Feeling New Orleans

From the black hole of Katrina, a vibrant culture has re-emerged.

The devastating affects of Hurricane Katrina are well known; she almost killed one of the most unique cities in America. But human spirit is resilient and New Orleans has (almost) pulled itself up and out of the muck and returned to its former festive glory.

Most of America looks the same. New Orleans is, and always has been, different. In essence, New Orleans is an animated city of elegant architecture; wild, jungle-like vegetation; random street art; magnificent oak trees; zany, colorful people and exotic customs. For its inhabitants and many visitors, New Orleans’ revelry, all her rituals, quirks and imperfections coalesce to create an impression, the feeling that life, experienced anywhere else, is not quite complete.

Times are still quite tough in New Orleans, but the city has slowly been reborn. While many photographers focused their cameras on the tragic aftermath of Katrina, I chose to focus on the positive things that make New Orleans the great city that it is.

Post Katrina, there wasn’t an infrastructure in New Orleans, no streetlights, no water, no waste removal services. It wasn’t a functioning city in any literal sense of the word. At best the city functioned rudimentarily. Consequently, in sympathy with the city, I chose to photograph New Orleans using a rudimentary, 40-year-old plastic camera with few and very crude controls.

The resulting images are not sophisticated, high tech constructions. The edges are jagged. There are light leaks. They are not quite in focus. However, whereas sharp, static pictures freeze time and cannot communicate what it means to live, nor to be in the moment, the soft, blurry images from an imperfect camera permit the fluid, idiosyncratic nature of New Orleans to seep through and transcend the gap. Without actually being there, one can begin to feel the essence of New Orleans and comprehend the celebration of life she engenders every moment.

Art is the language of feeling, and feeling New Orleans amounts to an awareness, the realization that life, when fully embraced, is affirmingly vibrant and joyful.

The moment is ever present in these images and that is the essence of New Orleans.