When LSU College of Art & Design Dean Alkis Tsolakis moved to Baton Rouge in 2012, one of his first curiosities was how the city interacted with the iconic river flowing through it. To Tsolakis, a native of the Greek island of Aegina who has lived around the world, a significant waterway like the Mississippi River was surely a hub for celebrating natural beauty, culture, and recreation.
But Tsolakis quickly discovered that Baton Rougeans lacked a real relationship with the river because manmade levees have long obstructed its viewshed. What the city needed, believed Tsolakis, was to be re-introduced to its most untapped asset: the largest river in the United States and the muse of countless artists, writers, and rivermen.
“This is a town that should be defined by the river,” said Tsolakis. “We should all be asking, ‘Why are we not on the river and what can we do to bring ourselves closer to it?’”
The audacious query formed the basis of a series of discussions between Tsolakis and Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge President/CEO Renee Chatelain. The two began discuss the possibility of collaborating on a first-of-its-kind river-centric arts and culture festival.
Named Ebb & Flow, the inaugural event will be held April 1 & 2, 2017 on the downtown levee and riverfront from LASM to the USS Kidd, and will include activities at Repentance Park. Unlike other festivals situated in downtown’s interior, Ebb & Flow will give attendees a clear vista of the Mississippi. It will feature public art, live music, food, performing arts and opportunities to consider the river’s ecological significance.
“This is an important first step in getting people to experience the river,” said Tsolakis. “From there, the possibilities for how we interact with it are endless.”
Tsolakis himself is intrigued with river barges and references mobile arts festivals in other global cities in which barges transport exhibits and performers up and down the river, linking the cultures and people of port cities through multi-media art installations. Tsolakis also references cities like Portland, Oregon, which reconnected to its waterfront through the installation of parks and jogging trails in the mid-seventies.
Ebb & Flow’s potential benefits to the community are vast, said Tsolakis. It could inspire research opportunities for students in the College of Art & Design. And as it grows, it could trigger new cultural and recreational development that could draw visitors from around the country and the world.
“One of the marvelous things about waterfronts is that they are the natural gathering points of the whole town,” said Tsolakis. “Usually it happens spontaneously, but sometimes it just needs a push. This festival is that push. I believe it’s going to help us say something about what makes Baton Rouge special.”
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