HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Tonight, I teach my daughters how to make and cut stencils...Ten to fifteen years, I expect them to do good things with these skills...

Hope the holidays have been good to everyone,

The Crew at N.R.

NoLA Rising Toys for Tots Reminder! THIS FRIDAY...

This Friday, NoLA Rising, in cooperatation with the United States Marine Corps and the Tipitina's Foundation, is hosting a Toys for Tots toy drive at the Uptown Tipitina's...

From 11 a.m. until... we will continue to trade you a piece of artwork for a brand new toy in a box. Once we run out of art, that'll be it...though the lovely Crista Rock will be on sight to paint while the event is going on. If you're an artist living in New Orleans, we'll gladly accept a donation the day of too...

Come join us and help us celebrate!!!

NoLA Rising Teams With Tipitina's and the US Marine Corps for Toys for Tots IYTI Art Exchange

NoLA Rising announces it's Second Annual Toy Drive for the United States Marine Corps Toys for Tots Program. In coordination with It's Yours, Take It (an online Flickr group/collaboration), NoLA Rising has teamed with the Soul Rebels and DJ SoulSister for a SoulGlo Christmas Jam at Tipitina's.

On Friday, December 11th, from 11 a.m. until whenever, we will have art available to swap you for a brand new (unwrapped) toy in a box. Now, this is while art supplies last. Come by Tipitina's Uptown at 501 Napoleon Avenue throughout the day...or come by that night for the SoulGlo Christmas Jam...

We'll see you there!

For more information on It's Yours, Take It, see HERE

Artist Inc participating in New Orleans Fringe Festival

Artist Inc. participates with the New Orleans Fringe Festival with
Un Route ~ an old fashioned, new world, troubadours rolling into town show.
A variety of artists gather for a multimedia, cabaret, performance art extravaganza ~ including theater, dance, film, circus, music, burlesque, magic, fire, visual art installations, audience participation and a throw down party!

Un Route, produced by Artist Inc, in participation with the New Orleans Fringe Festival, sponsored by Michalopoulos, Old New Orleans Rum, Abita Beer, Lucid Absinthe and the Faubourg Marigny Improvement Association, will be presented on November 14th, doors open at 9pm so audiences may view the visual art installations before the show starts, show begins at 10pm, at the Michalopoulos Studio, 527 Elysian Fields between Charters and Decatur streets.

Tickets are only $7, plus $3 Fringe Fest button.

For more information on the full Fringe Fest line-up, see http://www.artistinc.org/events.html

NoLA Rising's Fall Schedule of Events...

CLICK ON THE PHOTO TO SEE IT LARGER...

ARTOBERFEST! at National Art and Hobby!

National Art and Hobby, Deutsches Haus, and NoLA Rising team up to raise money for Children's Hospital of New Orleans.

On Saturday, October 24th, National Art and Hobby will have a block party on the Eleonore side of the business with food and drinks and a live art demonstration.

All proceeds from the art store that day will go to support our local Children's Hospital.

Please join us on Saturday, October 24th, 2009, 2pm-5pm
Usual Business hours for National Art and Hobby 10 am - 530 pm

5835 Magazine Street

CERAMICS WORKSHOPS AT LOUISIANA ARTWORKS

CERAMICS WORKSHOPS AT LOUISIANA ARTWORKS
Tile Mural Ceramics Workshop
Instructor Sierra Kay
Fee: $250
October 17th, 10 AM-2 PM; 20th, 6-9 PM; 22nd, 6-9 PM; 24th, 10 AM-2 PM; 29th, 6-9 PM.

Tile Murals. Tiles don't have to be square! Learn basic ceramic techniques while turning one of your paintings or photos into jig-saw style tiles. Create your own kitchen back-splash or mural sure to be the focal point of any room.

Workshops take place at Louisiana ArtWorks, 725 Howard Avenue at Carondelet. Please call the office at 504.571.7373 to enroll.

Cancellation policy for workshops: Student must notify Louisiana ArtWorks a minimum of three days in advance of the workshop in order to receive a full refund. A refund of 50% will be given for cancellation 2 days in advance.

