Art 180’s Art Karma
For years, ART 180 has carved out a reputation for giving young people in RVA the chance to express themselves through art. By partnering with other nonprofit organizations, ART 180 has helped youth (ages 8 to 18) discover ways they can positively engage in and influence their surroundings. To help make the organization’s mission possible, […]
Moving Virginia Repertory Theatre Forward
Patience and faith. The patience to realize a vision and the faith that this vision will make a difference in the community. For more than 39 years, these two tenets have guided Bruce Miller and Phil Whiteway, leaders of Virginia Repertory Theatre. In 1975, the college friends pooled $700 and created Theatre IV, the first […]
A Sign of Change
When we think of painters, two people come to mind. There are those who climb ladders and lay drop cloth to put color on a wall in a home, office building, or some other commercial space. We also think of the artist who expresses himself through canvas and paint. But there are also those who […]
Southside Renaissance Man: A Mash-Up of Talent
By Richard Hayes It is not uncommon for a person to be good at something. Nearly all of us have a special niche we fill with our unique skill. Every now and then you run into someone whose talents fill up one niche and then spread to the next and the next, and before long, […]
Collaboration of Light and Human Kindness
Successful creative partnerships are a lot like marriage. They require trust, support, flexibility, sensitivity, and above all, open and honest communication. With partnerships, opposites often attract, the timing has to be just right, and there tends to be that something special in the mix to make everything come together. Hamilton Glass calls that something special […]
Richmond Folk Festival
Three days of music. Seven stages. 50 sponsors. And 1,500 volunteers. The Richmond Folk Festival is a mash-up of talent, skills, and collaboration. It’s what Lisa Sims, deputy director of Venture Richmond, calls “the“ ultimate community creation that would simply not exist without collective action and collaboration.” Sims says that setting up the Richmond Folk […]
Open Mic Night at Crossroads
With the revival of a time-honored musical tradition, the sounds of live jazz, soul, blues, and R&B are once again gracing a quiet corner of E. Clay St. each week. After more than a year’s hiatus, Open Mic Night at Crossroads has returned with all of the spirit, crack musicianship, and hospitality that have made […]
Fall Line Fest
This September 6th and 7th, bands from around the country and region will descend on Greater Richmond. They’ll join art galleries and restaurants in celebrating just what makes RVA great in the city’s first Fall Line Fest. FLF is an all-volunteer effort (full disclosure: I’m one of the volunteers and my company, RVANews, is one […]
Free the Art
One of the most amazing things I’ve discovered about creativity is that you get more by giving it away. This can be literally giving something away—like a free sample that hooks people on your work—or it can be the sharing of ideas and projects that you might otherwise keep secret. I’ve seen too many people […]
Hop on the Bus: The Virginia Center for Latin American Art
Spencer Turner and his wife, Eva Rocha, spend a great deal of time on a bus. But it’s not just any bus. It is a mobile art gallery that is introducing people all across town to the contributions of Latino artists. “People love the bus,” says Turner. The mobile art gallery is just one outreach […]