By any measure, the imminent arrival of Meow Wolf, the immersive art exhibition in Fifth Ward, has to count as one of Houston’s most eagerly anticipated openings of 2024. Art loving Houstonians who visit the venue will also find an opportunity for eating and drinking.
Photo by Kate Russell
A sculpture pays homage to Meow Wolf co-founder Matt King.
When it opens later this year, Meow Wolf will include a bar and restaurant called Cowboix Hevvven. As its name implies, Cowboix Hevvven will take inspiration from cowboy culture as interpreted by Cole Bee Wilson, who is not only Meow Wolf’s lead artist and creative director but also a fifth-generation Texan.
“Cowboix Hevvven is a love letter from a Texan dreamer,” Wilson said in a statement. “It’s a psychedelic space that puts the 'all' in y'all and serves as a self-referential, autobiographical take on my Texan imagination. There’s a seat at the bar for all y’all here in Cowboix Hevvven.”
Part of that take includes a dive bar-inspired food and drink menu that focuses on comfort food. It’s not entirely clear how “otherworldly Texan hospitality and comfort food” will manifest itself in specific dishes or cocktails, but hopefully it includes chicken fried steak.
Of course, the room will feature a number of works of art, starting with a sculpture that honors the late Matt King, one of Meow Wolf’s founded who died in 2022. As seen in the photos above, people will also see a disco ball-headed pool shark and an armadillo who will tell stories about the bar’s patrons.
Another highlights will be a jukebox stocked with tracks recorded for Meow Wolf by Texas artists. The selections will cover a wide array of genres, including country, Americana, Ranchero, and Tejano.
"Growing up between San Antonio and Bandera, and spending weekends on my grandparents' Bandera ranch, I wanted to blend that rich, familiar backdrop with a twist of the unexpected," Wilson added. "My hope is that visitors will dive into Cowboix Hevvven with the same curiosity that fueled its creation. I hope they leave with a renewed sense of wonder and an appreciation for how blending the familiar with the unexpected can create something truly weird and wonderful."
For those unfamiliar, Meow Wolf is an interactive contemporary art museum stocked with sculptures, murals, video, light, and sound artworks inspired by a theme. While Houston’s theme hasn’t been officially announced, Cowboix Hevvven provides some indication of the venue’s direction. As CultureMap has previously reported, a diverse ensemble of more than 40 contributing artists from Texas will collaborate with Meow Wolf’s in-house artist team to bring the facility to life. The list of local creative superstars included such well know artists as innovative theatrical set and puppet designer Afsaneh Aayani, art activist Kill Joy, and two longtime pillars of Houston’s installation and immersive art community in Dan Havel and Dean Ruck of Havel Ruck Projects.
Houston will be Meow Wolf’s fifth installation. Its first Texas outpost opened in the Dallas suburb of Grapevine in 2023.
