Cult Cartoons

Mondo Gallery pays tribute to fan favorites Adventure Time and Regular Show with its latest exhibit

In April of 2012, the Mondo Gallery took cartoon fans through an adventure to the Land of Ooo with poster artwork inspired by the hit Cartoon Network series Adventure Time. This month, Mondo will return to the home of Jake the Dog and Finn the Human while also making a detour at the park where a lazy blue jay and raccoon work.

Mondo, the art boutique division of Alamo Drafthouse that has brought back art to movie posters, had plenty of fun with the Adventure Time gallery last year and now Cartoon Network’s Regular Show gets to join in on the artistic fun. Fans of the shows can hardly argue with combining the two into one gallery of radical awesomeness.

“They’re totally different shows but they’re very similar in a weird way,” Mondo CEO Justin Ishmael tells CultureMap, “so we wanted to add that to the Adventure Time show, and I think it came out really well.” The entire collection will include over 40 pieces from artists who were eager to create artwork for the series. “They would send in two or three or four. People got really into it and started doing it more and more.”

The entire collection of artwork will have a grand opening reception on Friday, June 21 at the Mondo Gallery and will be on display until July 20. And don’t expect your typical art gallery opening with some cocktails and small bites. Mondo wants families to enjoy the gallery together just like they would the TV shows.

While you may not get to enjoy bacon pancakes or “death sandwiches,” attendees can instead have a few treats courtesy of Sugar Mama’s Bakeshop and Sweet Ritual, along with Maine Root Beer to wash down the sweetness. Some special giveaways will also help to make it a fun night for kids and adults.

It’s a recipe for a fun evening that aims to do what these hit cartoon shows have been able to do, which is appeal to both kids and adults. That's a major reason why Adventure Time and Regular Show garners a lot of respect from fans, and why Mondo wanted to pay tribute to these darlings of animation.

“Us as a company and me personally, I hope there are a ton of kids there,” says Ishmael. “If I was a little kid and I got to go to something like this for Masters of the Universe… or Ghostbusters when I was little I would have lost my mind like an eight-year-old walking in and seeing all of that stuff. I’d be really excited.”

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The opening reception at Mondo Gallery is on Friday, June 21 and begins at 7 p.m. The exhibition will be on display through July 20.

"Jake as a Tent" by Tiny Kitten Teeth

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Historic Austin museum will close for more than a year for restoration

Photo courtesy of the City of Austin

The Elisabet Ney Museum will close at the end of 2024 and reopen in mid-2026.

Every building needs some maintenance here or there, and the historic Elisabet Ney Museum needs some extra-special care. Formerly the art studio and residence of its namesake, it's been standing since 1892. It'll spend 2025 in relative solitude, as it undergoes renovation for a year and a half with no visitors allowed.

The museum will close to the public December 30, 2024, and open again in the summer of 2026 if all goes according to plan, a news release from the City of Austin shares. It'll be a quiet period compared to the 21,000 people visiting from around the world each year.

According to a museum overview on the city's website, Elisabet Ney, a European portrait sculptor, bought the property and called her new studio Formosa. She worked on sculptures depicting important Texans like Stephen F. Austin and Sam Houston, and collected works of European contemporaries.

The building at 304 East 44th St. includes 3,700 square feet of museum space, which was converted by Ney's friends after her death in 1907. It retains its unique look that juxtaposes a Neo-Classical main studio from 1892 with a later addition from 1902 including a tower for her husband, Edmund, to write in. It is also on 2.5 acres of land, which has largely been restored to its natural state with native species.

A press release lists these tasks (verbatim) within the scope of the new work, referred to as the Capital Improvement Project (CIP):

Restoration of original exterior wood doors and windows
Upgrades and replacement of the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system
Replacement of the exhibit and general lighting systems
Repairs to the roof, masonry, plumbing, and interior finishes.

There will also be work to do outside of the building. Workers will replace the pedestrian bridge across Waller Creek, stabilize a 20,000-square-foot portion of the bank, and make the grounds more accessible by adding new pathways.

Funding comes from several sources, according to a release: "the 2012 Bond, Proposition 14, the Parkland Dedication Fund, the Historic Preservation Fund, Partners in Preservation through the National Trust, and contributions from the Friends of the Elisabet Ney Museum."

museums galleries history texas

Cult Cartoons

Mondo Gallery pays tribute to fan favorites Adventure Time and Regular Show with its latest exhibit

"Jake as a Tent" by Tiny Kitten Teeth

New

Historic Austin museum will close for more than a year for restoration

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