Must-See Museum Exhibits in New Orleans This December

With so much to do in New Orleans, especially during Holidays New Orleans Style, many forget that the city’s art scene is just as vibrant as the food and music. December is a great time to visit a museum, with Prospect.6, the citywide art triennial, continuing on. Check out the highlighted exhibits below and search our calendar to find even more art in New Orleans. 

Prospect.6    

Prospect is a citywide contemporary art triennial and the first exhibition of its kind in the US with a decade-long history. Every three years, they bring new art to an old city by inviting artists from all over the world to create projects in a wide variety of venues spread throughout New Orleans. ‘Prospect.6 the future is present, the harbinger is home’ is brought to life through exhibit openings, mural unveilings, family and community programming, performance art, galas, parties, and more. 

Some of the highlights of Prospect are on view in exhibits at various museums, such as the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, New Orleans African American Museum, Contemporary Arts Center, and The Historic New Orleans Collection. Other installations are at outdoor locations, such as the sculpture perched atop Harmony Circle. There’s also an installation at the abandoned Ford Motor Plant in Arabi. Prospect.6 is on view from November 2, 2024 - February 2, 2025.  

“CURRENTS” 2024 

"CURRENTS" is an annual exhibition at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art that highlights the diverse photographic work being created by New Orleans Photo Alliance (NOPA) members. It is a showcase exhibition designed to give an overview of contemporary photographic practices and projects. "CURRENTS" 2024: NOPA Members Showcase is curated by Liv Constable-Maxwell, a commissioning editor at the London-based publisher “MACK,” and features eight photographers. See the exhibit on view from December 13, 2024 - February 23, 2025. 

EXPOSE 2024 

EXPOSE 2024 marks the revival of the original EXPOSE window galleries, first introduced at the Contemporary Arts Center (CAC) in 2011. This unique exhibition transforms the CAC's iconic display windows along Camp and St. Joseph Streets into a vibrant public art space, making contemporary art accessible to all. The exhibit features new works by seven acclaimed local artists who have exhibited at the CAC over the past decade. EXPOSE 2024 highlights their ongoing contributions to contemporary art. See the exhibit through October 31, 2025. 

Carlo Saraceni’s Our of Loreto and Peruvian Viceregal Statue Paintings 

Paintings of richly dressed statues of the Virgin Mary were among the preferred themes in Spanish and Peruvian 17th- and 18th-century painting. This installation reflects the gradual process of adoption and adaptation of this iconography by Indigenous and Mestizo artists in Viceregal Peru in the creation of Marian images. This exhibit is on view at the New Orleans Museum of Art beginning December 7, 2024.