The Blanton Museum of Art, Austin

Such a fabulous museum! It's a total gem in the middle of Austin (and right in the UT campus!). The building itself is gorgeous and so well done on the interior. And the collection is really impressive - they have great exhibitions and the permanent collection is something to be very proud of. There is art of all kinds and I was particularly impressed by the contemporary art offerings.

The Goya exhibit is dark and violent. It is distasteful. Last year the Grimm Fairy Tales paintings were also dark and violent. What's the deal? Why exhibit profane and vile art? I will never go to the Blanton again. Why not exhibit beautiful, tasteful, happier art that is local. Isn't art for families too? Nothing I've seen is suitable for children. I am an artist myself. I know good art. Goya is horrible!

Blanton is a fun weekend day activity to escape the new-to-Austin uber trendy crowd that causes lines. (Skip brunch, make your own, and come here instead.) I love the vinyl water colored walls when you enter the museum. It feels vast and impressive. And while I've grown tired of their renaissance collection, it's pretty good. That being said, I like being a member - I've gotten a good value from coming back again and again. Fun for family outings, friend dates, first dates, etc. I've been to a few of the "opening" events which were organized, fun, interactive, and not overly crowded. I think the curators do a good job of creating awesome, unexpected galleries that find uncommon links between art you might not normally see together. (Dog and Cat exhibit, and Caribbean Expressionism received A+++++ ratings in my book.) Also notable: Civil Rights, 60s exhibition did a really nice job of giving historical context to the works of art. TBH: I didn't love "come as you are" "Soundspace" just because I think that the branding and hype w/ music didn't match my experience, takeaway. Basically I think that I would have loved it if I had never read or heard any content about it before I experienced it. Most of the "music" just kind of made me feel hangry because it wasn't music. AKA I wish in the ads it would have been called "cultural noises" or "found sound art" or something (to indicate nothing would sound remotely like m83) at least a few times. I feel that the staff is courteous, comfortable air conditioning, cool reading room (!) and clean bathrooms.

Great contemporary and modern galleries; they change their permanent collection frequently so even if you go for the special exhibitions, you usually get something new. As Latina its also great to see that they have an exquisite and broad Latin American selection, better than any exclusive Latin spaces in Austin. They usually have a lot of extra content that supports the exhibitions, so that's great too! Love it!

The Museum is right in the heart of the University of Texas. Parking is readily available in the parking garage nearby. We unfortunately chose to come here on a day when they were having an incoming freshman orientation or something, so there was way more activity than usual. We made the walk to the building and the front doors looked formidable. Tall and made of thick glass. As you walk inside there are a few displays posted up as well rules. You are then greeted by very friendly and informative staff that explain the facility to you and provide a map to help guide you along the way. Once you make it past the staff booth, you walk into a large open foyer with large staircase spread out in front of you. My fist impression was that it seemed sterile and rather uninspiring for an art museum. To get to the exhibits you have to make your way up the stairwell or take the elevator. The exhibits are laid out in orderly fashion and allow you to get close to each piece to admire the works of art. Each room is fairly large making it easy to see everything and not get in anyone's way. From photography, to classical painting, to sculptures; there was a little something there for everyone to enjoy. There were a few patrons while we there that were sitting on the floor sketching some the sculptures. The younger kids were less than inspired for most of it until we got to the modern art section, which I must say was quite amazing.