Heather Mattingly
I've lived in New Orleans all my life, but before Katrina happened, I took it for granted. The old French Quarter buildings, with their architectural ironwork and huge ferns hanging from their balconies. Eating beignets at Cafe Du'Monde while listening to live Jazz, and the calliope coming from the river. Jackson Square's art, palm reading, street performers, jugglers, magicians, and mimes. Oak trees that are centuries old with mossy limbs good for shade, and climbing on. Crossing the path of an alligator while hiking through the swamp, and seeing the sunset on the bayou. These are some of my favorite things, and I realize now, what we almost lost. I've been a carpenter for 10 years and I take great pride in helping to rebuild or homes and lives. I've always enjoyed working with my hands, especially when it comes to creating. During the gutting process of a renovation, I think of uses for the old wood removed and the scrap metal parts that seem to always fill my kitchen drawer. After Katrina, we all embraced the fleur de lis, our symbol of strength, endurance, pride, and love for New Orleans. I came up with the idea to make a sculpture of the fleur de lis using all kinds of stuff I found after the storm. For three and a half years now, I've been composing "Fleur Debris" sculptures and it has become an obsession. It's a thrilling hunt for me to dig through garage sales, finding old costume jewelry, broken watches, vintage buttons, and other items deemed useless by their seller. What's even more exciting is finding junk metal in the street, like bottlecaps that have been rolled over a million times and are now flattened and rusted. I love making art and I love New Orleans. We have an extraordinary melting pot of culture, the best food in the world, and of course Mardi Gras!
Heather Mattingly
