I took a field trip today to the Umlauf Sculpture Garden Museum, down by Zilker Park. Admission is free this summer, through the end of August, thanks to donations from Amplify Austin. You may want to check it out as well. Hours are Tue-Fri 10am-4pm, and Sat & Sun noon-4pm.
I’ve been there before, but it has been over 15 years. It was a lovely morning, and I headed out before it got too hot. Charles Umlauf was born in 1910, died in 1994, and was a prolific sculptor. His first commissioned work was at age 12! The sculpture garden lies on land between his former home and Barton Springs, and displays 50+ of his works scattered throughout lovely, wooded grounds.

My favorite:

Ok, so, now for the best part… as I was walking through the grounds I noticed a large dark shape sitting on a branch of a tree right over the trail I just walked on. I realized it was a bird. A big one. It was just sitting there, watching me, as I doubled back to try to get a picture. It was an unexpected sight, and I love the shot. After I got home I looked online to identify the bird… I believe it to be a barred owl.

