(BTC) Pops Ghost

BTC Stands for "Behind the Curtain". Its a look at work created by various artists, photographers and creators around the world. 

Its a small peak behind the curtain as to how the piece was created and the conceptual ideas behind it. 

All art comes with a story. 

Pops Ghost was taken from an original photo I took 3 years before Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans. The street art is long gone now. But Louis Armstrong's smile still shines down on the city. I think what made this image so haunting for me was that I took it at 3 in the morning. I did a lot of street wandering back then, camera ready for anything that caught my eye. I came around a corner and in the glow of a street light there was Pops laughing above me. I swear I could almost hear his trumpet playing in the distance.

I'd honestly forgotten I'd photographed this until I rediscovered it on a damaged hard drive recently. Since it never survived the hurricane, its a precious reminder of the time before the city was so changed by disaster.

Here is the original photo. You will note that I did quite a bit of work taking out the hanging wires and recoloring the whole piece. This will become part of my Surreal New Orleans series as a reminder of the laughter and music this city is known for.