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Few museum experiences offer the rare dynamism of Meow Wolf in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Promising an interactive, immersive art experience, Meow Wolf is an out-of-this-world magical museum appropriate for both children and adults. Perhaps nowhere else in America--and certainly no other museum--offers such a strange and inspiring blend of surrealism, colors, and wonder. Planning a trip to Santa Fe? You should be. Unlike so many places on travel lists and glossy Instagram photos that can, upon closer inspection, often be a letdown up close, the Meow Wolf museum is like entering a portal to another world, like being the star of the strangest Tim Burton film yet. It is fast becoming a bucket list item--a place that needs to be seen to be believed.
For travelers considering a once-in-a-lifetime jaunt to what will surely feel like another dimension, here are all the important details on this delightfully unique destination.
Meow Wolf Museum In Santa Fe: The Original Experience
What started as a small collective of artists in the Santa Fe region grew into a yearning for the outsiders, as the artists regarded themselves, to band together on a project so large it could not be ignored by the wider art scene. After its founding in 2008, it became one of the more unique and recognized names on the American art scene. The goal of Meow Wolf is to create "immersive and interactive experiences that transport audiences of all ages into fantastic realms of story and exploration." In 2016, Meow Wolf took over an abandoned bowling alley that is a 20,000-square-foot facility, transforming it into a surreal space that includes a quaint-looking country home with the sounds of ocean waves crashing nearby (somewhere? off in the distance? somehow?); a wildly unique tree house; a vintage arcade room with classic games like Mortal Kombat and The Simpsons to play for free; and, an underwater trail through glowing seaweed and a diver lost in his thoughts. It all makes perfect sense, and yet no sense at all.
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House Of Eternal Return
The original museum in Santa Fe is called the House of Eternal Return, and it features over 70 rooms to explore. Unlike most art museums, where touching the art sets off alarms and wakes up a sleepy guard, visitors are encouraged to experience the world around them: climb through the tunnel, open the kitchen cabinets, play the glowing woolly mammoth "bones" like a musical xylophone. The concept of immersive art means this is truly a user-led experience. Guests pick and choose which rooms to spend time in, moving at their own pace and delighting in all the hidden rooms here. And we do mean hidden. Open the seemingly normal 1950's fridge and walk through a gateway to what feels like another world. Admire the quaint fireplace before realizing you can enter inside to discover a secret room. See the mundane turned on its head with the laundry room, where opening the dryer reveals a purplish-glowing-like portal that transports the adventure seeker who climbs inside. Even the closets, with their clothes neatly sorted on hangers, belies the entryway to yet another secret passage.
Game Of Thrones' Author Is The Chief World Builder At Meow Wolf
There is yet another fascinating aspect to the history of Meow Wolf. Author of the massively popular "Game of Thrones" series George R.R. Martin, a Santa Fe resident, was an early supporter of the art collective. His financial support helped Meow Wolf secure the bowling alley site that they eventually transformed into their House of Eternal Return attraction. In 2019, Martin was named the new Chief World Builder for Meow Wolf. Expanding surreal storytelling with the ultimate storyteller? This sounds like a match made in heaven for immersive art fans and "Game Of Thrones" enthusiasts.
Meow Wolf has now expanded to include two additional permanent installations in Las Vegas, Nevada, and Denver, Colorado, in 2021, and new projects planned for Washington D.C. as well as Phoenix--each with its own unique experience and story. There is also a possible tv series in the works, as well as comic books. The Meow Wolf universe keeps getting bigger, and there are plenty of new stories and experiences to discover. Whether that's taking a leap of faith and leaving the normal safety of a quaint 1950's kitchen behind to walk through a portal to another world, another dimension in our imaginations and beyond, the Meow Wolf House of Eternal Return in Santa Fe is a destination to be seen, felt, and experienced. This is one museum that invites you in and encourages you to, quite literally, free your mind.