Krewe of Bonaparte unveiling new floats this year

Jul 05, 2016

The Krewe of Bonaparte is unveiling new floats for its Mardi Gras 2015 parade.

For years, the Krewe of Bonaparte rented floats for its Saturday night parade, but this year, the Krewe has invested in six new floats of their own with more slated to come.

Bonaparte's board of directors and executive board selected the themes for the floats which will be a combination of traditional Mardi Gras themes and cultural images of South Louisiana. This year's new floats will depict images of jesters, masks, beads, Courir de Mardi Gras, alligators, fishing and zydeco music.

The artist behind the designs is New Orleans-based Jordan Ivanov. Ivanov has worked for Blaine Kern's Mardi Gras World and has painted an average of 60-75 floats per year for the last 15 years.

The Krewe of Bonaparte began rolling its own Saturday evening parade 28 years ago.

In 2013, the Association made the decision to allow Bonaparte to pursue construction of its own floats, ensuring the continued growth and success of the Krewe of Bonaparte's parade. This project was a collaborative effort of several board members and general members of the Krewe of Bonaparte.

The Krewe of Bonaparte was founded in 1972 and began participating in the Monday night parade in 1973. The number of Krewe floats and riders steadily increased, and in 1981, the Greater Southwest Louisiana Mardi Gras Association changed the name of the Monday night parade to “Krewe of Bonaparte Parade honoring Queen Evangeline.â€

By 1987, the Krewe had the majority of floats and riders in the parade, and the Association recommended that Bonaparte have their own parade, extending the calendar of Mardi Gras events in Lafayette, Louisiana, to Saturday evening.

The Krewe plans to be completed with the construction of all 25 floats by Mardi Gras 2017.

View the original article