Wild Creations

Luna Fête Multimedia Installation

2022

As part of Arts New Orleans’ LUNA Fête, a free public festival celebrating light, art, and technology, Gabrielle Tolliver managed youth and lead artists from the Young Artist Movement (YAM) on a multimedia installation titled Wild Creations.

Wild Creations was a multimedia public art installation developed by the Young Artist Movement (YAM) for Arts New Orleans’ LUNA Fête, a citywide celebration of light, art, and technology. This collaborative project explored themes of mental health, healing, and resilience in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Youth artists collaborated with lead artist Monica Kelly to digitally animate and projection-map original artwork onto an existing mural for the festival. Students learned to use industry-standard tools such as Adobe After Effects, Procreate, and MotionLeap, blending hand-painted illustrations, live-action video, and digital animation.

In addition to the animated mural, YAM artists participated in a live digital painting performance, improvising with visual elements in real time to music by the Ellis Marsalis Center for Music students. This performance allowed students to explore the expressive potential of technology while engaging festival attendees in an immersive, interactive experience.

The Wild Creations project exemplified how creative expression can serve as a powerful tool for emotional wellness, artistic growth, and community engagement, while offering young artists foundational skills in digital media and public art.