Susannah Vierra and her family didn’t have a small kitchen. Some might’ve called it a large kitchen. But the space wasn’t as functional as it could have been, and just behind the wall across from the sink was an unnecessarily expansive laundry room. Vierra is the first to admit she didn’t have all the answers […]
The Glass Building on the railroad tracks downtown was home to breakfast joints for more than two decades, most notably during Bluegrass Grill & Bakery’s storied 19-year run. In early May, the folks behind Aster unveiled the former greasy spoon as a modern, upscale dining room and kitchen. Aster bills itself as a “restaurant designed […]
Birdwood Mansion opened its doors as a boutique, seven-room hotel on June 11. It was the culmination of a project nearly 18 months in the making for a property with history dating back to the early 1800s. The mansion was built between 1819 and 1830 and reflected Jeffersonian ideals: a four-over-four brick structure fronted by […]
The Hark family started having folks over to try their award-winning wines in the fall of 2019. The only problem was, they couldn’t invite anyone inside. At the time, Hark Vineyards was growing grapes on a 70-acre parcel and making its estate wines out of an 8,500-square-foot production facility. Aaron and Candi Hark, working with […]
Jason Pollock sits down for an interview in clothes that wouldn’t have looked out of place when he was the lead guitarist for ’90s rock band Seven Mary Three–gray graphic tee, layered with a worn black hoodie and a flannel. It’s easy to forget that Pollock left the spotlight of that platinum-selling quartet more than […]
Speakers at the 2026 Tom Tom Festival have had six months to mull this year’s aspirational central theme: Courage. And mull it they have. Ahead of the festival—which runs April 22 to April 26 and will draw more than 27,000 attendees to various downtown Charlottesville venues for talks, music, dancing, food, and more—contributors ranging from […]
It came as no surprise when Chris Kelly told his parents he wanted to attend Vanderbilt University. Sure, Vandy’s a great school. But the subtext was clear: Kelly, the son of two accomplished local musicians and a serial band leader during his four years at Monticello High School, was a natural fit for the biggest […]
Blacksmithing is an ancient craft, but metalworker Edward Pelton has carved out a modern niche during his three decades in the studio. Pelton Metalworks produces architectural sculpture ranging from the functional to the ornate for contractors and designers, homeowners, and art aficionados. Pelton, who lives in the Charlottesville-area home where he grew up, recently spoke […]
Will Overman didn’t want to write a breakup album. But following a divorce, the singer-songwriter approached his latest record as a man rediscovering himself—again. On November 16, Overman will play an album release show for Stranger, his second LP as a solo artist, at the Southern Café & Music Hall. Nine and a half years […]
Turn on Erynn McLeod’s debut EP, Man of the House, and the first thing you’re likely to hear is a clear musical theater influence—the cabaret crooning, the overt metaphor, the complex characters, the ebb and flow of emotion. That’s all by design, the Charlottesville resident and Front Porch music teacher says. Growing up in New […]