Sculptors John T. Scott and Martin Payton created the major site-specific public art sculpture for St. Bernard Avenue median in the Gentilly neighborhood.

John T. Scott, a nationally known artist, and Martin Payton, a former student of Mr. Scott's collaborated on this project. For Spirit House, their goal was to create a work that celebrates the contributions of unnamed African Americans who were instrumental in the cultural and physical development of New Orleans and Louisiana. By incorporating various symbols and drawings of the artists, as well as the schoolchildren in the neighboring schools, the artists endeavored to build a work that creates a "non-literal narrative" and provides the community a sense of "ownership." The overall structure is a shotgun house supported by flying buttresses and raised on pylons to create an "urban tabernacle".