Femme en Blanc
Her New Orleans

Her New Orleans · In Her Words

“Her New Orleans is a curated exhibition celebrating the divine feminine & the feminine creative forces thriving throughout the city. In an industry where women are often expected to carve out space on their own, this exhibition challenges the idea that success must come through competition. Instead, it is rooted in unity, empowerment, resilience, & extraordinary talent. Each artist has cultivated a distinct voice & uses this exhibition as a vessel to share her gifts with the world. Her New Orleans is intentional, spiritual, & a powerful testament to the strength of women creating/curating together.”

Ziggyalex is a New Orleans–based self-taught mixed media artist whose portrait work blends abstract elements with bold, dreamlike, & vibrant visual language. Rooted in spirituality, healing, & self-discovery, her paintings explore identity & womanhood while transforming emotion into symbolic storytelling.

Inspired by her late mother, also a painter, Ziggyalex discovered art as both a spiritual calling & a lasting connection to her lineage. She creates with the belief that painting is both inheritance & alchemy—a way to honor those who came before her while continually evolving into the artist & woman she is meant to become.

@ziggyalex · @dutchessvisions · dutchessvisions.com

Ashley Lorraine is a dynamic photographer and graphic designer that seamlessly merges her background in art and communications to create compelling visual narratives. With a keen eye for capturing the raw emotional essence of her subjects and the immediacy of the moment, she imbues her photography with a profound sense of connection.

From thought-provoking projects like ‘Black Men in America’ to documenting the vibrant energy of New Orleans, her portfolio reflects the authenticity and soul of the city.

@sheshoots_ · ashleylorraine.com

Her New Orleans · In Her Words

“A lifelong resident of New Orleans East, I have witnessed a metastasis of the blight and scarcity of resources impacting my community. I see site-specific artisanship as an opportunity to engage creatively, and collaboratively with the themes of love and survivance within the framework of hurricane aftermaths and post-disaster landscapes. If the position of the lover is that of one who waits, and the artist serves as observer, then it follows that the artist archetype is lover-ly and longing or searching, as the artist is always Looking. I believe the artist and the lover are intricately linked states of being: Lover of meaning, humanity, life, aesthetics, and feeling. Women tend to have this aptitude for waiting, patience and love. So does New Orleans, with its oft slow bend toward reform with the steady growl of a bull frog on a southern summer night. I hope to colour within these lines as I continue to observe, explore and examine the importance of applied and visual arts as a force — strong as food, water and shelter in the foundation of humanity by living an artful life of integrity.”

Giani Jones’s (G) childhood was shaped by early exposure to grief and loss resulting in a fixation on where the price of Love intersects with the concepts of deracination, palimpsests, and liminal spaces. While in college, G refined her artistic practice conceptually and aesthetically by interfacing constructs of identity, time, morality, and duty through the examination of otherness and interpersonal relationships.

Many of her works have developed around gift-giving and upcycling discarded objects; the gardening of her personal relationships is critical in G’s desire for creative pursuits. Giani works to integrate her creations into panoramic art experiences and integral visual environments.

@y0urstrul_y · newnegroes.com

Marianna Canu is a recognized, established artist, particularly in New Orleans, with growing international acclaim. She’s an Italian-born, self-taught symbolic expressionist painter, poet and former jewelry designer who shifted her focus to painting in 2011. Born into a family of metalsmiths, real estate developers, painters and entrepreneurs, her creative career spans several disciplines and decades. She is particularly known for her vibrant, expressive oil landscapes and figurative works that convey profound symbolic meaning and often include elements of surrealism. Her technique combines traditional oil painting with a modern, impressionistic touch, emphasizing bold brushwork, layered textures, and a vivid color palette to convey light, emotion, and movement.

Born in Sardinia, Italy, and now based in New Orleans, her life and art exemplify the boundless possibilities born from the intersection of cultures. Through themes of discovery, self-discovery, and transcendence, Marianna’s narrative showcases the way creative expression can bridge worlds and foster deeper understanding. Through her work she seamlessly integrates the elegance of European art history with her affinity for American culture, creating enduring pieces that embody optimism, empowerment, and a profound sense of connection.

Each piece she creates is an introspective dialogue rich with symbolic meaning, conveying messages of unity, love, human connection, the essence of life, and the profound beauty of human existence. She treats every canvas as a vessel for storytelling, leaving us with art that feels both timeless and completely present. Canu’s philosophy that “art is oxygen” and “art is a vessel to our desired destination” shines through her work, as her brushstrokes powerfully testify to the liberating force of self-expression.

Marianna’s artwork has been exhibited in prominent New Orleans galleries and is sought after by international collectors, with two commissions from Louis Vuitton (2018 and 2020). Currently exhibited at Sutton Galleries; previous exhibitions include Wellington Galleries, the New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA), Creason’s Fine Art, Steve Martin Fine Art, and Dee Dee Martin Gallery.

Her New Orleans · In Her Words

“My work is a direct reflection of women navigating intimacy and love in the city of New Orleans. From personal experience, there has always been a communication barrier — soft women, conditioned to be strong, longing for a softness in return, meeting men raised and prepared to be strong providers with little room left for emotional availability. Love Language and Deep Dark Love both live inside that gap, exploring the intimacy between the two — what gets spoken, what gets carried silently, and what it costs a woman to stay soft in a place that asks her to be strong. This is Her New Orleans as I know it: women holding love and survival in the same hand, still reaching for tenderness underneath it all.”

DeNesha Deans is a multidisciplinary artist and the founder of Studio Nesha, working across painting, illustration, and mixed media from her home base in Gretna, Louisiana. Her work explores emotion through the lens of a Black woman — how we communicate, make decisions, and move through the structures and clichés placed on us.

Deans examines identity, femininity, and masculinity as they surface in relationships, and the intimacy and love shared between Black people. A graduate of Elizabeth City State University with a B.S. in Graphic Design, she draws much of her inspiration from personal experience and the sound and color of Fela Kuti and African rhythm.

@studio.nesha · studionesha.com

Her New Orleans · In Her Words

“I see Her New Orleans as a reflection of the stories, strength, and spirit that live within this city and its people. My work explores themes of identity, healing, resilience, and connection, often centering the experiences of those whose voices and histories deserve to be seen and celebrated. As a Black woman artist in New Orleans, I am inspired by the city’s ability to hold both beauty and struggle, tradition and transformation. Through painting, storytelling, and community engagement, I create work that honors lived experiences, sparks reflection, and reminds us of the power of art to heal, connect, and preserve the stories that shape who we are.”

Danielle Keys is a Louisiana-born, New Orleans-based multidisciplinary artist working across painting, multimedia, and visual storytelling. With a background in psychology and communications, she combines creativity and community-centered practice to explore the complexities of the human experience. Her work has been exhibited across local and national platforms, and she continues to create art that bridges personal narrative, cultural identity, and public engagement.

@danikeys_ · daniellekeys.com