"Austin" by Ellsworth Kelly, Austin — Visitor Guide & Things to Do Nearby

The building simply called "Austin" is one of the most extraordinary pieces of art in Texas, and it almost didn't exist. Ellsworth Kelly, one of America's most important abstract artists, designed it as a standalone work combining architecture, sculpture, and light into a single experience. He gifted the design to the Blanton Museum of Art in 2015. He died that December, at 92, without ever seeing it built.

The building opened on February 18, 2018, and it is the only freestanding structure Kelly ever designed. At 2,715 square feet, it's a stone chapel-like space with no religious affiliation, meant purely as a place to experience colour and light. Thirty-three windows of coloured glass (in deep reds, blues, greens, and yellows) cast shifting patterns across the white interior throughout the day. Black-and-white marble panels and a totem-like wooden sculpture complete the space.

Kelly described the project as a "totality of architecture, sculpture, and light." Walking inside, especially on a sunny day, you'll understand what he meant. The light changes constantly, and no two visits look the same.

"Austin" is free to visit as part of the Blanton Museum's general admission (free on Thursdays). If you're exploring Austin on a Questo quest, this is a stop where the challenge might be to slow down and really look.