TX: Corpus Christi

WHERE: Art Museum of South Texas.

WHEN: On view through August 26, 2012.

TITLE: 15th National Exhibition of the American Society of Marine Artists

BRIEF ABOUT: This annual juried exhibition features artists who work in oil, watercolor, pastel, scratchboard, pencil, and scrimshaw. Images of all kinds of sea-going vessels, seacoasts and the activities that occur around the water are included in this summer exhibition.

MORE DETAILS: www.stia.org.

     ABOUT: The Art Museum of South Texas had its origins in 1945, when the City of Corpus Christi turned its Centennial Museum over to a group of local arts organizations.  By the 1960s, the Museum was maintaining a diverse and changing exhibit cycle and outgrowing its space.  At the same time, a group of prominent civic leaders and philanthropists began a private sector movement to fund and build a new art museum along the Corpus Christi Bayfront.  Located at 1902 North Shoreline, the Art Museum of South Texas was designed by internationally renowned architect Philip Johnson.

     Completed in 1972, the Museum serves as the cultural center for fine art in Corpus Christi. Consisting of three levels, approximately 12,000 of the building’s 30,000 square feet belong to galleries. The lowest level, located at sea level, contains classrooms, studios, a library, and storage and work areas. The next level, the main entrance, faces the Bayfront Arts and Science Park and is equipped with galleries, a gift shop, an auditorium, and interactive kids’ playroom. A 60-foot catwalk runs above the main level, and leads to a sky-lit gallery on the 3rd level. Constructed entirely out of white concrete and plaster, the Museum seems to radiate with the strong South Texas heat and light. This was the purpose, as stated by Philip Johnson: “Light is the essence, and light coming in from all sides is especially bathing and soothing.” The floor-to-ceiling windows offer a spectacular view of Corpus Christi Bay as well as the Harbor Bridge.