• About

    About

    • Jones Center on Congress Avenue
    • Laguna Gloria
    • Shop at The Contemporary
    • Mission
    • History
    • Board of Trustees
    • Suzanne Deal Booth / FLAG Art Foundation Prize
    • Contact

    Showcasing two renowned and architecturally unique locations, The Contemporary Austin brings multidisciplinary exhibitions, engaging programs, and enticing special events to the city's visual arts landscape.

  • Exhibitions

    Exhibitions

    • Current
      • Deborah Roberts: I'm
      • Torbjørn Rødland: Bible Eye
      • Deborah Roberts, Little man, little man
      • Jim Hodges: With Liberty and Justice for All (A Work in Progress)
      • Museum Without Walls at Pease Park
    • Betty and Edward Marcus Sculpture Park at Laguna Gloria
    • Upcoming
      • Crit Group Reunion
      • Daniel Johnston: I Live My Broken Dreams
    • Past
  • Events

    Events

    • Planning a visit? Click or tap the calendar to view the day's scheduled events.

      Planning your own event? Click here for information and current promotions.
    • View Upcoming Events

    • Art Dinner
  • Visit

    Visit

    • Hours
    • Admission & Ticket Reservations
    • Directions and Parking
    • Visitor Guidelines & Safety Measures
    • The Contemporary from Home: Digital Resources

    The Contemporary Austin is now open in a limited capacity. Click here to learn more.

  • Explore

    Explore

    • For Artists
    • For Schools
    • For Teachers
    • Community Outreach
    • Docents
    • For Families
      • Second Saturdays
      • Action Packs
      • Drop-In Tours
      • Art School
      • Austin Museum Day
    • For Teens

    The Contemporary Austin offers diverse, engaging ways to explore contemporary art and culture, including innovative opportunities and experiences for families, young people, artists, and educators.

  • Join/Support

    Join/Support

    • Membership
    • Donate
    • Give to the Education Fund
    • Planned Giving
    • Get Involved
      • Volunteers
      • Teen Volunteers
      • Docents
      • Internships
      • Careers
  • Art School

    Art School

    The acclaimed Art School at Laguna Gloria offers classes for ages four through adult in painting, drawing, ceramics, printmaking, photography, sculpture, digital media, and more. Summer 2021 registration now open!

    • About
    • Registration
    • Faculty
    • Contact
    • FAQ
    • Class Listings
    Browse available courses
  • Site Rentals

Laguna Gloria

  • Visit
  • Now On View
  • Transforming Laguna Gloria
  • The Moody Pavilions
  • Spread & Co.
  • Shop at The Contemporary
  • Learn More: Construction and Restoration
  • Book a Private Event
  • Laguna Gloria, the museum's fourteen-acre campus on the shores of Lake Austin, offers visitors a unique art-in-nature experience, with opportunities for the public to explore art and the creative process through installations and exhibitions by preeminent international artists, dynamic events and community programs for all ages, and classes at the Art School. Since fall 2013, The Contemporary Austin has been actively engaged in the revitalization of this beloved site through its Master Plan for Laguna Gloria.

    Visit our events calendar for information on upcoming workshops, films, and other museum programs.

    Visit The Contemporary from Home to enjoy virtual tours of the grounds and sculptures at Laguna Gloria.
     
     

    Transforming Laguna Gloria

    Featuring new works of art, a café, a museum shop, graceful terraces, and a welcoming entrance for its guests, the new Laguna Gloria aims to greatly enhance the visitor experience at the museum’s beloved site on the shores of Lake Austin. Home to permanent and changing installations of contemporary sculptures in the Betty and Edward Marcus Sculpture Park, an active Art School serving students of all ages and levels, and the historic Driscoll Villa, the fourteen-acre art-in-nature destination now includes a number of well-designed amenities situated in modern steel and glass structures and outdoor terraces along a shaded, landscaped pathway at the property’s entrance.

    The Moody Pavilions

    Designed by Trahan Architects of New Orleans, with landscape design by Reed Hilderbrand of Boston, the new structures comprising the Moody Pavilions occupy a compact footprint at the entrance to Laguna Gloria on West 35th Street. Two small buildings—the Shop at The Contemporary and the café—are connected by a walkway, kept cool through the shade of high, white canopies. Incorporating steel, glass, and concrete into a minimalist design, the texture, materials, and shapes of the structures are distinctly modern while complementing the existing, historic architecture at the site. In addition to the café, shop and visitor center, and new restroom facilities, visitors are invited to enjoy two beautifully landscaped and furnished terraces.

    Photograph by Alexa Johnson.

    Spread & Co.

    Thursday through Sunday, 9A—3P
    Online ordering and curbside pickup available

    Click here to view menu!

    The new museum café at Laguna Gloria, Spread & Co., is now open!

    This new outlet of the Rosedale eatery features a fresh and colorful menu, with items suited for eating on-site during your museum visit or taking to-go. Signature favorites are available, including a broad selection of grazing boards, cheeses, and cured meats, along with salads, sandwiches, coffee, and more!

    Museum members will enjoy a 10% discount on all food and drink at Spread & Co.'s Laguna Gloria location!

    Spread & Co.

