A Night at the Museum: Artfully AWARE at NOMA
By Zach Wahlder, 11th Grade
It was approximately 6:37 p.m. when I entered through the doors of the New Orleans Museum of Art. Being such a lover of art, I couldn’t believe that this would be my very first visit to the museum. But I wasn’t here for pleasure. I was here for business. Okay, maybe a little pleasure.
On February 3, 2012, Artfully AWARE, an international non-profit organization, took over the museum for a very special event. Artfully AWARE connects communities, collaborates with local partners and generates positive change in people’s lives through advocacy events and innovative community development projects. People from all over our community and the world submitted their artwork to be displayed throughout the museum. Numerous organizations, schools, and artists from all over the city participated together in celebrating the rich diversity of New Orleans. Holy Cross was well represented in the mix.
Entering through the Great Hall doors, I found a vibrant and energetic atmosphere that permeated the entire museum. I walked into a festive celebration of dance, music, art, creativity, and people of all backgrounds to observe the intriguing work that covered the walls of NOMA. I was quite surprised by the huge turnout and the strong showing of hipster types. (While I made somewhat of an attempt to dress the part, I did not, by any means, attempt to act the part. When I see a picture of a lion attacking a horse, I see a picture of a lion attacking a horse, not some symbolic representation of government wreaking havoc upon society). Anyways, back to the story. As I continued on, there was what looked to me in the middle of the Great Hall, a group of dancing tribal people adorned in large and colorful outfits, which was fascinating. I later found out that these men and women were a part of a group from the Mardi Gras Indian Tribe, the Guardians of the Flame.
As I made my way through the massive crowd into the back of the museum where the school’s and organization’s artwork was displayed, I came to the spot where Holy Cross displayed their work. It looked like two metal bins stacked upon each other with a rusted metal rail placed in the middle. To top it all off, a chain hung down the middle. In a quest to find out and understand what this interesting, untitled piece of work symbolized, I found one of the artists, sophomore Alex Vial. “The piece represents mankind’s similar beginning and end,” he explained. “We are born into an age where troubles are present everywhere and if we do not fix one person’s problems then they could soon become our own.” Sophomores Jude Sheridan and Andrew Ricks contributed to creating the piece.
After our epic adventure of exploring the museum and viewing art from all around the world, the evening’s festivities slowly faded. Holy Cross did a fantastic job and their art received the much deserved attention. On Monday, I spoke to art teacher phenom Mr. DuMouchel and asked him what he thought about the night. “I’m not sure what it meant to the boys—you’d have to ask them. But it meant a great deal to me and the school. It’s not like the work was exhibited in some auditorium somewhere. It’s the New Orleans Museum of Art. Our students had work in the same place as Picasso, Tiepolo, Renoir and Degas to name a few. The event was a big success for Artfully AWARE and we were a part of it. I hope the boys that participated are aware that they were a part of something special.” Spoken like a true artist.
Short URL: http://www.holycrosstigers.com/blog/bulletin/?p=1861
Posted by Bulletin
on Feb 10 2012. Filed under Arts & Entertainment.
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