Five of the top 15 finalists for the George Rodrigue Foundation of the Arts 6th Annual Art Contest are from New Orleans. The top art submissions were selected from more than 650 entries from Louisiana high school juniors and seniors. Winners will share $45,000 in college scholarships.
In addition, the top senior winner will have the opportunity to design a poster to be sold at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation’s four free festivals in 2015: the Crescent City Blues and BBQ Festival, the Louisiana Cajun Zydeco Festival, the Congo Square New World Rhythms Festival, and Fiesta Latina.
Scholarships and awards will be presented by celebrity judges at the 6th Annual Arts Contest Awards Luncheon presented by Cox on Saturday, April 18, at the Sheraton New Orleans. Tickets to the luncheon are open to the public at a cost of $50, and are available online at www.georgerodriguefoundation.org. Keynote speaker will be Wendy Rodrique, wife of the late artist George Rodrigue.
Enjoy the works by the New Orleans finalists below.
NOLAbeings Multimedia artist Claire Bangser created NOLAbeings as a portrait-based story project that marries... 
Voodoo in New Orleans: Reviving history: New Orleans fortune telling This article takes a deep dive into the history of Voodoo in New Orleans, its hybridization with Catholicism, and its present-day place in the city's culture. The author visits fortune-tellers in the French Quarter, using their guidance as a tool for introspection rather than a deterministic predictor of the future. Through her experiences in New Orleans, the author feels a mystical connection to both the past and the future. 