Quest through this five-state guide to the most mercurial art field, featuring insider tips on essential Southwest mural spots—from alleyways to art districts.
When New Mexico-based artist Nanibah Chacon (Diné/Chicana) painted her +Crossroads+ mural in Albuquerque in 2024, she combined imagery of a bright red lowrider with blooming cactus and a traditional blanket design.
Referencing the complex impacts of historic Route 66 on the region, the artwork also amplifies the intersections of culture, community, and creativity. “Murals are one of the few times we get to see art living within our environments,” reflects Chacon.
Art should be accessible to everybody because art belongs to everybody.
Likewise, Texas-based artist Mariell Guzman says murals help to bring art and history outside museum walls so the public can experience them. “Art should be accessible to everybody because art belongs to everybody,” Guzman says.
A fresh crop of murals dots the Southwest landscape, thanks to several recent mural festivals and the artists whose ongoing work assures a constantly shifting landscape of street art.
Here’s a look at popular as well as off-the-beaten-path places to find them, followed by tips from several muralists about how to make the most of your mural spotting.
Arizona
Phoenix
The Roosevelt Row arts district is the city’s best-known mural hub, but murals also abound along Grand Avenue and a strip of 16th south of Thomas Road that’s dubbed Calle 16, as well as downtown Phoenix and South Phoenix. Look for dozens of murals in the Coronado neighborhood, which is home to the Oak Street Alley Mural Festival, and along the Grand Canalscape between 7th Street and 15th Avenue. Phoenix also has numerous Black History Month murals featuring portraiture of Black Americans.
Tucson
You’ll find dozens of murals created by artists including Ignacio Garcia, Jessica Gonzales, El Mac, and Joe Pagac in downtown Tucson. Look for six poetry-inspired murals on Speedway Boulevard near the University of Arizona, and more murals in South Tucson. Four new murals in the Rio Nuevo District depict significant periods in the region’s history.
Off the beaten path
Northeast of Flagstaff, which has its own mural scene, look for surviving murals created several years ago on the Navajo Nation as part of the Painted Desert Project founded by Chip Thomas (aka Jetsonorama). Also head to the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation east of Phoenix to explore murals by artists including Apache Skateboards founder Douglas Miles (San Carlos Apache, Akimel O’odham) and the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community east of Scottsdale to see work by artists including Thomas “Breeze” Marcus (Tohono O’odham) and Dwayne Manuel (On’k Akimel O’odham). You’ll find murals in the Gila River Indian Community near South Phoenix, too.
Colorado
Denver
Discover a wealth of murals throughout the River North Art District, Golden Triangle Creative District, and Art District on Santa Fe. Look for fresh murals painted in RiNo during the KissFist Mural Festival celebrating deaf artists held October 17-20, 2025. Spot more murals in Aurora, a Denver suburb that’s home to the Colfax Canvas mural festival.
Boulder
Explore older works and new pieces painted during the Street Wise Mural Festival in late September 2025 or take a mural tour in this college town northwest of Denver.
Colorado Springs
Dozens of murals created in this city south of Denver include a Gregg Deal (Pyramid Lake Paiute) portrait of his daughter and an El Mac portrait of his son, along with whimsical fare like Banana Cat by Cymon Padilla.
Off the beaten path
South Central Colorado is home to the Pueblo Levee Mural Project plus myriad murals in the San Luis Valley. In September, two cities north of Denver added fresh murals to their art scenes with the Fort Collins Mural Project and the WeldWalls Mural Festival in Greeley. You’ll find murals created through Babe Walls, a nonprofit that celebrates women and nonbinary artists, in Arvada and Westminster, both northwest suburbs of Denver.
New Mexico
Santa Fe
You’ll encounter everything from historic work by the Chicano collective Los Artes Guadalupanos de Aztlán founded during the 1970s to Shepard Fairey’s 2013 Make Art, Not War mural in and around Santa Fe, as well as pieces by Nani Chacon and other New Mexico-based artists. Keep an eye out for murals in the Railyard Arts District, near creative spaces like IAIA’s Museum of Contemporary Native Arts, amid Canyon Road galleries, and on the Santa Fe Rail Trail.
Albuquerque
Downtown is filled with a diverse array of murals from Jodie Herrera’s portrait of labor leader Dolores Huerta to mirrored flying pigs by Joshua Santos Rivera (aka Bik-Ismo). Check out the Wells Park Rail Runner murals created in collaboration with 516 Arts, and keep an eye on the Central Corridor where the city’s Department of Arts and Culture has already started manifesting mural projects tied to the Route 66 centennial happening in 2026.
Off the beaten path
Along historic Route 66 in eastern New Mexico, you can explore more murals in the small city of Tucumcari, which has an online mural map. There’s more mural art in northwestern New Mexico, where Gallup provides an online map for self-guided mural tours. Head to southern New Mexico to enjoy historic murals from the Works Progress Administration program of the Great Depression-era New Deal. Find more murals through the Three Sisters Collective, the Paseo Project, and other grassroots efforts. And don’t forget about mural spotting when you’re in Taos or Las Cruces.
Texas
Houston
Downtown Houston is filled with murals in a myriad of styles, including quite a few created through the Big Art, Bigger Change project that promotes United Nations goals such as human rights and social equity. You’ll also find dozens of existing murals created through a series of Big Walls, Big Dreams mural festivals.
Dallas
Explore well over 100 murals in the Deep Ellum neighborhood east of downtown Dallas, where several legacy murals still exist amid the growing body of newer works. Discover a changing assortment of graffiti art at the Fabrication Yard, an open air creative space amid warehouses where more than fifty artists have their studios.
Austin
Stroll downtown to spot an array of music-themed murals, including portraits of Willie Nelson, Aretha Franklin, and Bob Dylan. Or strike a pose in front of the city’s plethora of Instagram-friendly murals featuring simple graphics and positivity-infused text.
Off the beaten path
Other big cities where public art is plentiful but not quite as well-known include El Paso and Fort Worth. The Hoodoo Mural Festival happens in Amarillo, and San Antonio is home to the D.R.E.A.M. Mural Arts District.
More options
If you’re in Utah, look for murals in Salt Lake City, Provo, and Park City, where Banksy’s Camera Man and Flower (2010) is covered by bulletproof glass. Several artists created new murals in June 2025 for the Midvale Mural Festival and South Salt Lake’s Mural Fest. In Nevada, Reno and Las Vegas are the best places to start your mural spotting.
Tips from Southwest Muralists
Remember that mural art is constantly changing. Mural maps can easily become outdated because it’s hard to keep up with what’s been painted over or newly-created, according to Arizona-based artist Thomas “Breeze” Marcus. It’s fine to do online research, but New Mexico–based artist Nani Chacon says that “walking around an area is still the best way to find murals.”
Watch for mural festivals in big cities and smaller towns, suggests Denver Walls founder Ally Grimm (“A.L Grime”), who adds that festivals are taking place nearly year-round. Phil Freedom, who founded the Oak Street Alley Mural Festival in Phoenix, says that festivals are a great way to see art happening live and talk with artists about their work.
[Graffiti sites] are important to the culture and usually word of mouth so they can continue to exist.
Use hashtags (#muralstexas, for example) to search for muralists on social media, suggests Texas-based artist Mariell Guzman. Or do a deeper dive by following the work of artists your favorite muralists are connected to on social media.
If you’re searching for graffiti hubs, consider the value they hold for the graffiti and street art communities that prefer to keep them under wraps. “They are important to the culture and usually word of mouth so they can continue to exist,” explains New Mexico-based artist Jodie Herrera.
