By Caroline Challe For Carolyn Johnson, a Charlottesville homeowner and care worker, the financial strain of the pandemic has been exacerbated by her high energy bill—almost $300 last month. “Water bill and electric–them the highest thing I got. It’s really hard. I am struggling trying to get it done,” Johnson says. Though her household’s […]
By Sarah Sargent Robert Reed’s “San Romano (Hip Strut)” explodes off the wall of the Jefferson School’s gallery. The bright colors and bold shapes are both abstract and representational—in one corner it’s all color and form, and in another corner there’s a chessboard, a gift from Reed’s son. Reed attended the Jefferson School as a […]
Ready to rumba: Before settling into a style influenced by the gypsies of Southern France, self-taught guitarist Vincent Zorn studied music in various global outposts, including Spain, Turkey, and Mexico. The Charlottesville-based musician, who frequently plays with his duo Berto & Vincent and tours with flamenco dance band Last Caravan, will perform his lively, mesmerizing […]
Summer better: Nothing says summer like a ripe tomato, fresh from the vine. But for novice gardeners, growing one may not be as easy as it looks. Ira Wallace, owner/worker with the Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, talks viewers through trellising, pruning, mulching, watering, preventing disease, controlling pests, and amending the soil in her virtual lecture […]
Comic energy: When it comes to fine art, comic books have long been excluded, but anyone who’s curled up with a good one knows they can be creative masterpieces. With their virtual series The Art in Life, The Fralin Museum of Art and the Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection are on a quest to remove the […]
By Will Ham Just 10 days after opening Now & Zen in 2011, chef/owner Toshi Sato’s hometown on the east coast of Japan was struck by a devastating tsunami. The disaster in Kesennuma was dubbed the Great East Japan Earthquake, and the seismic activity destroyed large parts of the region, spilling fuel from the town’s […]
Budget business New City Manager Chip Boyles has released a proposed budget for the 2022 fiscal year. Even after coronavirus revenue losses, the $190.6 million plan is just a hair smaller—around $500,000 less—than the current operating budget. The new budget does not raise taxes, and includes budget increases for multiple departments and commissions. The Charlottesville […]
Phoning in the overture: When Victory Hall Opera’s production of Verdi’s La Traviata was canceled, the cast turned to their iPhones—but not for pandemic-induced doom scrolling. Instead, they collaborated on filming UNSUNG, the first feature film made by and about opera singers. In it, the cast navigates the challenges of life during a pandemic, and […]
Take you there: Founded in 1969 by four Alabama session musicians, the Muscle Shoals Sound Studio became legendary for soul music after producing hits for Wilson Pickett (“Mustang Sally”), Aretha Franklin (“I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You)”), and the Staple Singers (“I’ll Take You There”), among others. The magical environment and […]
Winging it: Kenn Kaufman is an extreme birder who’s been at it since the ‘60s, when he dropped out of high school and hit the road in pursuit of feathered creatures. The author, artist, naturalist, and conservationist’s career really took flight when he won 1973’s Big Year birding competition and set the record for most […]