The Blanton Museum of Art at The University of Texas at Austin is one of the most innovative university art museums in the country, as well as the primary art collection for Austin. With a collection of more than 18,000 works of art—spanning from Old Masters to contemporary art—the museum serves as a major resource for campus. Philanthropic support enables the museum to provide thought provoking, visually arresting, and personally moving encounters with art to visitors from across the Forty Acres and beyond.
For this year’s 40 for Forty, we are excited to highlight our upcoming special exhibition, Epic Tales from Ancient India: Paintings from the San Diego Museum of Art. This exhibition presents a selection of Indian paintings from the 16th to 19th centuries. Originally associated with literary texts, these intimately scaled paintings will captivate audiences with epic stories that have been integral to South Asian culture for hundreds of years. Through a compelling introduction to classic Indian and Persian texts, Blanton visitors will meet dutiful heroes, loyal friends, and strong women as well as an assortment of dangerous beasts and powerful demons. The Blanton also will offer a robust series of public programs, featuring lectures and gallery talks, musical demonstrations, classical Indian dance, and storytelling.
Your donation to the Blanton during 40 for Forty, will help the museum share these dynamic paintings and stories with visitors of all ages. Be a part of bringing international art to campus!
Image captions (top to bottom):
Rama, Sita and Laskshman approach a grove of sages (detail), Folio from the Ramayana, India, Kangra, ca. 1830, 10 5/8 x 14 1/6 in., The San Diego Museum of Art, Edwin Binney 3rd Collection
16th century Mughal Painter, Makra, Lava and Kishu engage Lakshmana in battle, 1598, opaque watercolor on paper, 9 3/32 x 5 9/32 in., The San Diego Museum of Art, Edwin Binney 3rd Collection
