Downtown Baton Rouge roared to life on Saturday, April 6, and Sunday, April 7, with the Ebb and Flow Festival. Hosted by the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge, artistic expression and creative ingenuity were showcased throughout the Capitol City’s Downtown.
During the festival, it was evident that Louisiana’s coastal wetlands don’t just protect us from storms but also enhance our everyday lives by influencing our art and culture. Photographers, painters, and various artists shared the beauty of our coastal wetlands through their renderings of coastal landscapes, photographs of wading birds, and sculptures carved from cypress, all which were highlighted along the banks of the Mississippi River.
CWPPRA’s Outreach team had a steady flow of families throughout the day with our Wetland Jeopardy game and our new series of vintage project posters. Visitors asked us about the restoration techniques we implement and threats to our coastal zone. We were set up near the IDEA stage where young entrepreneurs practiced their pitches for competitions to secure funding for business startups. These high school students pitched a diverse range of fresh ideas for new businesses.
In addition to CWPPRA, organizations talked to visitors about topics from baking and nutrition to bike trails, youth involvement in the arts to raising show animals, and many others. Visitors could hunt for Easter eggs that contained puzzle pieces from the local Girl Scouts who were putting together a map of Louisiana and teaching about land loss. Musicians filled the Northern side of the festival. Hugging the river’s edge, the Louisiana Art and Science Museum was open for business.
CWPPRA 