Congo Square 1999 Jazz Fest poster By Evita Tezeno Signed & Numbered

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" Congo Square 1999 "Signed & Numbered By Evita TezenoIn Great Condition! Never been Framed!Overall Size: 22" x 34"Les Demoiselles du Congo Squareby Evita TezenoArtist Evita Tezeno reclaims the African aesthetic appropriated by Picasso in 1906. Her passionate collage evokes the rhythmic dances that thundered through Congo Square (now part of Louis Armstrong park) each Sunday a century and a half ago. Masked spirits soar through fragmented bodies. Spring flowers emphasize renewal. A magnificent synthesis of African & Western beauty.Congo SquareCongo Square U.S. National Register of Historic Places Congo Square Location Jct. of Rampart and St. Peter Sts., New Orleans, Louisiana Coordinates 29°57′39″N 90°4′6″W Coordinates : 29°57′39″N 90°4′6″W Area 2.7 acres (1.1 ha) Governing body Local NRHP Reference # 92001763 [1] Added to NRHP January 28, 1993Congo Square is an open space within Louis Armstrong Park , which is located in the Tremé neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana , just across Rampart Street north of the French Quarter . The Tremé neighborhood is famous for its history of African American music .In Louisiana 's French and Spanish colonial era of the 18th century, slaves were commonly allowed Sundays off from their work. Although Code Noir was implemented in 1724, giving slaves the day off on Sundays, there were no laws in place giving slaves the right to congregate. Despite constant threat to these congregations, they often gathered in remote and public places such as along levees, in public squares, in backyards, and anywhere they could find. It was not until 1817 that the mayor of New Orleans issued a city ordinance that restricted any kind of slave gathering to the one location of Congo Square. They were allowed to gather in the "Place des Nègres", "Place Publique", later "Circus Square" or informally "Place Congo" [2] at the "back of town" (across Rampart Street from the French Quarter ), where the slaves would set up a market , sing, dance, and play music. This singing, dancing and playing started as a byproduct of the original market during the French reign. At the time slaves could purchase their freedom and could freely buy and sell goods in the square in order to raise money to escape slavery. [3]The tradition continued after the city became part of the United States with the Louisiana Purchase . As African music had been suppressed in the Protestant colonies and states, the weekly gatherings at Congo Square became a famous site for visitors from elsewhere in the U.S. In addition, because of the immigration of refugees (some bringing slaves) from the Haitian Revolution , New Orleans received thousands of additional Africans and Creoles in the early years of the 19th century. They reinforced African traditions in the city, in music as in other areas. Many visitors were amazed at the African-style dancing and music. Observers heard the beat of the bamboulas and wail of the banzas , and saw the multitude of African dances that had survived through the years. There were a variety of dances that could be seen in Congo Square including the Bamboula, Calinda, Congo, Carabine and Juba. The rhythms played at Congo square can still be heard today in New Orleans jazz funerals, second lines and Mardi Gras Indians parades.Townsfolk would gather around the square on Sunday afternoons to watch the dancing. In 1819, the architect Benjamin Latrobe , a visitor to the city, wrote about the celebrations in his journal. Although he found them "savage", [2] he was amazed at the sight of 500-600 unsupervised slaves who assembled for dancing. He described them as ornamented with a number of tails of the smaller wild beasts, with fringes, ribbons, little bells, and shells and balls, jingling and flirting about the performers' legs and arms. The women, one onlooker reported, wore, each according to her means, the newest fashions in silk, gauze, muslin, and percale dresses. The males covered themselves in oriental and Indian dress and covered themselves only ... read more

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