This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

NEW ORLEANS — If you’re familiar with the social media fashion world à la #fashionblogger, you’ve likely heard of “wall scouting”. It’s where bloggers pursue the perfect backdrop for their Instagram pictures. Locally, The NOLA Mural Project has created 14 fun canvases around town. There’s only one problem… they’ve done it without the city’s approval.

Neal Morris is one of the faces of the project. He describes the movement as a community organization and effort to get street art up in New Orleans. He says they match artists with willing wall owners and they show what can happen in a neighborhood when there’s not a lot of bureaucracy and oversight, just artists, and property owners that want to create public art.

But the street art could be in jeopardy. In November of 2017, Morris was threatened with fines, even jail time, by the city because he failed to apply for the proper city permits. The ACLU sued the city on Morris’s behalf, arguing that displaying murals is a constitutional right and that permitting regulations are an over restrictive violation of first amendment rights.

Morris believes that the art is bringing the community together and bringing positive attention to the city of New Orleans. “When you open up your Insta and see an artist that we’ve worked with has posted and an artist that they know that they follow posts and they contact us and more art goes up, it’s been pretty incredible.”

He hopes that the appearance and popularity of the paintings will help convince the municipal government to lower the mural permit fee from $500 to $50. And judging by their social media engagement… the popularity is there!

While the lawsuit is still up the air, you can show your support by following NOLA Mural Project on social media.

🎨 🎨 🎨 Ready to try your own wall scouting? Here’s a list of all of the murals from NOLA Mural Project… save this page as we will continue to update it with the latest murals…

Sophie Peters mural
900 Louisa St.
New Orleans, LA 70117

View this post on Instagram

Weeks after Hurricane Katrina, I moved back to New Orleans to gut houses and shovel swamp out of people’s destroyed homes. In that traumatic time, I met @nikkibeezee and her mom. They introduced me to Buddhism, provided me with a support system, and showed me a light in the darkness. They truly pointed my life and mind in the direction it is today. When I got the opportunity to paint this mural, I knew exactly who I wanted in it and I knew exactly what the emotional content it needed to have. “I’m here for you” This whole week reinforced the idea that the most important thing in life are the people that are there to support you. I could not have completed this without @randykeeler who helped paint 50% of this wall, my dad @brucecundiff who was there for anything I needed and my mom who watched my son while I painted. Big thanks also to @nolamuralproject for the opportunity.

A post shared by craigcundiff (@craigcundiff) on

Craig Cundiff mural
2112 St Claude Ave
New Orleans, LA 70116

View this post on Instagram

💋 painted a new mural for ya Nola! 🤡💸☺️ …No Problem… in case anybody’s like 🤔 why does it say- No Money, No Problem.. it’s a funny lil tribute to the old commercial for this building- Frankie & Johnny’s Furniture Store- see the Special Man….☺️ And a Great BIG Thank You to @nolamuralproject for being awesome and helping us artists have legal walls to paint!!! it’s unreal how much money these building owners have to pay for these permits, it should be free to have art up… 😞 you can also help by signing Nola Mural Project’s petition 🤗❤️🤗 just visit their page / website for details & maybe i’ll finally be able to paint more walls for you 🤡😋 this wall is on st claude & franklin 🙃 #artbrut #childlikeart #streetart #nolastreetart #crudethings #nolamuralproject

A post shared by Lana (@crudethings) on

Lana Guerra mural
2600 St Claude Ave
New Orleans, LA 70117

Rebeka Skela mural
2600 St Claude Ave
New Orleans, LA 70117

Jay McKay mural
2600 St Claude Ave
New Orleans, LA 70117

Joshua Martel mural
2100 Oretha Castle Haley Blvd
New Orleans, LA 70113

View this post on Instagram

"Feel so good it's frightening Wish I could stop this world from fighting…" . Finished shots of the portrait of Allen Toussaint. It was an honor to paint this New Orleans icon here in his home town. He was an amazing writer and performer, and wrote many songs that you probably know already but didn't know were his. "I Like it Like That", "Southern Nights", "Workin in the Coal Mine" to name a few. He was also a producer for myriad hits. But the best part of this project for me was meeting all the people from the community who knew and loved him personally, and seeing them connect with him again through the art. . The driving force behind putting this up was the Nola Mural Project, @nolamuralproject. They are working to reform the mural permitting system in New Orleans to be a single $50 unified permit with a clear process and review system. It currently costs $500+ for a permit, which can take as long as 6 months to receive (few in New Orleans actually obtain one because of the broken process.) Thank you @nealmorris and @sophie_peache for keeping this going, and thanks to @fearandloading for your help at the beginning of this project! . And many thanks to @bmike2c and @studiobe for allowing me to paint a wall earlier this year, which really helped me start to figure out my own process. I wouldn't have been able to pull this off without your earlier support! . Second photo by @dougmaccash . . . . . . . #AllenToussaint #southernnights #musiclegend #nolamusic #mural #streetart #portrait #partsofpaintings #southernnights #murals #brendonart #portrait #portraitpainting #nola #nolaartist #nolaartists #nolaart #nolamuralproject

A post shared by Brendon Palmer-Angell (@brendonart) on

Brendon Palmer-Angell mural
1441 N Claiborne Ave
New Orleans, LA 70116

View this post on Instagram

Latest piece done for the @nolamuralproject ! Loved painting this piece and the connections I made with the residents of the neighborhood were some of the most heart warming and honest interactions I’ve ever had. The catfish is a symbol of making the best of whatever your situation is a daily reminder for the residents of the community to remember there’s always a brighter day. The vines represent the present moment and the connection between all living things. Till next time New Orleans. I love you but I gotta head back home to the 305! Painted with the best paint in the game @kobrapaint #ivanroque #streetart #mural #muralfestival #nolamuralproject #nolastreetart #nolamural #art#spraypaint #catfish #flowers #graffiti #kobrapaint #artist #muralist #miamiartist #ninthward #follow #repost #fish #fishart #frenchquarter #bywater #marigny #neworleans #spraypaint

A post shared by Ivan Roque (@ivanjroque) on

Ivan Roque mural
3400 St Claude Ave
New Orleans, LA 70117

View this post on Instagram

FATS.

A post shared by John Bukaty (@johnbukaty) on

John Bukaty mural
2512 St Claude Ave
New Orleans, LA 70117

Carlos Culbertson mural
2600 St Claude Ave
New Orleans, LA 70117

@registered_artist‘s mural
2400 St Claude Ave
New Orleans, LA 70117

Abbey Caruso mural
3501 St Claude Ave
New Orleans, LA 70117

Scott Walker murals
The Elephant Collective
3610 Toulouse St
New Orleans, LA 70119

Mr. Balloon Hands mural
2600 St Claude Ave
New Orleans, LA 70117

Follow Kinsey on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.