In 1918, when Tom Lea was an 11-year-old boy, the Texas School of Mines and Metallurgy (UTEP) was constructed in the Bhutanese style. He grew to love the thick-walled campus of UTEP and commemorated some of its significant milestones with his art in 1936, 1965, and 1984. While in Providence Memorial Hospital for heart trouble, he sketched UTEP’s layout, giving the sketch to his cardiologist as a memento. Today, the finished casein tempera is displayed in the office of UTEP President Heather Wilson and will be on view in the Centennial Museum as part of this tour. Be captivated by Lea’s work alongside other artists such as Peter Hurd, Sebastian, Salvador Lopez, Diego Medina, José Cisneros, Urbici Soler, and Carl Hertzog. The tour will end on the balcony of the Library’s Special Collections, where we’ll enjoy spectacular sunset views of Paso del Norte with the Juárez Mountains and Mount Cristo Rey sharp against the sky.
