The central park in the Mueller community offers a number of Instagrammable backdrops, from the pastoral area around the lake at sunset to the fun and colorful mosaic sculpture named “Nessie” for its/her resemblance to a certain mythical Scottish lake creature.

While there are loads of great photos of student life on the (now many more than) Forty Acres, when it comes to the intricacies of the campus’s physical environment, there’s really only one Instagrammer you need to know: temple_plaza captures its intimate spaces, captivating details, and grand statements with artfully composed photographs that offer a unique, captivating vision of the venerated institution’s grounds—as well as serving as inspiration for your own shots of same.

There are many Instagrammable spaces among the Blanton Museum’s displays of its massive collection and touring shows, of course, but this 2,715-square-foot, freestanding work by internationally renowned modernist Ellsworth Kelly, which realizes his last sculptural work, is especially photogenic.

Created by 30-year-old Austin company Ion Art, which is responsible for numerous local landmarks from the State Theatre blade to the guitar that greets ACL Festival guests, the lowercase “atx” letters were an Insta hit from the moment they replaced the former signage at the Whole Foods mothership. Public art that lends itself to interaction, it’s a showcase for the imagination of locals and visitors alike.

The freestanding mosaic depicting Austin musicians by John Yancey, Luis Alicea, and Steven B. Jones is located at the Dr. Charles E. Urdy Plaza just east of IH-35, which makes it a great welcome to East Austin, its history, and its culture past and present.

If there’s a more perfect statuary encapsulation of the spirit of Austin, we’d like to know what it is. In 1842, when Republic of Texas president Sam Houston attempted to have state documents removed from the capital city (then called Waterloo) to Houston (nee Washington-on-the-Brazos), inn-owner and proud Austinite Angelina Belle Eberly learned that Texas Rangers were loading documents out of the General Land Office and fired a cannon (kept loaded for surprise attacks) from her nearby Eberly house, blowing a hole in the side of the office and setting off what would come to be called the Archive War. The struggle was eventually settled peacefully—with Austin prevailing—but the statue of Eberly on Congress Avenue continues to serve as a handy symbol of our fierce civic pride, as well as of our love-hate relationship with other major Texas cities.

Ten miles of gorgeous, tree-lined path that has the river on one side and the bustling city (north and south versions) on the other, and one that features the iconic Stevie Ray Vaughan statue, wanders past Auditorium Shores, and harbors a special space for bat-viewing is pretty hard to top.

Austin’s tallest public artwork, Tau Ceti by Josef Kristofoletti, was inspired by a star in the constellation Cetus that is spectrally similar to Earth’s sun. It was completed in November, but the highly Instagrammable city street corner has already become a star in its own right. It rises 103 feet, or 10 floors, above the street at the corner of Brazos and East Second streets, bringing radiant color to a formerly drab parking-garage corner.

The striking and historic structure was the first on the shoreline of Town Lake, created by the construction of Longhorn Dam in 1960, and is associated with the Town Lake Beautification Project that was a major focus of U.S. first lady Lady Bird Johnson, after whom the lake was eventually renamed. The gazebo’s design, the views of South Austin and the lake in its background, and its wisteria vines in bloom all make it an excellent place to snap a few shots. In 2020, it was listed in the National Registry of Historic Places.

Austin loves its musical legends—including the radio deejays who complemented the burgeoning live music scene, taking listeners to school with their deep knowledge and commercial indifference, usually but not always on a public or community station. Larry Monroe, who hosted Blue Monday and other roots-music shows for 29 years at KUT, was among the most beloved. The community’s creation and the lasting appeal of the Larry Monroe Forever Bridge, initiated after his death in 2014 by life partner Ave Bonar and made by 100 volunteers overseen by artist Stefanie Distefano, is testament to his place in the city’s music-loving heart.

This colorful, tile-clad stature was commissioned by Austin’s Art in Public Places program as part of a Congress Avenue corridor improvement project and is specifically dedicated to honoring South Austin and its cultures. Mementos from the area’s weird icons past and present are embedded in its bold, colorful form. Climb on up and start the selfie-ing.