By Austin Museum of Popular Culture /The Rag Blog / June 5, 2026
The Austin Museum of Popular Culture will launch its Retrospective of Underground Comix Pioneer Gilbert Shelton on Sunday, June 7, 2026.
When: June 7 – July 19, 2026
Where: 506 N. Congress Avenue, Austin, TX 78701
Rag Radio host Thorne Dreyer will interview Austin Museum of Popular Culture’s Freddie Krc and Leea Mechling and Gilbert Shelton’s nephew Gavin Shelton about the exhibit on KOOP 91.7 FM, Friday, June 5, 2026, 2-3 p.m. CT.
“Poddy Rules The World! Gilbert Shelton’s Underground Comix and Art” features original posters, drawings, comic panels, and Sunday afternoon talks.
The summer exhibition will showcase the influential poster art and comic books of Gilbert Shelton, a key figure in the formative years of Austin’s culture change in the 1960s and 70s.
Titled Poddy Rules The World! Gilbert Shelton’s Underground Comix and Art, this program will offer a compelling opportunity to revisit a pivotal moment in Austin’s cultural history. The exhibition will not only celebrate the artistic achievements of Shelton but also provide a valuable historical document of a vibrant and influential era. Included will be original posters, drawings, comic book panels, photographs and screens rolling information and imagery. Interpretive materials will be used to educate the public about what they are viewing and give context to the work. Sunday afternoons will be used to hold panel discussions and talks about Shelton’s work and the evolution of cultural mores via comic books from past to present day.
Gilbert Shelton is a highly significant American cartoonist known for being a key figure in the underground comix movement of the 1960s and 1970s. His satirical, humorous, and countercultural comics, most notably The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers, captured the spirit of the era and have had a lasting influence on subsequent generations of cartoonists and animators.
More information is available at Austin Museum of Popular Culture and on Facebook at AusPopMuseum.
