Hometown Glory

AT&T Performing Arts Center among 3 Texas landmarks touted as world's bestarchitecture

The AT&T Performing Art Center, which includes the Winspear Opera House(pictured) and the Wyly Theater.
Photo by Tim Hursley
The Data and Library Service Center at Rice University, designed by CarlosJiménez.
Photo by © Paul Hester/Hester + Hardaway
Miró Rivera Architects designed this pedestrian bridge on Lake Austin.
Photo by © Paul Finkel/Piston Design

The BBVA Foundation has published a four-volume series titled Atlas: Architectures of the 21st Century, a follow-up to Atlas. Global Architecture circa 2000, which was published in 2007.

Its pages document more than 1,000 architectural projects that span the globe, from mud brick schools in Africa to skyscrapers in the Persian Gulf, with 237 of those works illustrated and their sociopolitical and cultural context described in detail.

All three Texas landmarks are considered examples of "global architecture."

Making this narrow list are three projects that have been constructed right here in the Lone Star State: the AT&T Performing Arts Center, which includes the versatile Wyly Theatre, designed by Joshua Prince-Ramus and Rem Koolhaas, and the Winspear Opera House, designed by Norman Foster; Rice University's Data and Library Service Center in Houston, designed by architect Carlos Jiménez; and a pedestrian bridge on Lake Austin conceived by Miró Rivera Architects.

All three Texas landmarks are considered examples of "global architecture," a distinction that architect and Atlas director Luis Fernández-Galiano acknowledged is sometimes synonymous with standardization.

"But there is also a positive globalization, as seen in this Atlas, in which ideas and architects travel and interact with the local environment in a process of cross-fertilization," Fernández-Galiano said in a statement.

"Insofar as architecture is a useful art at the service of the community and needs to be inserted in a time and place, the best global architectures are those that attain this context awareness and manage to transform themselves through contact with their future surroundings."

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Art in the city

Aurora Art Quest scavenger hunts return to Dallas for summer 2026

Photo courtesy of Aurora

Art Quest scavenger hunts will return to Dallas for summer 2026.

Dallas arts nonprofit Aurora is bringing back Art Quest - its annual community art program that combines scavenger hunts, workshops, and public programming across Dallas neighborhoods - for summer 2026.

Organizers say this year’s programming will include family-friendly, scavenger hunt-style events in Pleasant Grove and South Dallas, where participants will search for clues tied to commissioned artworks by local artists; more details on those will be revealed soon, they say. In Bachman Lake, multimedia artist Karla Ramirez-Santin will lead a community workshop.

Art Quest 2026 dates, locations, and events include:

June 6, 5-9 pm - Trinity River Audubon Center
July 18, 10 am-2 pm - African American Museum of Dallas
August 1, 1-3 pm - Karla Ramirez-Santin workshop at Bachman Lake Branch Library

Additional dates and workshops for the summer calendar include:

May 22, 6-8 pm - DJ Leo J’s Intro to DJing at Gallery 86
July 25, 11 am-1 pm - Nick Bontrager’s Intro to 3D Printing at South Dallas Cultural Center

While the release doesn't give many specifics about how this year's scavenger hunts will work, in past years, the clues to begin the quest were revealed on the Saturday of the quest, at 10 am on AURORA’s Instagram feed. The first finder could collect it on the spot, along with a certificate of authenticity, and then had the chance for a one-on-one studio visit with the artist who created it.

Aurora launched Art Quest in 2022 as a way to bring technology-focused public art into neighborhoods across Dallas. Each edition features commissioned works by regional artists that are displayed during the events and awarded to participants.

"Through this community-oriented initiative, Aurora brings innovative original artworks into public spaces and invites participants to engage with creativity in new and meaningful ways," organizers say in the release. "Art Quest also highlights the digital divide, raising awareness about unequal access to technology and arts programming while promoting inclusivity and cultural connection."

All Art Quest programming is free and open to the public; follow Aurora's social media pages for more details as they're released.

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