Changing the World (Sept-Oct 2012)

what your investment in ut makes possible

sep/oct 2012

The Blanton at

50 A campus treasure looks to a bright future as it marks a major milestone

changing the world What your investment in UT makes possible

Contents HALF A CENTURY OF ART AT THE BLANTON Nation’s largest university art museum marks 50 years

DESIGNS FOR GIVING

Cover: Bellezza Pompeiana, 1909, an oil on canvas by

John William Godward, will be among the works on loan from UT alumni for next spring’s “Through the Eyes of Texas” exhibition.

credit: Courtesy Richard Green Gallery, London

Above: Jon and Becky Brumley with President Bill Powers. The couple’s gift to Texas Venture Labs will enable more entrepreneurs to market their innovations. credit: Steve Moakley

Architecture alumnus draws up a bequest to benefit students

SOMETHING VENTURED, A WHOLE LOT GAINED Expansion of Texas Venture Labs adds fuel to the Texas economy

CHECK IT OUT: NEW WAYS TO SUPPORT UT LIBRARIES Programs reinvest in and strengthen world-class collections reprinted from sep/oct 2012

changing the world What your investment in UT makes possible

HALF A CENTURY OF ART AT THE BLANTON

A campus treasure looks back—and ahead—as it plans for its 50th birthday

Above: Bellezza Pompei-

ana, 1909, a John William Godward painting from a private collection, will be among the works featured in the “Through the Eyes of Texas” exhibition; the Blanton provides a wide range of creative programs for kids, UT students, and adults on the southern edge of campus; Ginger Blanton, former Blanton Museum director and 2013 Blanton Gala honorary chair Jessie Otto Hite, museum director Simone Wicha, and Jack S. Blanton.

Opposite: School of Architecture alumnus Ray Landy credits: Above, from left:

courtesy Richard Green Gallery, London; David Grimes; Rene Wicha; Opposite: courtesy Ray Landy

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W

elcoming

126,000 visitors each year , the B lanton M useum

of Art inspires people of all ages and interests. And now the museum is preparing to mark a major milestone. In early 2013 it will kick off celebrations of the 50th year since its founding.

A cultural haven on the UT campus and the nation’s largest university art museum, the Blanton provides engaging experiences for students, faculty, alumni, and other visitors.

With popular exhibitions and more than 17,000 artworks ranging from Old Masters to cuttingedge contemporary work, as well as one of the strongest collections of Latin American art in the U.S., this is a museum that fosters an appreciation for art and artists.

The Blanton’s golden anniversary, says director Simone Wicha, BS ’96, is a time to celebrate and to acknowledge the many visitors, members, and supporters who have made the museum a special place for art, scholarship, and discovery.

“We find ourselves at one of the most exciting

points in our history,” Wicha says. “We are taking this opportunity not only to reflect on the museum’s legacy of excellence but also to embark on a new phase to significantly broaden the museum’s impact across campus and better serve our diverse audience. I’m proud to celebrate this pivotal moment with the many supporters both on and off campus who have made all that we do possible.”

The Blanton’s collection was built by gifts from collectors and art lovers, such as Mari and James Michener and Michael and Jeanne Klein. Among the many gifts is the site-specific installation Stacked Waters by artist Teresita Fernández, a striking addition to the museum’s atrium made possible by the generosity of Michael, BS ’58,

LLB ’63, Life Member, and Jeanne, BS ’67. The museum also grew thanks to the visionary leadership of such individuals as Bernard Rapoport, BA ’39, Distinguished Alumnus, and his wife, Audre, and museum namesake Jack S. Blanton, BA ’47, LLB ’50, Life Member and Distinguished Alumnus, and his late wife, Laura Lee Scurlock Blanton, BA ’50. The generosity and dedication of supporters who realize the power of art to transform lives have helped distinguish the museum as a world-class institution.

The Blanton opened a two-building complex in 2006 on the south end of campus with spacious galleries, a central plaza, classrooms, and a 300-seat auditorium. By connecting its collection to the rich intellectual resources of UT, the museum is a laboratory of ideas and learning.

Faculty and students from many disciplines integrate the study of art into their scholarly research, curricula, and courses. In addition, the museum offers alumni and students the chance to become acquainted

with the collection and dynamic exhibitions through lectures by curators, artists, scholars, and other prominent guests, as well as programs that connect to music and film. It also serves as a training ground for future curators and professionals through its internship program for UT students. Blanton interns have gone on to work for respected museums and cultural institutions throughout the state and country.

So how will the Blanton mark its rich, 50-year history of acquiring, preserving, interpreting, and exhibiting art? In early 2013 it plans to commemorate its five decades with a gala, exhibition, and public festival.

The gala, on Saturday, Feb. 16, will raise funds for the museum’s exhibitions and programs and toast the leaders and supporters who have helped root the Blanton in Austin and grow it into a Texas steward of culture and creative expression. UT president emeritus Larry R. Faulkner, PhD ’69, Life Member and Distinguished Alumnus, and retired Blanton director Jessie Otto Hite, BS ’69, MA ’82, are honorary co-chairs for “We find ourselves at the event. Numerous other supporters have stepped forward as one of the most exciting regional chairs.

