Downtown Wichita - 120 E. 1st St N.

The LUX is set on developing a unique sense of community and place in Downtown Wichita while keeping true to the building's original 1950s character. It's modern, Downtown living—in a city that is in the midst of a great revitalization! Join us.

Become a part of a Downtown community at The LUX.

Downtown Events

Illusions
Monday, February 9
Exploration Place

Ready to flip your perspective? Step into a world where nothing is quite what it seems. Shapes shift, rooms stretch, pictures move and your eyes play tricks you won’t believe. Illusions blends mind-bending visuals, surprising interactives and surreal moments that will have you wondering – can you really trust your eyes?


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Honoring African American Scientists and STEM Leaders
Monday, February 9
Exploration Place

In collaboration with The Kansas African American Museum for the fifth year, Exploration Place will be featuring a large-scale outdoor exhibit during Black History Month. Each night during February, Exploration Place will honor African American scientists and STEM leaders by projecting giant portraits onto the side of its iconic island building. The display will be freely viewable from the path along the Arkansas River. Visitors also may take in the display from inside Exploration Place on Thursday nights, when the museum is open until 8 p.m. Admission is not required to view the display from the Exploration Place promenade.

Changing weekly throughout the month, the display will honor Wichitans’ contributions to Black history:

  • Week 1: Harold Miller is a U.S. Navy veteran who in 1970 became the first African American to serve as an air traffic controller in the Wichita tower. Eventually, he was promoted to supervisor in the central region.
  • Week 2: Charyl McAfee-Duncan is a licensed architect who is a committed mentor to girls interested in STEAM and an advocate of public art programs. McAfee-Duncan is the first African American woman Fellow of the American Institute of Architects in Dallas and the second in the state of Texas. Charyl, her sister Cheryl and their father Charles F. McAfee are the only known father-daughters and sister sibling fellows in the history of the AIA.
  • Week 3: Dr. Donald Jackson was a World War II Tuskegee airman who trained on the B-25 bomber. He later became a veterinarian. In 1957 he opened his own practice, becoming one of the few African Americans to own a business in Wichita. Dr. Jackson cared for animals at his All Pets Clinic until his retirement in 2001.
  • Week 4: Col George Boyd served for nearly three decades in the U.S. Air Force, first in World War II and later in the Korean and Vietnam wars. He served as an all-weather jet fighter radar intercept officer, squadron commander and combat management engineer. Eventually, he served as the commander of the Kansas Wing of the Civil Air Patrol.

Find out more ways to celebrate Black History Month in Wichita


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Dome Theater Shows at Exploration Place
Monday, February 9
Exploration Place

Whether your visit includes exploring the exhibits or catching a show on its own, the Dome theater is a Wichita attraction not to be missed!

Immerse yourself under the soaring 60-foot screen with a 360-degree view and booming surround sound in the largest dome theater in Kansas. Experience first hand why the magnitude of an immersive cinematic journey, developed specifically for the curved complexities of a dome screen, can’t be replicated in a traditional theater setting. The only question is… where do you want the Dome to take you?

 


Contact Erin Manning at (316) 660-0600 or erin.manning@exploration.org
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Magic Mondays
Monday, February 9
GROW Plant Bar

Start your week off with a little magic! Every Monday, enjoy 20% off all plants and a special happy hour prices all day long. Whether you're looking to add some greenery to your space or unwind with a cocktail or coffee, Magic Mondays make it easy to treat yourself. Come in, get creative, and make your Monday magical! 


Contact Heather Giesen at (316) 869-7474 or heather@growgiesenplantshop.com
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Exhibit - Being Modern
Monday, February 9
Wichita-Sedgwick Co. Historical Museum

Wichitans desired to be modern since the City’s beginning in 1870. The Modern era had been evolving for a century at that time, and it would take another 100 years before Wichita achieved a “modern” look. World War II (1939-1945) greatly disrupted development in design.

Over the next two decades, postwar prosperity propelled design of the modern era to its zenith. By that time, Wichita’s modernization was most apparent in its new urban 1969 skyline, which remains in place today.

In the 1950s and 1960s, modern design from architecture to fashions and furnishings became familiar as people followed popular trends replacing old with new. Visual art and advertising led the way for the modern look - which by the 1960s, people referred to as “Mod.” This new look coincided with changes as  society became more pluralistic and increasingly aware of its diversity. The post-war baby boom gave rise to a prominent youth culture creating new markets. New technology improving the ability to travel and share information led to wide acceptance of modern style.

This modern sensibility cast a popular and unifying mindset. This era featured non-representational abstract design to create engaging effects rather than portray objects or scenes. The effects were both dazzling and confusing, challenging everyone’s perception of reality. Our visual world was forever changed.

(This exhibition follows (and is directly patterned after) the Museum’s previous exhibit Art Deco on the Plains. It takes the timeline forward to explore modern design experienced locally in the 1950s and 1960s. The exhibition is a feature of the Lois Kay Walls Local Visual Art History Series.)


On view through 2026 in the Slawson Gallery, 4th floor.

Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum - 204 S Main


Contact Michelle Frikken at (316) 265-9314 or museum@wichitahistory.org
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