I found some new Austin murals by bike this week

This 12-story mural on the side of the Line Hotel in downtown Austin commemorates the 19th amendment, which granted women the right to vote. Chris LeBlanc photo

I’ve been spending a lot of time on my bike lately, and this weekend I zipped downtown, where I got an up-close view of some new murals.

My new favorite? The huge mural on the west side of the LINE Hotel (formerly the Radisson) at Congress Avenue and the river, where Canadian artist Sandra Chevrier collaborated with American street artist Shepard Fairey, the artist who illustrated the Barrack Obama campaign poster a few years ago. The 12-story mural, part of the Downtown Austin Alliance Foundation’s “Writing on the Walls” series, celebrates the 100th anniversary of the 19th amendment, which granted women the right to vote. Even better, it features one of my personal heroes, Wonder Woman. (I once rappelled down a 38-story building in downtown Austin dressed as Wonder Woman, and have raced several 5K runs in a Wonder Woman costume.)

This crooning cowboy adorns the east side of Native Hostel. Pam LeBlanc photo

And a mural on Native Hostel’s north side honors Austin band the Black Pumas. Pam LeBlanc photo

The Native Hostel at 807 East Fourth Street has repainted several of its walls with fresh murals. The north side features a painting honoring the band the Austin-based band the Black Pumas (I love that song “Colors”), and the east side features a cartoon image of a singing cowboy.

Can you name all the vegetarians in this photo next to Mr. Natural on East Cesar Chavez? Pam LeBlanc photo

I stopped to admire a huge mural of a bunch of vegetarians next to the Mr. Natural location at 1901 Cesar Chavez, but couldn’t correctly identify everyone in the scene. (The restaurant, which opened in East Austin in 1988, is offering curbside service in these pandemic days.)

This small mural on Waller Street is tucked in the gateway of a private home. Pam LeBlanc photo

I got one more surprise – a small-but-really fun Austin-centric mural in the front gateway to someone’s home on Waller Street, a few blocks north of the river.

What are your favorite murals?