The exhibition, “Through the points in our history.”

Eyes of Texas: Masterworks from Alumni Collections,” will be on — Blanton director Simone Wicha view for gala attendees before its public run from Feb. 24 to May 19. Texas Exes across the country are loaning major pieces from their private collections for this unprecedented exhibition, underscoring how UT alumni have influenced and shaped the art world today.

Need one more reason to stop by the Blanton and celebrate 50 years of art? On Saturday, April 27, the museum will host a 12-hour party, free to the public, that will feature activities for visitors of all ages—from special tours and art-making projects to live music.

Learn more about tables and tickets for the Blanton’s 50th-anniversary gala by visiting blantonmuseum.org, calling the museum’s development office at 512-475-6013, or emailing gala@blantonmuseum.org.

ARCHITECTURE ALUMNUS DESIGNS A BEQUEST TO BENEFIT STUDENTS

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rchitects spend their working lives drawing up plans. For Ray Landy, who recently retired after a 35-year career in architecture, it was only natural to include UT in one of his most important plans: his estate plan. Landy, BAr ’70, has pledged $750,000 to the School of Architecture, a bequest that will ultimately be used for student scholarships and fellowships in all disciplines at the discretion of the school’s dean.

Landy now calls Santa Fe home after spending most of his career in Los Angeles with DMJM, an architecture and engineering firm, and its parent company, AECOM, one of the world’s top planning, landscape, architecture, engineering, transportation, and environmental firms.

Landy led DMJM and subsequently became president of AECOM Architecture as the various design firms within the organization merged globally.

Iconic projects in which he has had a hand in the past few years alone include the Los Angeles Police Department headquarters; GE’s Asia headquarters in Shanghai; the new PATH Terminal at the World Trade Center (with Santiago Calatrava); and the master plan and program management for a bold new cultural complex in Abu Dhabi that will include the Louvre Abu Dhabi and the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi museum outposts, designed by Jean Nouvel and Frank Honoring the Gehry. Each of the projects exemplifies AECOM’s signature emphasis on support of sustainable planning, urban design, and building practices. colleagues.

His transformational UT gift, Rewarding an Landy says, is partly to commemorate the support he received alma mater for throughout his working life from his colleagues and partly to reward its excellence. the School of Architecture for the distinction it has achieved among its peers. “I had an amazing career with DMJM and AECOM, and that had a direct impact on my ability to make this level of gift,” he says. “I also am very proud that my alma mater was recently ranked No. 2 of all undergraduate architecture programs in the country by Design Intelligence magazine.”

His specific objectives, he says, are threefold: to give qualified students more options for financial support; to ensure that the school’s important research capabilities and opportunities continue to expand, given the budgetary and philosophical challenges which are being faced; and third, “to hopefully encourage other graduates in my generation who have benefited from an unprecedented level of prosperity in our profession over the past 40 years to take some of that success and commit it back to the school that allowed us to succeed.”

“Ray Landy has been a visionary professional and a credit to those of us who care deeply about the natural environment, urban design, and the built environment,” says architecture dean Fritz Steiner. “Sustainability is very important to him, as it is to us. He’s an inspiration for students who follow in his footsteps, and with this gift, he has ensured that there will be even more of those students.” s e p t e m b e r | o c t o b e r 2011

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changing the world What your investment in UT makes possible

SOMETHING VENTURED, A WHOLE LOT GAINED Above: President Bill Powers, third from left, is joined by Texas Venture Labs director Rob Adams, Jon and Becky Brumley, and McCombs School dean Tom Gilligan. Surrounding them are recent TVL/Graduate School alumni now serving as Accenture Venture Partners. Through a grant from Accenture, the partners spend a year mentoring student entrepreneurs.

Inset: Rob Adams helps

NuMat Technologies founders celebrate their grand prize at TVL’s Venture Labs Investment Competition, which is held on campus each spring.

Opposite: UT’s rare books are a treasure trove for scholars, even in the Internet age.

Credits: Left to right: Steve

Moakley (2); UT Libraries

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Expansion of Texas Venture Labs adds fuel to the Texas economy

E

ntrepreneurs , take note . T exas V enture L abs at the M c C ombs

School of Business is now Jon Brumley Texas Venture Labs, in recognition of a gift of more than $6 million from Fort Worth businessman and entrepreneur Jon Brumley, BBA ’61, Life

Member and Distinguished Alumnus. “This investment is a game changer that enables us to expand the scale and accessibility of the Texas Venture Labs model,” says Tom Gilligan, dean of the McCombs School.

