The Blanton Museum of Art

The Blanton Museum of Art at the University of Texas at Austin is one of the foremost university art museums in the country and has the largest and most comprehensive collection of art in Central Texas.  The museum welcomes and engages all visitors by offering extraordinary experiences that connect art and ideas. The Blanton's permanent collection of more than 17,000 works is recognized for its European paintings, an encyclopedic collection of prints and drawings, and modern and contemporary American and Latin American art.

As The Blanton prepared for its 50th anniversary in 2013, it began a planning process to celebrate with a fresh brand that would be manifested in programs, guest experience, graphic identity, and communications. A team lead by Lord Cultural Resources in partnership with Fleishman-Hillard and Pessen Strategic Research was engaged to conduct a Brand & Positioning Market Study to be the basis for the new brand. Research was conducted to understand both current perceptions of the institution as well as audience insights.  Lord Cultural Resources provided key elements of the research including a survey of key trends in art museums, a market overview of Austin and cultural audiences, key findings from student, key opinion leader, and faculty and administration interviews.  After much research and discussion – the life-enhancing power of art – emerged as The Blanton’s new positioning. Based on this new brand and positioning, Lord Cultural Resources developed strategies for aligning programs and guest experiences.