Community Members Flock to Participate in Parliament of Owls Parade
In order to highlight creativity and connect community members from all over Midtown and the greater Atlanta area, Chantelle Rytter created the Parliament of Owls lantern parade back in 2016. Described as “elegantly weird,” the event is a black and white owl-themed community lantern parade featuring a Second Line Band and parade-goers marching down Peachtree Street at night. Not one to miss out on the fun – or a chance to spark connections – we invited Chantelle to The Clubhouse to assist members in making lanterns of their very own.
The Mind of a Maker: Parliament of Owls Lantern Building activation – which focuses on a demonstration, workshop, or creative activity with community members – welcomed attendees from all over to learn more about the history of this de-light-ful event and show off their crafting skills.
Six years ago, Chantelle started this project as a way to repay Midtown for providing her with studio space, stating that “supporting local artists is the best way to get more art in your community.” And from there, it took flight!
In fact, one of our community members, Caroline Dunn, shared that she had attended a few of Chantelle's parades in the past and that she even hosted a lantern-making party for the last one!
Chantelle’s purpose, as shared on her personal website, touts the “need for recurring occasions that value individual creative expression, where a community experiences its illuminated self. As traditions, participatory creative celebrations reinforce our belief in the extraordinary nature of our collective character. I strive to create platforms for this experience.” And she doesn’t take this lightly – exclaiming “We need traditions to remind us that we have capacity for collective joy, because we forget.”
Riding her coat-tails (sort of – really trying to play up the owl theme here), we also asked participants a similar question: “What traditions bring you joy?”
And the answers were abundant! From holiday baking to traveling to dedicated movie and game nights, we were thrilled to see the many different types of traditions our community members instill in their lives.
All in all, participants enjoyed the midday break from their typical Monday routine and vocalized their interest in attending future activations that are similar in nature!
Would you be interested in crafting something for a future parade? Let us know in the comments below!