UTSA has ensured that the ITC museum’s collections are preserved, and they will continue to be vital to how the future museum connects with the public. To properly preserve all existing collections, the university moved the museum’s artifact collections to the new Archives and Collections Building until the permanent museum is constructed.
A selection of curated items will be on display at the temporary museum in Frost Tower, opening in 2025. A calendar of rotating exhibits will ensure the community can continue to enjoy the museum’s extensive collection.
All items will be relocated to the new permanent museum once completed. UTSA is committed to the responsible stewardship of these collections and looks forward to continuing to share the rich stories of Texas with the public.
The university hired experts trained in moving cultural artifacts to transport all collections to the new Archives and Collections Building, a safe storage facility outfitted to modern museum and archive standards for humidity and temperature control to ensure the protection of valuable museum collections. Museum staff continue to carefully audit each item in the ITC collections, ensuring all documentation related to each artifact is up to date.
The university anticipates that the Archives and Collections Building, an offsite storage facility, may be required for approximately five years. Some items in the collections may be on view in exhibitions in Frost Tower beginning in 2025, but due to space limitations in the temporary museum site, much of the collections will continue to be stored offsite until a new permanent home for the ITC has been completed. The university is committed to continuing to house all of the items in its collection in a museum-quality storage facility without interruption.
The ITC is not currently processing returns as staff are working to carefully audit the collections. Once that audit is complete, we will contact lenders directly. If you have questions about your loaned item(s), please contact the ITC team at TexanCultures@utsa.edu or (210) 458-2300.
The archival collections previously housed at the Texas Pavilion are managed by UTSA Libraries Special Collections and will be accessible at the reading room in the new Archives and Collections Building by appointment. Staff are currently working to prepare the archive reading room. We will provide more information on when the collections will reopen in the near future. If you have questions about archives, please contact the UTSA Special Collections team at SpecialCollections@utsa.edu or 210-458-5505.