Hipsters and design buffs need places to meet and relax. The roof of the Jones Center at Congress Avenue and West Seventh Street is one such place.
Nicolas Allinder and Joshua Penhaskashi
The blend of a sculpted, roofless auditorium and spectacular urban scenery lend the spot a unmistakably cool vibe. Catered snacks and drinks help loosen up the crowd, which tends to pose a bit before succumbing to chat.
Fulfilling a key museum function, AMOA/Arthouse shows art-themed movies here.
Alexer Taganas and Jen Wong
More than 200 guests gathered Tuesday to watch a movie about Philip Johnson, which, it turned out, I’d already seen. So I just soaked up scene. Odd note: Several surfer types with shoulder length hair and beachside manner attended. Didn’t that design freaks surfed.
Brian Willey and Thao Votang
Earlier in the week, I dropped by the new home of the Armstrong Community Music School. Located above a rugged creek bed on Camp Craft Road, the school fits snugly in with other learning outlets like mammoth Westlake High School and other Eanes district properties in an area that feels very old West Lake, meaning prior to the big homes and fancy shopping districts.
The school’s two-story regional modern building stood empty for a long time after serving as offices for a small engineering firm. Frankly, it think it’s superior to the school’s former digs at the old Austin Lyric opera campus on Barton Springs Road.
The interiors of classrooms, offices and meeting spaces are bright and welcoming. Staff informed me that enrollment is reaching former highs of 800 students learning all sorts of musical skills and knowledge.
Congrats to school leader Margaret Perry and primary donors James Armstrong and Larry Connelly.