Culture Community: the French Quarter Museum Association
Annie Irvin, Executive Director of the Historic BK House and Gardens and chairperson of the French Quarter Museum Association, photo FQJ
May 2024Several Vieux Carré museums are working together to broaden perceptions about the Quarter and raise awareness about their diverse offerings – for both locals and visitors.
-By Dean M. Shapiro
While the French Quarter is better known for its bars than its museums, there’s a relatively new organization that’s determined to change that - or at least raise awareness about the neighborhood’s many cultural offerings – ones that leave both visitors and locals feeling enriched rather than hungover.
Founded in 2018, the French Quarter Museum Association (FQMA) includes 11 actual museums and two support groups, all of which are non-profit organizations According to their website, the organization is “committed to positioning its museums as an integral part of everyone’s French Quarter experience.”
The individual members include:
and the Louisiana State Museum, whose entities include:
The New Orleans Jazz Museum in the Old U.S. Mint Building
Support group members are:
The governing board of the FQMA is made up of the directors of each member organization. Daniel Hammer, president and CEO of The Historic New Orleans Collection, heads up the group.
Annie Irvin, director of the Historic BK House on Chartres Street is a member of FQMA, with a Master’s Degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of New Orleans and a Historic Preservation certificate, Irvin has been with BK House for nine years.
In a recent conversation with French Quarter Journal, Irvin went into detail about the FQMA organization, from its earliest roots to the present, and its shared mission of promoting cultural tourism in New Orleans’ world-renowned historic district.
“In 2018 we came up with a plan to call it the French Quarter Museum Association to market the city’s Tricentennial celebration,” Irvin explained. “Then, during COVID, we became a support mechanism for each other. We discussed everything from making sure we were all on the same page with mask mandates to reopening when it was safe to do so.”
Programming at the museums include presentations, camps for children, seminars and concerts like this one at the BK House, part of the Rhythm & Roses series this spring. photo FQJ. Click here to read more about the concert series and the good neighbor behind it.
Later, when Hurricane Ida made landfall and impacted New Orleans in late August 2021, some of the Association’s properties sustained damage. That only reinforced the supportive aspects of the group. FQMA members made recommendations to each other about contractors they were using and the most expedient ways to make repairs.
“We also did some sharing programs like arts markets in some of our various courtyards for Mother’s Day and Christmas,” Irvin added. “In 2022 we received some funding from the New Orleans Foundation and drafted a strategic plan.”
From there, the organization began meeting to discuss joint programming efforts aimed at changing the perception of the French Quarter beyond Bourbon Street revelry to “more of a cultural hub,” according to Irvin.
A fun, interactive feature at one of The Historic New Orleans Collection’s current exhibitions, the Unknown Sitters - focusing on historic portraits where the subject’s identity has been lost to time. Photo by FQJ
Tessa Jagger, vice-chair of FQMA and director of Hermann-Grima/Gallier Houses agrees. “I’m proud of the work we are doing in hopefully reshaping how people view the French Quarter. It’s an incredible, vibrant neighborhood that is not always painted with the best brush. There are so many wonderful things here, and we’re proud to promote them.”
Tessa Jagger, vice-chair of FQMA and director of Hermann-Grima/Gallier Houses, photo by FQJ
Jason Strada, executive director of Friends of the Cabildo, said, “We want the French Quarter to be seen as something different from being just a party scene. That’s very important to the city and the department of taxes – and it brings in a lot of money and jobs but we also have world-class museums within the French Quarter… it’s an unbelievable resource. It brings in more customers of all different kinds.”
But turning around the juggernaut of general perception isn’t going to be a quick fix, Strada pointed out. “This is a five to ten-year generational [project] and we need to do it the right way.”
Jason Strada, Executive Director of Friends of the Cabildo, photo FQJ
“So now we’re working on the best strategies to do that from a marketing point of view,” Irvin said. “We’re talking with New Orleans & Company (the former Greater New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau) and some other industry partners to see and assess the economic impact of our French Quarter museums. That’s a large part of our mission now.”
Even though the FQMA is not presently a registered 501(c)3 charitable organization, they engage in fundraising activities like most non-profits and have, as a fiscal agent, the French Quarter Management District.
“They hold our very small pot of money and we, as a group, decide how any money would be spent,” Irvin said.
As for long-range plans for the organization, Irvin cited their objectives of eventually registering as a non-profit and having the funds to hire extra staff. As a short-term goal, the group has a new streetcar ad campaign launching soon.
“But our ultimate goal is reframing the image of the French Quarter to celebrate more of the neighborhood’s cultural side,” said Irvin. “Our museums offer programming and experiences that are inclusive and enriching to both locals and visitors, to families with children, to school groups, to seniors. And by doing that we create an economic impact that reverberates through the city.”
“That’s the tie that binds us.”
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