AMOA – Laguna Gloria Art Museum
One of the most beautiful and popular art museums in the Austin Area is the Laguna Gloria Art Museum, which is an Italian style villa that was originally the home of Henry and Clara Driscoll Sevier, and is situated on the shores of Lake Austin in the west-central Austin area.
The original home that later became the museum was built in 1916, and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places; the museum was the first home of the Austin Museum of Art and was named for the natural lagoon which was originally considered part of the Colorado River prior to the construction of Lake Austin. The land on which the original home was built belonged to Stephen F. Austin in 1822, and he intended to build a home there himself, but never did, and his descendants later sold the property to Hal Sevier, who was the editor of the Austin American Statesman, and his new wife, Clara Driscoll, in 1914.
The Seviers completed their home in 1916 in the style of an Italian Villa after traveling to the Lake Como area of Italy on their honeymoon, and after years of gardening and planting trees, flowers, and foliage, Clara Driscoll donated the homesite to the City of Austin for the new museum. In 1961, the home was converted to an art museum and began offering art classes as well as exhibits and other events and attractions to the public.
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What Do You Prefer: Natural History Museums Or Creationist Amusement Parks?
I visited the Smithsonian recently in the nation’s capital. During a visit filled with wonder and delight, I spent at least an hour viewing the new display on human origins devoted to evolution. The galley is based entirely on science, not politics or revelation. I asked a guide if there were protests from religious types who prefer Creationist explanations. I expected that the guide would respond in the affirmative. Since many Christian fundamentalists believe the universe is only six thousand years old and that everything was created in a week (counting the day off God gave himself), I expected there must have been protests. The response was, “Not yet.” I was encouraged.
Can you imagine what will happen to this and other such displays if the next national election two years hence results in the election of a Republican president and more senators and congresspersons from that party? I can. Why? Because I’m familiar with the nature of Christian museums. In places where religious zealots build museums that reflect their understanding of the history of life based on literal biblical interpretations, museums are not fact based. They are not even museums-they are amusement parks. They are comical and valuable for entertainment purposes, but they don’t do a lot to promote science education.
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Best Art Museums in Canada to Visit
Canada is a country rich with culture and art. Its various museums display a wide variety of spectacular art pieces, sculptures, glassworks and more. Art binds people across nations and the artistic expressions of Canada are no less. Canada boasts of great museums for the art lovers.
Started in 1880, National Gallery of Canada is a great place to start your discovery of Canadian art. This museum holds many beautiful collections of historic as well as contemporary art pieces which give its visitors a more unique sense of the true identity and beauty of Canada. It’s located in Ottawa and is one of the best art museums in Canada. The Glenbow Museum in Calgary follows close behind with its museums, library and rich archives which all together create a beautiful ‘Western Canadian’ experience for its visitors. It has over a million artefacts and boasts to be one of the largest art museums in Canada. It has a lot of variety in its exhibits and not just showcases the art pieces which define Canada but also displays some beautiful art pieces from around the globe.
