A mini installation by Sage Franz
November 14 – December 6, 2026
At first glance, Sage Franz's work draws you in with its exuberant color and playful forms. Look a little closer, though, and a more urgent subject emerges: the changing and deteriorating landscapes of Louisiana. For this small-scale installation at Lagniappe Gallery, Franz presents four brightly colored sculptures alongside a canvas that shares their vivid palette. The sculptures evoke dead cypress trees destroyed by saltwater intrusion, their miniature forms reaching upward like hands—a poignant reference to the fragile ecosystems of Southwest Louisiana and the environmental pressures reshaping them.
We encourage you to visit Franz's larger installation, READY!UPICK!, at The Front, on view through December 6, 2026.
About the artist
A self-taught artist, Sage Franz draws inspiration from the natural world and Southern folk artists, including Clementine Hunter and Purvis Young. Her practice explores climate change, renewable energy, and the relationship between public art and the communities most affected by environmental degradation. A New Orleans resident since pre-Katrina, Franz has created large-scale murals at community gardens and gathering spaces across the city, including Speakeasy Farm, Okra Abbey, Paradigm Gardens, and Common Ground Relief in the Lower Ninth Ward. Through her public work, she considers how art and signage can bring beauty, visibility, and a sense of connection to neighborhoods on the front lines of climate change.
