If It’s Not Recycled, Is It Even Art?
byThe River Arts District has no trouble attracting visitors, as long-time resident artist Shelley Schenker knows. But a secluded second-floor studio in a historic…
River Arts District
Leaving the Corporate World Meant Landing in a Field of Flowers
by“I had a great childhood,” says Susan Strazzella, turning the “suffering equals art” notion upside down. As though in gratitude, her painted world now…
She Flavored Her Illustration Career With Salty Enlightenment
bySurveying the human condition, Diane English remarks, “We’re not the brightest crayons in the box.” But that’s not so bad: After all, English has…
Art Entrepreneur Slips Absurdities Under the Bar
byWith his partner, Hedy Fischer, Randy Shull steers Pink Dog Creative, a vividly painted complex of art studios and retail spaces in the River…
Painter Blesses Her Canvas with Abundant Oils
byPeople figure Molly Sieburg Courcelle got her artistic skills from her mother, well-known local painter Bee Sieburg. The two even work out of adjacent…
Main Street Proprietor Leaves the Light on for Dozens of Local Makers
by“Opening a gallery was not on my radar,” admits lamp designer Leah Baker, who founded Artisans on Main in January 2017. “In the end,…
To Raise the Bar on Cosplay, Craft an Artisan Lightsaber
byBy: Mike Schoeffel By now, being called a “geek” is commonplace — anyone who’s focused on a niche art form, or deeply immersed in…
Making a Soapbox Can be Slippery Work
bySculptor Mac Star McCusker teaches at Odyssey Clayworks and around the Southeast. In 2016, the artist began using sculpture, installations, and narrative vessels to…
Surrealism is Ideal for Pacifist Who Fights to Save the World
byKen Vallario doesn’t spend much time laboring over his personal brand. “I’m absolutely opposed to the concept,” the painter declares. Instead, Vallario says, he…
Painting from Life is Not the Life this Painter Wants
byYou won’t find Jane Schmidt’s car parked at a Blue Ridge Parkway overlook so she can perch behind an easel, painting a mountain sunrise….