In 2022, friends of the Ransom Center, along with Robert De Niro, Meryl Streep, and Leonard Maltin, celebrated our 65th anniversary, establishing an endowment to fund the Robert De Niro Curator of Film position and advancing understanding of the humanities through the Center’s extraordinary film collection.
With the help of our supporters, the Center also acquired the papers of poet, author, and translator John Balaban and artworks, photographs, and correspondence related to artists Paul and Virginia Fontaine. We celebrated the launch of more than 60,000 digitized items and a new educational resource based on the papers of British author Radclyffe Hall, who wrote the 1928 lesbian landmark novel, The Well of Loneliness, and partner, artist Una Vincenzo, Lady Troubridge, winning an award for archival excellence from the Texas Historical Records Advisory Board. Donors and Members also helped the Center successfully showcase new scholarship in an exhibition that highlighted the role of women in bringing James Joyce’s iconic novel Ulysses to fruition.
It was one of our most exciting years, and we would love for you to join us in January for the two major happenings below and a year filled with learning opportunities, exhibitions, tours, and very special guests. Consider becoming a Ransom Center Member or eNews subscriber to be the first to learn about programs and events in 2023.
Explore 100 years of movie history in January
Drawing the Motion Picture: Production Art and Storyboards explores the beauty and complexity of moviemaking through sketches, storyboards, and designs that illuminate the production of motion pictures from the silent era to the present day. In this new exhibition opening Jan. 28, 2023, visitors will see rare concept paintings, set designs, storyboards, scripts, film stills, correspondence, and more that tell a visual story of some of the biggest films in more than 100 years of cinema history—Rebel Without a Cause, Raging Bull, Top Gun, Apollo 13, Lawrence of Arabia, and many others. Learn more about this exhibition.
A dance legend joins us in the new year for a look at her life, work, and archive
Deborah Hay is an internationally renowned dancer and choreographer working at the forefront of postmodern dance for over sixty years. In celebration of Hay’s archive, established at the Ransom Center in 2021, join Hay and her archival collaborator, Laurent Pichaud, for a conversation about what it means to document dance during a program, In Conversation With Deborah Hay, on Jan. 19 at 7 p.m.
A founding member of the Judson Dance Theater, Hay is recognized as a pivotal figure in the development of postmodern dance and was featured in an exhibition on the Judson Dance Theatre at MoMA in New York.
To learn more about Hay’s work, watch this interview by Curator Eric Colleary for the Ransom Center’s Theatre 2020 Project. In the interview, Hay discusses the creation of Horse, the solos and her work with Cullberg Dance Company that will be part of a special day of screenings, Q&As, and two ground-breaking performances at Texas Performing Arts on Jan. 28, one of which will feature Hay on stage and live music by Graham Reynolds in the McCullough Theatre (Learn more).
Make an impact on the humanities
Funding the important work of the Center helps the humanities flourish, but requires financial support well beyond what UT can provide. Supporters like you make a difference in the advancement of our mission every year.
We invite you to become a Member and/or make a tax-deductible contribution to the Director’s Initiatives Fund to provide essential funding for acquisitions, exhibitions, conservation, and outreach. Thank you for your support!
