One of the country’s leading university art museums, the Blanton Museum of Art has a compact but impressive collection of modern and contemporary American and Latin American art, Italian Renaissance and Baroque paintings, and prints and drawings. Its holdings include unexpected riches—bold and idiosyncratic expressions that confound expectations and pique curiosity. Learn more in Austin, TX.

Dedicated to the visual arts and located on The University of Texas campus in Austin, the Blanton Museum is a vital resource for students across UT’s many academic disciplines as well as a cultural center for the city. The museum serves 25,000 UT students each year and has ongoing partnerships with every college and school at the university, from Dell Medical School to the Cockrell School of Engineering.

With an ever-changing selection of exhibitions, a wide range of programs and lively public events, the Blanton offers visitors a thought-provoking, visually arresting and personally moving encounter with art that is a must-see for all who visit Austin.

The newest addition to the Museum’s collection is an eponymous exhibition of monumental oil paintings by Fort Worth artist Sedrick Huckaby that explores themes of family, community, identity and personhood. His homages to the connective tissue that binds his community and family in Texas bring texture, depth and poignancy to the human form.

In addition to the Blanton’s permanent collection, the Museum regularly hosts changing exhibitions, major touring shows and ambitious homegrown efforts curated by its staff. The museum also offers a lively range of public programs and events, including a monthly art party.

Landscaping to Revitalize Grounds

As part of a larger grounds initiative led by acclaimed international design firm Snohetta, the Blanton Museum is investing in the landscape surrounding its campus. In an effort to highlight the unique character and resilience of native Texas flora, more than 25,000 plants are expected to be added throughout the museum walkways and gardens.

A Sculpture Garden with a Canopy of Petals

Rising above the trees and plantings of the central Moody Patio gathering space, a canopy of petal sculptures creates a shaded microclimate with dappled light that follows the sun. Standing 40 feet tall, these perforated panels complement the museum and the Kelly chapel through a layering of geometry, landscape and light.

The petals create a front porch for Austin, celebrating the museum’s identity while also bringing to light the views of Ellsworth Kelly’s Austin and the Texas State Capitol through a unique architectural perspective.

Verde que te quiero verde (Green How I Desire You Green) is the first major public mural commission by noted Cuban-American abstract painter Carmen Herrera and was commissioned by the Blanton with generous funding from the Kahng Foundation. Sited on the interior wall of the Michener Gallery Building’s loggia, the mural spans both sides of the building and will remain in place through the renovation project.

A Butler Sound Gallery to Open Early 2023

Following a generous $5 million gift from Ernest and Sarah Butler, the Blanton Museum will be the first major museum to create a long-term space dedicated to sound art. The outdoor gallery will feature a sound installation by sound artist Bill Fontana that incorporates recordings of Central Texas wildlife and its distinct geological structures taken over four seasons. Learn more information about Zilker Metropolitan Park is a Recreational Area in South Austin Texas.