The murals of Rankin should be seen on the way to somewhere else. As interesting and fun as the wall-sized paintings are, there’s nothing else to see in the windblown town in the depths of West Texas.
By the time you get to Rankin, the horizon is a featureless line in the distance and the only things that grow are stunted shrubs and rusting pump jacks.
Bless Matt Tumlinson’s heart for bringing a little humor and art to this sun-bleached village of 780 weary souls. His art gives travelers passing through a quick respite from the long slog across the desert from Fort Stockton to Eldorado on U.S. 67.
There are eight Tumlinson murals sprinkled around town. It’s a “Where’s Waldo?” hunt to find them, but they are hiding in plain sight. All are on the two main highways through town. Rankin is a small place, and the search only takes a few minutes. It is definitely worth the diversion.
The San Antonio-based artist started with painting the town’s name on the side of burger joint on TX-349 in 2015. Next was a painting on a metal building owned by the mayor, of Gus and Woodrow from Lonesome Dove with a selfie stick.
Three of the most popular are along U.S. 67. One is of a child on a Big Wheel trike getting a ticket from a state trooper. Coming into town from the west you’ll spot Matthew McConaughey painted on a rusty tank with the quote: “You’d be a lot cooler if more people thought so.” And there’s one of Willie Nelson asking, “What would Willie do?”
Tomlinson’s murals can also be found around San Antonio.
Rankin is 55 miles south of Midland in the heart of the oil-stained Permian Basin. The county seat of Upton County is about five hours west of Austin on the way to someplace else.
1,824th in a series. Everywhere is a day trip from somewhere. Follow “Day Trips & Beyond,” a travel blog, at austinchronicle.com/day-trips.
This article appears in September 18 • 2026.
