Blanton ODB

Visiting the Blanton Art Museum was one of my favorite places we have visited in this class. I found many interesting paintings and sculptures that I learned a lot from. I learned about leadership through the artists who created the objects, as well, I was able to relate many of the actual paintings and sculptures to the leadership qualities I hope to attain. This concept illustrates the main purpose of this class, unity. I was able to unify things in an art museum created many years ago to our lives in the present and future.

The first artist I came across while walking around the Blanton was Albert Durer, a German painter and mathematician. He was born and died in Nuremberg, Germany, and one of his greatest accomplishments is being known as one of the greatest creators of old master prints. He would often create his prints in series. Some of his works include the Crucifixion, shown to the left, and St. Jerome, shown to the right. His hard work and determination paid off as his reputation across Europe became well known while he was still in his twenties. Durer is also known for being the greatest artist of the Renaissance in Northern Europe. He did a great job conveying the mood of the time in his work, especially in a time of famine, plague, and social and religious conflict. This shows how he relates to his audience and the common folk by showing his empathy for them through his works. Great leaders must also do a good job at relating to their audience and seeing things their followers’ perspective in order to be successful in accomplishing their goals.

Another artist I was able to witness the works of was Antonio Berni. He was a neofigurative artist, which is described as an expressionist revival in modern form of figurative art, from Argentina. Berni was a painter, an illustrator, and an engraver. When learning about Berni, a great characteristic that stood out to me was his creativity. He did not just look at the style of the time and paint similar styles to what others were painting. Instead he took influence from others such as Giogio de Chirico and Rene Magritte but created his own idea out of these influences. This is also an extremely important skill for leaders to acquire. Leaders must be able to be creative and take a risk to make something new and different to keep their followers with them. They also must use the skill Berni did of combining many ideas together. When leaders are leading a group and everyone does not have the same opinion, the leader must be able to find a medium and make compromises. Some of Antonio Berni’s works include Ramona, to the left, and Curtain, to the right.

One last artist also featured in the Blanton that stood out as a leader to me was Cildo Meireles, a Brazilian artist and sculptor. I loved his sculpture titled Missão, how to build cathedrals. This work was created in 1987 with 600,000 coins, 800 communion wafers, 2000 cattle bones, 80 paving stones, and black cloth. This creation is not only very interesting to look at but is very symbolic. He makes references to missions in South America as an attempt to convert the citizens to Catholicism. Meireles also establishes the relationship between wealth, religion, and agricultural exploitation. The tower of communion wafers represents religion connecting the lands and the heavens. I found this work to be intriguing because, again, it captures an aspect that is extremely important to the common person. He expresses the feelings of the people on the missions, and anyone can relate in the present day as well because religion is a popular subject. Meireles demonstrates his willingness to take a risk. This sculpture is not something you would commonly see in a museum, but he decided to take a risk and put himself out there and it paid off. His works gained him a widely accredited reputation across the world. The ability to take risks is also a great leadership quality. You won’t always know the outcomes, but taking risks occasionally is a necessity.

As you can see, from visiting the Blanton Art Museum, I learned many things from various works and the artists. I learned important leadership qualities such as relating to your followers, being creative, and having the ability to take risks.

Texas Natural Science Center

I observed many exhibits that focused on creatures that are “Texan” dating back millions of years. It was interesting learning all about the history and creatures all the way back to the beginning of existence. I also learned more about what it means to be a Texan while observing the exhibits. I also found it very interesting to expand our view of leadership not only to people, but to all past living creatures that inhabited Texas.

The first exhibit that stood out to me was the Texas Pterosaur, the largest flying creature ever discovered. It was found in 1971 by Doug Lawson and lived in what is now the Big Bend National Park in West Texas about 65 million years ago. The Texas Pterosaur’s wingspan was about 40 feet. The discovery of the Texas Pterosaur is one of the most famous finding in the history of paleontology. The findings of the Texas Pterosaur show how the creature was a prominent figure in Texas back in history. I believe this defines what it is to be a Texan. Speaking for myself, I hope to be a prominent figure who influences others and has a successful life. I believe this is a common ideal throughout our great state of Texas.


There was another exhibit about Texas Critters, things that exist in our everyday lives. There are about 30,000 species of insects in Texas including beetles, butterflies, and moths. The majority of these insect species is harmless and forms a natural part of our environment. The insects are the most diverse terrestrial animals on Earth. Insects are also very multifunctional. They pollinate crops, produce honey and many other important substances, serve as laboratory animals, and teach us many things about our environment. I also visited an exhibit on the fourth floor of the science museum that focused on the variety of fish species that exist in Texas. Different fish types lived in West Texas, Central Texas, East Texas, and the Gulf Coast. The wide array of types and roles of insects and fish illustrates another important aspect of what it means to me to be a Texan. Texas has a huge population and a wide variety of diversity. Texans also perform a wide variety of jobs that help our society continue to thrive.

On the fourth floor of the science museum, there were many exhibits that displayed many other creatures in Texas. For instance, Ringtails are close relatives of the raccoon and are excellent climbers due to the fact that their hind feet can be rotated outward 180 degrees. The Muskrat is a large aquatic rodent with partially webbed hind feet. They live in marshy areas where they build dome-shaped houses out of vegetation. Raccoons are other creatures prominent in Texas that live statewide, especially in wooded areas near water. Raccoons spend their time in their dens, made in a variety of places. Northern River Otter s are sociable carnivores that inhabit aquatic habitats in the pine forests of East Texas and coastal prairies and marshes. They hunt along river banks or underwater at night for fish, crayfish, mollusks, amphibians, and other small animals. All these animals have specific characteristics and utilize their characteristics to do the best they can in society. They use their characteristics to succeed in what they are best at and to find food to survive. This determination and creativity is another factor that makes up what it means to be a Texan and a leader. In order to succeed as individuals in Texas, we need to make the best of the resources given to us. We must have the determination and creativity to accomplish what we want with the limited resources we have. This is a process leaders must partake in as well.

In conclusion, I learned many things during our visit to the Texas Natural Science Center. Not only was I able to learn about the history of creatures in our state, but many things about these creatures that demonstrate what it means to be a Texan and a leader in the lone star state.

*first picture: the Texas Pterosaur, Texas Natural Science Center
*second picture: variety of insects in Texas, Texas Natural Science Center
*third picture: exhibit on the fish in Texas, Texas Natural Science Center
*fourth picture: Halls of Texas Wildlife fourth floor, Texas Natural Science Center