Don’t get too excited over the reappearance this week of Will, Cassandra, Scotty, Mr. Balls, and the rest of the gay leather-or-fur-clad gang on the side of the former Mary’s bar at 1022 Westheimer. The legendary cliche-ridden Montrose mural, which was painted over about 5 years ago, is being recreated by a team of artists in time for next Saturday’s Houston Pride Parade. But according to new building owner Bobby Heugel, the recreation will only remain on the building for a month or so. Heugel tweets that he wants the building’s wall space to become “an evolving urban art centerpiece.” The proprietor of the Anvil Bar & Refuge plans to use the unbuilt portions of the Mary’s site as a parking lot for his new Hay Merchant craft beer bar and Chris Shepherd’s Underbelly restaurant, both going into the former Chances Bar next door, across Waugh Dr.
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- It’s just a temp exhibit aimed at the parade [Twitter]
- Artists vow to restore Mary’s mural to original gay glory by Saturdays’s Pride Parade [Culturemap]
- The disappearing Mary’s mural [Houstonist]
- Mary’s Mural [HAIF]
Photos: ‘Mary’s, Naturally’ Closed (mural); Candace Garcia (current building)
9 Comments
Interesting, that new Hay Merchant Beer Bar sounds like it could be cool. Curious to hear more about Underbelly Restaurant.
I’m so glad that these old buildings in the heart of Montrose are being reutilized by someone in tune with the neighborhood vibe. Now if someone would just take over the empty space where blockbuster used to be…It has been depressing to drive thru here everyday for this past year with these buildings standing vacant, hopefully this area will be as vibrant as it used to be in the near future.
I wonder how much bleach its going to take to “clean” that building….
Add 3400 Montrose to the list of nearby vacant buildings.
3400 Montrose will be rotting there for a long time. The city would require way too much for someone to fix it up, and the land under it isn’t worth what would be required to buy the building and demo it.
Agree with Cody. Up until the time that it closed, I often visited an office on the third floor. The building has a awful design, and access to the building from the garage is very awkward. Hopefully someone will do a major renovation, but their going to need a vision and very deep pockets.
They need to make the mural permanent.
Make the Mural Permanent, and let other muralist use the other part of the wall as a rotating space
My Dad’s Landscaping Company did the landscaping for Charlie’s and as I have recently learned I used to hang around Mary’s when I was really little.. Explains a lot..