Ceramics Membership

Ceramics shop Membership through which members may use the shop for independent work is now available at Louisiana ArtWorks. Please call the office for details.

Louisiana ArtWorks
818 Howard Avenue, Suite 500
New Orleans, LA 70113
T: 504.571.7373
F: 504.571.7368
info@louisianaartworks.org
www.louisianaartworks.org

It's Yours, Take It Call for Art for NoLA Rising Toys for Tots drive

NoLA Rising is making a call for art for It's Yours, Take It, NoLA 3

In the past, we've done an on the street IYTI for general passers-by and an indoor IYTI intended to raise toys for the last holiday season. This year, we'd like to continue that tone and have an IYTI where people can bring brand new toys in a box for a piece of art. The toys will then be donated to the Marine Corps' Toys for Tots program for their annual toy distribution.

I encourage a free and open theme to allow you the freedom to work as you wish, so no set themes

This year, the work deadline will be Monday, December 7th because I plan on holding the open air event on December 11th in collaboration with a music show expecting high attendance. The music will be by the SoulRebels and DJ SoulSister at Tipitina's.

We'll be holding a paint party at Fringe Festival in the side yard at XO Studios (2833 Dauphine) on November 15th to add to the collection for the toy drive!

Anyone interested, pls email me...

Thanks for helping to make another successful IYTI!

For more info, see FLICKR GROUP IYTI

Elysian Fleas presented by Artist Inc - October 11th

Elysian Fleas Brings Magic (& a Magician) to New Marigny Market

October 11 debut spotlights creative Halloweenery, Oktoberfest oom-pah-pahs, a sleight-of-mind street magician, string troubadours and plenty of fab vintage bargains & art...

Great news, vintage mavens and NOLA arts appreciators! A new outdoor market with old world charm is opening in the heart of Faubourg Marigny, where Elysian Fleas offers a spicy New Orleans mix of vintage merch, upcycled fashions, fine jewelry, arts and crafts; delicious food and drink; and outrageous live entertainment.

Presented by Artist Inc, and sponsored by Old New Orleans Rum, Abita Beer and the Faubourg Marigny Improvement Association, Elysian Fleas launches October 11 in the shady, tree-lined courtyard next to Michalopoulos Studio at 527 Elysian Fields on the corner of Chartres St. Hours are 11 am to 5 pm.

Miss Claudia and her Biergartners roll out the barrel to celebrate Oktoberfest at the debut market, which also features the sleight-of-mind illusions of street magician Mark Faulkner and the old-timey string music of wandering troubadours The Picklers with Tom Marron and Daron Douglas.

With Halloween on the horizon, seasonal spirits will also be out in force. Shoppers can play dress-up with one-of-a-kind costumes, masks and headdresses from High Bohemia, Howlpop, Avant Garbe, New Orleans Masks, Ann Marie Popko and other fashionistas, including Cree-ations' 2009 line of Vampire Cocktail Couture.

Organized by flea queen Cree McCree, author of Flea Market America, Elysian Fleas features vendors selling everything from used & rare books, antique furniture and retro-chic clothes to second line umbrellas, urban folk art and handmade soaps.

Shoppers can get their nosh on with sweet & spicy pecans, homemade ice cream and Beaucoup NOLA snowballs; sip hand-pressed Cane Elysée sugar cane juice spiked with Old New Orleans Rum; and chase Woody's famous fish tacos with a cold Abita beer. Also on the menu: Moroccan cuisine, Crepes a la Carte and spicy XXX Catering.

"I'm really excited to have all these terrific creative people, vintage vendors and outdoor chefs in the same spot," says McCree, whose local career dates back to the legendary Mermaid Flea Market. "We couldn't ask for a better location, which allows us to draw in tourists as well as locals. And the funky mix of merch is perfect for the Marigny."

So is the funky mix of live entertainment.

"The old world European village flea markets are the inspiration behind Elysian Fleas," says Artist Inc.'s Reese Johanson, who runs the Salon and Un Route cabaret at the Blue Nile. "Merchants and buvette (food and drink area), yes of course, but it wouldn’t be complete without the colorful troubadours rolling through to entertain the villagers."

