The Edith and Peter O’Donnell Jr. Athenaeum is a new hub for art education, history and some distinguished art collections at UT Dallas.
University leaders, donors and supporters gathered Sept. 24 to celebrate the opening of the first phase of the Edith and Peter O’Donnell Jr. Athenaeum, a new 12-acre cultural gateway to The University of Texas at Dallas campus that when complete will include two museums, a performance hall and music building, and a grand plaza.
The first phase features the UT Dallas Art Museums, of which the cornerstone is the Trammell and Margaret Crow Museum of Asian Art of The University of Texas at Dallas. It is the second location for the Crow museum, whose downtown location in the Dallas Arts District will remain open. The UT Dallas Art Museums building, designed by the architectural firm Morphosis, showcases an array of innovative Asian art exhibits, as well as selections from the Dallas Museum of Art, objects from the University’s growing collection of Latin American art and works from Dallas photographer Carolyn Brown.
In addition to the ribbon-cutting for the Phase 1 building, UTD and UT System leaders broke ground on the next phase: a performance hall and music building that is projected to open in fall 2026 for the Harry W. Bass Jr. School of Arts, Humanities, and Technology.
The O’Donnell Athenaeum is the latest milestone in a period of significant growth of the arts at UT Dallas and caps a major initiative by Dr. Richard C. Benson, UTD president, to create a vibrant, artistic campus environment and to become a hub for arts in North Texas.
“I can’t help but think of this as the most fitting capstone to the presidency of Richard Benson,” said James B. Milliken, UT System chancellor and the Lee Hage and Joseph D. Jamail Regents Chair in Higher Education Leadership. “Back in his inaugural address eight years ago, Dick set out a vision that foreshadowed this moment today. He noted the students from this university take great joy from music, from art, from dance, from theater, from history and great literature. He vowed to create new venues for the broadly talented men and women who choose UT Dallas because of an opportunity to gain an in-demand degree all the while having the opportunity to express their creativity.”
Benson noted the “visionary gifts and foresight” of the leading donors to the Athenaeum project: the O’Donnell Foundation’s lead gift of $32 million, the Crow family’s support of $25.45 million (in addition to its donation of the entire Crow Museum collection in 2019), the Harry W. Bass Jr. Foundation’s significant contribution to the performance hall and music building, and early gifts from the late Margaret McDermott and Beatrice “Bea” Wallace.
“We are grateful for the immense generosity and vision of our donors … for providing the foundation for the arts initiative at UT Dallas, which will benefit not only our campus community, but the North Texas community and beyond,” said Benson, the Eugene McDermott Distinguished University Chair of Leadership. “Expanding and enhancing arts facilities and infrastructure was a cornerstone of our Strategic Plan, and this opening is a tremendous step forward in that process.”
The idea for the O’Donnell Athenaeum was championed by the late Dr. Richard Brettell, who was the founding director of UTD’s Edith O’Donnell Institute of Art History, established in 2014. Brettell envisioned spaces for reflection and discussion across disciplines, spanning the visual and performing arts, literature, and science, and as a bridge between UT Dallas and the local community.
“This complex, like our entire campus, will be a place of learning and growth,” said Dr. Inga H. Musselman, UTD provost, vice president for academic affairs and the Cecil H. Green Distinguished Chair of Academic Leadership. “Like Dr. Brettell before me, I envision students walking through the museums during their class breaks or taking notes about pieces of art that are displayed here. The performance hall and music building will provide even more opportunities for students.”
Phase 2 of the O’Donnell Athenaeum will include a 680-seat performance hall and music building for the Bass School. The structure will include two large rehearsal rooms, solo rehearsal rooms, a percussion studio, classrooms, a recording studio, a student study lounge and spaces for impromptu musical performances.
Edith and Peter O’Donnell Jr. Athenaeum
Phase 1 – UT Dallas Art Museums
A two-story, 57,000-square-foot building with eight galleries for the Crow Museum of Asian Art and four other spaces for the Carolyn Brown archive, as well as for UTD’s growing Latin American art collection, which includes donations from the Roger Horchow Family Collection and the Laura and Dan Boeckman Collection of Latin American Folk Art.
Phase 2 – Performance Hall and Music Building
A two-story building featuring about 66,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor program space. The centerpiece will be a 680-seat performance hall, as well as rehearsal and practice rooms, teaching studios, a percussion studio, a recording studio, and student and classroom spaces.
Phase 3 – Future Museum
A future museum building and a new campus parking structure with two levels above ground and one basement level walkout.
Visions of Support: Hear from some of the O’Donnell Jr. Athenaeum’s founding supporters whose significant philanthropic support is making the vision a reality in this YouTube video
“The new performance hall and music building will become a hub of creativity and provide us the opportunity to engage the broader Dallas community,” said Dr. Nils Roemer, dean of the Bass School; director of the Ackerman Center for Holocaust Studies; the Arts, Humanities, and Technology Distinguished University Chair; and the Stan and Barbara Rabin Distinguished Professor in Holocaust Studies. “It will elevate the arts experience with a world-class stage for students and faculty. It will provide opportunities for us to showcase our incredible talent on campus and attract distinguished performers. Designed with a focus on interconnectedness, the classrooms, rehearsal rooms and studios will enable teaching, learning and performing to take place seamlessly.”
