I made this 4-piece series in 2021 for the “mARTi Gras” fundraiser of the Northeast Louisiana Arts Council to support their work during the challenging pandemic times.

In that year, all excessive Mardi Gras festivities had to be canceled for a second time in a row; instead of enjoying grand Mardi Gras galas and parties and wild parades of elaborate floats, Louisianians quietly turned to decorating the outsides of their homes and held online competitions for best creativity. 

The muted festivities were the inspiration for my series – Mardi Gras in a vaccuum.

I used my grandmother’s sewing thread and lots of home-punched confetti to create a 3D effect of the beads, the signature element of Mardi Gras.