Design Austin

Continuing our showcase from our Groundbreaking Women Tour of female-led projects is the George Washington Carver Museum, Cultural and Genealogy Center.
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Nestled in the historically Black Central East Austin neighborhood, the Carver Museum campus consists of a 36,000-square-foot museum, park, and genealogy center housed in a historic library. The LEED-certified museum is distinguished by its curving crescent shape, airy atrium, and rugged split-face masonry cladding. ⁠
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The museum that you see today grew out of Austin’s first library. The Colonial Revival frame structure that now serves as the Genealogy Center was originally constructed in 1926. In 1933, a new library was built and the old building was moved to the current location, renovated, and reopened as the segregated branch of the Austin Public Library. In 1947, the branch library was named in honor of Dr. George Washington Carver. In 1980, after the completion of the larger, desegregated branch library to the south, the facility was reopened as the George Washington Carver Museum and Cultural Center.⁠
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Twenty years later, the citizens of Austin voted to expand the facility. Prominent Black architect Donna Carter, FAIA, and her firm, Carter Design Associates, developed a design that left the historic building intact and created a new structure to the north. They were early adopters of sustainable design, and the Carver Museum is one of the first LEED-certified projects in Austin. Completed in 2005, the freestanding museum includes archival space, a performing arts venue, studios, classrooms, permanent history exhibits, and rotating art galleries. Its crescent footprint allows the building to snake deferentially behind the historic genealogy center and the library. A circular atrium creates a bright, airy lobby and a connection node for the gallery wings. Additionally, the atrium’s distinctive tower-like form creates a street-level landmark.⁠

The tour was curated by AIA Austin's Women in Architecture Committee. Check out this entry and the entire tour at https://guidetoaustinarchitecture.com/places/george-washington-carver-museum-and-cultural-center/?tour=1753
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Images 1-3: Atelier Wong Photography
Images 4-8: Bud Franck, AIA⁠
Text (edited for length): Sadi Brewton, AIA⁠
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THURSDAY: workshop with the library 💕

The Austin Public Library is turning 100 — and we want the community’s help to imagine how we celebrate it. Join us on Thursday, March 5th for a hands-on Community Workshop to brainstorm ideas for a centennial art installation that will honor the first hundred years of memories of Austin Public Library and inspire visitors for the next century and beyond.

Look familiar? “Rhapsody” is a 50-foot-long ceramic mosaic mural by University of Texas Art and Art History studio art professor John Yancey in collaboration with Luis Alicea and the late Steven B. Jones. Located in Dr. Charles E. Urdy Plaza, “Rhapsody” celebrates the rich Black music scene that once thrived in East Austin. ⁠
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Home to venues like Charlie’s Playhouse and Deluxe Hotel—all part of the “Chitlin’ Circuit” that welcomed Black musicians—East 11th Street played a major role in the Texas jazz and blues scene. The historic Victory Grill was a famous nightclub and safe haven for Black musicians during the segregated 1940s through the early 1960s. The club hosted many famous acts such as Billie Holiday, Etta James, B.B King, and W.C. Clark. It seems only fitting that this mural, located just up the street from the former music venue, pays tribute to East Austin’s musical past.⁠
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In 2003, John Yancey, a longtime Austin resident and University of Texas studio art professor, was commissioned to create the mural as part of the “Eleven East” project funded by the Austin Revitalization Authority. Yancey skillfully depicted the community’s history through his use of color and motion in the arrangement of the tiles and the scenes portrayed. The mural portrays soulful musicians and historic structures in perfect harmony, taking the viewer on a journey into the past. The 50-foot-long mural is a work of art that makes you pause in the plaza to appreciate its beauty and historical significance. ⁠
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Explore this history in more detail with "Black Resilience," the Guide to Austin Architecture's online tour produced by NOMA of Central Texas.
https://guidetoaustinarchitecture.com/places/rhapsody-mural/?tour=2372

For a closer look at "Rhapsody", Art Above Reality has a great video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGGWOcjZObg.
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✏️: Jasmin Peisel, Assoc. AIA, NOMA
📷️: Bud Franck, AIA