From New Orleans to Venice: Sharing Our Story on the World Stage
- Jennifer Morgan
- Mar 12
- 4 min read
My contemporary felted portrait BIG CHIEF – INDIAN BLUE will be exhibited in the Personal Structures Exhibition at the Venice Art Biennale, sharing the story of New Orleans culture and resilience twenty years after Hurricane Katrina.
There are moments in an artist’s journey that feel almost surreal — the kind where you pause and think, How did this happen?
Being invited to exhibit my work during the Venice Art Biennale is one of those moments.
Through a curated exhibition organized by Orleans Gallery, my felted artwork “BIG CHIEF – INDIAN BLUE” has been selected to be included in the Personal Structures Exhibition, part of the Biennale’s Official Selection.
The exhibition is presented by the European Cultural Centre and will take place at Palazzo Mora, one of Venice’s historic exhibition venues during the Biennale.
For artists, the Venice Biennale represents one of the most important platforms in the global art world. Every two years, Venice becomes a gathering place for artists, curators, collectors, and cultural leaders from around the globe. To have work included in an exhibition during this international event is an extraordinary honor — and to represent New Orleans culture through my work makes it even more meaningful.
Below is the video announcement created by Orleans Gallery sharing the exciting news.
A Story Bigger Than One Artist
This exhibition isn’t just about individual artists.
It’s about telling the story of New Orleans — a city unlike any other in the world.
Our culture is layered with music, art, tradition, and resilience. From the rhythms of jazz to the extraordinary craftsmanship of Mardi Gras Indians, creativity runs through the DNA of this city.
Twenty years ago, Hurricane Katrina devastated the city. When the levees failed, floodwaters inundated entire neighborhoods — many of them the same historic communities where New Orleans’ Black Masking Indians live and create their extraordinary suits.
Many residents had no means to evacuate and sought shelter at the Caesars Superdome or the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center — locations that were never intended to house thousands of people for days without power, adequate food, or resources. Others who were able to evacuate scattered across neighboring states while the city struggled to recover.
For many families, there was little — or nothing — to return home to.
The devastation threatened not only homes and neighborhoods, but also the cultural traditions rooted within them. The Mardi Gras Indian tribes, whose members come from these communities, were deeply affected.
But as New Orleans slowly rebuilt, something powerful happened.
The Black Masking Indians returned.
When the tribes began masking again — sewing new suits, stepping onto the streets, and carrying forward a tradition passed down through generations — it became a symbolic moment for the entire city.
If the Indians were back, New Orleans was back.
Their return represented resilience, pride, and the determination of a culture that refuses to disappear.
Why This Matters to My Work
My contemporary felted portrait BIG CHIEF – INDIAN BLUE was created in deep admiration of the cultural strength and artistry of New Orleans’ Black Masking Indians.
Their extraordinary feathered and beaded suits are masterpieces of fiber and craftsmanship, often taking an entire year to complete. As a fiber artist, I feel a profound connection to that dedication and creative tradition. My own work is built through layered wet felting, Nuno felting, and needle felting techniques, using wool, silk, and other fibers as my “paint” to build saturated color, dimensional texture, and expressive detail.
For me, creating a portrait of a Big Chief through fiber felt like a natural dialogue between mediums. The Mardi Gras Indian tradition itself is rooted in fiber, beadwork, and hand-crafted embellishment — making felt an unexpectedly fitting medium to interpret that artistry.
This moment is also significant for the medium itself.
Felted artwork has historically been associated with craft or wearable textiles and is rarely represented within major contemporary fine art exhibitions. To have BIG CHIEF – INDIAN BLUE included in the Personal Structures Exhibition during the Venice Art Biennale is not only an incredible honor for me personally, but also a meaningful moment for fiber art — helping demonstrate how this ancient medium can be reimagined as contemporary fine art on an international stage.
In many ways, the piece carries two stories to Venice: the story of New Orleans culture and resilience, and the story of a centuries-old fiber medium continuing to evolve in new and unexpected ways.
From the Crescent City to the Floating City
In May (three days after my opening show at Orleans Gallery), I will travel to Venice, Italy for preview week of the Biennale with my Orleans Gallery family — something I never could have imagined when I first began exploring felting as an art form just a few years ago.
Venice and New Orleans actually share something special. Both are historic cities shaped by water, layered with culture, and defined by creativity.
It feels fitting that the story of New Orleans — our music, our art, our traditions, and our resilience — will be shared in another extraordinary city built on water.
Thank You for Being Part of This Journey
Every artist’s path is shaped by the community around them.
Collectors, supporters, galleries, family and friends who believe in the work make moments like this possible. I’m incredibly grateful to Orleans Gallery for championing this exhibition and for helping bring the story of New Orleans to an international audience.
And I’m deeply thankful to everyone who has supported my work along the way.
To see BIG CHIEF – INDIAN BLUE traveling from Louisiana to Venice feels like carrying a piece of New Orleans with me.
And I cannot wait to share that story with the world.
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Jen Morgan
Jen Morgan Creative Arts
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