Metry Gets Muralized
I’m always encouraged to see improvements in my native New Orleans.
So, I was happy to learn that Metairie, an area of the city that we often called, Metry, as it was often pronounced, and otherwise affectionately known as “Fat City” passed an $150,000 initiative a year ago to have murals painted to beautify the town. The Arts Council of New Orleans is overseeing the project. Here are some of the first murals that have been painted.
Certain areas of Metairie flooded during “The Storm” — Hurricane Katrina. Most all the homes have been rebuilt but some business sections are up and running but many have been slow to come back or improve. The murals will add color and interest.
A flooded Lakeside Shopping Mall after Hurricane Katrina.
Photo by Jocelyn Augustino/FEMA
Scenes of Veterans Boulevard after Hurricane Katrina.
Scenes now — the water is gone but there’s a lot of empty parking lots.
When I return and drive down Veterans Boulevard, the main strip through Metairie, many of the buildings still look the way I remember in the 80’s, when I was in high school and even older than that but that’s when I started driving, so started paying attention. Since that time, many areas have just become a “concrete jungle.” The mural arts programs is trying to change this with murals that definitely help to reinvigorate and spruce up the place.
This concrete corridor reminds me of a Radiohead song…that just keeps getting better (see below).
Robert Dafford, the same artist who painted the now iconic clarinet on the side of the downtown Holiday Inn, painted this beautiful mural of a girl blowing a visionary bubble.
Click here, if you’d like to read more about this story.
Meanwhile, enjoy Radiohead’s great song Fake Plastic Trees, recorded without an audience in a studio in Holland.
I found this interesting edited film set to their music, using footage from the 2006 movie Cashback by Sean Ellis that I thought was well done.
This is a last minute addition that I thought could help with some healing in Charleston, South Carolina right now. If you’re there or nearby this coming Friday, June 27th, everyone is welcome to go paint a section of a “Power” mural as part of FestivALL.
casart
I'm an artist, wife and mother of two boys. I started my illustration business, The Occasional Palette over 35 years ago, when my oldest son was an infant. Once my children were in school, I began painting decorative, faux finishes and murals through my second business, Casart, now over 30 years old. My third business, Casart Coverings, is a springboard from my second. Click on the link on the sidebar to see innovative, custom, designer wallcovering, removable and reusable wallpaper and coordinating decor.
