Five Arts Happenings off the Walls and in the Wild

Mating Dragonflies by Shawn Smith (Courtesy of grayDUCK Gallery)

50th Anniversary of the Austintatious Mural

Celebrate the golden anniversary of Austin's "first" mural – the delightfully complex and storied Austintatious in the People's Renaissance Market on 23rd Street. At noon on April 1 (no foolin'!) there'll be a group photo at the mural itself, and the party continues from 7:09pm at TexPopATX (1516 S. Lamar) amid live music from the Uranium Savages and Big Mon. Suggestion: Bring a lawn chair! Can't make it IRL? There's a website all about the mural, featuring 10 short films on the people, places, and collective culture that made our city special in the first place, at 23rdstreetmural.com.

Lydia Street Gallery: "Details of Our Existence"

This is a three-person show, yes, but it's also a one-man show. Uh, what now? Better to ask Jon Eric Narum (aka The Sky Guy). Or Juan Diego Nerumski. Or a fellow named Hercules da Vinci. Regardless, do stop by to check out these beautiful oil paintings of the sky, and a host of perfectly balanced abstractions, and colorful creations painted in oil on paper towels.

grayDUCK Gallery: "Ommatidium"

Shawn Smith explores our complicated relationship with the insect world, investigating the darkly humorous marketing of chemical agents to safely annihilate, the extreme championing of aesthetically pleasing and useful insects over all others, the strangely macabre methods of measuring insect population density, and the overlooked beauty of their complex architecture. All of this arthropodic exploration is stunningly rendered in two- and three-dimensional works in a variety of mediums, from drawings and collages to stained glass and 3D prints.

San Marcos Studio Tour

Wanna scratch your get-out-of-town and see-a-whole-bunch-of art itches at the same time? You're in luck, as MotherShip Studios presents the inaugural San Marcos Studio Tour. This free, self-guided tour will feature more than 50 artists from San Marcos, Martindale, and surrounding areas.

The Banana Man at Ion Art's "Surreal Garden" exhibition (Courtesy of Ion Art)

Ion Art: "The Surreal Garden"

For the second consecutive year, Ion Art illuminates the Zilker Botanical Garden with their "Surreal Garden" exhibition, an interactive experience full of fantastical neon sculptures created by Sharon and Greg Keshishian and the relentlessly inventive Ion Art team. By integrating such a glowing, flickering, shimmering show into the serene setting of Austin's botanical gardens, the artists turn an already stunning event into a neon extravaganza – and a wonderful way to benefit the venue. Suggestion: Dress in your surreal best for a night of art, live entertainment, dancing, food trailers, cash bars, and more.