Elysian Fleas continues with holiday markets on November 21 and December 19. Hours are 11 am to 5 pm.

For more information, and to inquire about vending, contact creemccree @ gmail.com

Barrister's Gallery - Opening October 10th 6-9 p.m.

This Fall at Barrister's Gallery on St Claude, internationally respected curator, Anne Marie Grgich, brings together a range of artists from New Orleans, the United States, and overseas... each of them visionaries, who have managed to endow the common with a sense of the strange, the mystical, the timeless, and the esoteric...

Cuban born artist Rafael Arzuaga presents subliminal imagery combined with archetypal symbolism through paintings that source from an African tradition, while Ecuadorian born New Orleans native, José Torres-Tama, explores social themes, the current state of war, and the struggle for spiritual concerns through mixed-media drawings.

San Francisco painter Tania Seabock endows her pieces with the patina of aged classicism through her fabulous faux-decorative approach. Fine art and documentary photographer, Craig Morse, liberates slivers of culture and environs overlooked or unseen from the years immediately following Hurricane Katrina, and through vibrant black and white and color photographs, New Orleans born Robin Walker pries open swollen windows and doors, shouting in from the streets, "This is my New Orleans!"

Barrister's brings the works of Hartmut Eing from Germany, Marcus Mårtenson from Stockholm Sweden. Damian and Delaine LeBas of London, and artist Robert Collison SF who turned curbside cardboard into dogs. Suzane Beaubrun SF builds knick knacks into pigeons. The McMartin Brothers Photaculars have an eye for beauty and the strange.

The artists take common objects that have always surrounded us and charge them with almost supernatural qualities.

Perhaps these things aren’t usually seen as art and will create an element of surprise in the viewer. The playfulness of these artists transforms discards into deeply meaningful objects. There is a kind of saving grace in this action. The rejected materials are here treated with respect, resurrected with a new sense of beauty and pride. This has always been the real challenge for the artist. To create beauty where there is pain and bring forth order out of chaos. And there is no better town for a show like this than New Orleans.

2009 by Anne Grgich with Marcus Mårtenson and Craig Morse.

FOLK MAGIC ARTISTS:

Rafael Arzuaga
Lauren Atkinson and Donald Green
Suzane Beaubrun
Robert Collison
Hartmut Eing Courtesy of Galerie Hamer
Noah Erenberg
Charlie Foster
Anne Marie Grgich
Larissa Hammond
Lonnie Holley
Danielle Jacqui
Damian and Delaine Lebas
Kurtiss Lofstrom
Kandace Manning
Marcus Mårtenson
The McMartin Brothers Photaculars
Craig Morse
Robin Oliver
Cassandra Rockwood-Rice
Tania Seabock-artequation
Dave Seehausen
Elena Mary Siff
Jose Torres-Tama
Robin Walker
Della Wells

As well as featuring artists from Portland's Cannibals' Gallery.

Go to scadnola.com for more events on St Claude Ave.

Barrister's 2331 St Claude Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70117
GET MAP HERE

Peyton Manning by Joe Iurato

Peyton (Commission)
Originally uploaded by .joe.

Peyton Manning may not play for the Saints, but he's still one of New Orleans' favorite sons. Joe Iurato has done an amazing commission of Peyton. Enjoy!

NOZERO "NO APOLOGY" solo show TONIGHT

Tony Nozero has been making the rounds lately and the folks here at NoLA Rising are glad to see him at one of our favorite new venues, Coup d'oeil Art Consortium on Magazine Street (almost right across from Juan's Flying Burrito). Come join us!. See y'all tonight at Tony's show...7 pm...

ReX
NoLA Rising

The Magnificent Seven - Galerie Gigi

The Magnificent Seven at Galerie Gigi, Saturday, September 5th at 6 p.m.

"The Magnificent 7 features New Orleans Artists who articulate figurative relations in their work", explains curator Terrence Sanders. "New Orleans has a strong tradition of draftsman who are rooted in the practice of drawing and painting. These young draftsman featured in this exhibition are the not so distant cousins of Dali, Van Gogh, Basquiat, and even Alex Katz." While the figure is a powerful tool for the artists, each piece articulates its message through a diverse range of techniques and processes. "New Orleans is fast growing into a Contemporary Art hub" explains Sanders, "but will never in my opinion lose it's influence on new painters that explore the representational aspects of the human figure."

