Family history: Chitimacha

Pictured above is Amelia Kassel, a Chitimacha woman, mother to Daisy Brady (Leblanc, Banzhoff) and grandmother to Ivy Rose Leblanc Lind (my maternal grandmother). This connection to some of Louisiana’s first settlers invokes a sort of dizzying feeling and makes the feelings I’ve always had about the natural wonder of this place somehow mean somethingContinue reading “Family history: Chitimacha”

Deacon John and Brent Melancon: Jambalaya (On the Bayou)

I had the pleasure of capturing this impromptu performance of Jambalaya (On the Bayou) by Deacon John and Brent Melacon during Louisiana Citizens for the Arts’  2012 Arts Advocacy Day in the Louisiana State Capitol building. “Art WORKS for Louisiana!” http://louisianacitizensforthearts.org/ http://deaconjohnandtheivories.com/ http://www.reverbnation.com/brentmelancon

“Stories from the Good Earth” treatment:

Swamp-dwellers, bayou-keepers and guardians of a vanishing language guide this journey through the past, present and potential futures of South Louisiana. Shrimp-boats with flags proclaiming allegiance to the Shrimp and the State drift slowly into focus; rocking with the weight of a family stacked four generations deep. Mutant creatures choking in a toxic stew ofContinue reading ““Stories from the Good Earth” treatment:”