Visual Artist J. Renee releases From Zulu with Love the official Mardi Gras Poster for the famed Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club Mardi Gras Krewe

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
Laura B. Tennyson
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lauratennyson_2@msn.com

Visual Artist J. Renee releases From Zulu with Love the official Mardi Gras Poster for the famed Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club Mardi Gras Krewe
Commemorative Poster depicts Zulu warrior as King of Hearts

New Orleans (February1, 2012)- Visual Artist J. Renee released From Zulu With Love, a commemorative poster for the Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Clubs' 2012 Mardi Gras season, at a special Mardi Gras kick-off reception hosted by New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu.

From Zulu with Love, a poster rendered from J. Renee's original reverse glass art painting, depicts the Zulu king as a dual King of Hearts holding a "Z" embossed black coconut-- the coveted Mardi Gras throw that is given out during Zulu's momentous parade on Fat Tuesday. Above the image of the stately king is the ornamental metal craftwork of Creole artisans who built many of the stately homes of New Orleans. Cherubs fly around the king with bows and arrows spreading Zulu love. A native of New Orleans, J. Renee was displaced by Hurricane Katrina and is embracing the honor of being the first African American women to create the Zulu poster as her official New Orleans homecoming. The poster is available for purchase at the Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club Memorabilia shop at 803 N. Broad Street. Also, J. Renee will be selling and signing From Zulu With Love at the following special events:

Wednesday, February 8
12 noon- Round Table Luncheon at the Royal Sonesta Hotel (luncheon ticket required)

5:30pm - 8:00pm - Art Happy Hour at the JW Marriott Hotel, Canal St.

Saturday, February 11
1pm-4pm M Francis Gallery, 604 Julia Street, New Orleans

Sunday, February 12
1pm - 4pm One Sun Gallery, 616 Royal Street, New Orleans

Friday, February 17
7pm Zulu Social Aid & Pleasure Club Ball, Convention Center (ball ticket required)

Monday, February 20
10am-7pm Lundi Gras Celebration at the Riverfront Aquarium

After spending her early years in Memphis, J. Renee attended Xavier University where she studied with the late renowned artist and Macarthur fellow John Scott and received a BS in Fine Arts. J. Renee developed her reverse glass painting technique--the art of painting an image on the reverse side of a piece of glass or glass object so that the image can be viewed from the unpainted side, while studying with Scott. The technique can be traced back to the early sixteenth century in Europe, and was known in China during the early 18th century. It has also become an extremely popular art form in Contemporary Senegal, West Africa.

With both national and international recognition, J Renee most recently exhibited at he MoCADA Museum in Brooklyn (a group show), presented two shows at the CCCAD Art Institute in New York, and participated in a group exhibition entitled The 400 years of Haiti exhibited at the United Nations in New York. She was also selected to participate in the South Carolina Biennial 2011 Exhibition at the Center for Contemporary Art. She has also had solo exhibitions at Benedict College in Columbia, S.C., the McKenna Museum of African-American Art and the International House Hotel in New Orleans. J. Renee has also participated in group exhibitions in New York City; Charleston, S.C.; and Washington, DC. Her paintings are in the permanent collections of the Southern University of Louisiana in Baton Rouge, the W.E.B. DuBois Museum in Ghana, and the McKenna Museum of African-American Art.

After narrowly escaping the floodwaters of Hurricane Katrina with her two small children and elderly mother, J. Renee lives in S. Carolina where she is currently working on new mixed media paintings on glass and paper depicting the essence and mysticism of New Orleans.

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