Authors who shaped the perception of New Orleans

The Louisiana Research Collection (LaRC) at Tulane University is featuring the writings of several authors who used New Orleans as their inspiration in its latest exhibit, “Literary New Orleans: Authors who imagined a city.”

The exhibit is designed to showcase how each of the authors’ writings about New Orleans affect the world’s perceptions of the city.

George Washington Cable, Lyle Saxon and John Churchill Chase — authors who wrote about New Orleans — are the focus of the exhibit that displays archival documents, including manuscripts, posters, letters, political cartoons and sketches.

“We wanted to show a sense of the process that these authors went through,” said Andrew Mullins, who leads archives processing and digital initiatives for LaRC. “We just want people to come in, see the original documents, think about them, and engage with the material.”

Additionally, the exhibit space features panels of information about Lafcadio Hearn, the first Westerner to be naturalized in Japan, and the author of several books about New Orleans.

“Literary New Orleans” will be on display now through May 1 in the LaRC, located on the second floor of Jones Hall on the uptown campus, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.