The artists include Blaine Capone, Colin Meneghini, Anthony Carriere, Tony Nozero, Bruce Davenport, Steve Soltis and Chad Moore.

WHO: Group exhibition featuring 7 local artists
WHAT: "The Magnificent 7" art exhibition
WHEN: September 5th - October 1st, Opening Reception Sept. 5th at 6PM
WHERE: Galerie Gigi, 627 St. Peter (In the Quarter between Royal and Chartres)

For more info, pls CLICK HERE

SQUID INVASIONS by ANNIE WALKER

Annie Walker exhibits her Squid Invasions at Cafe Envie for the month of September with an opening this Saturday (September 5th) at 8 p.m.

Cafe Envie is at 1241 Decatur in the L. French Quarter

Silent Dynamism - Works by Karina Wisniewska

SILENT DYNAMISM

Paintings by Karina Wisniewska

Please join us for a reception with the artist

Saturday, August 29, 6 - 8 pm

"Can stillness be moving? Doesn't stillness just remain still? Restful and at rest. The companions of silence are immutability, the eternal, the echoless. But even if silence is in motion, as in the pictures of Karina Wisniewska, order never runs out of control. When the body of silence flows, its tissue stretches and breathes; as its structure calls forth a resonance, it can sound a hum. Like cells of a honeycomb. Like the wind when it strokes the beach and the sand corrugates, these panels conquer space and form a body of work obeying its own laws in an equilibrium of stillness and movement."

Karina Wisniewska was formally trained in both classical music, as well as fine arts in Austria and Switzerland. After an ill-fated accident ended her career as an established concert pianist, Wisniewska turned to painting with quartz sand as a means for the visual expression of rhythm and musicality.

Wisniewska's work can be found in the UBS collection in Zurich, Switzerland, the Musee Abbatiale de Payerne, Switzerland and in numerous established private collections. The paintings have also been presented at Art Basel Miami, Art Cologne, ArteFiera Bologna, Scope New York, Art Dubai and Art Shanghai among others.

Karina Wisniewska's paintings will be on display
from August 29 - October 2, 2009

Octavia Art Gallery is located at 4532 Magazine Street. Hours are Tuesday - Saturday from 10 am to 6 pm or by appointment. For more information, contact 504-309-4249, art@octaviaartgallery.com or visit www.octaviaartgallery.com

LIGHTSURFING by MARRUS, This Thursday at PRAVDA

When I first met MARRUS, I came to the startling conclusion that I was not meeting an ordinary woman. An amazing talent in most every avenue that I've been able to determine, MARRUS wows me with her first book. It's not just an art book, but a book about the journey from point A to point F'n A. It's about forging your path through the journey of life and being a success at it, being happy with it and loving the nuances that made the journey what it was.

This Thursday night at PRAVDA in the French Quarter...details below...

MORE ABOUT THE BOOK:

"Lightsurfing: Living Life in the Front of My Mouth" is an anecdotal, illustrated, autobiographical journey of what it takes to carve your own path in the world, make a living at it, and all the wild, weird, and whack things that happen as a result.

"Lightsurfing" is 186, full-color, 7x10" pages full of paintings & the nascent sketches that inspired them. There are skinned deer and burned out buildings. There are some felonies, but the statute of limitations has run out, so the guilty are safe. There's sex & some kinky stuff, and hefty chunks of wisdom that Marrus hopes will inspire her tribe and mebbe stop some of the younger ones from making the dumb, fear-based mistakes she made.

Miz invited you to "LIGHTSURFING" on Thursday, August 27 at 7:30pm.

