Beyond the Bombshell: Farrah Fawcett

February 13, 2025 - June 1, 2025

Born in Corpus Christi, Texas in 1947, Farrah Leni Fawcett captured the world’s attention in 1976 with two epoch-defining acts: her breakout role in Charlie’s Angels and posing for the now legendary “red swimsuit” poster. At its peak, Charlie’s Angels was one of America’s most watched television shows, while Farrah’s poster remains an all-time best-seller, with over 12 million copies sold and counting. In the days when people absorbed their media from TV, movies, newspapers, and magazines, Farrah was omnipresent in American homes. 

The UMLAUF is honored to be sharing troves of never-before-seen material from Charles and Angie Umlauf’s archives, the Blanton Museum of Art at the University of Texas, and documents graciously lent by Farrah’s nephew. Beyond the Bombshell reintroduces visitors to one of the country’s most famous actresses. Cover shots, Playboy magazines, TV commercials, movie posters, and memorabilia offer glimpses into Farrah’s international fame.  

But her public persona obscured an important detail: this superstar was a woman of remarkable talent, intelligence, and wit. An accomplished sculptor who studied with Professor Charles Umlauf at UT Austin, she drew, painted, and sculpted her entire life. Farrah and Umlauf became lifelong friends, and she visited this sculpture garden on multiple occasions. (The 2017 exhibition and essay, Mentoring a Muse, explored the influence they had on one another.) She wrote to Umlauf from Hollywood in 1969: "I didn’t realize how much drawing and most of all sculpting got into my blood. Oh well, once I have started out here, I can once again concentrate on [sculpture,] my one real love!" To see past the bombshell, the gallery features Farrah's own artwork, handwritten letters in her flawless cursive, typewritten scripts that she assiduously annotated, and reviews and references to her less popular but critically acclaimed stage and TV work, among many other objects. We hope that Beyond the Bombshell will leave a lasting impression on those who thought they understood Farrah, as well as introducing new generations to this talent from Texas.