Sometimes connection begins with something as simple as taking a walk.
Throughout 2025, HueMan:Shelter partnered with Urban Paths for a series of three guided walking experiences that invited Houstonians to explore art, community, and belonging, one step at a time.
Led by walking wellness coach Laura Conely, founder of Urban Paths, each 3-mile walk began at Midtown Park and wound through the heart of Midtown Houston. Along the way, participants encountered public art, historic architecture, parks, local businesses, and eventually, the growing story of HueMan:Shelter itself.
A Journey Through Art and Community
Each walk offered something new. Refreshments from local cafes, conversations with artists, and a shared space for reflection turned every mile into a moving community experience. Participants met the faces behind the HueMan:Shelter installations and heard stories of how artists and individuals experiencing homelessness worked side by side to create these public artworks.
By the final event, the series culminated in a Night Walk through the completed installations along the Milam corridor. Under the glow of streetlights and public art, hundreds of walkers explored murals, bus shelters, and underpass installations that now anchor Midtown as a space for both creativity and compassion. The walk also gave participants the chance to experience interactive works like Sherman Finch’s projection mapping, which brought movement, color, and storytelling to life in a completely new way.
The experience made sure each step connected the participants not only to the physical beauty of Midtown but also to the people, stories, and resilience behind it.
About Urban Paths and Coach Laura Conely
Urban Paths began with one woman’s realization that walking could change everything. Founder Laura Conely turned her personal journey into a citywide movement, guiding people of all ages and abilities to rediscover health, presence, and connection through walking.
As a walking wellness coach, certified teacher, and nutrition coach, Laura uses walking as a tool for self-discovery and empowerment. Her approach is simple but powerful: move your body, quiet your mind, and reconnect with the world around you.
Through Urban Paths, Laura has led hundreds of Houstonians through meaningful walking experiences, blending physical movement, mindfulness, and community storytelling.
Learn more about Urban Paths and future walks at UrbanPathsHouston.com.
Take the Next Step
The Urban Paths x HueMan:Shelter walks may have ended, but the journey continues.
You can still explore the public artworks that inspired these experiences by visiting our Interactive Map and walking the Milam corridor at your own pace.
Each installation tells a story of home, hope, and humanity, inviting you to reflect on what it means to truly belong in this city we all share.
About HueMan:Shelter
HueMan:Shelter is a public art and social impact initiative funded through the Bloomberg Philanthropies Public Art Challenge, with support from the City of Houston, Houston Arts Alliance, Midtown Houston, Career and Recovery Resources, the Coalition for the Homeless, and the Texas Commission on the Arts.
The project connects Houston-based artists and individuals with lived experience of homelessness to create collaborative public artworks that transform how our city perceives and engages with homelessness.
Together, these works remind us that community begins with empathy, and that every path, like every person, leads somewhere worth seeing.