Event: My book is finally available!
"Come out, get a drink, buy a book, watch me freak out..."
What: Opening / Booksigning
Host: Miz Marrus
Start Time: Thursday, August 27 at 7:30pm
End Time: Thursday, August 27 at 11:00pm
Where: Pravda on Decatur in the French Quarter

To see more details and RSVP, follow the link below:
http://www.facebook.com/n/?event.php&eid=120827743431&mid=fcc06eG296cb642G67c7d60G7

Lionel Milton launches new website

Lionel Milton has launched a new website. Check out what work he's been up to.



WWW.LIONELMILTON.COM



WWW.LIONELMILTON.COM

AMMO presents work by LOREN SCHWERD

The directors of AMMO are pleased to present an exhibition of works by Loren Schwerd, from her acclaimed series of hair sculptures, “Mourning

Portrait”. The exhibition opens on Saturday, August 15, with an opening reception from 6 -9pm, and will be on view at AMMO, located at 938 Royal

Street in the French Quarter, through September 16, 2009.


“Mourning Portrait” is a series of memorials to the communities of New Orleans that were devastated by the federal levee breaches following Hurricane Katrina. The sculptures are made of human and synthetic hair extensions and wigs that were discarded outside the St Claude Beauty Supply in the fall of 2005. The sculptures interpret many of the abandoned homes of the Ninth Ward.

Schwerd draws on the eighteenth- and nineteenth-century tradition of hairwork, in which family members or artisans would fashion the hair of the deceased into intricate jewelry and sentimental objects and memento mori. Hair serves as the essential metaphor of this exhibit, by evoking a sense of profound intimacy and absence.

Her sculptures portay individual residences, many of which are no longer standing. Collectively, Mourning Portrait venerates the less of entire neighborhoods and communities. Schwerd’s “Mourning Portrait” series was featured on the cover of the November 2008 FiberArts Magazine, and has toured extensively in the United States.

FOR A SNEAK PEAK OF THE SHOW: CLICK HERE

Zack Smith on White Linen Night

Photo of Noise Coalition

WHITE LINEN NIGHT 2009
Saturday, August 1st 6pm-9pm

Zack Smith - Portrait Project
Excerpts from the Voodoo Portraits and New Images

Zack Smith with be showing a selection from two ongoing portrait projects. After being disillusioned with the digital format and process, Smith discovered that the 4x5 view camera is a nice camera to get behind.

The Canary
329 Julia Street
NoLA

(Above Photo by Zack Smith)

Lessons Learned With Fists - Goodchildren Gallery - Sat., July 11th

SATURDAY, July 11TH - 6-9 p.m.



LESSONS LEARNED WITH FISTS
Daphne Loney & Dan Tague

GoodChildren Gallery Opening
4037 St. Claude
Saturday, July 11th

Joe Iurato Sports the NoLA Rising message at WK Interact / Invader Show at Jonathan Levine Gallery

ReX salutes Joe Iurato for sporting the NoLA Rising message
@
WK INTERACT / INVADER
JONATHAN LEVINE GALLERY
JUNE 27, 2009
NYC

(Photo by Joe Russo)

NoLA Rising T-Shirts are Available!!!

NoLA Rising has just opened up to the online world the opportunity to buy NoLA Rising shirts to support the General Fund for NoLA Rising. As many of y'all know we have some fairly big goals set for the city. In the coming months, we'll continue to keep fresh designs to support the NoLA Rising in the various art projects designed to increase the quality of life in New Orleans through public art displays. Paypal link below...

All Black

Women's Medium $25.00 Women's Large $25.00 Men's Medium $25.00 Men's Large $25.00 Men's X-Large $25.00 Men's XX-Large $25.00

p.s. we're new to the t-shirt aspect of things, so we'll be getting in our second shipment of sizes very soon...

Jonathan Blum Returns to Re-Paint a Mural

Last month, Jonathan Blum returned to the Crescent City to re-paint a mural he painted in 1989. Now, there's more of a modern adaptation almost 19 years later. Jonathan used to live in the space with a friend of his that is a photographer.

The building is now home to friends of NoLA Rising, Rick and Deborah, who went through the permit procurement process to ensure that the ghastly ghost cannot illegally coat their artwork with his unsightly paint. Wanting to make sure everything was in order, the brought Joanthan down for Jazzfest and invited him to repaint his mural.

