The International Museum of Art & Science (IMAS) announced a new grant from the H-E-B Tournament of Champions to support the development of Supermercado / The Market, an interactive exhibit designed to encourage imaginative play and early childhood learning. IMAS Board President Debbie Crane Aliseda welcomed City of McAllen officials, educational partners, and community stakeholders to this announcement where museum leadership and community partners shared details about the project and unveiled new exhibit renderings.
The Supermercado exhibit is one component of the museum’s master exhibit plan and Campaign for Children, a multi-phase initiative that will transform IMAS through three interactive gallery environments: The Studio, The Plaza, and The World. Supermercado lives in The Plaza, a space designed to encourage hands-on community experiences and social engagement.
“In this role-play environment, children can step into different roles such as shoppers, cashiers, or stockers,” said Ann Fortescue. “Visitors will move through the process of shopping for food while creating their own play experiences. The exhibit encourages intergenerational play by including surprises and activities for adults and children to discover together, including artwork integrated into the space.”
The Supermercado / Market focuses on key developmental areas including association, communication, critical thinking, and decision making. Through imaginative role-play, children will practice planning, categorizing, organizing, selecting items, and applying basic mathematical thinking while solving simple shopping challenges.
The project builds on the success of Seed to Table, a current exhibit supported by H-E-B Tournament of Champions grant in 2017 and installed in 2018. Over the past eight years, the exhibit has served more than 300,000 visitors, demonstrating the strong community interest in hands-on learning experiences for young children.
Left to right: Audrey Trevino, H-E-B Public Affairs Manager, Jeannette Gamboa, H-E-B Public Affairs Specialist (Border Region), Ann Fortescue, IMAS Executive Director, Anastasia Perez, IMAS Development & Marketing Director.
Audrey Trevino, Public Affairs Manager – H-E-B Border Region, spoke about the company’s long-standing relationship with IMAS and the importance of investing in community learning spaces. “H-E-B has been a proud supporter of IMAS for many years,” Trevino said. “The Seed to Table exhibit showed how meaningful these interactive environments can be for families. This new phase allows us to refresh the market experience, update the adjacent Industrial Lab, and bring our community partners together to help build something special for the next generation.”
As part of the project, Tournament of Champions volunteers will join IMAS in June for a community build day, helping complete the final installation of Supermercado with approximately 100 volunteers participating. Jeannette Gamboa, H-E-B Public Affairs Specialist for the border region, also participated in the announcement.
The press event highlighted the broader design and development team behind the project. Laura Nassri Warren, AIA NCARB, Principal at The Warren Group Architects, Inc., shared remarks about the larger vision for the museum’s Campaign for Children and how the new exhibit fits into the long-term transformation of the IMAS facility and museum experience. Exhibit development partner Set Solis, Sietecolores Project Manager, spoke about the creative process behind the interactive market environment.
IMAS continues its collaboration with Sietecolores, an international exhibit design and fabrication team based in Mexico City. The firm has previously partnered with IMAS on multiple projects, including six interactive exhibits that debuted at the museum in August 2024 in El Estudio / The Studio, as well as a renovation of the legacy Water Journey exhibition in 2025.
Research consistently demonstrates the importance of play and cultural engagement in childhood development. Interactive exhibits that combine creative expression and problem solving are shown to support emotional wellbeing and strengthen learning outcomes.
“Our community needs places where families can connect and interact,” Fortescue said. “At IMAS, we strive to create experiences that encourage children and their caregivers to explore together while developing literacy, communication, and life skills that support academic and economic success.”
The Supermercado exhibit represents another milestone in the Campaign for Children and reflects the continued partnership between IMAS, H-E-B, and the Rio Grande Valley community.
Ann Fortescue, Executive Director of IMAS, announces a grant from the H-E-B Tournament of Champions to fund the upcoming Supermercado/Market Exhibit at a press announcement held at IMAS.
