Cajun masks, also known as "Mardi Gras masks," are a traditional part of the Mardi Gras celebration in Louisiana, particularly in the Cajun communities of the southern part of the state. These masks are often brightly colored and decorated with sequins, beads, and feathers, and are worn by revelers during the Mardi Gras season, which begins on Epiphany and culminates on the day before Ash Wednesday.
Cajun masks have a long history that is closely tied to the cultural traditions of the Cajun people. Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, has its roots in ancient Roman times, when it was a celebration of excess and indulgence before the start of the Catholic season of Lent. When the French colonized Louisiana in the 18th century, they brought with them the traditions of Mardi Gras, which became a popular celebration among the Cajuns, a group of French-speaking descendants of Acadian exiles from Canada.
Cajun masks are an integral part of the Mardi Gras celebration, as they are used to hide the identity of the person wearing them and to add an element of mystery and excitement to the festivities. The masks are often made by hand, using materials such as papier-mache, fabric, and paint. Some Cajun masks are simple, with just a few basic decorations, while others are more elaborate, with intricate designs and numerous beads and sequins.
In addition to being worn during Mardi Gras, Cajun masks are also used in other cultural traditions, such as the Courir de Mardi Gras, a traditional Cajun Mardi Gras celebration that involves costumed revelers going door-to-door collecting ingredients for a communal gumbo. Cajun masks are also worn at other cultural events, such as the Louisiana Folklife Festival and the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival.
Overall, Cajun masks are an important part of the cultural traditions of the Cajun people and are an integral part of the Mardi Gras celebration in Louisiana. These masks serve not only as a way to hide the identity of the wearer, but also as a way to express creativity and to celebrate the rich cultural heritage of the Cajun people.
Cajun Mardi Gras Masks
Manuel bedecked herself in their creations as one of the riders in the 1991 Eunice Courir de Mardi Gras. A piece of galvanized wire screen about eight or ten inches square is placed in the wire screen for the chin Arnow 1987:119. We found her months after the flood living alone in her unrepaired home with no hot water. Allen Manuel's painted masks utilize improvised or spontaneous geometric patterns using a wide range of color. Economic conditions in early twentieth century Cajun southwestern Louisiana promoted recycling of many material items; masks were used repeatedly with Courir de Mardi Gras participants repainting their masks from previous years Manuel 1991. The wire screen mask from Duson owned by the Manuels retains its cheesecloth lining or backing.
Shapes and strokes evident in his painting style vary with his moods. Absence of this metal strip or band in the forehead area may indicate that the mask was once attached to a cloth skull or wig cap. There was no plan in place when Hurricane Harvey hit. Neither of these masks has added features or information concerning their makers, places of origin, or original purposes Manuel 1991. A Joyful Noise: A Celebration of New Orleans Music. Delivering Cajun Food Nationwide.
Both costumes and capuchons were made without patterns, since Mrs. Call or stop by to be added to a waitlist. Elaine Eff, Baltimore folklorist and co-founder of the Painted Screen Society of Baltimore, has done extensive fieldwork concerning the painted window and door screen within her city, but this Baltimore tradition did not include mask making Eff 1988:A-13. Both Georgie and Allen Manuel use enamel paint to decorate the masks, and both strive to leave the wire screen as free of paint as possible to make the mask cooler for the masker. One rare example has an acrylic pile fur moustache, but the rest of the features are painted. The couple demonstrates distinct paint or decorative styles.
If ribbon or cloth strips are used, the ribbon or cloth may or may not match the fabric ribbon used on the edge of the mask, although Mrs. Because few wire screen masks have become part of permanent exhibits and the number of vintage photographs is severely limited, it is difficult to establish the characteristics of a traditional Cajun wire screen mask style. Should the wire screen develop a hole or become damaged during the shaping of facial features, the partially completed mask is discarded. Call or stop by to be added to a waitlist. Call or stop by to be added to a waitlist.
Georgie and Allen Manuel and Cajun Wire Screen Masks
This mold, made from a single board, contains four holes: a triangular, elongated nose, two circular eyes, and an oval-shaped mouth. Once hammering is complete, the chin is shaped by overlapping the two wire screen pieces beneath the mouth, and the wire screen is stapled twice. Manuel opened a shop, Potpourri, Inc. Once Georgie and Allen Manuel married, their involvement in Cajun Mardi Gras continued. Several of their masks have decorative fringe; either the commercially-produced fringe sold in fabric stories or the cloth fringe found on Courir de Mardi Gras capuchons and costumes. This lining or backing undoubtedly aided the disguise in addition to increasing the wearer's comfort.
This essay is dedicated to the memory of Alma McGee, Cecelia Manuel, and Artemon Manuel. These commercially produced masks continued to be imported and sold into the early twentieth century or until about 1925 Nunley and Bettelheim 1988:202,n51. These features do not often appear in wire screen masks from Cajun Southwest Louisiana; Georgie Manuel has obtained a contemporary wire screen mask from Mamou with holes cut for the masker's eyes. Unfortunately no mask or vintage photographs have surfaced that verify these two accounts. This business imported wire screen masks and sold them by the dozens in five varieties: gentlemen's regular masks, ladies' regular masks, gentlemen's masks with spectacles, gentlemen's masks with beards, and assorted masks with moveable jaws Manuel 1989:6. While discussing past New Orleans Mardi Gras customs, Allison "Tootie" Montan, Big Chief of the Yellow Pocahontas Mardi Gras Indian Tribe, remembered, "Even all the gay people used to mask.
In addition to hobby and crafts items, this shop continues to stock her costumes and capuchons, her and her husband's wire screen masks, as well as other essential ingredients for the Courir de Mardi Gras such as various kinds of gloves, wigs, and jingle bells. Like those painted by his wife, Mr. They use window screens, chicken feathers, yarn, hair, Magic Markers, and hot glue as they create fanciful, even bizarre masks that will be worn just one day in the year. One mask that is featured in the advertisement's line drawing has puffed or rounded cheeks, a sharp extended nose, eyebrows with individual detail, hair in bangs and brushed from the sides in a form similar to the eyebrows, and holes cut for the pupils of the eyes Manuel 1989:6. After a disaster, when the camera's have left and funds have dried up, the most vulnerable in our communities are often left to rebuild their lives with little outside organized assistance. No examples of these advertised masks have been found in Cajun Southwest Louisiana.
Artemon Manuel, Allen's father, insisted on the traditional wire screen masks based on one example that he had saved from the 1950s. And it's an atmosphere that prevails. Georgie and Allen Manuel participate in the Eunice Mardi Gras. Such creations transform their wearers into wild revelers who move through the countryside singing, dancing, and begging for money and food. . Unfortunately we were too late, our team found Mrs Etta passed away in her home only 3 days after we rebuilt it.
Fulfilling a lifelong dream, Mrs. Additional information will aid in understanding the Courir de Mardi Gras's traditions and its artistic, cultural, and historical significance. Both quickly learned that aluminum wire screen was not sturdy enough for the masks; Allen Manuel's discovery of some old galvanized wire screen provided the essential material for future masks. Some of this Mardi Gras trade included orders for the local women-only Courir de Mardi Gras. Colors of fabric ribbon, metal strips or bands, or tape strips may or may not match the colors of the decoration on the mask.