On May 2nd, 2009, they held a private party to unveil the new Rabbi that is entitled with a peace offering. Savvy news reporter Doug MacCash was on seen to do a Nola.Com video as seen below. Those of us at NoLA Rising applaud Rick, Deborah and Jonathan for brightening up the neighborhood! We could all use a little more color around New Orleans.

St. Roch Avenue mural

Herakut Show at Red Flagg - NEW YORK

I love getting to see new artwork, but more than that, I love getting to see new artwork from artists that I think are amazing. So, on my last jaunt up to New York to visit Sarah, we hunted down the Red Flagg Gallery in Chelsea to see the Herakut show.







To see the show, check out the Red Flagg Gallery at 638 West 28th Street between 11th and 12th, Ny Ny - 207-522-1194 -

MAY 21 thru JULY 3

HERAKUT WEBSITE

Joe Iurato Show

Rex and Joe Iurato

Last weekend, I had the chance to head up to Montclair, Jersey to meet Joe Iurato and check out his artwork. I found it an awesome collection of stencil work that had some amazing detail. In a field that is becoming more popular, Joe is indeed someone who could rapidly be an essential part of the stencil world.

It took a bit of adventure (and a little misadventure) for me and my two other Musketeers Sarah and Allison, but after a long cab ride after the train ride, we finally found it. Good times. For more art information on Joe without having to go on an adventure, check out THIS SITE after enjoying the pics.











My personal favorite

Check out here too

Click on the picture to see the full article

Wounded in Action: An Exhibition of Orthopaedic Advancements in Art

Wounded in Action: An Exhibition of Orthopaedic Advancements in Art celebrates those heroes who have had orthopaedic injuries as a result of serving our country in war. From World War II to Korea to Viet Nam, from the Gulf War, to Afghanistan to Iraq, thousands of military troops serving the United States have had extreme and severe musculoskeletal injuries.

This exhibition also recognizes those orthopaedic surgeons who, throughout history, have risked their own safety to care for our troops, to save lives and limbs, to advance medical treatments, and to conduct research and learn from war in order to better treat those who sustain orthopaedic trauma.

Wartime experiences have changed the course of orthopaedics. The sheer numbers of the wounded; the opportunities to attempt bold new surgical treatments, the creation of hand, burn and amputation centers, fracture care, the use of new drugs and biologics, and the tremendous need for rehabilitation has challenged every medical professional, but particularly orthopaedic trauma surgeons.

As US military initiatives continue overseas, approximately 82% of war injuries involve the extremities. These injuries are often multiple and severe with the majority caused by improvised explosive devices (IEDs), rocket propelled grenades (RPGs), as well as various high velocity assault weapons.

Given the current conflicts in both Iraq and Afghanistan, there is a growing demand for increased medical research focused on veterans with multiple severely injured extremities. Now, more than ever, the medical and military communities need the ability to research innovative techniques to restore functionality to save injured extremities.

American troops injured in Iraq and Afghanistan are more likely to recover than those from any other war. Modern medical care can save troops whose injuries would have been fatal in previous wars.

The art in this exhibition will reflect what has been learned in trauma care throughout history that affects how trauma patients are treated today and the impact war injuries have on the lives of those injured, their families, and the doctors who treat them.

This Exhibition is a tribute to injured troops, civilians, and the orthopaedic surgeons who are caring and have cared for them as they served and/or serve our country in time of crisis.

Submissions will be accepted beginning May 15, 2009, and due October 15, 2009.

For more information, visit: WOUNDED IN ACTION

Joe Iurato - Solo Show at Cafe Eclectic

Rex is excited to be able to get out of town and visit some of the folks who have supported NoLA Rising in the past. So, this Saturday night, Rex will bear royal greetings to :01

If you're in the area, come check out the show!



This Saturday, May 23rd, Joe Iurato presents his solo show at Cafe Eclectic between 5 & 9 p.m.

