On a road trip from El Paso to Marfa in the history-rich state of Texas, travelers can discover how central artistic expression is to the lifestyle of locals. From the fine dining at Cochineal Restaurant in Marfa, where each dish is a piece of artwork, to the many art galleries lining the streets, and the hotels that are former movie filming locations, this destination encourages visitors to delve deeper into the reason behind an artist’s work.
Start Your Exploration in El Paso
El Paso is the city where most travelers will begin a journey through West Texas, with direct flights from major hubs like Houston and Dallas. Kick off the exploration of art in West Texas with a visit to The El Paso Museum of Art.
Founded in 1959 and located in the heart of downtown El Paso, the museum is open Tuesday to Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., with guided tours led by a docent available Monday through Friday. Admission to this museum, which houses over 7000 works in its permanent collection, is always free.
While in the museum, check out the exhibit featuring the work of Ho Baron, a surrealist sculptor who lives and creates in El Paso. In Baron’s front garden, he displays 12 sculptures that he describes as “archetypal, exemplifying Karl Jung’s theory of the universal creative unconscious.” Baron’s home garden is open to the public, and admission is free to view these works.
A Mecca For Artists in Marfa
Once on the road from El Paso, the immersion into the artistry of West Texas really begins. While El Paso is a great jumping off point, Marfa is the destination for artists in residency and those seeking inspiration in the region and one of the best US small towns for art lovers. Along the road to Marfa, travelers can stop for photographs of their first art installation sighting: Prada Marfa.
Prada Marfa looks, at first glance, like a small Prada store in the middle of the desert. However, it is actually a permanent sculptural installation. Created by Michael Elmgreen and Ingar Dragset in 2005, the would-be shop has become a popular tourist attraction for taking photos. Visitors cannot enter the sculpted store but can look through the glass windows at the real Prada items on display from the 2005 fall collection.
Once visitors arrive in Marfa proper, they are met with quaint storefronts and movie locations come to life. This town served as a filming location for the 1955 movie “Giant”, starring Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean. For movie lovers and aspiring filmmakers, a bucket-list spot to check out in Marfa is the infamous Hotel Paisano, which hosted the cast and crew during the film’s production.
Marfa’s energy seems to attract people with a passion for the arts, whether they are completing a residency or trying to sell their artwork in the local shops. For contemporary art lovers in West Texas, The Chinati Foundation is a must. The contemporary art museum in Marfa sprawls across 340 acres on the former site of Fort D.A. Russell and is the creation of artist Donald Judd. Tour the full collection with a guide to walk among the creative installations that ensnare the senses.
As a town, Marfa collectively houses 20 permanent art galleries, meaning there is no shortage of places to see the work of Texans and purchase a piece as a keepsake of the trip. It makes it one of the many exceptional small towns in Texas to visit for art lovers. If travelers are fortunate enough, they will get the chance to speak with some of these artists who may be around working on their latest piece.
The Art of Fine Dining at Cochineal
Marfa’s Cochineal Restaurant fine dining dishes encapsulate the spirit of local artists in this remote region of Texas.
This small town offers an impressive range of restaurants, many of which use fresh local ingredients. One such high-end dining destination is Cochineal, the perfect place to indulge in a multi-course meal that is carefully crafted to tickle the palate. With a rotating menu based on seasonal ingredients, dishes may vary from House Heritage Grain Bread with Rabbit Rillette to Wild-Hunted Nilgai with Burgundy Truffle Aioli and Cultivated Mushroom or Wild Texas Boar with Heritage Grain Pasta. The menu changes weekly depending on what’s in season.
For additional intrigue, add a wine pairing to the multi-course experience to learn about how the various notes of the wine enhance the flavors of these local delicacies.
Learn About Local Artists at The Museum of The Big Bend
Museum of the Big Bend is located in Alpine, Texas, less than half an hour’s drive from Marfa on the Sul Ross State University campus. For a tour of West Texas’s art scene, this is a must-visit spot, especially with a recent addition that celebrates local artists. The museum opened in 1937 and recently built the Emmett and Miriam McCoy Building, a space dedicated to the works of West Texas artists.
While the museum has always been a major attraction in the region, its new focus on artwork takes inspiration from the landscapes of West Texas and emphasizes how artists have interpreted natural beauty through the years.
For artists who are interested in historic maps, the Yana and Marty Davis Map Collection is also housed at the Museum of the Big Bend, a collation of archives gathered over more than thirty-five years by the Davis’.
Finding Inspiration for Artistic Expression
It’s no wonder that West Texas inspires artistic expression in those who visit or call the area home. Beyond the tangible artistic installations in the area, there are otherworldly myths and astronomy experiences to further engage the creative mind.
Visitors to Marfa are sure to hear the stories about the Marfa Lights, unexplained phenomenon in the area. Between Marfa and Paisano Pass, travelers may see these mystery lights, orbs in the night sky, after dark.
The earliest documented instance of someone seeing the Marfa Lights was in the 1880s. The first person to report seeing the lights is said to have been a ranch hand who was moving cattle and spotted the orbs in the distance. It’s easy to see why they have been mistaken for headlights driving over Paisano Pass. However, no one knows what they are or what causes this phenomenon, but it has become the stuff of legends in Far West Texas, a must-see for visitors who are intrigued by the supernatural.
Less than one hour from Marfa is the even smaller town of Marathon, Texas, home to fewer than 300 people. With no light pollution and expansive open skies, it’s the perfect place for stargazing. This is the ideal place to reflect on the adventures in El Paso and Marfa while drawing inspiration for future artistic endeavors.
