Felton is purple. No wonder people call him Purple Felton. But he was not always purple.

The story of Felton began when a friend found a baby armadillo in a field in the country and brought it to Neil’s studio. He was so cute, a photo session was the natural response. A few days later he was released unharmed back into the wild.

Later, the image of Felton was put into a piece of artwork that went on display at the Shreveport Airport. The piece was entitled: “Felton, knowing he had a lot of explaining to do, crawled slowly back to Texas.” Afterward, Felton, deserving much more serious public attention, became a 50-foot billboard as part of a public art project initiated by the Shreveport Regional Arts Council and Lamar Outdoor Advertising. Lamar has gotten more calls about Felton over the last two years he has been on display than any other billboard they have ever displayed.

When Felton discovered with delight his unnatural tendency was to be purple, he came comfortably into his own. Felton lives on in all his purpleness now. He is not a brash and loud creature as his color may indicate, but goes about his business, slowly but surely, being who he is. His eyesight is not great and he relies on his armor rather than speed for protection, but give him a hole to dig and stand back. The dirt will fly. His favorite food? Grilled grubs.

Felton’s star is up in the sky and continues to rise. Long live Purple Felton!

(Stay tuned for more Purple Felton news as it develops…)
 
Copyright © 2004 Neil Johnson Photography