:01
Joe Iurato
Solo Show

CAFE ECLECTIC
400 BLOOMFIELD AVENUE
MONTCLAIR, NEW JERSEY

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CHECK OUT STENCIL HISTORY X FOR JOE'S SHOW HERE

25% of all proceeds to go to Wine for Water non profit org

Save Our Schools NoLA Inaugural Shindig

After stopping by the Kelly Israel Art House Benefit at the NooMoon Compound, c'mon past the Save Our Schools NoLA shindig and enjoy some music and entertainment. After both, there will be an after party at the SKULL CLUB.

Save Our Schools NOLA's Inaugural Shindig: "A COMMUNITY CELEBRATION OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS"

Date:
Saturday, May 16, 2009 from 6:00 PM - 9:30 PM (CT)

Location:
Federal Reserve Bank Ballroom
(The Security Center)
147 Carondelet Street
New Orleans, LA 70130

For more info, CLICK HERE

NoLA Rising plans a New Orleans mural

A group of New Orleans art activists hopes to produce the nation's longest mural on a length of floodwall in the Lower 9th Ward.

The painting would stretch along the east side of the Industrial Canal from North Derbigny Street to Florida Avenue, bordering a neighborhood that suffered apocalyptic flooding when the wall gave way after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

The plan: 65 artists would divide the concrete ribbon, each rendering a version of a New Orleans home, symbolically rebuilding a part of the city that is still largely empty. At 3,900 feet, the mural would outdistance the somewhat similar 2,754-foot Great Wall of Los Angeles.

All the mural-makers need is permission and money.

One of the goals, art activist Michael "Rex" Dingler said, is to improve the quality of life by discouraging graffiti.

"This is not going to be a graffiti wall, in no shape or form, " Dingler said. "There will be no graffiti style."

Dingler, a maritime shipping agent and former Marine, is an unlikely Crescent City counterculture icon. In the months after Katrina, he took it upon himself to replace lost street signs with colorful substitutes fashioned from storm debris. He and friends branched out, creating folksy wooden signs that read "smile, " "laugh, " "joy, " "sing, " "dance, " "keep the faith."

He called his self-styled public art project NoLA Rising.

Not everyone appreciated Dingler's street-level cheerleading. Anti-graffiti patrols painted over his placards and eventually he was fined $200 for illegally placing signs on telephone poles. Though Dingler says he's never taken to the streets with spray paint, he soon found himself a cause celebre among the city's pro-graffiti faction.

Instead of illegally posting artworks, Dingler began hosting paint parties where anyone could make NoLA Rising-style signs. Now he hopes to make the leap from small signs to one of the world's largest artworks.

He and a handful of friends have begun transforming NoLA Rising into an official public institution, forming a board of directors and applying for nonprofit, tax-exempt status so they can raise money for the mural they've dubbed the United Artist Front.

In April, the group auctioned 165 pieces of donated art (including works by notable graffiti artists) at the Old U.S. Mint, raising roughly $8,000 for the mural.

Next, Dingler says that NoLA Rising will seek the go-ahead from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and New Orleans City Council. NoLA Rising will select the artists but, he said, area residents may have a role in dictating the style and content of the painting.

Darlene Mosley, a lifelong resident whose home was flooded and who recently moved into one of Brad Pitt's "Make It Right" houses, has a view of the wall from her porch. Like others in the neighborhood, she offered guarded approval, so long as the mural doesn't depict anything "nasty, " as she put it.

"It would be nice to look at something different, " Mosley said. "There's nothing to look at over there now . . . the bridge and traffic and boats that pass by, that's it."

Jane Golden, executive director of the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, has overseen the creation of the 3,000 gigantic paintings that speckle that cityscape. Murals can be a social and economic boon, she said, adding that start-up projects should "be cognizant of capturing the voice of the community. . . . If you start with something great, it will lead to other projects."

Golden said that in the early days of the Philadelphia mural project, spray paint was not allowed, though many of the artists were one-time taggers.

Dingler said he accepts graffiti-style painting as a valid art form but he doubts spray painting will play a part in the mural, which he hopes will deter taggers.

Others, such as West Coast anti-graffiti crusader Randy Campbell, say graffiti artists will not avoid another artist's work.

"In the case of the murals in Los Angeles, many were artistic murals and had nothing to do with graffiti, and these got vandalized by taggers more than the graffiti-style murals did, " Campbell said via e-mail. "Vandals do not respect any property."

