Major Excitement

As party central here finds itself in a post-silly season haze of New Years Eve fireworks that never fail to underwhelm and recovering from a stampede of college football fans who can’t handle their liquor, almost no time passes before we have to gird our loins for the greatest of marathons, Carnival season. In between now and the holiest of days aka Mardi Gras Day, there is no shortage of shenanigans, and in a city that will make a shindig out of a sinkhole, one of the best motivations for celebration is art. New Orleans is absolutely world renowned for music but its visual arts can go toe to toe with this any day, and I have been fortunate enough to bear witness from behind the scenes to the latest spring of public art that is part of the phenomenon we call Unframed.

Unframed is a large-scale, outdoor mural project that makes a meander in an otherwise ordinary inner city neighbourhood a journey into creativity. The brainchild of The Helis Foundation and Arts New Orleans, Unframed brings striking color and subject to the sides of buildings that would otherwise be bland to the point of blend. Recently I was privileged to be present at the dedication of the tenth installment in this amazing program, Drum Major of NOLA. Just me and almost 500 other grinning-like-kids-on-Christmas-Day art enthusiasts. This jaw-dropping masterpiece takes a gargantuan pride of place with a vibrancy and joy that practically busts off the wall it’s painted on. The artwork is the beautiful vision of locally and nationally acclaimed artist Keith Duncan whose sincerest of smiles goes on for miles. The mural pays homage to the long-standing tradition of marching band magnificence at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and further demonstrates music as the very soul of New Orleans and Duncan’s deep connection to musicians and marching bands. Wendo and Jolene were the artists extraordinaire who, atop a stories-high crane, painted day and night over two months to bring Duncan’s magic to way larger than life.

New Orleans doesn’t do any celebration by half and this spectacle was no exception. After words from the artist and other dignitaries who worked to bring this genius to fruition, we added some extra glitter to feathers. Given the mural is a nod to one of the most respected posts of any parade, it was only fitting that we experienced the mural to the soundtrack of one of the most skilled and revered marching bands in the United States, the St Augustine Marching 100. Parading is serious business in New Orleans and the Purple Knights are the benchmark to which most others aspire. Among its many accolades, The Grammy Award winning group has performed in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, for five consecutive U.S. Presidents, in numerous NFL and NBA games and been featured in dozens of news specials and documentaries including the 2021 60 Minutes story: Best Band in the Land. And all this from high school kids. St. Augs were in all their splendour on this auspicious day and their synergy with the majesty of the mural you could have only previously dreamed of. 

So on a regular Saturday in January there was a gathering around something extraordinary and to say the energy and atmosphere were electric is like saying The Beatles sold a few albums. This mural is something so much bigger than anyone standing in awe of it and I’m not talking about its sheer scale. Through a backstage pass I was lucky enough to see first hand the passion and commitment of so many people to bring such a monumental piece to the masses. The spirit of this day was truly something special and ascended those who were there to a place they might never have thought to take themselves otherwise. It was possibly the greatest day I’ve had in any workplace I’ve been in over multiple decades and a visual and sonic experience I could feel coursing through my body. Much like the subject of the mural, your approach on this gem will have you stopping mid step.