by Doug MacCash, via nola.com

[Excerpt]

Bruce Davenport Jr. Does the Parades by Bruce Davenport Jr. at Arthur Roger@434, 434 Julia St.

Bruce Davenport Jr. has taken his passion for New Orleans high school and college marching bands and translated it into a multi-layered personal language. Stand 10 feet from one of Davenport’s drawings and you will be struck by the artists’ command of stark geometric composition. Stand five feet from his drawings and you will be fascinated by his amazingly complicated hieroglyphic interpretation of Crescent City parades. Lean in for a close look and you’ll be able to read his personal and political musings, delivered with rap swagger. The whole effect is fascinating.

Davenport’s marching band drawings were inspired in part by his worry that part of the Crescent City’s musical culture was slipping away in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and the reorganization of the school district. His parade drawings embody the combination of nostalgia and bravado that has brought the city back.

And now Davenport has expanded his theme. He contributed several drawings to “I Still Have a Dream,” a group exhibit celebrating the 50th anniversary of the 1963 civil rights march on Washington, D.C., at Stella Jones Gallery, a few blocks downtown at 201 St. Charles Ave. Davenport said his new works include images of freedom riders, church services, lunch counter protests, picketers and other elements of the era.

“A lot of things I did were remembrances of my parents and grandparents,” he said.

The Arthur Roger exhibit continues through Sept. 14. The Stella Jones exhibit continues through Aug. 31.