The Harry W. Bass Jr. Foundation’s landmark $40 million gift in 2023 to UT Dallas named the school and supported Phase 2 of the Athenaeum project.
Phase 3, the final addition of the O’Donnell Athenaeum, will include a second museum and a parking structure.
The new Crow Museum is the first major art museum located north of Interstate 635 and in close proximity to the Collin County and northern Dallas County suburbs. The Phase 1 building features the beginnings of an outdoor sculpture garden and 12 galleries – eight Crow Museum galleries and four other galleries. The structure includes the Brettell Reading Room, a dedicated art object study room, a conservation studio, a seminar room, the Lotus Shop, lecture and event areas, and covered outdoor space.
“This day celebrates the many decades of Trammell and Margaret Crow’s deep love for learning and dedication to fostering understanding and compassion in our world,” said Amy Lewis Hofland, senior director of the Crow Museum. “By sharing their collection beyond its original home in the Dallas Arts District onto the UTD campus, we will continue to reach the minds and hearts of new generations.”
Led by design partner Arne Emerson, Morphosis developed the master plan for the O’Donnell Athenaeum and designed the buildings. Partnering with Morphosis is GFF, the local architect. The Beck Group is leading construction as the project’s general contractor with its joint venture partner EJ Smith Construction.
The UT Dallas Art Museums and the Crow Museum are free and open to the public Tuesday through Sunday.
What They Said
“Our students and our citizens need both science and the humanities — engineers who read great literature, poets who have an understanding of science. These are two poles of a classic liberal arts education. This harmonious blend at UTD — arts and sciences — exemplifies the essence of a well-rounded education. It’s fitting that the new gateway is named in honor of Edith and Peter O’Donnell, who have long championed the integration of these disciplines and supported it with energy and resources.”
— James B. Milliken, UT System chancellor
“With this dedication of the Edith and Peter O’Donnell Jr. Athenaeum … we see world-class art expanding to UT Dallas and to Richardson. It marks the beginning of a distinct cultural district that impacts all of us — the campus community and the North Dallas community at large — with exhibits and performances that feature impactful beauty and craftsmanship.”
— Christina Melton Crain, UT System regent
“This new facility will have a lasting and important impact on the worlds of art and education that we celebrate so much here in Richardson. This is a level of access that not many communities around the world can say they have, and we thank you for creating this cornerstone of cultural, educational and even economic development. It will impact the lives of our residents; foster strong connections between the city, UTD and the region; and most importantly, ensure the arts continue to thrive in Richardson.”
— Robert Dubey, mayor of the city of Richardson, Texas
“Here, the arts span disciplines, extend cultural concepts and inform our scholarship. I am mindful and appreciative of the fact that this university’s work to develop complete minds has been made possible by some very forward-thinking and generous people.”
— Dr. Richard C. Benson, UTD president
“This is more than a destination on our campus. … This museum and the entire O’Donnell Athenaeum will be incorporated into the fabric of the educational mission at UT Dallas. … It has been and will continue to be an experience and a monument to academic possibilities that we will always treasure.”
— Dr. Inga H. Musselman, provost and vice president for academic affairs
“We have wonderful student performers, great faculty and other musicians who will perform in this building, and we’ll give them a world-class stage that makes them sound as good as they can. As Arne Emerson, our distinguished architect, said during one of our conversations: ‘The performance hall and music building will be the new center of gravity for music on campus.’”
— Dr. Nils Roemer, dean of the Harry W. Bass Jr. School of Arts, Humanities, and Technology
“This historic ribbon-cutting for the Edith and Peter O’Donnell Jr. Athenaeum and Phase 1 Crow Museum and the groundbreaking for the Phase 2 performance hall and music building represent the next chapter in the evolution of UT Dallas. Today, we are experiencing the apex of energy, excellence and excitement as we establish an arts district in the heart of a traditional STEM university. Not only is UT Dallas an academic giant, but it is also a place where the arts, esports, chess and cricket are equally welcomed into campus life. The dedication of this new building is yet another way that the student, faculty, staff and community experience is elevated at our unique university.”
— Calvin D. Jamison, UTD vice president for facilities and economic development
“We are brightly lighting a future for our students that prepares them with knowledge and compassion. We are nourishing citizens who will turn and tend and tune sustainable futures and fields for generations to come.”
— Amy Lewis Hofland, senior director of the Crow Museum of Asian Art
“Wisdom and knowledge can’t be relegated to a single discipline; these ideas are best expressed in the overlap between disciplines, the fundamental love of knowledge that drives the people here at this university. I was talking to President Benson recently, and we talked about how at musical events held by students, most of the students we talk to don’t major in music; they major in engineering or natural sciences or anything else you can think of. Our students are multidisciplinary, and this project fosters that.”
— Devin Schwartz, Student Government president and philosophy senior