Elgin Depot Museum

After Thanksgiving in Houston, I was driving back to Austin for an appointment. Traffic wasn't as bad as I'd anticipated, so I found myself with a little extra time on my hands. I stopped by the Elgin Depot Museum. Located at the intersection of two railroad tracks, it's a small museum with photographs, maps, and antiques related to railroad history. If you're driving through Elgin, you might want to stop and take a look.

Saturday, November 28 Ideas

This Saturday seems like a great day to take the Saturday tour at the Austin Museum of Art, visit the South Austin Museum of Popular Culture, or check out the Cyberchase exhibit at the Children's Museum.

Williamson County Museum

This Friday, November 27, the Williamson Museum in Georgetown, Texas, is staying open until 8PM in conjunction with the Lighting of the Courthouse Square. Visit the museum and enjoy the festivities - caroling, cookies, christmas lights, and art activities. http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=215234613985&ref=mf

Outdoor Art on Thanksgiving

Even when the museums are closed, there's still opportunities for viewing art. In Austin check the many sculptures and murals around the city: http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/aipp/downloads/brochure.pdf
In Dallas, take the city's walking sculpture tour: http://www.dallasfoundation.org/tour/sculptures.html
In San Antonio take a river taxi, which is open regular hours on Thanksgiving, to see the River Walk Museum Reach:
http://www.visitsanantonio.com/visitors/play/arts-culture/outdoor-art/index.aspx

Discovery Green in Houston on Thanksgiving

If you are travelling to other Texas cities for the holidays, you may want to check out museums and galleries in the town you are visiting. Unfortunately most Texas museums and galleries are closed on Thanksgiving. One major exception is the outdoor art exhibit "Cool Globes: Hot Ideas for a Cooler Planet" at Discovery Green in Houston. Not only do they have an outdoor exhibit, but they also have ice skating! http://www.discoverygreen.com/

Museum Themed Neckties

Holiday 12x12 Art Box Show

Here's the instructions for artists for the Holiday 12x12 Art Box Show at Maranda Pleasant Gallery. http://www.bigmodernart.com/instructions.html Deadline for submissions is December 3.

LBJ Library and Museum is open on Thanksgiving

Most Austin museums are closed on Thanksgiving, so it's a great day to head on over to the LBJ Library and Museum, which is open 9AM-5PM on Thanksgiving.

Open on Mondays Museums

Quite a few museums are closed on Mondays. One exception is the Bob Bullock History of Texas Museum. The 3D IMAX is spectacular, and the Texas Spirit Theater is ahead of its time. Other options for Mondays are the Texas Memorial Museum and LBJ Library and Museum, which are not only open seven days a week, but also free to the public.

Exhibit and Movie at MACC

Looks like the Mexican American Cultural Center currently housing the exhibit "Flutter: New Works by Connie Arismendi". Monday through Thursday the center is open late to 9PM. This Tuesday there's also a free movie showing of "El Seminarista" staring Pedro Infante at 7 PM.

Monday and Tuesday evenings

There don't seem to be a lot of options for viewing art on Monday and Tuesday evenings. One exception is the People's Gallery exhibit at City Hall. It's free and open to the public Monday through Friday 8AM-7PM.

How to Enjoy Museums

Yesterday I wrote a HubPages article about how to enjoy a museum visit. Check it out: http://hubpages.com/hub/How-To-Enjoy-Museums

Maranda Pleasant

Tomorrow I'd like to find out more about Maranda Pleasant. She creates beautiful paintings, she owns at least one gallery, she's hosting the 12 x 12 art box show in December, and she does other stuff, like fire dancing. As far as I can tell, the Maranda Pleasant gallery does not have regular visiting hours, but I'd like to check it out or at least find out where she has public installations that I can see.

Blanton's Third Thursday

I enjoyed my visit to the Blanton last night - squash and pecan pizza at the cafe's happy hour, the abstract and visually pleasing "Blind Landscape" exhibit, and the reconstructed Petrobelli altarpiece.

Austin Museum of Art Reception 11/20/09

There's a members-only opening reception at the Austin Museum of Art tomorrow, November 20, 6-9 P.M. The new exhibit features David Bates's oil paintings, focusing on the personal impact of Hurricane Katrina. You'll also get a preview of Jade Walker's sculpture exhibit. Sounds like fun. I'll have to add a museum membership to my Christmas list.

Friday, November 20 Ideas

For tomorrow, November 20, I would like to go to the Texas Memorial Museum in the morning. I haven't been there in a while, and admission is always free. In the evening, I'd like to check out the opening reception for "All Creatures Great and Small" at Austin Galleries on Sixth St from 5:30 to 8:30.

Museums and Galleries in Austin

I really wish I had more time to visit museums and galleries. There always seem to be something cool to do and fun to see. On the third Thursday of the month, like today, the Blanton Museum is free and open until 9 P.M. Tonight they've got happy hour, a yoga class, an art discussion, a book club, and a tour.

The Women and Their Work gallery has an opening reception 5-7 P.M. for the new exhibit "My Wicked Twisted Sense of Love".

Galleries and Wine???

Still haven't figured out this blog thing. I did read that the most successful bloggers, like Perez Hilton, update their blog 20 to 30 times a day. Maybe I'll write about museums every day. Oooh - free wine tasting on Saturday at Vino Vino 1-3 P.M. It's at 4119 Guadalupe next to the gym with the big 3D muscle. I doubt I'll make it there, but it's nice to think about it.

Blogging Now

I decided to try writing on HubPages. Some people make money using Google AdSense and the Amazon Affiliate program with their HubPages articles. When I signed up for AdSense I got this blog, so I'm trying it out. Here's one of my articles: http://hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Finish-Graduate-School