SA Western Museum Fall Exhibition “Going To Texas” Maps 500 Years of Lone Star Historical past
This fall, SA Western Museum, the Briscoe Western Artwork Museum, presents a uncommon alternative to expertise one of the crucial important personal map collections within the nation with the unique exhibition, Going to Texas: 5 Centuries of Texas Maps, on view Oct. 3, 2025 – Jan. 19, 2026. That includes 64 authentic maps from the extraordinary Yana and Marty Davis Map Assortment, the exhibition provides a one-of-a-kind journey by the evolving panorama, identification and historical past of Texas.
Spanning almost 500 years, from 1548 to 2006, the maps on this prestigious assortment – on mortgage from the Museum of the Large Bend at Sul Ross State College in Alpine, Texas – hint Texas’ outstanding transformation from the times of New Spain to the trendy period. This landmark exhibition marks a uncommon public displaying of the gathering, providing unparalleled perception into the cultural, political and geographic forces that formed the Lone Star State. Broadly considered one of the crucial necessary Texas cartography collections in existence, the Davis Assortment stands out not just for its historic depth, but additionally for its cartographic artistry and storytelling energy.
Painstakingly assembled by Texas businessman and philanthropist Marty Davis and his spouse Yana, the gathering consists of works by outstanding European, Mexican and American mapmakers. These maps reveal how Texas was perceived, claimed and outlined throughout centuries – serving as instruments of exploration, devices of empire and later, data of ambition and growth. Whether or not charting transport routes, outlining battle traces or portraying uncharted frontiers, every map captures a vivid second in Texas historical past.
“That is actually a once-in-a-lifetime alternative to see a set of this caliber,” mentioned Liz Jackson, President and CEO of the Briscoe Western Artwork Museum. “Maps are greater than coordinates and limits – they’re home windows into the folks, politics and potentialities of a spot. This exhibition reveals how cartography helped form Texas and the way Texas formed the world’s creativeness in return.”
The exhibition’s title is a nod to “GTT” – Gone to Texas – a typical farewell given by those that set out on the lengthy, arduous and infrequently harmful journey to the Lone Star State in the course of the second half of the nineteenth century. Alongside the Davis Assortment, the Briscoe will show complementary items from its personal holdings and extra historic loans, enhancing the expertise with artifacts and artworks that mirror key durations in Texas’ evolution, together with Spanish Texas, Mexican Texas, the Republic of Texas and statehood. The result’s a sweeping, immersive exhibition that fuses artwork, historical past and geography right into a compelling narrative of place and identification.
The exhibition additionally celebrates two enduring pillars of Western artwork, its majestic panorama and the profound affect of Spanish and Mexican tradition. By way of vivid and infrequently imaginative cartography, historic maps deliver the American West to life, revealing how early explorers, settlers and mapmakers perceived, recorded and formed a area that will develop into Texas and past. Many of those maps – drawn lengthy earlier than the land was absolutely identified – hint rivers, mountains and plains with a mix of artistry and precision, providing each sensible info and poetic interpretation. They not solely charted geography however guided migration, fueled settlement and helped forge a long-lasting Western identification rooted within the land itself.
Equally highly effective is the exhibition’s exploration of Mexico’s enduring imprint on the West. Lengthy earlier than Texas grew to become a part of the US, it was house to Spanish and Mexican communities whose cultural, political and geographic legacies are vividly inscribed in these maps. The Spanish place names nonetheless in use at present – etched into rivers, cities, and territories – showcase this residing heritage. The exhibition illuminates the pivotal position of Tejanos as they navigated shifting borders and cultural frontiers, mixing resilience with adaptation. Their lasting contributions – seen in language, land stewardship and enduring traditions – proceed to form the essence of the West.
Whether or not you’re a historian, educator, pupil or just interested by Texas’ legacy, Going to Texas guarantees to captivate and enlighten. Every map serves as a main doc, providing a singular lens into the previous and a deeper appreciation for the dynamic forces that solid Texas’ path.
Going to Texas: 5 Centuries of Texas Maps was organized by the Museum of the Large Bend at Sul Ross College in Alpine, Texas. The exhibition is sponsored partly by the Betty Stieren Kelso Basis, Missie and McLean Bowman, H-E-B, Klesse Basis | Margie & Invoice Klesse, Jan McCaleb Elliott, Jessica Elliot Middleton, the Metropolis of San Antonio, Jan McCaleb Elliott, Jessica Elliott Middleton, PNC Financial institution, the Texas Fee on the Arts, the Williams-Chadwick Household Charitable Fund of the San Antonio Space Basis and in-kind help from Story to Inform Communications.
See the West All Yr Lengthy on the Briscoe
Situated alongside the historic San Antonio River Stroll, the Briscoe is open Thursday, 10 a.m. – 8 p.m., Friday by Monday, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. and closed to the general public on Tuesday and Wednesday. Admission is free for kids 12 and underneath and for energetic responsibility army. The museum grounds characteristic 35 sculptures portraying numerous features of Western life. The museum’s fantastically restored historic house inside the previous San Antonio Public Library constructing consists of 14 galleries, with particular exhibitions, occasions and the Hendler Household Museum Retailer, offering artwork, tradition, historical past and leisure. Museum hours, parking and admission particulars can be found on-line.
