pacific Northwest. She received a BA from Columbia University and an MFA in poetry from The New Writers Project at The University of Texas at Austin, where she was a finalist for the Keene Prize for Literature.
Her first book of poems, Bright Specimen, was inspired by the Billie L. Turner Plant Resources Center at UT and was published by Deep Vellum in 2021. Her second book, Gorgeous Freak, is out now.
Poole has received fellowship support from the James A. Michener Center, the Helene Wurlitzer Foundation, The Corsicana Artist and Writer Residency, and Yaddo. Her writing has appeared in Texas Monthly, the Texas Observer, Scalawag, The Baffler, Bon Appétit, Slate, and The Nation. She lives in Austin, Texas.
Speaker
Katy Horan
Katy Horan (she/her) is an illustrator and fine artist with a BFA in Illustration from the Rhode Island School of Design (2003). Her work has been exhibited throughout the United States and in Canada. It has been published in a number of books including Beasts! by Fantagraphics, The Exquisite Book by Chronicle Books, and Dark Inspiration II by Victionary, as well as in numerous publications such as Juxtapoz Magazine and New American Paintings.
Horan is also the author and illustrator of Murder Ballads: Illustrated Lyrics & Lore, published in 2025. In this unique, illustrated collection, Horan resurrects the real and fictional women and men of twenty traditional murder ballads, exploring their legacy in modern American music and culture. The book examines the genre's roots in patriarchal violence and white supremacy, as well as its contemporary relationship to true crime.
She is also the illustrator of Literary Witches: A Celebration of Magical Women Writers, written by Taisia Kitaiskaia and published by Seal Press. Horan has completed two painting residencies at The Vermont Studio Center and was a finalist for the 2015 Hunting Art Prize.
She lives in Austin, Texas with her husband, daughter, and two dogs.
HOW TO ATTEND
The Literary Panel and Open Mic Night for INVASIVE SPECIES 2 is free and open to the public, thanks to support in part from an Elevate Grant of Austin Arts, Culture, Music and Entertainment.
Future Front is wheelchair accessible and tactile graphics created in partnership with the Clovernook Center for the Blind will be available to support blind and visually impaired visitors in experiencing the exhibition.
REGISTER BELOW:
PLAN YOUR VISIT TO 1900 E 12TH
Future Front’s Community Studio is located at 1900 E. 12th Street. From soil to cement, the 1940s building has a long history that precedes us (including its first owner Vera Barton and the We Rise mural).
WHERE TO PARK: 1900 E 12th has a large paid parking lot across the street and is directly accessible by bus line. There’s also free parking up and down the street and in surrounding neighborhoods. Carpool, if you can!
WHAT TO DO: 1900 E 12th is located within the historic East 12th Street District, which is home to many other creative spaces and businesses, as well as organizations like Six Square. Explore the District while you’re around.
AVAILABLE LANGUAGES — ASL interpreters can be provided upon request. Si necesita traducción al español para participar en este evento, envíenos un correo electrónico a hello@futurefronttexas.org.
OUR COMMUNITY SAFETY GUIDELINES —
All Future Front staff, volunteers and guests will be required to practice mutual respect, as well as demonstrate an alignment with Future Front’s code of conduct and values: futurefronttexas.org/values.
Capacity is limited to reduce crowding of any kind and all events will be held in primarily outdoor and open-air spaces or have access to proper ventilations and well-maintained A/C systems.
At Future Front events, all guests are expected to follow Austin-local health and safety guidelines for gatherings, as well as practice consideration with the consumption of tobacco, alcohol and any other legal, mind-altering or dangerous substances and objects. This includes:
As Future Front strives to be a good neighbor, we also discourage the use of tobacco products on the property of nearby businesses and residences, to improve air quality, throughout our events.
Tobacco use and electronic smoking device use are not permitted at any time within Future Front properties and event spaces at least 15 ft from entrances, exits, operational windows, or ventilation system intake vents.
