Urania study

Urania, meaning "heavenly", is the muse of the stars and astronomy. She is associated with universal love and the divine spirit. She foretells the future by the arrangement of the stars. 

4" x 6" framed original watercolor study

There are nine streets in the Lower Garden District named after the Muses of Greek mythology—the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. These classical street names are thanks to New Orleans City Planner, Smuggler + Pirate Barthelemy Lafon, who had grand plans for the LGD to resemble the classical aesthetic of European cities, giving streets names like Coliseum, and of course, the muses. Leave it to who else than Art Director Jamie Lehr to have this local history up her sleeve.

New Orleans' rich history of muses isn’t limited to the street names of the LGD. The Krewe of Muses was of course the first-ever womxns’ Mardi Gras krewe. Kim Bernadas’ bronze sculpture ‘Birth of a Muse’ is located Terpsichore finger park near Prytania, and was the first work commissioned by the Arts Council following Hurricane Katrina.

"According to myth, poets, artists, scholars, and musicians would call on their particular Muse to ask for inspiration and guidance in their creative process.” Gemini is Femaissance’s first exhibition in the LGD, we couldn’t think of a stronger way to marry project and place than with Clayre’s muses. An homage to both the classical and the current, the 9 Muses fuses local and art history with womxn who inspire us today, in a thought-provoking body of work that demonstrates what it means to be muse-worthy today, and celebrates the power of female collaboration.