What is Meow Wolf? This North Texas immersive art experience blends fiction with reality

If you have driven along Texas highways this summer, you may have seen a billboard with a man’s head split and expanding with psychedelic colors and designs.

Some of the billboards do not have words, but they are all captivating images to advertise Meow Wolf, which opened its first Texas location in Grapevine July 14.

Lamp shop alley at the Meow Wolf Grapevine ‘The Real Unreal’ at the Grapevine Mills Shopping Mall in Grapevine, Texas on Thursday, July 20, 2023. Chris Torres/ctorres@star-telegram.com
Lamp shop alley at the Meow Wolf Grapevine ‘The Real Unreal’ at the Grapevine Mills Shopping Mall in Grapevine, Texas on Thursday, July 20, 2023. Chris Torres/ctorres@star-telegram.com

What is Meow Wolf?

Meow Wolf is an immersive art exhibition that started in Santa Fe, New Mexico as a way for local artists to develop and display their skills together for the public.

Since opening the first exhibition in 2008, Meow Wolf has expanded to Denver, Las Vegas and now Grapevine.

Meow Wolf’s interactive art experiences aim to open visitors to “portals of possibility.”

Each exhibition is different from the other locations. Meow Wolf in Grapevine features work from 150 artists and fabricators, including 38 Texas-based artists.

The Forest exhibit at the Meow Wolf Grapevine ‘The Real Unreal’ at the Grapevine Mills Shopping Mall in Grapevine, Texas on Thursday, July 20, 2023. Chris Torres/ctorres@star-telegram.com
The Forest exhibit at the Meow Wolf Grapevine ‘The Real Unreal’ at the Grapevine Mills Shopping Mall in Grapevine, Texas on Thursday, July 20, 2023. Chris Torres/ctorres@star-telegram.com

What is Meow Wolf in Grapevine like?

Meow Wolf in Grapevine’s exhibition is called “The Real Unreal” and tells the tale of chosen family, community and the power of imagination through 70 captivating immersive and interactive experiences.

The 29,000-square-foot exhibition is located in Grapevine Mills Mall, 3000 Grapevine Mills Parkway, along the east side of the mall between Neiman Marcus Last Call and Fieldhouse.

Author LaShawn Wanak created the story behind “The Real Unreal” which begins with a blended family who unknowingly unlocked portals to a different existence.

Exhibit attendees walk through the Glowquarium exhibit at the Meow Wolf Grapevine ‘The Real Unreal’ at the Grapevine Mills Shopping Mall in Grapevine, Texas on Thursday, July 20, 2023. Chris Torres/ctorres@star-telegram.com
Exhibit attendees walk through the Glowquarium exhibit at the Meow Wolf Grapevine ‘The Real Unreal’ at the Grapevine Mills Shopping Mall in Grapevine, Texas on Thursday, July 20, 2023. Chris Torres/ctorres@star-telegram.com

Visitors will get to explore more than 30 rooms of multidimensional, psychedelic art and compelling narrative.

“The Real Unreal” also includes a cafe, retail store and venue for live events.

Meow Wolf’s “The Real Unreal” is an experience all ages can enjoy and meets Americans with Disabilities Act standards for its accessibility and navigability.

Exhibit attendees take photos in the house at the Meow Wolf Grapevine ‘The Real Unreal’ at the Grapevine Mills Shopping Mall in Grapevine, Texas on Thursday, July 20, 2023. Chris Torres/ctorres@star-telegram.com
Exhibit attendees take photos in the house at the Meow Wolf Grapevine ‘The Real Unreal’ at the Grapevine Mills Shopping Mall in Grapevine, Texas on Thursday, July 20, 2023. Chris Torres/ctorres@star-telegram.com

General admission tickets are $50 for ages 13 and older, $45 for military members and children ages 4-12 years, and free for ages 3 years and under.

Meow Wolf is open seven days a week at various times in the morning, afternoon and evening. Tickets and time slots can be bought online under the Grapevine section of the Meow Wolf website.

The ‘Greeter’ exhibit by Morgan Grasham at the Meow Wolf Grapevine ‘The Real Unreal’ at the Grapevine Mills Shopping Mall in Grapevine, Texas on Thursday, July 20, 2023. Chris Torres/ctorres@star-telegram.com
The ‘Greeter’ exhibit by Morgan Grasham at the Meow Wolf Grapevine ‘The Real Unreal’ at the Grapevine Mills Shopping Mall in Grapevine, Texas on Thursday, July 20, 2023. Chris Torres/ctorres@star-telegram.com
Exhibit attendees look at the “Technicolored Party Inside of My Head, But Everyone’s Invited” exhibit by Mariell Guzman at the Meow Wolf Grapevine ‘The Real Unreal’ at the Grapevine Mills Shopping Mall in Grapevine, Texas on Thursday, July 20, 2023. Chris Torres/ctorres@star-telegram.com
Exhibit attendees look at the “Technicolored Party Inside of My Head, But Everyone’s Invited” exhibit by Mariell Guzman at the Meow Wolf Grapevine ‘The Real Unreal’ at the Grapevine Mills Shopping Mall in Grapevine, Texas on Thursday, July 20, 2023. Chris Torres/ctorres@star-telegram.com