With Mardi Gras holiday right around the corner, Louisiana’s Old State Capitol opens its photography exhibit, Loving Louisiana: Celebrating the Cultures and Traditions of South Louisiana, to bring attention to the state’s rich history.
The exhibition, which opened Jan. 19 and will run until March 20, features 44 photos from artists Renae Friedley and Michael Styborski. The images depict popular Louisiana culture and tradition.
While the program will run for three months, it will only be open on specific days of each month. The exhibit is available in January from the 26th to the 31st From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It will reopen on the following days: Feb. 2-7, 9-14, 16-21, 23-28 and March 1-6, 8-13 and 15-20.
Friedley has been a photographer since 1972. She’s shown her work in several exhibits throughout the United States, including the Louisiana State Archives and the Hermann-Grima House in the New Orleans French Quarter.
The two featured photographers have been friends for about 20 years.
Styborski published a book of photography in 2008, “the lower ninth: K+36,” which documented the destruction and rebuilding of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. His photography has also been featured in the HBO series “Treme” and in “Styb,” his own magazine.
“I met Ms. Friedley a couple of years ago and knew that she was working on documenting a number of cultural traditions that were still practiced today in south Louisiana and represented the earliest group of people that inhabited the state,” said museum curator for the Old State Capitol Lauren Davis.
Eight different groups are represented in the exhibit: Native American, Spanish, French, African American, German, Acadian, Irish and Italian.
“These were the groups that were here and who settled Louisiana before the end of the 19th century and the groups that, I feel, had the most influence on Louisiana’s culture,” Friedley said.
The Old State Capitol, a landmark in Louisiana history, likes to include exhibitions that celebrate the culture of the state. The photos are framed and include a brief introduction on the eight cultural groups represented, Davis said.
The photos show the effect of Louisiana culture on music, festivals, local cuisine and architecture. There is also a book including over 100 photographs that goes along with the exhibit, Friedley said.
Bringing the two photographers together brings two different lenses on the subject of southern Louisiana culture. Friedley believes, even though she and Styborski have differing styles, the photos will compliment each other.
“The book tells the history of the different groups, and the photographs show their influence on the things we do today, such as Mardi Gras, Crawfish Festival and Jazz Funerals,” Friedley said.
Friedley, who has lived in Colorado, Florida, Oklahoma and Georgia, said she is happiest here in Louisiana and couldn’t picture herself anywhere else. She is enamored by the Pelican State, especially its people, culture, traditions and scenic beauty.
“The book is dedicated to the state of Louisiana and all of the wonderful people in it,” Friedley said.
She spent over four years researching for the Loving Louisiana exhibit, but still feels as if she has only just touched the surface. Friedley saidthere is so much more for her to learn, and she will continue photographing and researching Louisiana culture and its influences.
Celebrating the cultures and traditions of south Louisiana, the Baton Rouge Old State Capitol hosts an art gallery of pictures by Louisiana artist around the state on Wednesday Jan. 27, 2016, in downtown Baton Rouge.
