Lobby Art

“From myriad lands, comprised countless races, the people of New Orleans came to a new world and settled upon the crescent of an old river which serpentines in ceaseless wonder at the calm and tranquility which unite us.”

The theme of the 9′ by 16′ bronze sculpture by Gyuri Hollosy located in the main lobby of the “Heritage Plaza building is “Heritage of the Greater New Orleans area.”

The composition of the feature is based on the geographical outline of the Mississippi River crescent, in which New Orleans is located. The lakes included are Lake Borgne, Lake Salvador, Lac des Allemands, Lake Maurepas and Lake Pontchartrain.

Placed within these areas are certain heroic size heads and figures. In the New Orleans crescent is a Frenchman (1), in the Bayou Gauche,, St. Charles Parish area is the head of the Spaniard (2) with a monk (3) near him representing religion and education. In the Lafourche area are Indians (4) and a frontiersman (5). In the St. John the Baptist area is the section of the plantations with the head of an African-American man (6). Near Jefferson Parish, toward Barataria Bay, the Battle of New Orleans is depicted with Andrew Jackson (7) on horseback. The bow of a ship below (8) respresents the maritime industry. The two figures on the right are Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn (9), well-known fictional characters associated with the river. The area between Lake Pontchartrain and Lake Borgne is another battle scene (10) of the Civil War. Above the Mississippi River, near the plantation is a mother and child (11) and below the river is a woman’s head (12) representing nuns and women’s contributions to the area’s heritage. Near the ship is a privateer’s head (13), recalling the days of adventures of Jean Lafitte.

The entire sculpture is executed in overlays of bronze with a variation of patina in hues from green to dark bronze.