    Shop at The Contemporary

    The Shop at The Contemporary features a unique selection of artist-designed merchandise and other handpicked products from around the world. These include design-based home décor items, hand-carved birdcalls from Germany (a nod to the more than 200 distinct species that have been spotted by birders at Laguna Gloria), a modern rethinking of the picnic basket, art supplies, books, games, and exclusive exhibition-related items that visitors and shoppers have come to seek in a modern, design-forward museum gift shop. All sales directly support The Contemporary Austin's exhibitions and programs.

    Museum members receive a 10% discount at the Shop at The Contemporary. Join Now!
     
    The Shop is now online! Visit us here to start shopping today!
    The online shop includes a curated selection of the items we offer onsite. Check back often as we continue to update the online shop with more of our favorites! We currently offer domestic shipping via USPS, as well as free contactless delivery within the Austin area.

    SHOP NOW

    Have a question about the Shop at The Contemporary? Contact shop@thecontemporaryaustin.org today!

    Shop at The Contemporary, Laguna Gloria, interior designed by Liam Gillick, 2019. Courtesy the artist. Photograph by Colin Doyle.

    Learn More: Construction and Restoration

    In fall 2013, the Edward and Betty Marcus Foundation awarded The Contemporary Austin a $9 million grant to support the creation of the Betty and Edward Marcus Sculpture Park at Laguna Gloria. Presently, the recognized landscape architecture firm Reed Hilderbrand is engaged in a Master Plan that will transform Laguna Gloria into an exceptional space for the public to experience art in a vibrant natural setting.

    To date, the site has featured sculptures by an array of internationally acclaimed artists as part of its permanent collection and rotating temporary installations, among them Ai Weiwei, Terry Allen, Huma Bhabha, Tom Friedman, Roger Hiorns, Nancy Holt, Anya Gallaccio, Orly Genger, Jim Lambie, Paul McCarthy, Wangechi Mutu, Yoko Ono, Tom Sachs, Monika Sosnowska, Do Ho Suh, Marianne Vitale, and Ursula von Rydingsvard. Through the Master Plan for Laguna Gloria, The Contemporary Austin seeks to create a campus that is richly useful for the local community and supportive of ambitious collaborations with artists and curators. Through careful planning, Laguna Gloria will continue to evolve into an extraordinary cultural destination that showcases sound stewardship of the native Texas landscape and engages new audiences with contemporary art and culture.

    Reed Hilderbrand was recognized with the 2017 Excellence Award in Analysis and Planning from the Boston Society of Landscape Architects for its ongoing work at the Betty and Edward Marcus Sculpture Park at Laguna Gloria.

    Beginning in 2017, The Contemporary Austin embarked on Phase I of the Master Plan in consultation with Reed Hilderbrand, Trahan Architects, the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, and Benz Resource Group.

    Phase I, officially breaking ground in March 2018, aims to increase accessibility and enhance experiences with art through a more visible and inviting entrance experience and enhancements to pedestrian safety. This includes building a series of new welcome pavilions and covered terraces, featuring shaded orientation and gathering spaces, a café and visitor center, an artist-designed museum shop, and new restroom and locker facilities.

    Named the Moody Pavilions in honor of a $3 million grant from The Moody Foundation, these new features will transform Laguna Gloria into an extraordinary space to discover works of art framed by the vibrant natural landscape. In addition to the grant from The Moody Foundation, Phase I is supported by more than $3 million in total grants from the Still Water Foundation, Edward and Betty Marcus Foundation, The Meadows Foundation, Austin Community Foundation, and The O’Shaughnessy-Rivers Family Fund, along with gifts from board Trustees Jeanne and Mickey Klein, Kathleen Irvin Loughlin and Chris Loughlin, and Jannette and Pat Keating.

    In 2017, as part of Phase I of the Master Plan, The Contemporary Austin also began the process of removing invasive shrubs, vines, and trees from throughout Laguna Gloria’s fourteen acres. The Invasive Species Removal Project will leave a dramatic mark on the landscape that will open sightlines for outdoor sculptures, encourage native species to thrive, preserve heritage trees, and restore the overall ecological health of Laguna Gloria.

    LEARN MORE ABOUT INVASIVE SPECIES AT LAGUNA GLORIA >
     

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    Jones Center
    700 Congress Avenue
    Austin, Texas 78701
    512 453 5312
    Laguna Gloria
    3809 West 35th Street
    Austin, Texas 78703
    512 458 8191
    The Art School
    3809 West 35th Street
    Austin, Texas 78703
    512 323 6380
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    • About
      • Jones Center on Congress Avenue
      • Laguna Gloria
      • Shop at The Contemporary
      • Mission
      • History
      • Board of Trustees
      • Suzanne Deal Booth / FLAG Art Foundation Prize
      • Contact
    • Exhibitions
      • Current
      • Past
      • Upcoming
      • Betty and Edward Marcus Sculpture Park
    • Events
      • Upcoming Events
      • Past
      • Special Events
      • Site Rentals
    • Visit
      • Hours
      • Past Events
      • Directions and Parking
      • Accommodations
      • Tours
    • Explore
      • For Artists
      • For Schools
      • For Teachers
      • Community Outreach
      • Docents
      • For Families
      • For Teens
    • Join/Support
      • Membership
      • Donate
      • Get Involved
      • Careers
      • 2021 Support
      • Corporate Support
    • Art School
      • About
      • Faculty
      • Registration
      • FAQ
    • Site Rentals