How to get a job as a parade float designer/builder?

I want to major in fine arts and get a job in new york city designing and building parade floats. Any idea on where to look for a job doing this?

Actually the two largest and most elaborate float parades in the country that literally work almost year-round in designing and building floats are the Rose Bowl Parade in California and the New Orleans Mardi Gras Parade.

They are both highly specialized float parades and keep a steady crew of designers and builders employeed.

The Rose Bowl is ALL flowers….floats are designed, roses grown, skelatons are built…then they go absolutely crazy for a week putting them all together.

The Mardi Gras parade floats literally TAKE a year to BUILD.

The Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association directs the parade.
They feature three types of entries with floral floats entered by a participating corporation or community organization.
They would be happy to direct you further.

http://www.tournamentofroses.com/roseparade/

Raul Rodriguez is a world famous float designer in California that is an independant. (He has designed for even Disney)
Some of the largest parade float companies are Fiesta Parade Floats and Charisma Floats in Pasadena and Festival Artists Worldwide in Azusa, California.

New Orleans Mardi Gras uses KREWS. You may contact ALL of the Krews from the site below.

http://www.mardigrasneworleans.com/parades.html

Barry Kern, of Kern Studios, is the largest float builder in New Orleans that travels nationwide.

New York only has ONE big parade that you will see speciazed floats in.
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade.
They are almost completely Corporate Sponscered, which means the corporations build their OWN floats, alot are built by the employees of the companies sponsoring them
Disney, for instance is a HUGE float builder and uses their designer engineers down in their Florida location.

Basically most designers are independant contractors in other areas…. who are simply contracted out by corporations….and crews are hired by them to build them, just like any other construction job unless you are in the areas of these two parades.

“Untitled Art Project” Try outs New York Part I

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