The Gallery features rotating art displays from local and national artists. While the artwork is not for sale, visitors are encouraged to browse the artwork during open hours.
Similar to the Special Event Room, the Gallery space can be used for community programs and rented for private events.
Jeremiah the Innocent & Friends in Zilker Park
Permanent collection, Special Collections area, 4th floor beginning January 22, 2020
Collection of Daniel Johnston’s sketches
January 8 – March 31, 2020, Living Room Gallery, 6th floor
Central Library | 710 W. César Chávez St.
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Austin Public Library commemorates the life and work of beloved musician and artist Daniel Johnston, who passed away in 2019, leaving behind a rich legacy of musical recordings, sketches, and cartoons. On January 22, 2020, the Central Library will display a new mural honoring Johnston. The artwork was commissioned by The Library Foundation, and will be housed in Central Library’s fourth floor Special Collections area. The mural by artist Jason Archer mimics Johnston’s playful, surreal style and invokes themes Johnston explored throughout his life and work, including his struggles with mental illness.
Johnston was an advocate for open conversation and greater awareness around mental health issues. The Hi How Are You Project, a sponsor of the mural, continues Johnston's work today. The unveiling of the mural coincides closely with Hi How Are You Day on January 22, Johnston’s birthday—a day now dedicated to mental health advocacy and awareness. A collection of Johnston’s original sketches will also be displayed in the Central Library’s Living Room gallery on the sixth floor.
Austin Central Library invites artists, collectives, curators and beyond to submit proposals to be considered for exhibitions at the Library's gallery.
Exhibition period: Summer 2020
Deadline for submissions: Sunday, February 23, 2020 @ Midnight (CT)
January 14 – February 29, 2020
Central Library Main Gallery | 710 W. César Chávez St.
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Opening Reception & Artist Talk Sunday, February 2, 2020, 2 – 4 PM
The Testament Project is an exploration and re-conception of the contemporary black experience in America. More often than not, black people are portrayed in the extreme—either as very rich or very poor, they are demonized, infantilized, ridiculed, idolized or hyper-sexualized; and within the art canon there is a noticeable scarcity of black representation.
Kris Graves (b. 1982 New York, NY) is a photographer and publisher based in New York and London. He received his BFA in Visual Arts from S.U.N.Y. Purchase College and has been published and exhibited globally, including the National Portrait Gallery in London, England; Aperture Gallery, New York; University of Arizona, Tucson; Blue Sky Gallery in Portland, Oregon; and Brooklyn Museum, New York; among others.
Images by Kris Graves
*Note: The gallery will be closed temporarily on the following dates for events: Wednesday, January 15; Friday, January 24; Saturday, January 25; Saturday, January 31; Sunday, February 2; Wednesday, February 12; Thursday, February 13; Wednesday, February 19; Thursday, February 20; Sunday, February 23; Wednesday, February 26; Thursday, February 27; Friday, February 28
