The Boasting Ghost: caroline thomas

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Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Proteus Ball Invitation 2015

This year, I got the opportunity to do the ball invitation for the Krewe of Proteus. Their invitations have a long tradition, going back to the 1800's, of being lush, elaborate works of art. Most aspects of Mardi Gras production are on a tight schedule, but this time I got to take my time and make something more subtle and painterly than I normally have a chance to do.

I will post more explaining the theme after the parade rolls on Lundi Gras (February 16th), and I am able to post images of the floats and the original designs. Until then, I'll simply say that the theme is "Nature of the Beasts". For the invitation, I represented the King of Proteus as a seahorse, since that is the official symbol of the parade. The various animals seen inside and on the inserts are references to certain floats from this year's designs.

Enjoy!

Invitation folded

Invitation unfolded

Back of invitation

Insert

Ladies' ticket

Gentlemen's ticket

Monday, August 25, 2014

New Headdresses

Here's a new round of headdresses, just in time for Southern Decadence!

This last one I wore last weekend to Midsummer Mardi Gras. I like to take them for test runs ever so often, to see how they hold up, how people respond to them, etc. Overall, a great success, and I even ended up in the Times Picayune. Here's some detail shots of my makeup for the event:

Monday, July 21, 2014

Christmas in July

I apologize for the long hiatus - I've been deep in work for the Krewe of Proteus, and, unfortunately, I can't post any of it until after Mardi Gras. I am excited to announce that I will be illustrating the invitation for their ball this year, which, for those not familiar with the opulent works of art that Mardi Gras ball invitations can be, is a huge honor. Here is an old scrapbook that I found over at LSU's digital Mardi Gras collection that gives some mighty fine examples of the type of shoes I'm trying to fill.

Anyway, my birthday was the other day, and because I live in a house with a bunch of avid costumers, we decided to have a bike parade. The theme was "Christmas in July", and I spent the last couple weeks making headpieces and collecting old Christmas decorations for everyone. I made a big pot of red beans and rice and had people over in the late afternoon to decorate their bikes, play dress up, and generally pregame for the big ride. My friend Robin dressed as Santa (in a red and white bikini of course) and handed out presents to strangers. The wonderfully talented Kentucky Sisters brought along their ukuleles, and sang Christmas carols and various stops along the way. My friend Richard brought his portable speaker box, so when they were taking a rest from performing, we blasted the cheesiest of Christmas songs for all the French Quarter to hear. A good time was had by all, and judging by the reactions, we brought a lot of cheer to the strangers we encountered along the way.

I photographed some of my headdresses the day before the ride:

And here's some pics from the parade itself:

Sunday, March 16, 2014

New Headdresses!

While the rest of New Orleans was busy deglittering their apartments as part of the annual Lenten purge, I was determined to make one last costume run. Mardi Gras might be over, but festival season is just around the corner, which means it won't be long before people start shopping for their next bedazzled get up. Hopefully I'll be sending these off to Fifi Mahony's in the next week or so.

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Proteus 2014

Proteus! Painting the satire parades is a joy, but Proteus has a special place in my heart. Part of it certainly has to do with the fact that I'm also designing them, so there's more of a sense of ownership. But it's more tan that. It's the oldest night parade in the city - it's been rolling since the 1880's and still uses the original chassis, fashioned from old cotton wagons (complete with wooden wagon wheels that have to shipped off the an Amish contractor in Texas for repairs). One of my coworkers, Dan Dalrymple, described our work as the Galapagos of stagecraft. This is how things used to be made - papier mache, hand painted designs on stretched canvas, plywood cutouts, paper decorations. It's like travelling back in time to a George Melies set. There are bigger and higher budget parades at Mardi Gras. There are parades with celebrity guests and parades that spend thousands of dollars a head on custom-made throws. But Proteus has history and craftsmanship and beauty, and that's enough for me.

This year's theme was "The Ancient Elements of Alchemy". While there are some challenges with such an esoteric theme, the strong advantage is the seemingly endless amount of artwork on the topic that has been preserved over the centuries. To see some of the inspirations for the floats, check out my pinterest that I made while researching for the designs.

"1881: The Dawn of Proteus"
Painted by: Daniel Fuselier

"Philosopher's Stone"
Painted by: Caroline Thomas

"Aether"
Painted by: Caroline Thomas

"The Great Work"
Painted by: Caroline Thomas

"Gold (Sun)"
Painted by: Caroline Thomas

"Silver (Moon)"
Painted by: Ryan Blackwood

"Mercury"
Painted by: Caroline Thomas

"Copper (Venus)"
Painted by: Caroline Thomas

"Copper (Venus)"
Cut out by: Scarlett Torrence

"Copper (Venus)"
Painted by: Caroline Thomas

"Iron (Mars)"
Painted by: Caroline Thomas

"Tin (Jupiter)"
Painting by: Hokmayen

"Lead (Saturn)"
Painted by: Ryan Blackwood

"Lead (Saturn)"
Sculpted by: Randy Morrison

"The Emerald Tablet of Thoth"
Painting by: Hokmayen

"Water"
Painting by: Hokmayen

"Transmutation"
By: Caroline Thomas

"Fire"
Painting by: Hokmayen

"Air"
Painting by: Hokmayen

"Earth"
Painted by: Hokmayen

"Tria Prima"
Painted by: Caroline Thomas

Also: one of the perks of my job is the "prop truck". It is Royal Artists' responsibility to ride with the parade with the necessary tools in case any repairs need to be made along the route (if, say, a float breaks down or a prop needs to be resecured). But, being creative people, the prop truck has evolved into a float in its own right. While our ride might mot as glamorous as the others, we have a blast throwing beads and toys to the hoards of people just the same.

This past year, one if our former coworkers passed away, and, as a tribute, Dan fashioned a Dias de los Muertos-style portrait of him. I hope I get such a grand send off.

RIP Jules

Oh, and be sure to check out Hokmayen's work here. And our other float painter, Ryan Blackwood, keeps a tumblr of his work for Krewe D'Etat and various commission work here.

Until next year!