Call for Artists
Apply to design a Pelican
CALLING ALL ARTISTS
You’ve seen them around town, and now’s your chance to design one yourself! Apply now for the chance to make a new Pelican on Parade for this year’s Pelican Ball auction.
ARTIST ELIGIBILITY
Only artists living or working in the eight-parish Acadiana region are eligible, including Acadia, Evangeline, Iberia, Lafayette, St. Landry, St. Mary, St. Martin, and Vermilion parishes.
KEY DATES
- Friday. August 15, 2025: Artwork submission deadline at 11:59pm
- Friday, August 22, 2025: Artists will be notified if and when their designs are selected
- Friday, August 29, 2025: Deadline for selected artists to pick up blank pelican from AcA to begin decorating
- Friday, October 24, 2025: Deadline for artists to return completed pelican to AcA
Download Pelican Templates
About the Pelican Ball
We honor these individuals, and we celebrate our thriving culture in the best way we know how: with a night full of food, music, and artful surprises amidst the core ‘flock’ of Acadiana’s cultural community.
Why a Pelican?
In 2000, Acadiana Center for the Arts worked with artist David Fox and students at public elementary schools served by AcA’s arts education programs to design the first “Pelicans on Parade.” In 2021, AcA re-introduced the Pelicans on Parade as part of an annual fundraiser, the Pelican Ball, where new, unique pelicans are auctioned off as part of the benefit for arts education in Acadiana.
Download the original Pelican Field Guide from way back when! This document has images of all of the original Pelicans on Parade and lots of historic info on the project.