DALLAS — For the first two years, George W. Bush managed his return to private work in Texas as a quiet transition.

While anonymous donors put his photograph on highway billboards that say “Miss Me Yet?” Mr. Bush all but shuttered his ranch near Crawford, scene of some of the more spectacular protests against his administration, moving instead to a quiet cul-de-sac in the upscale Preston Hollow enclave of Dallas.He has attended several Texas Rangers games, including opening day last year when he threw out the ceremonial first pitch.

But now Mr. Bush is bringing out the bullhorn.

“Breaking New Ground: Presenting the George W. Bush Presidential Center,” an exhibit set to open this weekend on the campus of Southern Methodist University, prominently features the handgun taken from Saddam Hussein and the loudspeaker used to address rescue workers at the World Trade Center in September 2001.

The choice of mementos, emphasizing some of the more controversial foreign policy aspects of the Bush presidency, has reinvigorated opposition to the center’s presence at the university.