Mardi Gras Spirit

The inspiration for this painting came from a piece of paper-mache’ and the Mardi Gras that wouldn’t die. After Hurricane Katrina, we returned to salvage what we could from a family home in Lakeview. The devastation was over-whelming; a wall of water destroyed our home when the 17th Street Levee failed. Nine feet of water sat in Lakeview for weeks so there wasn’t much left to save. The entire area was in ruins, all the vegetation dead below the water line, and everything covered in muck and ashy-dust. As I walked around I found a piece of paper-mache’ from a Mardi Gras float found lying amid the debris. It was such a stark contrast to find this brightly colored piece of paper mache’ in the midst of so much destruction with its color and shine intact. I couldn’t help thinking of all the fun that Mardi Gras always brings. This year, fun was the last thing on anybody’s mind.

Rebuilding was difficult and came at a snail’s pace. After months of hard work and little progress, most people were frustrated, stressed and exhausted. New Orleans needed Mardi Gras now more than ever, but there were so few people in the city and everybody was just trying to get by. Mardi Gras personifies New Orleans’ festive spirit and after much debate, the word came that a scaled down version of Mardi Gras could be pulled together. It proved to be exactly what everybody needed. It allowed everyone to forget their troubles (if only for a short time) and celebrate the true “Spirit of Mardi Gras”. It provided an opportunity to come together as a community and celebrate the uniqueness that makes New Orleans like no place else on earth.

Like the little piece of paper-mache’, Mardi Gras that had drifted back into total destruction; all the joy and carefree spirit that Mardi Gras represents drifted back with Mardi Gras 2006 and raised our spirits. The ghostly images in the painting, represents that “Mardi Gras Spirit”. New Orleanians are determined to come back and rebuild their lives, proud to call New Orleans their home.

This painting is double-signed, “Cajl” on the front in oil, is hand-signed in charcoal “C.J. Lauterbach” and has the title and date on verso. A Certificate of Authenticity and Artist’s Statement are also included.