The Barefoot Cajun's Barn
Hannah Gumbo brings public art to private land, inviting all to meet the family
Imagine yourself an urbanite from somewhere far, far from here. Maybe you even wear a suit, even when it’s Saturday. It’s been years since you’ve seen an uninterrupted skyscape and longer since you’ve tasted anything that wasn’t store-bought. You’re craving something quiet, something pure, something vibrant. You’ve watched a rerun of Anthony Bourdain’s trip to that stretch of small Louisiana towns called Acadiana, and now you find yourself driving aimlessly in an unfamiliar small town, hoping to catch a glimpse of this thing they call “joie de vivre.” You can see it—in the backyard barbecues, in the vast crawfish lakes, in the old—if simple—architecture. But you, as an outsider, can’t quite touch it.
“When I first moved to Eunice,” said artist Hannah Thibodeaux (Hannah Gumbo), “I was like ‘Oh I’d love to walk beside a crawfish pond. I’d love get out and see that gorgeous tree. But, the thing is, it’s all private land.”
Gumbo’s latest project brought her right into the center of rural Eunice, painting a mural on a fifty-eight-year-old family barn. Typically an art form valued for bringing art into the public sphere, this mural turns that particular form of gift on its head: it is inviting the public to share in a single family’s story. “It’s an invitation,” said Gumbo. “Come and see us, and meet the family who grew up here.”
The project was first conceived as an homage to Calvin Smith, who built the barn with his neighbors in 1962 and was known within his family as “The Barefoot Cajun” for his personal aversion to shoes. His son Darrel, finding himself living once again in the family home—a space filled with his mother’s spirit—wanted to find a way to mark his father’s story, too.
Gumbo went to work, using her signature flair for show-stopping color and design to illustrate long-dormant Smith family stories. “I’d meet new people every time I got out there,” said Gumbo. “The nieces and nephews and cousins would come and the project would spark memories people hadn’t told in a long time. It really took on a life of its own.”
Completed in time for a family reunion at the end of October, the mural is just visible from the road if you are looking for it through the trees (at 1444 Highway 758, Eunice LA). But the plan is that a sign will soon be set up for people to come onto the property and get a closer look. “The family is really excited to share the mural space,” said Gumbo. St. Landry Tourism will also list it on their website as an attraction worth visiting.
“As we try to get people to come visit small town America,” mused Gumbo, “where we don’t necessarily have the manpower for big public events like festivals—maybe we should keep in mind that people passing through want to connect with the people there. And that sometimes, that can be hard to do for an outsider. Maybe, it’s more about living this life that is full of art and life and culture—and then inviting people into it.”
Visitors can see Calvin Smith's barn and its mural at 1444 Highway 758 Eunice, LA.