George Rodrigue Foundation of the Arts

08/13/2026

Congratulations to our 3rd Place Senior Winner of our 2026 Annual Scholarship Art & Songwriting Contest!

Claire Rimmer
“Among the Cypress Trees”
Senior
Caddo Parish Magnet High School, Shreveport
Acrylic

My 16 by 20 inch acrylic painting, Among the Cypress Trees represents the contrast between the natural world and the world that people created. The scene shows some of the aftermath from Hurricane Laura, which caused devastation to many in Louisiana and Texas back in 2020. The house in the center of the painting belongs to a close family friend, who felt the effects of this storm first hand. However, surrounding the destruction of the house is a bright sunrise shining over Lake Calcasieu; the rays of light reflecting over the water and the Cypress Trees. The contrast between the darkness seen in the man made structures and the radiance of the natural elements that encompass it highlights the constancy of nature. While human structures may falter and unavoidable disasters may occur, the sun will always rise to shine again.

08/06/2026

Congratulations to our 4th Place Senior Winner of our 2026 Annual Scholarship Art & Songwriting Contest!

Makalya Rhodes
“Paw Paw T-Earl’s Boat, The Native Dancer at Rest”
Homeschool, Dulac
Graphite/Pencil

The title of my drawing is named Paw paw T-Earl’s Boat, The Native Dancer at Rest. I used Prisma Color- color pencils and Strathmore 3000 series poster board. I started in early November drawing this piece and it took me over two months to complete. My drawing depicts my late grandfather’s shrimp boat, the Native Dancer just as the morning sun is rising. I choose to draw the boat as it once was, in its glory and not how it spent its last years sunk and rotting in the bayou. The Native Dancer, once a beloved family sh*****ng vessel, was shining proudly when docked in Bayou Grand Caillou of Dulac when owned by Earl Thibodeaux. He built the wooden, 56 feet long, 19 feet wide shrimp boat. Its first maiden voyage was in September of 1981. My grandfather was proud of his boat and maintained it with great care. Sadly in November 2009 my grandfather was losing his battle with cancer. He made the heartbreaking decision to sell his beloved boat just a few weeks before he passed away. The boat that he built and worked to provide a living for him to take care of his family would now provide for him to be laid to rest. The boat’s name was changed and years later sunk in the bayou. Just recently, as part of a clean up the bayou effort, the boat was picked up and destroyed to remove it from the waterway, now it to finally at rest. My grandfather was not afraid of death, but worried I would not remember him as I was only two years old at the time of his passing. I will always remember him, and wanted to dedicate my senior year drawing to honor him and his legacy.

07/29/2026

Join us for an unforgettable evening at The Aioli Dinner Supper Club on Thursday, September 24, 2026, from 6:30-9:30 p.m.!

Hosted by Henry and Pat Shane at their home in Kenner (just outside of New Orleans), this special event features a four-course, wine-paired dinner and an exclusive tour of one of the largest private collections of original George Rodrigue artwork with nearly 100 original paintings rarely seen by the public.

Proceeds benefit the arts education programs of the George Rodrigue Foundation of the Arts.

For tickets and more information visit aiolidinner.com/event/the-aioli-dinner-supper-club-kenner/

07/14/2026

Congratulations to our 5th Place Senior Winner of our 2026 Annual Scholarship Art & Songwriting Contest!

Sarah Gordon
"Hidden in Plain Sight”
St. Joseph's Academy, Baton Rouge

Mixed Media

My piece is about the truth behind plantations and their background history of slavery. Through the use of intense crosshatching I chose to represent the lost history of slavery to the shadows. Showing in the lighter section of the piece is a wedding, to show how people tend to visit plantations as entertainment for the pretty views, without knowledge of the dark history behind the tall buildings. In the shadows of the plantation is a large crop field with slaves working hard to get sugar cane, commonly found in Louisiana. Farther back under the shadows of clouds are slave cabins with people in the distance who where once taken advantage of because of their race. I wanted to bring to light the darkness behind plantations, as they have become a spot of common excursions without full knowledge of the painful history behind them.

07/07/2026

Congratulations to our 1st Place Junior winner of our 2026 Annual Scholarship Art & Songwriting Contest!

Dare Macchione
“Life Through the Bayou”
New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, New Orleans

Acrylic

This is an acrylic painting based on a photograph I took while walking through City Park. I wanted to capture the ethereal illumination of the sunlight through the trees. This idea drew me in because of how all the figures have a halo of light framing them. This piece depicts a mother and daughter watching the White Ibis birds. I wanted to show the relationship between people and nature. In a time when man and the natural world have such a complex relationship, with global warming, pollution, deforestation, I wanted to make a piece to show some light in the dark times. The sun illuminates the leaves and the figures from behind, showing family and community connecting with one another through nature. These ideas are shown through this simple, almost mundane scene. This scene of two families of different species that have the same interest in each other. I remember when I was a little girl, feeding the birds and ducks in City Park with my mother. How fascinated I was with the birds and the trees, and how the roots stuck out of the ground like knees. When we are children, everything seems so big and meaningful, even if it’s just as simple as trees. I try to continue that feeling when I make and find my art. Now that I am a teenager, it's easy to take the world for granted. So being in that mindset helps me slow down and appreciate the beautiful life around me. The world is in such a confusing time right now, it's hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I hope my work helps other people slow down and see life in this way sometimes, too.

