Mardi Gras World: A Classic Contemporary
On the New Orleans east
bank of the Mississippi River, nestled between the lifeblood of the river and the
heartbeat of the city, a sprawling complex of airplane hanger-sized art studios
provide gestation for New Orleans’ most precious annual arrival, the magnificent
Mardi Gras. First birthed on the west
bank of the river, though hardly a skyscraper, Mardi Gras World has long been a
towering presence on the urban landscape of New Orleans. Established in 1947 by Blaine Kern as Blaine
Kern Studios, the operation has flourished into a multi-faceted industry, serving
not only New Orleans carnival krewes but international clients alike. Though known primarily to visitors as a
tourist attraction, Mardi Gras World’s organic history, humble beginnings, and
family ties are well preserved in its small-town approach to big business, a
concept New Orleanians seem to embrace more than most other urban dwellers. Paramount to its daily events is the essence
of its inception and Kern’s vision for the city he loves so well. Undeniable in the way Mardi Gras World impacts
the urban landscape are its creative contributions, but beneath the bright
colors and flamboyant images is an infinite reverence for the city that built
the Kern family and the manifestation of such devotion into joy and service to New
Orleans, its prolific culture, its resilient people, and its vibrant spirit.
Though Blaine Kern is a visionary of
grand proportions, such magnificent realities often require more than the work
of the dreamer, so in the early years of production, Kern hired local artists
to help him keep up with krewe demands, and he eventually opened the working
studio for public tours upon overwhelming request. As the operation grew, however,
Kern remained motivated by an idea obscure to many regarding the social constructs
of Mardi Gras. In the post-civil war
era, Mardi Gras krewes were established as elitist organizations. Systematically excluded from membership
were minority populations including Jews, Italians, Latin Americans, Asians,
women, and blacks, ultimately growing in power to rule most of the city’s civic
and commercial activities. (Toledano
2007: 28) Having grown up poor in Algiers and remaining
fiercely loyal to his roots, Blaine Kern set out to “democratize a holiday that
had previously been the province of the upper class”. (Kern, 2018) In
1968, he and other local business owners founded Krewe of Bacchus which blazed
a trail for a more accurate representation of social and cultural status along
the parade route. Subsequently, Zulu began parading from black neighborhoods to
roll the main routes, and today scores of diverse krewes participate in the monumental,
months long celebration each year. “Historians, anthropologists, and cultural
critics have long argued that one of the keys to New Orleans creative culture
has been its ability to blur lines of race and ethnicity that are more sharply
drawn elsewhere in America.” (Beriss
2012: 11)
Today Mardi Gras World is a place
for locals and tourists alike to experience a behind-the-scenes peak of the creative
process of float building. Tickets range
from $10-$19.95, and tours run daily from 9:00am- 5:30pm. The 30,000
square foot event center is host to parties, conventions, and team building
activities, as well as, various local charity events and festivals. These functions
generate substantial revenue for the city not to include the far-reaching economic
impact of Mardi Gras itself which was found in a 2015 Tulane University
analysis to be in the range of $400 million rendering the city’s tax revenue at
$17.5 million. (Weiss 2015) Mardi Gras
World continues to uphold a precedent to employ local artists to Kern Studios
and bolsters the job market for local hospitality and entertainment industry
prospects in other aspects of operation.
Though the enterprise is massive, it remains a rather fundamental part
of life in New Orleans. Mardi Gras World
is both a relic and contemporary, an antique and an avant-garde. The hub
of studios on the riverfront has spawned small microcosms in neighborhoods across
the city intrinsic to the daily lives of its residents. Whether a small working garage in the Irish
Channel or an enormous storage warehouse in Central City, passing by an open
overhead door revealing colorful contents is akin to an unexpected peek at Santa’s
workshop, ever reminding New Orleanians that the countdown to Mardi Gras begins
the day it ends each year. Much like the
rest of the world might anticipate Santa and his reindeer, New Orleanians can’t
wait to see what gift-laden sleighs await behind the potentially largest fleet
of farm tractors this or that side of
the Mississippi. For
locals, carnival season is a deliberate exercise in coming together, coexisting,
and celebrating diversity. Some may
argue that Kern Studios is to modern Mardi Gras what cables are to the
streetcar. Some may argue it’s the
streetcar itself, but in true New Orleans form, absolutely no one is arguing that Mardi Gras should ever be anything but more extravagant than it
was before which conceivably cinches a place for Mardi Gras World on the urban landscape
of New Orleans for worlds to come.
“Everybody on planet Earth knows
New Orleans and they love our
people, food, music, and parades. It's delicious what I've accomplished, and
it's all because my heart belongs to New Orleans…God, I love this city.”
-Blaine Kern, “Mr. Mardi Gras”-
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