Give back, give art: Make it a philanthropic holiday with local nonprofits

“We know people are looking for creative ways to give. What we hear repeatedly is, ‘I don’t need anything, I don’t want anything,’” says Sally Day. As director of development for Service Dogs of Virginia, Day knows plenty about the importance of end-of-year philanthropy for local nonprofits. In response to this, the organization’s founder and […]

Eyes all aglow: James Yates curates holiday magic at PVCC

James Yates is on a quest to bring magic back during the holidays. “When I was a kid, we used to drive around the town looking at Christmas lights. I remember how awesome that was: me being in the back of the station wagon, drinking hot chocolate, looking out the windows,” the artist says. “Several […]

Art on demand: Rally ’round at Second Street Gallery

“It’s a fascinating place. It’s in my neighborhood, within walking distance from my house, but I had no idea it was there,” says filmmaker Jason Robinson, describing Moore’s Creek Wastewater Treatment plant. This type of facility probably doesn’t top most people’s list of neighborhood places to explore, but the allure was quick to present itself […]

December First Fridays Guide

Sculptor and painter Aggie Zed sees all of the beauty and strangeness in her imaginative ceramic and copper works as alive. Her complex elephant creations often feature elements of low-tech industry like wheeled carts that intricately express the physicality of the pachyderms. Zed names wings, particularly “clumsy, comic, metal wings,” as a part of her […]

Glad tidings: The annual Gift Forest pop-up finds a new home

When Sarah Carr started the annual Gift Forest pop-up holiday shop in 2010, it took place at The Bridge PAI. “I called the shop Great Gifts through 2012 and changed the name to Gift Forest in 2013,” says Carr. “I had a much stronger vision for things in 2013. That’s when I started to feel […]

November First Fridays Guide

In her non-traditional photography, local artist Cary Oliva manipulates instant film (namely Polaroid) formats to create phantom-like images with textural imperfections and light flares, reminiscent of watercolors. Oliva enjoys working with early art forms and returns to the motif of age often: “I feel like an old soul in general,” she says. “I’d rather buy […]