NOLA JUNGLE RADIANCE / degruy dna memory orient forest / versailles

+CHRISTMAS 1738+

>antoine jean baptiste valentin verloin de gruy<

>19 year old< >lieutenant in the french marine<

+(GOOGLE : EUGENE RAY+

+>>/ VERLOIN de GRUY)+

>left the warmth of versailles (his father as col<

>in louis xiv personal guard) >for new orleans<

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

+TROOPSHIP "SAOME"+

>with a >french regiment aboard headed across<

>the iceberg laden north atlantic to st domingue<

+(GOOGLE : EUGENE RAY+

+> / NEW ORLEANS 1739)+

>and after re provisioning, arriving new orleans<

>in march of 1739 / packs of dogs / mud streets<

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

+ANTOINE J.B.V. VERLOIN de GRUY+

>died 20 years later, >sadly fighting indians, in<

>the missouri french colony & his family came<

>back to new orleans where king louis xv who<

+(GOOGLE : EUGENE RAY+

+>>> / KING LOUIS XV)+

>was >antoine's childhood friend >gave land in<

+(LATER :> LAND GRANT+

+BELOW NEW ORLEANS)+

>st. charles parish, >up river from new orleans<

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

 >antoine's two oldest sons >purchased land across<
>river from new orleans >(from bouligny cousins)<
+(REMEMBER :> BOULIGNY+
+SAME AS BOUDOUSQUIE)+
>& jean baptiste de gruy built a famed dome sugar<
>mill on this "barataria" plantation / promised land<
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

 >we leave soon for our >annual pilgrimage<
>to new orleans "in search of sacred seeds"<
+("CAVAROC" HOUSE IN+
+ST. BERNARD PARISH)+
>this year we shall >search on the river for<
>ancestral degruy roots in st. charles parish<
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

 >the degruy are my  >father's mother's people<
>the cavarocs are my mother's mother's people<
+(GOOGLE  : EUGENE RAY+
+> /  CAVAROC FAMILY)+
>the cavaroc plantation (above) swallowed by<
>sugar refinery / townhouse below now thnoc<
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

 >my love for this french family history fueled<
>the development of "metaphysical graphics"<
+(GOOGLE : EUGENE RAY+
+ / METAPHYSICAL ART)+
>in the form of >collage< correspondence art<
>sent in p;ackets to >family & friends all over<
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

 >this apartment i constructed in the vieux carre<
>was an expression of the nola organic roots w/<
+(GOOGLE : EUGENE RAY /+
+TRAYLOR APARTMENT)+
>a "cosmic conscious" biotronic radiance that i<
>felt strongly in that epoch of lunar space flight<
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

 >there is a synergy between the metaphysical<
>art and the architecture / this progendered an<
+(GOOGLE : EUGENE RAY /+
+CORRESPONDENCE ART)+
>effort to share this synergy via an earlier blog<
>"midnight musings" titled by mary lynn hyde<
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

 >about 1965 i drove to the >cane river country<
>of north louisiana where i discovered what an<
>artist can do to make a plantation magical / my<
+(GOOGLE : EUGENE RAY  /+
+ MELROSE PLANTATION)+
>greatest admiration is to francois mignon, most<
>talented designer< of >melrose plantation re-do<
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

 >my exhibition at >tulane in june of 1969<
>showed >slides of my architecture<  in a<
+(GOOGLE : EUGENE RAY /+
+TULANE EXHIBITION 69)+
>cosmic conscious< environment inspired<
>by our landing on the moon that summer<
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

 >in new orleans >between 1966 and 1969<
>i designed a variety of >visionary oeuvre<
>in addition to 3 projects in the vieux carre<
+(GOOGLE ;> EUGENE RAY /+
+BIOMORPHIC STRUCTURE)+
>several others including this >biomorphic<
>& my >mfa exhibition at tulane university<
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

 >while building in new orleans the napoleon<
>house bar-cafe< was my >favorite refueling<
+(GOOGLE : EUGENE RAY+
+ / "NAPOLEON HOUSE")+
>station and i found at the s.d. swap meet the<
>duplicate for this courvoisier napoleon lamp<
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

>many kind people have helped me in<

>my blog effort led by dave fobes and<

+(GOOGLE : EUGENE RAY /+

+NOLA MASONIC LODGE)+

>mary lynn hyde / >georgia chadwick<

>led me to the 19c nola masonic lodge<

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

+LOUIS PHILIPPE &  JEAN+

+BAPTISTE de GRUY HAD+ 

>(construction of the<

>domed< sugar mill)<

+MEETINGS HERE IN 1790+

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

>(jean baptiste de gruy>lived<

>on indian mound plantation)<

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

+THIS BLOG IS MY>BEST+

+TO >INTERFACE LIFE &+

>(it is my great hope<

>that you  >enjoy it)<

+ART AS A >SYNERGY<+

+COSMIC  and ORGANIC+

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

eugene ray, mfa, architect

professor emeritus, sdsu