Jambalaya: Cajun Music in Trees

Painted fifty years ago, Rodrigue’s Jambalaya (a.k.a. Cajun Music in Trees) reflects not the popular rice dish, but rather a jumbled mixture of instruments and sounds, creating the music for a fais do do, or Cajun dance.  The painting is a classic example of Rodrigue’s early Cajun Series canvases with figures.  The tree, cut offContinue reading “Jambalaya: Cajun Music in Trees”

Mississippi’s Beautiful Blues

Douglas and I surprised ourselves once again by completing all and more that we set out to do, this time on the first-ever designated Mississippi tour, inspired by George Rodrigue’s amazing, relatable life story and poignant, impactful art. I can’t help but wonder, as I often do, how in the world did we get here?Continue reading “Mississippi’s Beautiful Blues”

Rodrigue in Santa Fe, Continued

Until now, it was 35 years ago that George Rodrigue last exhibited in Santa Fe, New Mexico, when his good friend, Rosalea Murphy, hosted an exhibition of his paintings in the apartment above her famous restaurant, The Pink Adobe. George spoke often of the unique camaraderie he enjoyed with artists such as Rosalea, her daughterContinue reading “Rodrigue in Santa Fe, Continued”

Miss July Fourth at Fifty

“Paintings take on a life of their own, long after the artist is gone.” George Rodrigue, from my journal. As a young Cajun man of twenty-seven living in Lafayette, Louisiana, George Rodrigue (1944-2013) chose to express his culture’s pride in their adopted American homeland in a most unusual way. His painting of Independence Day illustratesContinue reading “Miss July Fourth at Fifty”