Midland, Texas

== Arts and culture ==
=== Galleries ===
[[Midland College]] is home to the McCormick Gallery, inside the Allison Fine Arts Building on the main campus. Throughout the year, exhibits at the McCormick feature works of MC students and faculty, visiting artists, and juried exhibits. The Arts Council of Midland<ref>[http://www.acmidland.org] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140517033133/http://acmidland.org/|date=May 17, 2014}}</ref> serves as the promotional and public relations vehicle to promote the arts and stimulate community participation and support. The McCormick is also home to the Studio 3600 Series,<ref>[http://www.midland.edu/mccormick/studio3600/index.php] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716084503/http://www.midland.edu/mccormick/studio3600/index.php|date=July 16, 2011}}</ref> established in 2006 to "spotlight selected art students and provide them the opportunity to exhibit key works that identify the style they have crafted over a period of time."

=== Performing arts ===

The Midland-Odessa Symphony and Chorale (MOSC) has performed in the Permian Basin for over 45 years, and is the region's largest orchestral organization, presenting both Pops and Masterworks concerts throughout the year. The MOSC also is home to three resident chamber ensembles, the Lone Star Brass, Permian Basin String Quartet and West Texas Winds. These ensembles are made up of principal musicians in the orchestra.
[[File:Bush-Midland-childhood.jpg|thumb|right|[[Barbara Bush]], [[Laura Bush]], [[George H. W. Bush]] at the dedication of the [[George W. Bush Childhood Home]] in 2006]]
[[File:GWB Boyhood Home, Midland, TX DSCN1188.JPG|thumb|right|Bush Home, 2014]]

The Midland Community Theatre (MCT) originated in 1946 with musicals, comedies, dramas, mysteries, children's theatre and melodramas. MCT produces 15 shows each year in three performance spaces—Davis Theatre I and Mabee Theatre II, in the Cole Theatre, and the annual fundraiser [[Summer Mummers]] in the Yucca Theatre. MCT is a member of the American Association of Community Theatre, and hosted the 2006 AACT International Theatrefest.

Twice each year, the Phyllis and Bob Cowan Performing Arts Series at Midland College presents free cultural and artistic performances.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.midlandcollegefoundation.org/davidson_distinguished_lecture_series/phyllis_and_bob_cowan_performing_arts_series/index.php |title=Phyllis and Bob Cowan Performing Arts Series |website=Midlandcollegefoundation.org |date=October 10, 2013 |access-date=May 2, 2017}}</ref> The series was endowed in 1999.

=== Libraries ===
* [[Midland County Library]]
* [[J. Evetts Haley#Legacy|Haley Memorial Library and History Center]]
* Murray L. Fasken Learning Resource Center at Midland College

=== Tourism ===
[[File:Permian Basin Petroleum Museum entrance, Midland, TX DSCN1296.JPG|thumb|right|[[Permian Basin Petroleum Museum]]]]
Sitting on the southern edge of the [[Llano Estacado]] and near the center of the [[Permian Basin (North America)|Permian Basin]] oil fields, Midland's economy has long been focused on petroleum exploration and extraction. Providing more information about this industry is the [[Permian Basin Petroleum Museum]], on the outskirts of town near Interstate 20. The museum houses numerous displays on the history, science, and technology of oil and gas development. The Permian Basin Petroleum Museum houses a collection of race cars designed by [[Jim Hall (race car driver)|Jim Hall]], a longtime Midland resident who pioneered the use of aerodynamic downforce in Formula One car design.

Midland is also home to The Museum of the Southwest. The museum features a collection of paintings by various members of the [[Taos Society of Artists]] and [[Karl Bodmer]] as well as engravings by John J. and John W. Audubon. Within the same museum complex are the Children's Museum and the Marian W. Blakemore Planetarium. The Museum of the Southwest is in the Turner Mansion, the historic 1934 home of Fred and Juliette Turner.

On display at the Midland County Historical Museum are reproductions of the "Midland Man", the skeleton of a [[Clovis Culture|Clovis]] female found near the city in 1953.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://texashistory.unt.edu/data/UNT/TP/2005-08/meta-pth-5326.tkl |title=Historic plaque – Midland Man : The Portal to Texas History |date=August 6, 2005 |publisher=Texashistory.unt.edu |access-date=November 16, 2012}}</ref> Analysis of the remains by Curtis R. McKinney using uranium-thorium analysis showed that the bones are 11,600 ± 800 years old. Presenting his findings at the annual meeting of the [[Geological Society of America]] in 1992, McKinney said, "[T]he Midland Woman was related to the earliest ancestors of every Indian who lives today, and she is very likely the only representative of those who created the Clovis cultures."