Littering of tobacco-related products on the grounds or parking lots is also prohibited.
Concealed or open weapons and firearms (including handguns) are not allowed at any Future Front venues.
GOT QUESTIONS? Shoot us a note at hello@futurefronttexas.org. We're happy to help and will get back to you!
BEHIND THIS EXHIBIT
INVASIVE SPECIES 2 is a multidisciplinary exhibition and series of programming curated and led by Alexis Hunter. The exhibition runs October 9–31, 2026, at Future Front in East Austin.
What began as a group exhibition has grown into a network of more than 25 women artists, writers, filmmakers, and cultural workers across Central and Southeast Texas and beyond. For its second edition, INVASIVE SPECIES establishes new territory beyond the gallery, entering the cultural ecosystems of cinema and literature through collaborations with Hyperreal Film Club and Host Publications.
Exhibition Dates: October 9 to October 31, 2026
Location: Future Front — 1900 E 12th St, Austin, TX 78702
Opening Reception: October 9 from 7 to 10 PM CT
Public Viewing Hours: Fridays from 12 to 6 PM CT
Additional Exhibit Programming
October 12 to 16, 2026
Hyperreal Film Club
301 Chicon St, Suite A, Austin, TX 78702
Curated by Faiza Kracheni with support from Cynthia Muñoz
Literary Panel Discussion, Reading and Open Mic
October 17, 2026 from 7 to 9 PM CT
Future Front
1900 E 12th St, Austin, TX 78702
In partnership with Host Publications
Moderated by Annar Veröld
Featuring Jasmine Games, Julie Poole, and Katy Horan
Curator’s Tour of INVASIVE SPECIES 2
October 24, 2026 from 10 to 11 AM CT
Future Front
1900 E 12th St, Austin, TX 78702
Led by Alexis Hunter
Private viewing appointments are also available by request. Please email hello@futurefronttexas.org for more information.
Hyperreal Film Club is a non-profit community cinema and local film hub based in Austin, Texas.
In 2016, founders David, Jenni, and Tanner started popping up in dozens of Austin’s most iconic locations to bring you our fave entries in the world of cult, genre, arthouse, and independent cinema — always paired with one or more short films showcasing the thriving local scene here in ATX.
In August of 2024 they put down roots at 301 Chicon St., a clubhouse where they show the world’s best movies every Monday-Friday. Sliding scale tickets, popcorn and cold bevs, and all your hot and rowdy friends make this the movie-watching experience of your dreams.
Host Publications is an award-winning, queer- and women-led independent publisher located in Austin, Texas.
Devoted to their mission to elevate historically marginalized writers, Host Publications publishes radical poetry and fiction by emerging LGBTQ+, BIPOC, intersectional feminist, and immigrant voices. They are a 501(c)(3) literary nonprofit organization.
Homegrown in Austin, Future Front is an award-winning cultural space and public exhibition series—with women and LGBTQ+ creatives at the front.
As a 501c3 arts and culture nonprofit, we produce two annual community-led exhibitions, The Front Market and The Front Festival, platforming independent artists and creatives across disciplines in Texas. Beyond our flagship exhibitions, we host seasonal shows and workshops at our creative space in East Austin, welcoming 20,000+ visitors per year.
Through these programs and a diverse network of partnerships, we invite the public (including you) to dream of a future where local art and creativity thrive in Texas—where we see ourselves and our cultures reflected in our communities.
FUTURE FRONT IS SUPPORTED IN PART BY an Elevate Grant of Austin Arts, Culture, Music and Entertainment, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, Texas Commission on the Arts, The LINE Hotel Austin, Pease Park Conservancy, Preservation Austin, Movability,ART FOR ALL, Partiful, Moontower Rentals, Distribution Hall, Miscellaneous Rentals, Thirstday Tequila, the Red River Cultural District, Topo Chico, as well as Future Front’s donors and members.