On April 17th, The Bryan Museum welcomed Jean Becker, former Chief of Staff to President George H.W. Bush, for a special lecture on her latest book, Character Matters: And Other Life Lessons (April 2024).In this powerful talk, Becker shares personal stories and timeless wisdom from her nearly 25 years working alongside President Bush. From behind-the-scenes insights to deeply human moments, her reflections capture the values and character that defined the statesman.Jean Becker is also the author of the New York Times bestseller The Man I Knew: The Amazing Story of George H.W. Bush’s Post Presidency, and editor of Pearls of Wisdom by Barbara Bush. Before her White House years, she worked as a journalist, including four years at USA TODAY.

The Bryan Museum is honored to welcome Kristy Oliver-Pullings, daughter of the renowned artist Kermit Oliver, for a special conversation with exhibit curator Meg Tucker. Together, they explore the powerful story behind the Kermit Oliver & Hermès: Storytelling on Silk and Canvas exhibit.Discover Kermit Oliver’s unique journey as the only American artist to design scarves for Hermès, and gain intimate insights into his remarkable career, creative process, and enduring legacy.Check out this meaningful discussion celebrating art, heritage, and storytelling.

Jim Hodges talks with living legends in the ranching industry and notable cowboys who worked on coastal ranches. They tell their unique stories as to “what it takes to be a cowboy” on the coastal plains of Texas.In conjunction with our current exhibition, Coastal Cowboys, which celebrates the remarkable and untold story of the coastal cowboy in Texas. Cattle ranching has been a cornerstone of Texas’ economy even before there was a Texas. Most people don’t realize that there was a system of coastal ranches in The Lone Star State that had to essentially reinvent the industry and adapt their horses, gear, and clothing to new landscapes and obstacles. Some of these coastal ranches were among the first in the state to adopt new technologies in the industry such as fencing, branding cattle, and protecting the health of their herds. The exhibit which covers periods of booms and busts in the cattle industry, highlight some of the most notable cowboys of this period in Texas history and the “brands they rode for”.

The Bryan Museum is honored to be a part of the Tom Lea Institute’s Tom Lea Trail marking sights in Texas that own and display the works of the renowned Texas artist. In collaboration with the Tom Lea Institute, Bryan Museum founder J.P. Bryan gave a presentation about the early adult life of Tom Lea and his first wife, Nancy Jane Taylor.

Ron Tyler, native Texan and retired Director of the Amon Carter Museum of American Art in Fort Worth will draw on his extensive curatorial knowledge of Southwestern art to speak about his latest book Texas Lithographs: a Century of History in Images – lauded as “quite possibly the most complete visual record of nineteenth-century Texas, period.”

Ron Tyler is the retired Director of the Amon Carter Museum of American Art in Fort Worth, Texas (2006-2011). He is former Professor of History at the University of Texas at Austin (1986-2006) and Director of the Texas State Historical Association and the Center for Studies in Texas History at the University (1986-2004), during which time he was the editor-in-chief of The New Handbook of Texas (6 vols.; 1996 and now online) and the Southwestern Historical Quarterly. Before moving to Austin, he taught at Austin College in Sherman (1967-1969) and served for eighteen years as Curator of History and Director of Public Programs at the Carter. He was born in Temple, Texas, in 1941 and is a graduate of Rogers High School (1960), Temple College (A.A., 1962), Abilene Christian College (B.S., 1964) and Texas Christian University (M.A., 1966; Ph.D. 1968). He has published a number of works in the areas of American, Western American, Texas, and Mexican art and history.

David Casale is gives a deep dive into the restoration process of Battleship Texas that is playing out in real-time, here in Galveston, Texas!