Ten years in

his year, the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center marks its 10th anniversary. Since 2013, it has provided educational programs, cultural events, and commemorations for Charlottesville’s Black community—and revived the role of the original Jefferson School. “From its founding, the Jefferson School held the cultural practices—the gatherings, performances, the festivals—of the African American Community,” says […]

The artist’s artist

Jen Deibert doesn’t care much for categories. “I would not call myself a potter,” she says, although her cozy cluttered studio is packed with ceramic pieces. (It actually looks like a vintage shoppe and a crystals booth got married in a kiln and had children.) Asked about her art, Deibert simply says, “I make things.” […]

Back to life

What’s in your back yard? Some people have a fire pit, or a small pond with water lilies and koi, or a trampoline and a tree house. Matt Lucas has a 200-year-old log cabin. “I’ve always been interested in old things,” says Lucas, a D.C.-area native who graduated from UVA and made a career in […]

It’s about the journey

Kenny Ball has been finding, buying, and selling European antiques for more than three decades. His showroom on Ivy Road is filled with beautiful furniture, furnishings, and decorative arts. You might assume a background of wealth and privilege…but the road that brought him here began with a pony.  “I didn’t grow up with these things,” […]

Training for life

As a professional boxer, George Rivera fought under the name “Wartime.” Growing up poor and mixed-race, he learned to fight to survive. But now he’s taken on a different battle: Inspired by his late sister, Rivera is turning his Charlottesville gym into a nonprofit called Wartime Fitness Warriors, using boxing to help at-risk young people […]

Heirloom variety

For the last five years, Charlottesville artist Tim O’Kane has been designing new seed packets for the flowers, herbs, and vegetables that have been preserved and propagated by the Thomas Jefferson Center for Historic Plants at Monticello. Recently, he spoke with us about the project and his work. Made in C-VILLE: How did this project […]

The play’s the thing

Maybe you thought LEGO was just for kids. But for 19-year-old Liam Mohajeri Norris and his mother Emily, those little plastic shapes may win them a title, a trophy, and a cool $100,000 on in the “LEGO Masters” reality competition series.  And, Liam admits, “I do have the dream of working for LEGO.” Roll tape […]

When wanderlust hits

It’s a gorgeous Virginia fall. The UVA football season is nearly over, but you’re not quite ready to start your holiday shopping at area stores, and the online pre-holiday bargains can wait. So spend your weekend participating in another popular autumn pastime: exploring beautiful back roads, stopping at country markets for sandwiches or snacks, and […]

Way to go

Most wedding visions include the perfect life partner, the ultimate dress, the romantic setting, glorious weather, and wonderful food—but what about the dream motor coach?  “Transportation is a really important part that clients don’t often think about,” says Hannah Dubit of Hannah Rose Event Design. Fellow wedding planner Marilyn Speight of Just a Little Ditty […]

Wedding in a box

This is it—you’ve found The One! You’re ready to hold the ceremony in which you tell each other, your families and friends, and the world that you are beginning a new life together, and you want the occasion to be perfect. But to get there, you face months of decision-making—finding a venue, choosing vendors, negotiating […]