Hans Geist leaves his mark Terrebonne Parish Bicentennial Celebration

Events for the Terrebonne Parish Bicentennial Celebration are in full swing and one local artist left his mark the on the celebration. If you take a ride down West Main Street in downtown Houma, you’ll see a beautiful mural that reads “Terrebonne 200”. The artwork was created by Terrebonne native and muralist, Hans Geist. The artist said he was inspired to create the piece by the Bicentennial Celebration and the community’s resilience following Hurricane Ida. “I basically had an idea for something for the Bicentennial Celebration, I wanted something Cajun themed, and that would really represent Terrebonne Parish,” said Geist. “The building was in disrepair since Hurricane Ida, and over the last several months I’ve seen people trying to do some revitalization downtown. For me, it was just about really trying to put the winds back into the sail downtown, and bring some life, and cheer to the area.”

Geist said the blank wall on the empty building made the perfect location for a mural at the entrance of downtown Houma. The colorful art piece took the artist about two weeks to complete and features important elements of our culture, including crabs, crawfish, shrimp, magnolia flowers, and a lotus. Geist shared the deeper meaning behind the new mural. “I just wanted to highlight the things that have represented our parish over the last 200 years. The name Terrebonne Parish actually means “good earth”.  I just thought of the crop rows representing the foundation for our parish, and the way we’ve sewn into it, and we’ve gotten back out of it. It’s almost like a new beginning and fresh start since Ida. We’re starting over again, but we still have the benefits of our parish, and the things that make it what it is,” Geist shared.

The bicentennial mural marks the tenth project completed by the veteran artist in his 25 year career. “I think people are looking for something vibrant and cheerful. Every time I do a mural downtown, it captures so much interest and positive feedback. When I saw this wall, I thought it’ll be the perfect spot for a welcome wall for people entering downtown Houma. I’m hoping this mural will spark something inside of people to want to rebuild downtown Houma again. It’s been in so much disrepair since the hurricane that it almost seems hopeless. But to me, I feel there’s hope, and doing this is my way to inspire again,” Geist added.

The artist attributes his talents and success to one source, “I want to give credit and thanks to God, my Lord Jesus Savior. I believe he’s the one who gives me the gift and inspiration to create these murals,” Geist added. The artist received support from community including the Houma Downtown Development Corporation, Motivatit Seafoods, Royal Painting, and Dr. Chris Cenac Sr., in his efforts to complete the mural.

The Terrebonne Parish Bicentennial Celebration will kick off on Saturday, October 15, 2022. Read about the weekend long celebration here.