I find myself drawn back to historic Highland for this issue. Its vibrancy and artistic sensitivities contrast with the downtrodden and even neglected mood of the surrounding area. On the first Sunday this month, my family and I ventured out to experience the relatively new gem in Shreveport, the Highland Open Studios Tour (HOST).

Pioneered by Su Stella and Curt Harville, HOST began in May of this year, both as a sort of protest against commercial interests spurning local artists and as a freestyle venue to highlight the incredible talents of those artists.

From just five participants at its inception, HOST has blossomed to around 30 artists and nine locations, ranging from music, to painting, to glass, metalwork and much more.

We started at 436 Topeka, at the corner with Magnolia, and were greeted by Kerstie, Harville’s daughter, who helps administer the tour, as well as runs a dog-sitting service. Kerstie pointed out each of the artists on the lot, which included Lynn Laird (scrimshaw and face painting), Lisa Giblin (recycled mixed media and nifty “cereal boxes”), Stella (painting, drawing and glass work) and Harville (metalwork, including a metal rose).

Stella, a graduate of the Art Institute of Boston, and Harville, former Army and co-founder of the Red River Smiths, moved from Biloxi, Miss. to Shreveport seven years ago as a result of Hurricane Katrina.

With them came their momentum, and from their hard work, HOST has become a staple in Highland, which has been designated as Louisiana’s newest “Cultural District,” according to Stella, equating to tax-free sales on unique artwork.

“The Highland area is so cool,” said Stella. “It’s good fun for the people coming through, and we even have real estate agents doing open houses during the tours.”

Stella explained that bringing more people into Highland enriches the experience for everyone and opined, “The more people, the cooler it’s gonna be. We even have food trucks.”

Stella also pointed out that HOST is free to both artists and patrons and will remain that way to include artists who don’t live in the Highland neighborhood.

Further down the tour line is New Orleans native Karen La Beau with her expressionist acrylic paintings of South Louisiana cross sections. One of my personal favorites was the moody Atchafalaya scene, while my son preferred the colorful “curly tree.”  Look for an artist profile of La Beau in an upcoming issue, or you can go talk to her in person at next month’s tour on December 1.

At our last stop, we ambled into Jeormie Journell’s house and listened to some live music while admiring the paintings. We even chatted with a few folks we had seen earlier in our tour, and it seemed like an immediate family of like souls converging around art.

We will definitely go back (and perhaps exhibit) next month! The tour opens every first Sunday of the month, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the admission is free.

Learn more at restorehighland.org.

– See more at: http://heliopolissbc.com/Article/open-studio-tours-offer-artists-exposure-highland-cultural-district#sthash.K2PPCXnZ.dpuf