New Orleans 4

I hope you aren't tired of New Orleans yet.  There are simply so many things I want to share with you, and one of them is the morning we spent at the Degas House.  You recognize the name Edgar Degas, a noted French Impressionist painter, of course.  What you might not realize is that his mother was born in New Orleans, and he visited his American cousins for about four months.  During that time he painted many works - mostly family portraits painted while inside.  Although he loved the city and appreciated the light, his eyes were troubling him so the light was actually painful.  

We arrived early for our scheduled tour and decided to walk along the street.  Here are some houses one block down from the Degas House.  In the photo below you can see a man in a pink shirt who was overseeing work being done on re-building the front porch of the bright green house (with purple and red trim).  As we walked by, I could see the carpenter cutting the grooves (by hand with mallet and chisel) in which the boards would fit.  He worked quickly and with practiced precision.

Although this is a historic area, the rules governing historic homes are different from what we are used to here.  In New Orleans, they may suggest what one might consider doing.  However, most home owners do what pleases them and no one complains.  

 The orange house is next to the green one and then there is the blue one . . .

followed by a lovely pink Creole bungalow style.  You can just see the lavender cottage on the corner beyond the pink house.

Then I took this picture to get a better notion of the lavender color and its curving iron work.  While taking the photo, I saw the crape myrtle bush in the garden next door.  Matching pink blossoms!

But this is probably my favorite shot - the bright red motorcycle parked on the sidewalk in front of the semi-sedate Victorian home.  Juxtapositions, again!

While on the tour of the Degas House (our guide was a great-grand niece of Degas), I was asked not to take any photographs.  Later, I did ask if I could take one of a particular location and when granted permission, I was asked again not to publish any photos.  I'm not sure, but I got the impression the house is privately owned (though not by any Degas relatives), and the owner is quite particular about what is permitted.  What matters is that it was a tour worth taking (there were just the two of us) as we learned a great deal about Degas' visit as well as its possible influence on his work.  If you are interested, you can Google "Degas House New Orleans" and see quite a bit of the house and its surrounds.

Tomorrow will be the last day I will spend on this trip because it really isn't fair to go on and on about it.  However, the entry tomorrow will be about what I think is my favorite part of the trip . . .