Ten thousand square feet of gallery space situated in an award winning building at the entrance to New Orleans Arts District is home to the city’s artists. At the Contemporary Arts Center, open since 1976, you’ll find experiments in painting, theater, photography, performance art, dance, music, video, education and sculpture.

Throughout the year, the CAC rotates exhibitions, stages dozens of plays with local performers, hosts dance events, plus music concerts and performances in its two theaters. Take advantage of workshops, a rehearsal hall and art lab. The CAC promises you “an electrifying atmosphere for viewing, enjoying, studying and debating art”.

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The Louisiana Children’s Museum is a great place to bring thekids for educational summer fun. Thirty thousand square feet of kid-inspired space is dedicated to hands-on exhibits and engaging programs. Children can climb a wall, trap their shadow, stand in a giant bubble, guide a towboat down the Mississippi River, shop at Winn-Dixie, have lunch in a role-play café, create works of art and much more.

Little Winn-Dixie: Since the museum opened in 1986, the pint-sized grocery store has been the cornerstone of the museum experience. Children and families role-play together as they explore nutrition, diversity, literacy and math concepts. As a special treat, the exhibit was completely renovated this summer by its new sponsor Winn-Dixie. The shopping and learning experience has never been more fun with brand new mini shopping carts, new deli and bakery role-playing areas, a new floral corner and shelves stocked with brand new food items.

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Five venues make up the impressive Louisiana State Museum, a prominent heritage attraction filled with national landmarks, thousands of artifacts and works of art reflecting Louisiana’s history and cultural diversity. The five complexes include the Cabildo, Presbytere, 1850 House, Old U.S. Mint and Madame John’s Legacy. Each features their own exhibits and attractions monthly.

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This complex is the flagship building of the Louisiana State Museum. Completed in 1795 as the seat of the Spanish municipal government in New Orleans, the Cabildo is the site of the Louisiana Purchase Transfer. This building once served as the Louisiana Supreme Court.

“Unsung Heroes: The Secret History of Louisiana Rock & Roll”

The Cablido is proud to host its newest exhibit “Unsung Heroes: The Secret History of Louisiana Rock & Roll” as a tribute to the golden ages of rhythm and blues, rock ‘n’ roll, rockabilly, pop and soul. Presented in collaboration with the Ponderosa Stomp Foundation, the exhibit is co-curated by Dr. Ira “Dr. Ike” Padnos, a New Orleans physician who founded the Ponderosa Stomp Music Festival in 2001 to celebrate the contributions of pioneering artists from the late 1940s onward. The exhibit includes many items from Dr. Ike’s personal collection. A few of many impressive historical pieces you’ll find at the exhibit include Clifton Chenier’s royal crown, James Black’s drum set, Fats Domino’s piano, Louisiana blues legend Lazy Lester’s harmonicas, Earl Palmer’s drum, Dave Bartholomew’s trumpet, a Shirley & Lee concert poster from 1955, a sign from Famer Cosimo Matassa’s historic J&M Record Studio (where Fats Domino, Little Richard, Ray Charles, Dr. John, and others cut groundbreaking sides) and a sampling of rare 45 and 78 rpm records.

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This complex was originally called the Casa Curial (Ecclesiastical House) and is so named because it was built on the site of the residence, or presbytere, of the Capuchin Monks. It was designed in 1791 to match the Cabildo, or Town Hall, located on the other side of St. Louis Cathedral.

“From Tramps to Kings: 100 Years of Zulu”

The Krewe of Zulu is one of the most influential and well-known Mardi Gras krewes. Their parade draws record crowds yearly. The exhibit explores the origins, unique Carnival traditions, and cultural and civic contributions of Zulu from 1909 to the present. Celebrating 100 years, “From Tramps to Kings” includes more than 100-seldom seen treasures on loan from Zulu members, plus artifacts from the museum, the Historic New Orleans Collection, Tulane University and other sources.

Highlights of the show include a ballroom tableau of 14 former Zulu Kings and Queens in bejeweled costumes and elaborate headdresses, plus all seven of Zulu’s comic parade characters including the Big Shot of Africa, the Witch Doctor and the Ambassador. The origins and development of these trademark figures are explored in photographs and personal memorabilia. In addition to the lighter side of Zulu’s history, the exhibit also presents the groups history in parallel with the broader racial struggle of the city’s African-Americans.

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This building is the only in America to have served as a U.S. and Confederate Mint. Built in 1835, architect William Strickland designed the Mint to mimic the then-popular Greek Revival style. Minting began in 1838, and in 1861, Louisiana seceded from the Union and state authorities seized the property and transferred it to the confederate troops. Minting stopped once New Orleans was occupied by federal forces but began again during the Reconstruction era. Minting ceased again in 1909. For 57 years, the building served a number of official purposes, and in 1966, the building was given to the state which opened it as a State Museum site in 1981.

“Jam Session: America’s Jazz Ambassadors Embrace the World”

The newest exhibit on display at the Old U.S. Mint honors the contributions made by great jazz musicians. The State Department sent jazz musicians around the world from the 1950s through the 1970s to open the hearts and minds of millions with jazz performances, showing people all over the world America’s unique character and artistic achievements. “Jam Session: America’s Jazz Ambassabors Embrace the World” includes over 90 photographs, posters and other objects that trace the journeys of jazz superstars like Dizzy Gillespie, Louis Armstrong, Benny Goodman and Duke Ellington among others who visited more than 35 countries on four continents.

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The National World War II Museum Foundation was founded by Dr. Stephen Ambrose in New Orleans in 1991. The museum opened on June 6, 2000 and is the only museum in the United States that addresses all of the amphibious invasions of World War II. The museum honors more than one million Americans who took part in this conflict. Its doors opened on the 56th anniversary of the Normandy invasion that liberated Europe.

The museum is located in New Orleans because it’s in the Crescent City that Andrew Higgins built the landing craft used in the D-Day invasions. President Eisenhower believed this landing craft is the reason the Allies won the war. The museum features permanent exhibits and dozens of temporary exhibits monthly.

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Founded in 1910 by Isaac Delgado, the New Orleans Museum of Art is home to more than 30,000 art objects encompassing 4,000 years of world art. NOMA’s 46 galleries house an extensive permanent collection along with continuously changing temporary exhibits. The Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden adjacent to the museum features the work of 59 artists including several of the 20th century’s great master sculptors.

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The Ogden Museum of Southern Art strives to broaden the knowledge, understanding and appreciation of the visual arts and culture of the American South. The O accomplishes their mission through permanent collections, changing exhibitions, educational programs, publications, a research center and the Goldring – Woldenberg Institute for the Advancement of Southern Art and Culture. To further educate and celebrate the culture of the South, the museum is hosting many exciting events and exhibits in the coming months.

Ogden After Hours Every Thursday, 6 p.m. – 8 p.m.

All ages are welcome to visit the museum for live music with southern flavor every Thursday. Musical genres you can expect to hear include jazz (traditional and contemporary), R&B, country, rockabilly, funk, folk, bluegrass, rock and blues. Kids create their very own master pieces at the kid’s art activity table.

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The Historic New Orleans Collection is a museum, research center and publisher dedicated to the history of New Orleans and Louisiana. Tour The Collection’s galleries, house museum, exhibitions and use the museum’s research facilities. Visit The Shop at The collection for special gift items and books.