Double or Nothing

Austin's most ambitious art prize doubles to join world's largest

The Contemporary Austin announced the expansion of the Suzanne Deal Booth/FLAG Art Foundation Prize.

Photo courtesy of The Contemporary Austin

When Austin art patron Suzanne Deal Booth announced in 2016 that she was creating the $100,000 Suzanne Deal Booth Art Prize, it turned an international spotlight on the local art scene. Suddenly, one of the largest prizes in the art world was not only coming from the United States, but from the heart of Texas.

On May 2, the Contemporary Austin and the FLAG Foundation announced the creation of the Suzanne Deal Booth/FLAG Art Foundation Prize, which doubles the biennial award to $200,000. In addition to cash, the prize also covers up to $600,000 in production and travel expenses and the creation of a scholarly catalog and educational programming, making it one of the most ambitious (read: largest) prizes in the art world.

Like Booth's first prize, the $200,000 will be given unrestricted (basically, no strings attached) every two years to an artist selected by an independent advisory committee. The artist will then premiere his or her show at the Contemporary Austin followed by a show at the FLAG Foundation in New York, a nonprofit exhibition space founded by Glen and Amanda Fuhrman. Together with Deal Booth, the Fuhrmans have committed to funding the new prize through at least 2026.

“Amanda and I have been interested in supporting artists through a major prize that would allow them the freedom to live and focus on creating their most ambitious work," said Glenn Fuhrman in a release. "We were inspired by what Suzanne, Louis [Grachos, executive director of the Contemporary], and the team at the Contemporary Austin accomplished with the inaugural Suzanne Deal Booth Art Prize, so rather than initiating a new award, we realized that by collaborating we could collectively create an unparalleled opportunity for the artists and institutions involved going forward.”

The Booth prize's inaugural winner, Rodney McMillian, is currently showing his newest exhibition, "Against a Civic Death," at the Contemporary's Jones Center on Congress Avenue. McMillian's work examines the social and political history of the United States to create a "discomforting social critique of American histories, injustices, and structures of power."

According to the Contemporary, the Suzanne Deal Booth/FLAG Art Foundation will announce the winner of the 2020 prize in July.

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New

Historic Austin museum will close for more than a year for restoration

Photo courtesy of the City of Austin

The Elisabet Ney Museum will close at the end of 2024 and reopen in mid-2026.

Every building needs some maintenance here or there, and the historic Elisabet Ney Museum needs some extra-special care. Formerly the art studio and residence of its namesake, it's been standing since 1892. It'll spend 2025 in relative solitude, as it undergoes renovation for a year and a half with no visitors allowed.

The museum will close to the public December 30, 2024, and open again in the summer of 2026 if all goes according to plan, a news release from the City of Austin shares. It'll be a quiet period compared to the 21,000 people visiting from around the world each year.

According to a museum overview on the city's website, Elisabet Ney, a European portrait sculptor, bought the property and called her new studio Formosa. She worked on sculptures depicting important Texans like Stephen F. Austin and Sam Houston, and collected works of European contemporaries.

The building at 304 East 44th St. includes 3,700 square feet of museum space, which was converted by Ney's friends after her death in 1907. It retains its unique look that juxtaposes a Neo-Classical main studio from 1892 with a later addition from 1902 including a tower for her husband, Edmund, to write in. It is also on 2.5 acres of land, which has largely been restored to its natural state with native species.

A press release lists these tasks (verbatim) within the scope of the new work, referred to as the Capital Improvement Project (CIP):

Restoration of original exterior wood doors and windows
Upgrades and replacement of the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system
Replacement of the exhibit and general lighting systems
Repairs to the roof, masonry, plumbing, and interior finishes.

There will also be work to do outside of the building. Workers will replace the pedestrian bridge across Waller Creek, stabilize a 20,000-square-foot portion of the bank, and make the grounds more accessible by adding new pathways.

Funding comes from several sources, according to a release: "the 2012 Bond, Proposition 14, the Parkland Dedication Fund, the Historic Preservation Fund, Partners in Preservation through the National Trust, and contributions from the Friends of the Elisabet Ney Museum."

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