About the Briscoe Western Art Museum

The West Starts Here
Many cities claim to be the birthplace of the West, but without San Antonio and South Texas, the West as we know it wouldn’t exist. Step inside the Briscoe Western Art Museum to experience the art and artifacts that bring the stories that shaped the West to life.

What is Western Art?
Western art shares the stories of the cowboy, the vaquero, Native Americans, and the vast beauty of the Western landscape through drawings, sketches, paintings, and sculptures. As the culture shifts, so does our interpretation of Western art, but the stories remain the same.

Housed in History
Nestled on the banks of the San Antonio River Walk, the museum’s main building served as San Antonio’s original public library in the 1930s followed by the Hertzberg Circus Collection and Museum in the 1980s. After an extensive renovation, the Briscoe Western Art Museum opened in 2013. A branch of the San Antonio Public Library can be found on the first floor, honoring the building’s origins. The museum is named in honor of Texas Governor Dolph Briscoe, Jr., and his wife Janey Slaughter Briscoe, who envisioned a museum that would share the story of Western heritage and the people behind that story.

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