LAPLACE — When designing the 2018 Andouille Festival poster last year, LaPlace native Ciara Sanders opted for bright colors and a theme of childhood wonder.

When faced with the same task this year, Sanders gave her design a new focus.

“Last year, I did a lot of bright colors, yellow and pink,” Sanders said. “This year, I wanted to use blue and green and make it more focused on LaPlace. I thought, why don’t we incorporate the Andouille Capital of the world? Giving LaPlace the forefront was the focus and inspiration for this year’s poster.”

King Andouille reigns supreme in the 2019 poster, unveiled Wednesday at the Andouille Festival kick-off at San Francisco Plantation Sugar Mill Barn.

Set against a green Louisiana background, King Andouille stands on top of a globe designating LaPlace as the Andouille Capital of the world. Underneath is a pot of famous Andouille gumbo that also contains Andouille Festival mementos, including a ferris wheel, a saxophone and a Marathon Petroleum Badge. Steam coming out of the gumbo pot has been fashioned into music scales, representing an iconic part of the festival that draws visitors from near and far.

The 46th annual Andouille Festival will be held October 18 – 20 at the Thomas F. Daley Memorial Park on U.S. 51 in LaPlace.

Parish President Natalie Robottom gave background on the Andouille Festival poster tradition.

“Creating a festival poster isn’t easy and for that reason, the tradition ceased for several years,” Robottom said. “During my Administration, we revived the cherished symbol of the festival poster representing St. John the Baptist Parish as the Andouille Capital of the World.”

Robottom introduced Sanders, the daughter of Leonard and Bernadine Sanders of LaPlace.

Sanders is a 2012 graduate of East St. John High School. She recently graduated from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette with a bachelor’s degree in industrial design. She used her artistic talents throughout college, working as a freelance artist to paint realistic portraits, design logos, decorate graduation caps, create digital renderings and more.

While Sanders may seem shy at first, her paintings give her a powerful voice.

“With her King Andouille design making another star appearance, she hopes to drive well-deserved attention to her hometown and to do justice to the wonderful memories she has from the festival,” Robottom said.
Sanders said she is beyond grateful to design the poster for the second consecutive year.

Official Andouille Festival Posters will be available for sale beginning in mid-September at the St. John Parish Economic Development Department, Matherne’s Supermarket in LaPlace and Don’s Country Market and Gregg’s Friendly Neighborhood Supermarket in Reserve.

There will be 100 signed and numbered festival prints sold for $40 each. Signature-only prints are $30 each. Poster order forms can also be found online at andouillefestival.com.

Additional information, including the 2019 band line-up, food and craft vendors and ticket sales will become available in upcoming weeks. At the poster reveal, Robottom announced there would be more than 25 entertainers, 24 food vendors and 15 arts, crafts and sweets vendors at the 2019 Andouille Festival, in addition to exciting rides and family activities.

The grounds will open from 6 to 11 p.m. Oct. 18, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Oct. 19 and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Oct. 20.

Follow the Andouille Festival on Facebook and visit the official website at andouillefestical.com for updates.

The Andouille Festival is presented by Marathon Petroleum Company, LP and sponsored by the Louisiana Lt. Governor’s Office “Feed your Soul”, EUROCHEM, Denka Performance Elastomer, Entergy and Cajun Pride Swamp Tours.

Dave Foster, vice president of the Louisiana Refining Division for Marathon, said the company is honored to serve as the title sponsor for the past five years.

Marathon presented a $35,000 check for the Andouille Festival during Wednesday’s kick-off, marking a $5,000 increase from last year’s sponsorship.

“Companies and communities go together,” Foster said. “Communities and businesses grow together through employees, grow together through sponsorships and through everything they do. They are really intertwined. St. John the Baptist Parish is a great example of that partnership.”

Marathon Petroleum Company representatives and Parish President Natalie Robottom were surprised with official Andouille Festival Posters signed by Sanders during the kick-off.