Rita Stelly Fontenot was born in 1946.

Self-taught artist Rita Fontenot preferred using cypress wood salvaged from old barns and buildings and found along the levees for her Acadian doll houses. Fontenot felt reclaimed wood retained the spirit of the people who lived and worked in the buildings.

Typical of historic Acadian houses, the doll house has a steep shingled roof, galeries on the first and second floors, and louvered shutters. The interior walls are made of mud and moss, known as bousillage entre poteaux by Acadians, and are considered good insulation. A single, centrally located fireplace heats the entire house. The rooms interconnect through doorways, which allows vistas through the house. Candlesticks,...