Crow Museum Opens Its Second Location at UT Dallas, as a Groundbreaking Marks New Phase of O’Donnell Athenaeum

Two years after its groundbreaking on the UT Dallas campus, the Crow Museum of Asian Art’s second location opened to the public today. And it’s just the start of what’s to come at the $158 million Edith and Peter O’Donnell Jr. Athenaeum—because along with Tuesday’s ribbon-cutting for the Crow came a groundbreaking for Phase II of the project: a new 680-seat performance hall and music building.

The Athenaeum Arts and Performance Complex is slated to be a 12-acre cultural district designed to foster engagement in the arts and learning on the campus of UT Dallas at 800 W. Campbell Road in Richardson. Now that a key jewel of the complex has opened, patrons have begun exploring the Crow Museum’s 12 galleries. Seven of them feature the Crow Museum’s diverse array of Asian Art including a dedicated multimedia gallery. The additional galleries will be known as the UT Dallas Art Museum.

The Crow Museum of Asian Art at UT Dallas is part of the Phase I building of the O’Donnell Athenaeum. [Photo copyright Mauricio Rojas/courtesy of UT Dallas]

Also on view at the new museum are works and art objects from the Dallas Museum of Art and UT Dallas’ founding families, works from the university’s growing collection of Latin American art, and works from celebrated Dallas photographer Carolyn Brown, UTD said.

Community open house this Saturday

This Saturday, Sept. 28, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., a free public “open house” will be held for the new museum, featuring a wide range of activities including food trucks, art activities, a scavenger hunt of the museum’s galleries, a storytime hour for kids, a performance by the UTD ISA Dance Crew, a kimono “try on,” and more.

You can find out more about the Saturday event and RSVP to attend it by going here.

Inside the The Crow Museum of Asian Art at UT Dallas. [Photo copyright Mauricio Rojas/courtesy of UT Dallas]

Original Crow Museum opened in downtown Dallas in 1998

The original Crow Museum of Asian Art is located in the downtown Dallas Arts District. First opened in 1998, it will remain open and active moving forward, with ongoing rotating exhibitions and programming. Over the past several decades, it’s been noted as one of the few museums in the U.S. solely dedicated to Asian art, and is the largest Asian art museum in the Southwest.

Inside the Crow Museum of Asian Art at UT Dallas. [Photo copyright Mauricio Rojas/courtesy of UT Dallas]

Focusing in on ‘Phase I’ of the O’Donnell Athenaeum

The new Crow Museum and the rest of the O’Donnell Athenaeum project is designed by global architecture and design firm Morphosis, known locally for designing the striking Perot Museum of Nature and Science in downtown Dallas.

The new museum is part of “Phase 1” of the O’Donnell Athenaeum build-out. At 58,000 square feet, the Phase I building also features the start of an outdoor sculpture garden, the 12 galleries mentioned above, the Brettell Reading Room, an art object study room, a conservation studio, a seminar room, the Lotus Shop, lecture and event areas, covered outdoor space, multi-functional lobby space, storage and vault facilities, and administrative offices.

The Crow Museum of Asian Art at UT Dallas is part of the Phase I building of the O’Donnell Athenaeum. [Photo copyright Mauricio Rojas/courtesy of UT Dallas]

UTD said the building’s first floor will house the Brettell Reading Room, “a quiet study and convening space dedicated in memory of the late Dr. Richard Brettell, founding director of the Edith O’Donnell Institute of Art History, along with his personal library donated to the University and assorted ephemera.”

“The O’Donnell Athenaeum will transform the UT Dallas campus with buildings and open spaces for the visual and performing arts that will allow both students and the surrounding community to experience the convergence of art and architecture in ways not previously possible at the university,” Arne Emerson, Morphosis partner and the design partner leading the project, said in 2022.

Phase II slated to open in 2026

Rendering of the interior of UTD’s new 680-seat performance hall and music building in the O’Donnell Athenaeum. [Image: UTD]

The “state-of-the-art” performance hall and music building that got its groundbreaking Tuesday marks Phase II of the O’Donnell Athenaeum project. Slated to open in fall 2026, the building will become part of the UT Dallas Harry W. Bass Jr. School of Arts, Humanities, and Technology. The nearly 70,000-square-foot building will feature a 680-seat performance hall, an outdoor performance space, practice rooms, teaching studios, a percussion studio, a recording studio, administrative offices, classrooms, multi-functional lobby space, study spaces, and a student lounge.

The 12-acre cultural district is being built on the southeastern edge of the UTD campus. It will eventually feature three new buildings, including Phase III, a two-story, 50,000-square-foot museum focused on traditional arts of the Americas, all surrounding a central plaza.

A rendering of the Edith and Peter O’Donnell Jr. Athenaeum depicts a view looking south from the Naveen Jindal School of Management Building. Phase I (lower right side) of the Athenaeum will feature the campus home of the Crow Museum of Asian Art. Plans also include a performance hall and a museum for the traditional arts of the Americas that will be directly south of Phase I and a parking garage on the left. [Rendering: UT Dallas]

At the heart of Morphosis’ design for the project will be the 2-acre plaza, flanked by new buildings to the east and west. The plaza will feature tree-lined walkways, landscaped gardens, and paved open spaces with benches and water features. An amphitheater will provide a setting for outdoor performances and events. Placed through it all will be contemporary sculptures from the Crow Museum collection.

The Athenaeum project is part of UT Dallas’ New Dimensions campaign, which the university calls “a $750 million effort to attract talent to North Texas, facilitate the enterprising work of faculty, and realize the possibilities that exist when distinguished researchers and visionary artists share a home.” The campaign’s goal: transform UT Dallas into a cultural destination for North Texas.

More looks at the new Crow Museum building at UT Dallas

Inside the Crow Museum of Asian Art at UT Dallas. [Photo copyright Mauricio Rojas/courtesy of UT Dallas]

Inside the Crow Museum of Asian Art at UT Dallas. [Photo copyright Mauricio Rojas/courtesy of UT Dallas]

The Crow Museum of Asian Art at UT Dallas is part of the Phase I building of the O’Donnell Athenaeum. [Photo copyright Mauricio Rojas/courtesy of UT Dallas]