Since it started two years ago, Texas Venture Labs (TVL) has worked with 40 companies that have raised more than $25 million in investment capital, while providing direct entrepreneurial experience to graduate students in business, engineering, law, and natural sciences. TVL is a campuswide initiative with two missions: to accelerate startups from UT and Central Texas toward raising capital and taking their innovations

to market, and to create an experience that transforms UT graduate students into future entrepreneurs and business leaders. Teams of four to six students interact closely with entrepreneurs and investors to make an immediate and direct impact.

“Texas Venture Labs is a gem in the Texas entrepreneurial ecosystem,” Brumley says.

“It provides critical, hands-on experience for

CHECK IT OUT

NEW WAYS TO SUPPORT UT LIBRARIES

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aspiring entrepreneurs who learn as students the effort required to get a new venture through the financing process. For me, this gift is an opportunity to build our capacity to grow the economy of Texas, while giving a leg up to young entrepreneurs, who remind me a lot of myself at that age.”

In addition to the TVL course, the organization is home to the Venture Labs Investment Competition. The winner of this year’s competition, held in May, was NuMat Technologies, a clean energy company formed by students from Northwestern University. “Our theme for the investment competition is ‘InvestorReady,’ which reflects why graduate students from around the world flock to Austin every spring for the chance to launch their business as they finish graduate school,” says TVL director Rob Adams. Brumley’s gift, Adams says, “has signaled to the entrepreneurial community that Texas Venture Labs is also ‘Investor-Ready.’ ” Brumley, the chairman and CEO of Fort Worth’s Bounty Investments, has worked for, founded, and acquired several successful companies, including Southland Royalty Co., XTO Energy, and Mesa Petroleum. He also led the merger of Fort Worth’s two children’s hospitals in 1985. He has served as chairman of the Texas State Board of Education and remains active in educational causes. He and his wife, Becky, work with disadvantaged youth in Fort Worth. Their foundation, which encourages parents to read aloud to their children, has given away 350,000 books.

Austin native Brumley enrolled at UT in 1957, the same year, he notes, that Coach Darrell Royal arrived on campus. “We beat OU my sophomore year, and the football program has steadily improved—as has my degree,” he says. “My experience at UT and McCombs was wonderful. I majored in fraternity the first two years and got serious the last two years. McCombs gets better and better, which actually makes me look kind of smart.”

o you love books? Want to honor or memorialize someone? Looking for a special gift for a Longhorn? If you answer yes to any of these questions, you’re a potential supporter of the University of Texas Libraries. The libraries’ collections, from architectural drawings to classical manuscripts, from fine arts and historical music collections to cutting-edge materials in life sciences and engineering, help form the foundation on which University educations are built.

Most people recognize that good libraries can never stand still; continual reinvestment in resources is their lifeblood.

Adopt-a-Book gifts are used to purchase new materials and to preserve, repair, and provide greater access to the millions of items in the UT Libraries collection. For $375—the lifelong cost of buying, shelving, and preserving a book at UT—donors have their name or that of an honoree permanently recognized in the online catalog record of their selection. Among other benefits, they also receive invitations to events and collection tours.

UT Libraries Advisory Council member Ken Capps, BJ ’82, Life Member, was the first person to adopt a book, choosing John Graves’ classic Goodbye to a River.

“It’s a story of Texas, our land, our rivers, and our heritage,” the Dallas resident says.

“I have a passion for all things UT and also for the importance of the library system as being the epicenter for so much of campus and the community. I felt it was important that the very first book adopted for our great library system honor a Texas author and a Texas story.”

Another new initiative aimed at book lovers is Literary Longhorns. Recognizing donors who have given or pledged $25,000 or more to UT Libraries, Literary Longhorns gives them access to behind-the-scenes tours and lectures at such institutions as the Library of Congress, National Archives, Morgan Library & Museum, and Huntington Library. Closer to home, members are included in discussions with the vice provost and director of UT Libraries, curators, and archivists as they decide on acquiring rare books, manuscripts, and other special items.

Literary Longhorns are also invited to annual dinners with faculty and authors in the Life Science Library Reading Room of the Main Building. Those who recall this ornate, atmospheric space from their student days know that it is an ideal venue for a gathering of library mavens. Sound appealing? Then your support, like a library book, may be overdue.

Support UT Libraries at lib.utexas.edu/ development.

campaign update giving.utexas.edu/campaign

The Campaign for Texas is close to crossing the $2 billion mark, thanks to the generous participation of more than

200,000 alumni and friends.

The impact is felt across campus, from new buildings to new endowments supporting students and programs. There is $1 billion to go in the campaign, and the final phase will be crucial—for innovative facilities such as the planned

Engineering Education and Research Center and

for continuing efforts to recruit and retain the best faculty.

29

% of alumni who have supported the campaign.

Are you one of them?

1084

New endowments created for students, faculty, and research

Changing the World is produced by the University Development Office. Please send your feedback and suggestions to editor Jamey Smith at jjsmith@austin.utexas.edu.

For more news and information about giving to UT, visit giving.utexas.edu.

s e p t e m b e r | o c t o b e r 2011

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