Houston Street Art: Your Guide to Graffiti, Murals, and Street Art In Houston
Artist: @Gonzo247
Location: 1503 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
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Houston Street Art And How To See It
While I loved the Houston graffiti art scene, I will say Houston is hot. And humid. And it’s like this pretty much year-round, making it particularly challenging to just wander around the city on foot looking for art, or anything else for that matter. If you want to see street art in Houston, Texas, you thankfully have a better option. There’s a wonderful EV tour by Joyride that will take you around to the best murals in the city and give you a little history and background on the artists.
Your Houston mural guide will take you to all the best murals and graffiti Houston has to offer. They’ll also explain the street artists’ histories and a bit about each piece. It’s well worth booking the tour to gain valuable insight into the art and artists and avoid the hot, humid weather.
Artist: Unknown
Location: 1211 Prairie Street, Houston, TX
Book Your Houston Street Art Tour
I cannot stress this enough, walking in Houston is a brutal and unforgiving task. If there is ever a city where you want to take the street art tour, this is it. I highly recommend the Joyride Houston art scene tour. For $55 you’ll get to discover the best spots in H-town as your local tour guide travels through Downtown, Midtown, and EaDo.
Artist: @art_of_bimboadenugba
Location: 1210 Preston, Street Houston, TX
Behind The Wall
This was the first time I’d heard of the Behind The Wall app, but it’s amazing! So many of the Houston murals came with a QR code you could scan that would come up on this app and give you background information on the mural and the artist. Many of them even included a prerecorded snippet from the artist describing their work. It’s available in several other cities around the world and is now one of my favorite apps. Download it now if you love street art.
You can also get a Houston mural map through the app, which is helpful if you decide to forgo my advice and actually make the sweaty walk around town on your own.
Artist: Unknown
Location: Sam Houston Hotel 414 San Jacinto Street, Houston, TX
Great Street Art Neighborhoods In Houston
Downtown Houston is a weird place. While 7 million people live in the Houston metro area, only 10,000 people live in Downtown Houston. Coming from New York City and Los Angeles, I found this very surprising. Despite the lack of people, there was an abundance of art. Both Downtown and Midtown Houston are great for mural spotting.
The second area to look for art is Graffiti Park in central Houston. There’s a massive graffiti building located at 1503 Chartres Street that will give you a ton of Instagram opportunities.
Mural by Victor Ash
Artist: Victor Ash
Location: 1111 Prairie Street, Houston, TX
Mural Festivals
I had the pleasure of visiting after the Street Art for Mankind (SAM) festival was held in Houston. The SAM festival collaborates with The United Nations Environment Program and The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to amplify the message of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, a global effort to reverse the effects of climate change and biodiversity loss by 2030 by creating a series of #EcosystemRestorationMurals around the world. This attracted a diverse cross-section of mural artists from around the world to Houston. And their art was unbelievably gorgeous.
Many of the photos in this post are of murals painted specifically for the SAM festival.
Artist: @Dragon76art
Location: 1501 Rusk Street, Houston, TX
What Makes Murals In Houston So Unique?
The first thing I was struck by in viewing the public art in Houston is that the Houston street art paintings are largely left alone by taggers. This was a welcome site when compared to cities like Toronto, Canada where almost every mural was defaced in some way.
In fact, I’ve been to four countries and seven US states documenting street art and I’d never seen so many perfectly preserved murals. It seems in Houston, graffiti artists respect each other’s work and leave the murals alone. It was amazing to see a wall left intact and even refreshed with paint to keep the art looking vibrant. Everyone on the tour was struck by how beautiful and respectful graffiti in Houston was.
Artist: Unknown
Location: 1143-1199 Saint Emanuel Street, Houston, TX
Show Me Those Beautiful Houston Murals
Read on for the best murals in Houston including some amazing graffiti captures from Houston Graffiti Park.
I have to apologize in advance. If you’ve followed my other street art posts like Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, San Diego, Las Vegas, Portland, and Seattle, you’re used to seeing my super cute French bulldog, Maddie as my model. Sadly, because of the 90+ degree temperatures and humidity, Maddie could not come with me to Houston. But rest assured, she’ll be with me in an upcoming mural journey.
Artist: Unknown
Location: 2311 Polk Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 2120 Polk Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 1503 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
Art By: @empires813 and @inscrew
Location: 1503 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 1502 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 1503 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 1503 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
Artist: @empires13
Location: 1503 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 1503 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 1503 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Deck
Location: 1503 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
Artist: @LeeTheOneLee
Location: 1503 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 1503 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Patch Whiskey
Location: 1503 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
Artist: @Blanca_arte
Location: 1503 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
Artists: Houston graffiti building. Each square from Left to Right @LeeTheOneLee, unknown, Toxic Comand
Location: 1503 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 2011 Leeland Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 2011 Leeland Street,, Houston, TX
Artist: @LeeTheOneLee
Location: 2011 Leeland Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 2011 Leeland Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 2011 Leeland Street, Houston, TX
Artist: @Gonzo247
Location: 1503 Chartres Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 1301 Saint Emanuel Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 1301 Saint Emanuel Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: George R Brown Convention Center, Houston, TX
Artist: Emily Ding
Location: Austin Street cross street Dallas Street, Houston, TX
Artist: @carlosalberto_art
Location: 1111 Dallas Street, Houston, TX
Artist: @imfinley
Location: 1401 Louisiana Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 1320 Travis Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Martin Ron
Location: 1712 Travis Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Louis Michel
Location: 502 Rusk Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 601 Preston Street, Houston, TX
Artist: @case_maclaim
Location: 411 Main Street, Houston, TX
Artist: @CarlosAlberto_Art
Location: 407 Main Street, Houston, TX
Artist: @lulagoce
Location: 407 Main Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: University of Houston, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 1002 Commerce Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Anat Ronen
Location: 998 Commerce Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Ana Marietta
Location: 800 Franklin Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Mr. D987
Location: 800 Franklin Street, Houston, TX
Artist: @belin.es
Location: 112 Travis Street, Houston, TX
Artist: Unknown
Location: 845 Texas Avenue, Houston, TX
Artist: @gonzo247
Location: 422 Travis Street, Houston, TX
Hooray For Houston!
I hope you’ve enjoyed some of the best murals Houston has to offer. Houston street art is some of the best in the country and attracts muralists from all over the world. Just make sure you take the tour and avoid the sweaty walk around the city.
Happy travels!
