Houstonians of all ages congregated on the Buffalo Bayou on Saturday for the first Shrimp Festival. | Corina Carrizales/The Cougar
Last Saturday, local lovers of art and shrimp gathered at the first Buffalo Bayou Shrimp Festival at Houston’s East End. The weather was gorgeous, the turnout was impressive and every festival-goer, even the cops supervising, possessed an overwhelming sense of welcome.
Transported + Renewed is one of the newest projects of the Houston Arts Alliance. It focuses on the city’s obsession with movement — anything from freeways to art cars, and renewal — and the idea that Houston is constantly reinventing itself. A three-month event, it was officially kicked off on Sept. 2 by Mayor Annise Parker in front of City Hall.
T+R consists of free events that bring together local art, music and community, running until Nov. 30 throughout the historic East End of Houston in hopes of introducing more Houstonians to the area.
“Lots of people have never been to the East End, except to eat at Ninfa’s,” said Houston Arts Alliance Director of Folk Life and Traditional Arts Pat Jasper.
This three-month series of events is a very special initiative for the project. T+R were awarded a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.
Only one application was accepted per city, and Houston was the only city in Texas to receive this prestigious grant. To top that, it was one of two cities in the nation to receive it at the highest award.
The HAA was able to set aside a part of the grant to fund local artists and organizations who applied to do projects in association with T+R, including the Shrimp Boat Project.
The day began at 11 a.m. with Afloat! A Parade on Water, an event that was set to take place in September but was delayed due to weather. Features included “Whatever Floats,” an inflatable sculpture of a tugboat by Sharon Engelstein, a dragon boat that was transformed to resemble a shrimp and creative art kayaks.
The Buffalo Bayou Shrimp Festival was a huge step for the Shrimp Boat Project, highlighting the work they have been doing for years. The members of this project continue to catch and sell shrimp, but they also encourage projects that connect with the Houston landscape and culture.
The main exhibit of the this festival was the Divine Pelican, a 41-foot steel haul shrimp boat owned by Zach Moser of the Shrimp Boat Project.
The festival had live music throughout featuring artists from Splice Records, including Umbrella Man and The Roosevelt House Band. For the kids, there were games set up, and for the adults, there was plenty of beer for sale at the Karbach Brewing Company tent.
Perhaps the most exciting thing at this first Buffalo Bayou Shrimp Festival was the cook-off. The entry price was $50, and each tent was given ten pounds of shrimp to create whatever they wanted. Sampling tickets were sold for attendees to try all of the savory entrees.
The Succulents was a cooking trio composed of UH alumna Diane Seaman, educator by week and chef by weekend Tony Day and Heart and Heron blogger Aimee Heimbinder. The dish they created was an Asian-inspired shrimp skewer with spicy shrimp-filled hush puppies.
The tent across from The Succulents was unnamed but filled with charisma. One visitor showed his love for the state by wearing a Texas flag apron and creating a shrimp remoulade with the catch provided.
Self-proclaimed manager of the tent Brett Bertrand said, “This is the first Buffalo Bayou Shrimp Festival, and even first-timers are giving it a shot.”
This was the tent’s first entered cook-off, and they had a blast.
The Buffalo Bayou Shrimp Festival was filled with fun, music, food and laughter. The support for project Transported + Renewed was evident with hopes of growth and success.
“This project animates a sense of community and engagement,” Jasper said.
See the schedule for more T+R events and more information on the project online at TransportedRenewed.com.