06/25/2026

Congratulations to our 2nd Place Junior Winner of our 2026 Annual Scholarship Art & Songwriting Contest!

Shiyin Wang�“Echo”
Baton Rouge Magnet High School/ 533 Art Studio, Baton Rouge

Oil/Acrylic

Despite the wonders of the Louisiana landscape, many animals are becoming endangered due to habitat loss and human activity. This painting uses the idea of echo to suggest that the loss of even a single life creates ripples beyond what is immediately seen. Whether or not these animals are officially endangered, their disappearance will echo throughout the ecosystem, causing lasting and far-reaching effects.

06/23/2026

Congratulations to our 3rd Place Junior winner of our 2026 Annual Scholarship Art & Songwriting Contest!

Sophia Elliott
"Farewell, Mama”
Caddo Parish Magnet High School, Shreveport

Mixed Media

Inspired by the pelicans of the Louisiana flag, this art piece tells the story of the youngest pelican finally leaving his mother's nest to pursue his career. His mother now slumbers under the shadow of her porch, while her son becomes more prominent as the sunlight grows stronger.

06/11/2026

In 2020, we partnered with The George Rodrigue Foundation of the Arts to expand their Annual Scholarship Art Contest to include a Songwriting Contest. For the last 6 years, we've been proud to help provide a platform for young creatives across Louisiana to showcase their work!

This year's Songwriting Contest winner, John Stephen Zaffuto Jr., performed his song at Shorty Fest Presented by Acura on April 27 (pictured here). He and two other finalists will also share $6000 in college scholarships. A native of Hammond, LA and a recent New Orleans Center for Creative Arts (NOCCA) graduate, he was interviewed and featured as a "Rising Star" by Tangi Lifestyles. Check out the link below to hear the interview. Congratulations again, John! ✨

LINK TO INTERVIEW ->
https://northshoremedia.net/2026/06/04/singer-songwriter-john-stephen-zaffuto-jr/

06/09/2026

Congratulations to our 4th place Junior Winner of the 2026 Annual Scholarship Art & Songwriting Contest!

Bobby Chen
"Inherited Waters”
Baton Rouge Magnet High School/533 Art Studio, Baton Rouge

Oil

The theme of light and shadow is expressed through a contrast between softness of new life and darkness of polluted waters, by juxtaposing a polluted bayou ruined by the effects of an oil spill with the fragility and innocence of a baby curled in a fetal position. Cradled in the oyster shell, the baby takes the shape of the flesh of the oyster symbolizing a life in danger. It represents future generations who will inherit the impacts of environmental neglect and by drawing a connection between the baby and the oyster shell, I want to show the interdependence between human life and nature, with neither being able to thrive without the other. The oyster represents the bayou as Louisiana’s signature gemstone as a creature that has greatly suffered due to both its immobility and dependence on clean water ruined by the effects of pollution. Oysters are natural filters and sustain the health of the bayou through cleansing the waters. As these keystone species decline, so does the cultural and economic foundation of Louisiana showing how humans are damaging not just the environment but also themselves. I was inspired by George Rodrigue to paint a unique narrative on the subject of the bayou, one not as a romanticized landscape (though it’s beautiful) but as a vulnerable ecosystem that is bearing the consequences of human exploitation. By merging human vulnerability with the damaged ecosystem, the piece suggests that environmental destruction is not only harming nature but endangering human life itself.

06/03/2026

George Rodrigue’s iconic Washington Blue Dog available for the first-time-ever as fine-art silkscreen print to benefit arts in education only for 2026!

Painted in 1992 as a tribute to the nation’s capital, the original 30x40-inch oil painting depicts the Blue Dog before the U.S. Capitol and the White House. Over the years, this celebrated image has held a special place in Washington, D.C. — with posters appearing in the offices across the city.

In celebration of America’s 250th anniversary, we are pleased to release Washington Blue Dog as a fine-art silkscreen print for the very first time.

The print will be available exclusively through the George Rodrigue Foundation of the Arts for the remainder of 2026 at $1,000.

Available now at https://bit.ly/washingtonbluedog

Celebrate America’s 250th Anniversary with George Rodrigue’s Washington Blue Dog commemorative silkscreen print featuring the U.S. Capitol and White House. Limited release available through December 31, 2026. Proceeds benefit the George Rodrigue Foundation of the Arts and the Haynie Family Found...