9 February 19 - 25, 2026 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents score is soothing, a far cry from her previous work in Helium Queens, which now leans more into the realms of Enya or Air. “I was raised as a classical pianist and then started playing in metal bands in high school,” Xander says. “In this project, I was able to incorporate all the synthesized and electronica categories and dive into it as my character from Helium Queens. This was something I now wanted to explore: what Piscea sounds like.” For Mesquite Arts Center assistant man- ager, Erica Guajardo, who is currently pur- suing a master’s degree in arts management, Luminous Frequencies repre- sents the center’s foray into multidisci- plinary creative collaboration. “This is the first of its kind for the Mes- quite Arts Center to bring musical perfor- mance and visual arts together,” Guajardo says. “In January of 2025, they wrote us a proposal, and it was the most colorful and thoughtful proposal we had ever seen. They were a bit out of our budget, but it was okay because we knew they were going to provide a wonderful, vibrant journey for our com- munity through this exhibition.” Knowing that the proposal was accepted helped Roomiani get a clearer idea of which physical objects would work in the space she and Xander shared, rather than creating a collection for an undetermined location. “I felt it was really nice working here for a show that was coming together,” Roomiani says. “I knew it would fit together, but it was cool to work on a piece that I knew had a place to go, with a musical score to give my work its own language. I was just elated.” Cohn Drennan, current manager of Mes- quite Arts Center and longtime contempo- rary gallerist, sees Luminous Frequencies as another step in the right direction for institu- tions collaborating with local artists to help enrich the fabric of the communities of greater Dallas. “We pull a lot of people in from East Dallas and Oak Cliff and involve a lot of our artists in arts education programs,” Drennan says. “This show is really a collaboration and part- nership. We wanted to combine visual with performing arts, so we get a lot of people that walk into the show and say, ‘Wow, that’s trippy.’” Reflecting on the nature of the work, through this collaboration, Roomiani sees Luminous Frequencies as another reifi- cation of her established artistic concepts revolving around naturalism and centered in her decade-long practice. “I would say my work has stayed true to its original investigations on the quality of nature,” Roomiani says. “I think it’s pro- gressed into what I’m doing here today.” For Xander, seeing things through Roomi- ani’s lens inspired the musician and composer to jump into a world that is Helium Queens- adjacent but refined to her personal scope. “I feel this is something I wanted to do for a long time,” Xander says. “This collabo- ration allowed me the opportunity to go in this direction, and I’m excited for people to experience it with us.” Luminous Frequencies is on view at Mes- quite Arts Center now through March 21. Scott Tucker Shamsy Roomiani’s “The Numb,” 2024.