Dingler argues that a legitimate mural program might help break the tit-for-tat struggle that's taking place in New Orleans, in which graffiti tags are covered in gray paint by anti-graffiti activists.

If things work out as he hopes, the three-quarter-mile mural might lead to similar painting projects on other walls that ring the flood-prone city.

"We want a whole program for the whole city, " Dingler said, "given that we are a city of walls."

---
Except pulled from Nola.com and can be found at this LINK

New Website Launch - NOLA RISING . ORG

Howdy Everyone!

NoLA Rising is proud to announce the launch of its new (& official) website created and designed exclusively by Lance @ HOUNDSTOOTH MEDIA:

WWW.NOLARISING.ORG

While the blog will still be a functional aspect of everyday news-sharing, the website will be the official page. Stay tuned for a bold new look on the blog as we update away on both sites.

We couldn't have made the website a reality without the technical genius of Lance Vargas at Houndstooth Media...check him out and get yourself a site...

And, as always, thanks for supporting NoLA Rising!

Students of NoLA Rising present Swamp Swap at Tulane University

Moving out? Got stuff to get rid of? Wanna exchange your trash for treasures?

On Thursday, May 7th from 2-4:30pm, Students of NoLA Rising will be hosting Swamp Swap on Tulane University's UC Quad (McAlister Dr.).

The Swamp Swap is a community bartering event in which people can come and exchange anything: from goods like clothes, furniture, books, art, and food to services like tutoring, music lessons, and bike repair...even ideas!

Get creative! Anything can be brought and exchanged; the only catch is: NO MONEY!

This event is completely free and open to the community. (And if you can’t make it, don’t worry. There will be more Swamp Swaps to come...)


...Because community matters!!!

NoLA Rising :: U.S. Mint Show

Firstly, NoLA Rising would like to thank the Louisiana State Museum system and the staff at the Old U.S. Mint at 400 Esplanade Avenue. Without your support in our cause and the belief that art does make a difference in the daily lives of our citizenry, we couldn't have had such a wonderful space.

Next, we'd like to thank our dedicated group of volunteers who gave their time and effort to helping us produce a well-executed and highly successful show. Without them, we'd have been like a bunch of chickens running around with our heads cut off.

And then, without the vast support of the artists who have supported us, from New Orleans and from across the world, we surely could not have made this happen. Without a doubt, I am honored and deeply touched by the support that has constantly been shown to myself and NoLA Rising from amazing artists of all calibers. Our continued solidarity not only makes our ability to showcase emerging artists, but strengthens the community of artists who believe in ideals that are greater than the individual. I am thankful that your artistic efforts allow us to build the framework for a more beautiful New Orleans.

To all who came out and supported us, and those who supported us leading up to the event, and those who will continue to support us, let is be shown that a small group of dedicated people are accomplishing great things for a noble cause.

ReX salutes you all!

Now for a few pics from the show:

CONO & ReX collaboration


Mia Kaplan


Flowerguy


Tony Nozero


Joe Iurato


Real Abstract



Thanks to everyone yet again!!!

NoLA Rising Would like to Thank Business Supporters of the United Artist Front Show

A special thank you to these businesses that helped make NoLA Rising's U.S. Mint Show a great success:

The U.S. Mint ( a Louisiana State Museum )

Whole Foods
Glazer Distributors
Coffee Roasters
Coffea
CC's Coffee
Lento & Associates
We Three Kings
Eye Candy Tattoo
Electric Ladyland on Frenchman
Tomatillo's
Mona's
Squeel BBQ
Michael's Bike Shop
Lucky You Candy Company
Slice
&
Juan's Flying Burrito

NoLA Rising at the U.S. Mint

APRIL 25th, 2009

Today is the final day of bidding at the Silent Art Auction being hosted by NoLA Rising to benefit the United Artist Front Mural Arts Program. Bidding closes at 3 p.m.

Up for an auction is an authenticated BANKSY donated from private sources close to the NoLA Rising Family


Here are some quick snaps from the set-up for the show: