January 2013 Rapid River Magazine

Enter our 16th Annual

Poetry Contest PAGE

INTERVIEWS David Simchock, Photographer

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Samuel Wood, owner of Rise ‘n Shine Café. PAGE 17 Manoj Lama, owner of Kathmandu Café. PAGE 27

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William Thompson, owner of Asheville’s Satellite Gallery, brings national and international artists to the Southeast.

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REEL TAKES

Photo by David Simchock

Top Movies of 2012

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14k white & yellow gold pendant

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Taste of Opera

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A MID WINTER GALA

he Asheville Lyric Opera is excited to announce their annual fundraiser event, Taste of Opera, hosted at the Crowne Plaza Expo Center. The Taste of Opera will celebrate the fine tastes of opera by indulging the senses in music, art, wine, and the food and chocolate of Asheville.

Between 4 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. food, wine, and chocolate vendors will offer samples of their craft to an eager crowd of 300+ local foodies. Guests will enjoy their dining experience as they engage with featured artists of the rivers arts district populating the 16,000+ square foot expo center. The tasting will be followed by a grand operatic concert.

Featured Performers Galen Bower, Metropolitan Opera Baritone, Barbara LeMay, New York City Mezzo-Soprano, and Susan Belcher, Lyric Opera of Chicago Soprano.

Galen Bower is one of America’s most exciting up-and-coming operatic performers. A graduate of the Master of Music and Artist Development programs at Yale University, Mr. Bower has received significant critical and public acclaim for his rich baritone voice and commanding stage presence at the Metropolitan Opera and Lyric Opera of Chicago.

Barbara LeMay, an audience charmer par excellence with a fresh, youthful aura, is on of opera’s most promising young mezzosopranos. Her success has been at New York City Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, and Yale Opera Theatre.

Mrs. Susan Belcher gained her professional opera training as a young artist with the Chicago Lyric Opera Center for American Artists in Chicago, Illinois, where she debuted to critical acclaim the role of the angel Zephon in the world premiere of Pendereski’s Paradise Lost Lost.

2 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

BY

ADAM BOWERS

Celebrate the fine tastes of opera by indulging the senses in music, art, wine, food, and chocolate.

Her many opera credits include: Clorinda in La Cenerentola with the Opera Company of Philadelphia opposite Maria Ewing; Norina in Don Pasquale opposite Sir Geraint Evans; Adele in Die Fledermaus with Jerry Hadley; Papagena in The Magic Flute with both the Chicago Opera Theatre and the Chicago Lyric Grant Park Series; Despina in Mozart’s Cosi fan tutte, Mimi in La Boheme; Lucy in The Telephone; and, Jenny in the Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagony Mahagony.

Seating $125 Table – Six seats per table, includes priority parking. $75 – Section 1 Reserved Seating, includes reserved parking $50 – Section 2 Reserved Seating, includes general parking.

IF YOU Taste of Opera, A Mid Winter GO Gala will be held on January 27

from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Crowne Plaza Expo Center.

Tickets can be purchased by contacting the Asheville Lyric Opera at (828) 2360670 between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. Tickets may also be purchased at www.ashevillelyric.org.

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fine art

Tradition. Vision. Innovation.

National Arts & Crafts Conference and Antiques Show

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Allanstand Craft Shop at the Folk Art Center

Milepost 382 Blue Ridge Parkway, Asheville, NC 828-298-7928

Guild Crafts

Photos by Bill Murphy

930 Tunnel Road/Hwy 70, Asheville, NC 828-298-7903

Jewelry: Barbara Joiner

hey arrive each February, thousands of Arts & Crafts collectors from across the country excited to spend the week in Asheville and the historic Grove Park Inn. But these visitors don’t necessarily come for the mountain scenery, the spa or the golf course, although they enjoy them all.

They come for the Arts & Crafts architecture, furniture, pottery, galleries and antiques both Asheville and the Grove Park Inn are noted for.

The 26th National Arts & Crafts Conference and Antiques Show returns to the Grove Park Inn the weekend of February 22-24, bringing with it an Arts & Crafts collectors delight: seminars, discussion groups, Preservation Society house tours, an Asheville Art Museum reception, walking tours, antiques and works by contemporary craftsfirms.

“What began primarily as an antiques show focused on the period 1895-1939,” explains Bruce Johnson, area historian, founder and director of the event, “has grown to include craftsmen and craftswomen who are making furniture, pottery, tiles, rugs, textiles and artwork in the Arts & Crafts style. And they have become just as popular as the antiques dealers.”

The three-day show is open to Asheville area residents as well as the conference participants. Hours are Friday, February 22 from 1 to 6 p.m., Saturday, February 23 from noon to 6 p.m., and Sunday, February 24 from 11 to 4 p.m. The $10 adult ticket is good for all three days and can be purchased at the door. There will be no charge for outdoor parking at the Grove Park Inn during the Arts and Crafts Conference.

Both Asheville and the Grove Park Inn are appropriate hosts for the annual Arts & Crafts Conference. Built in 1913 during the popular Arts & Crafts era, the Grove Park Inn has emerged from numerous expansions, renovations and restorations as the

The Southern Highland Craft Guild is an authorized concessioner of the National Park Service, Department of the Interior.

2012-2013 SEASON Daniel Meyer, Music Director Concerts take place in Thomas Wolfe Auditorium

perfect site for an Arts & Crafts event of this size. “It has all the modern convention facilities we need for our seminars, exhibits and discussions,” Johnson points out, “housed in a historic hotel featuring the world’s largest collection of Arts & Crafts furniture, both antique and recent.”

Asheville also played a role in the Arts & Crafts movement, experiencing rapid growth during the first quarter of the 20th century. New developments included Montview, Kenilworth, Kimberly Avenue, Norwood Park, Albemarle Park and Biltmore Forest. Numerous examples of Arts & Crafts homes and bungalows were constructed and have since been renovated and preserved by another generation of Arts & Crafts enthusiasts.

IF YOU The 26th National Arts & Crafts GO Conference and Antiques Show

at the Grove Park Inn. Friday, February 22 from 1 to 6 p.m., Saturday, February 23 from noon to 6 p.m., and Sunday, February 24 from 11 to 4 p.m. $10 tickets may be purchased at the door.

Additional information is available by calling Bruce Johnson at (828) 628-1915, or visit www.Arts-CraftsConference.com.

Saturday FEBRUARY 9 s 8pm Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto with Tchaikovsky Competition Winner Daniil Trifonov Barber Adagio for Strings Franck Psyché Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 Daniil Trifonov, piano Daniil Trifonov SPONSOR

THE PAYNE FUND

BUY TICKETS NOW! UPCOMING CONCERTS

MARCH 16, 2013

The American Four Seasons

APRIL 20, 2013 Mozart’s Requiem

MAY 11, 2013 Rite of Spring

FOR TICKETS AND MORE INFORMATION 828.254.7046 U www.ashevillesymphony.org Vol. 16, No. 5 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — January 2013 3

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performance Tomáš Kubínek: Certified Lunatic and Master of The Impossible ONE-OF-A-KIND ABSURDIST THEATRE AND CIRCUS MAGIC

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escribed by London’s Time Out magazine as “hilarious and enormously talented,” Tomáš Kubínek: Certified Lunatic and Master of the Impossible brings his collision of absurdist theatre and circus magic to Diana Wortham Theatre, Saturday January 19, 2013 at 8pm. Via comedy, clowning, mime, magic, acrobatics, and music, Kubinek’s exuberant show is equal parts comic brilliance, virtuosic vaudeville, and irresistible charm.

Born in Prague, Kubínek and his parents left Czechoslovakia when he was only 3 years old to escape the 1968 Soviet Invasion and were granted asylum in Ontario, Canada. It was there that a young Tomáš witnessed his first circus, which sparked a passionate interest in clowns, circus, theatre, and magic.

After he began performing in his early teens, Kubínek saved money and traveled to Europe to study with some of the world’s greatest teachers of theatre. Through experimentation with live performance, and his various studies and collaborations, Kubínek developed an entertaining and thrilling style all his own.

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Tomáš Kubínek

Tomáš Kubínek has appeared in over 30 countries around the world. He was the headline performer at the First International Congress of Fools in Moscow, toured across Italy, and performed a sold-out run at London’s prestigious Royal Festival Hall Purcell Theater as the featured solo-artist of the London International Mime Festival.

In 1997 and 1999 Kubínek played limited engagement runs at Broadway’s New Victory Theater. Both runs sold out in advance and received rave reviews from audiences and critics alike. The New York Times lauded his work as “Absolutely expert and consistently charming!”

BY JOHN

ELLIS

Besides his solo work, Tomáš Kubínek has collaborated with many other artists from all over the world. He has been featured on Czech National Television with the celebrated actor and clown Boleslav Polivka on Mr. Polivka’s annual television specials, and he has performed in numerous guerillastyle absurdist theater sketches with writer and comedian Frank van Keeken at the HBO Workspace in Los Angeles.

While touring with his solo work Kubínek also teaches master classes for theatre students and professionals and occasionally writes and directs new works, collaborating on pieces for solo artists and theater companies.

For more information on Tomás Kubínek visit www.kubinek.com

IF YOU Tomáš Kubínek: Certified GO Lunatic and Master of the

Impossible, January 19 at 8 p.m., Diana Wortham Theatre at Pack Place Ticket Prices: Regular $35; Students $30; Child $15. Student Rush day-of-the-show (with valid ID) $10. Purchase tickets by calling the Box Office (828) 257-4530 or go online to www.dwtheatre.com

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we love this place Nature Center Welcomes 100,000th Guest

RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE Established in 1997 • Volume Sixteen, Number Five

JANUARY 2013 www.rapidrivermagazine.com

Publisher/Editor: Dennis Ray Managing Editor: Beth Gossett Marketing: Dennis Ray, Rick Hills Staff Photographers: Liza Becker, Erica Mueller Layout & Design: Simone Bouyer Accounting: Sharon Cole Distribution: Dennis Ray CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Tom Adkinson, Judy Ausley, Adam Bowers, Kimberly Brewster, James Cassara, Michael Cole, Courtney Cormier, Amy Downs, John Ellis, Beth Gossett, Chall Gray, Max Hammonds, MD, Phil Hawkins, Phil Juliano, Chip Kaufmann, Michelle Keenan, Chloe Kemp, Eddie LeShure, Peter Loewer, Marcianne Miller, Ted Olson, T. Oder, R. Woods, Dennis Ray, David Simchock, Greg Vineyard, Bill Walz, Ana Woodall.

INFO Rapid River Arts & Culture Magazine is a monthly publication. Address correspondence to info@rapidrivermagazine.com or write to: Rapid River Arts & Culture Magazine 85 N. Main St., Canton, NC 28716 Phone: (828) 646-0071 www.rapidrivermagazine.com All materials contained herein are owned and copyrighted by Rapid River Arts & Culture Magazine and the individual contributors unless otherwise stated. Opinions expressed in this magazine do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Rapid River Arts & Culture Magazine or the advertisers found herein. © Rapid River Arts & Culture Magazine, January 2013, Vol. 16 No. 5

The Friends of the WNC Nature Center are thrilled that the 100,000th visitor in 2012 walked through the doors at 10 a.m. on Monday, December 3, 2012. Betsy Archer and her son Milo, members of the Friends of the Nature Center, were excited to celebrate this milestone with the Center and Friends staff. Betsy shared that the Nature Center is “our favorite place in Asheville!”

2 Performance

Taste of Opera. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Tomáš Kubínek . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

3 Fine Art

Arts & Crafts Conference and Antiques Show . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 John Urbain. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 David Simchock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Satellite Gallery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Gallery 86. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

6 Stage Preview

NC Stage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Magnetic Theatre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

11 Columns

Marcianne Miller – Books . . . . . . .

James Cassara - Music . . . . . . . . . .

Eddie LeShure - Jazz. . . . . . . . . . . .

Judy Ausley – Southern Comfort .

David J. Simchock – Photo Tips . .

Bill Walz - Artful Living . . . . . . . . .

Peter Loewer – The Curmudgeon .

Greg Vineyard - Fine Art . . . . . . . .

Max Hammonds, MD – Health . .

11 12 14 16 20 21 22 28 29

13 Music

Camper Van Beethoven . . . . . . . . . 13 MoogFest 2012 Round-Up . . . . . . 14

The Friends Executive Director Kimberly Brewster presented Betsy and Milo with a basket of goodies worth more than $350 that included an Adoptan-Animal package and a special Engraved Brick to commemorate the event. While Milo enjoyed the plush otter in the basket, he was more interested in visiting the real river otters out on the trail.

Friends of the Nature Center Executive Director Kimberly Brewster (L) and Chris Gentile (R), the Director of the Nature Center, present Betsy Archer and her son Milo with a gift basket.

The 2020 Vision and Site Plan for the Nature Center began with a groundbreaking for a new playground and upgrades to the red wolf experience. Kimberly Brewster shared that “last month we were thrilled that the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina awarded $50,000 to complete the Red Wolf & Play project scheduled to debut in the spring of 2013.” The funds will go towards interactive elements that will engage visitors and share the story of the critically endangered red wolves.

Admission to the Nature Center is $6 for adults ($8 for non-Asheville residents), $5 for seniors ($7 for non-Asheville residents), $4 for youth ages 3-15 and children age 2 and under are free.

Members are admitted free of charge. Join the Nature Center before you visit at www.wildwnc. org. For additional information visit www.wncnaturecenter.com or call (828) 259-8080.

Wilderness Wildlife Week The 23rd annual winter event takes place January 12-19 in Pigeon Forge, and will feature 304 workshops, lectures, panel discussions, mini-concerts, hikes and excursions to draw attention to the neighboring Great Smoky Mountains National Park and a variety of other outdoor destinations and topics. The free programs will be held at the Music Road Hotel Convention Center. More details, including the program schedule and hike information, are at www.MyPigeonForge.com/wildlife or by calling 1-800-251-9100.

15 Noteworthy

Collaboration Celebration. . . . . . . 15

17 Restaurants

www.RapidRiverMagazine.com Like Us On Facebook

Rise ‘n Shine Café. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Kathmandu Café . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 The Classic WineSeller. . . . . . . . . . 34

Win monthly prizes to area restaurants and attractions!

23 Movie Reviews

Chip Kaufmann & Michelle Keenan.. 23

33 Asheville Shops

FiZi Futon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

30 What to Do Guide On the Cover: Moai Sculptures, Easter Island, Chile. Photo by David Simchock.

PAGE

9

™

Best in Show by Phil Juliano . . . . .

Callie & Cats by Amy Downs . . . .

Corgi Tales by Phil Hawkins . . . .

Dragin by Michael Cole . . . . . . . .

Ratchet & Spin by T.Oder, R.Woods

31 31 31 31 31

Distributed at more than 390 locations throughout eight counties in WNC and South Carolina.

First copy is free – each additional copy $1.50

Vol. 16, No. 5 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — January 2013 5

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stage preview Go, Granny, Go and Fresh Preserves at NC Stage

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C Stage welcomes two dynamic performers this January with some inspiring, heartwarming, and local stories.

Barbara Bates Smith, noted for her Off-Broadway adaptation and performance of “Ivy Rowe” from Lee Smith’s Fair and Tender Ladies, will be performing her new play, “Go, Granny, Go,” the touring show highlighting the story of Doris “Granny D” Haddock.

“Granny D,” a ninety-year-old in 2000, was considered a national heroine as she completed a walk from Los

Angeles to Washington DC to bring attention to campaign finance reform.

Her memoir, “Granny D”, from which Smith adapted the play, was praised by supporters John McCain, Jimmy Carter, and Bill Moyers.

“Granny D” used to claim, “You’re never too old to raise a little hell,” and continued bipartisan election reform efforts, including a countrywide voter registration drive before her death in 2010, providing interesting encounters as she came through Asheville.

Barbara Bates Smith, along with musical accompanist, Jeff Sebens, will bring “Go, Granny, Go” to NC Stage as part of its Catalyst Series the weekends of January 11-13, and 18-20.

Songwriter Tom Godleski is best-known for his band Buncombe Turnpike, but now the stories he heard as a child are part of the new musical play, Fresh Preserves, A wonderful blend of mountain storytelling and songwriting, and a true expression of Southern Appalachian culture.

“My Uncle Robert Fowler was my biggest influence as a storyteller,” says Godleski. “He passed away in August of 2008, he was 94 years old. He had dementia at the end of his life, and he Songwriter Tom Godleski Photo: Antonia Eden couldn’t remember his sto-

Barbara Bates Smith as Doris “Granny D” Haddock

ries. Then it became more important for me to write this play, to keep the stories alive.”

Fresh Preserves won the 2009 Southern Appalachian Repertory Theatre’s Annual Scriptfest and plays as part of the NC Stage Catalyst Series January 23 through January 27.

IF YOU Go, Granny, Go, January GO 11-13, and 18-20. Fridays

and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m. Fresh Preserves, January 23 through the 27 with shows Wednesday through Saturday at 7:30 p.m.; 2 p.m. matinees on Saturday and Sunday.

Tickets are available through North Carolina Stage Company, at (828) 239-0263, or by visiting the theatre at 15 Stage Lane in Asheville.

More information about showtimes and ticket prices at www.ncstage.org

Cyrano De Bergerac & The Taming of the Shrew

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ew York and London based Aquila Theatre is widely renowned for bringing a thoroughly modern sensibility to great classics. The company delights audiences with innovative takes and clever staging of strong scripts.

On February 1, Aquila presents Edmund Rostand’s Cyrano de Bergerac. Cyrano is an excellent French soldier and swordsman who is besotted with the beautiful and alluring Roxanne, yet because of his famously huge nose he feels he can never truly win her heart. Beautifully funny, poignant and often heart wrenching, Cyrano de Bergerac promises to be a wonderful evening of live theatre of the highest caliber.

6 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

a husband. With its inventive style and versatile cast, Aquila breathes fresh life into one of Shakespeare’s most challenging yet enduring comedies.

IF YOU Aquila Theatre in Edmund GO Rostand’s Cyrano de

Edmund Rostand’s Cyrano de Bergerac Photo: J. Michael Worthington, Jr.

On February 2, Aquila presents Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, telling the story of the timeless battle of the sexes. Bianca Minola, the beautiful daughter of a lord, is eligible for marriage but cannot be courted until her elder sister, Katherina, finds

Bergerac, Friday, February 1 at 8 p.m.; Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, Saturday, February 2 at 8 p.m. at Diana Wortham Theatre.

Tickets: Regular $35; Students $30; Children 12 & under $15. Student Rush tickets ($10 for students with valid I.D.) are sold the day of the show, based on availability. Call the theatre’s box office at (828) 257-4530 or visit www.dwtheatre.com.

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stage preview Sex and How To Have It

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LIGHT BLUE COMEDY AT THE MAGNETIC THEATRE

he Magnetic Theatre, Asheville’s home for original works, proudly leaps into 2013 with Sex and How To Have It, A Light Blue Comedy.

Originally presented for only two late night performances in June, this homegrown sketch comedy show, in the tradition of our wildly successful Bernstein Family Christmas Spectaculars, delighted packed houses. What better way to celebrate the new year than to present a revised, expanded version of Sex in the mainstage slot, Thursdays-Saturdays at 7:30, January 10-February 2?

With quick, comic looks at sex education, first forays, gay sex, group sex, online sex, loss of libido, visits from the pizza delivery guy, the plumber, the police, and “The Spouse Whisperer,” songs such as “Tie The Knot (A Little Tighter, Please)” and “My Loathing,” and a special appearance by the Big Blue Bin, Sex covered a lot of interesting territory. This edition covers more.

Conceived, written, and performed by Magnetic Theatre veterans Brian Claflin, Kathryn Langwell, and Glenn Reed, and newcomer Valerie Meiss of Hellblinki fame, in collaboration with The Magnetic Theatre’s Artistic Director Steven Samuels and writer Lisa Yoffee, the show features songs

by Brian Claflin, choreography by Kathleen Hahn, and direction by Samuels.

Naughty But Nice!

Naughty But Nice! captures the sophistication of Cole Porter and the wit of Noel Coward. The musical design of this intimate cabaret revue takes us to New York, Paris, London, and Cannes, where both composers held court. This collection of saucy songs in tandem with a few marvelous monologues, has the appeal of several dry martinis.

Francis Cullinan, Director; David Troy Francis, Music Director; Morgen Cobb, Percussion. Cast: Carl Duermit, Ryan Hessenius, Mark Morales, and Jorja Ursin.

IF YOU GO: Saturday, January 26 at

7:30 p.m. Sunday, January 27 at 2:30 p.m. Tickets: $25. White Horse Black Mountain. Call (828) 669-0816, visit www.whitehorseblackmountain.com

BY

CHALL GRAY

Is that a euphemism in your pocket or are you just happy to see us?

“It’s a riot!,” Samuels says. “We didn’t know quite what to expect when we started this project, but the results delight in unexpected ways. Though The Magnetic Theatre is known for its occasional edginess and a certain amount of naughtiness, Sex and How To Have It, despite its titular subject matter, turns out to be surprisingly sweet.

It’s knowing and raucously funny, but PG13 is how Hollywood would rate it. I’ve been laughing since June.”

Sex and How To Have It is presented in a strictly limited engagement. Get these laughs while you can!

The Magnetic Theatre presents Sex and How To Have It. Written by and starring Brian Claflin, Kathryn Langwell, Valerie Meiss, and Glenn Reed, with additional material by Lisa Yoffee and Steven Samuels. Music and lyrics by Brian Claflin. “My Loathing” choreographed by Kathleen Hahn. Directed by Steven Samuels.

IF YOU Sex and How To Have It. LowGO priced previews Thursday-Friday,

January 10-11. Official opening Saturday, January 12. Continuing Thursday-Saturday through February 2.

All performances at 7:30 at The Magnetic Theatre, 372 Depot Street in the River Arts District. Previews $8. All other shows $15.

Tickets are available online, visit www.themagneticfield.com.

SEX & POWER: THE QUEST FOR WHOLENESS

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With Sajit Greene, M.A., and Rebecca Chaplin, MA, LS

e can expand our possibilities, in love and life, by broadening the repertoire of inner characters we embrace. Let’s take a look at how sexual stories and their characters weave their way through life stories.

Themes of passion, power, and the quest for wholeness can play out in ways that are dramatic, erotic, poignant, kinky, and even comical. Join Sajit Greene, M.A., an Asheville-based relationship

coach and educator and Rebecca Chaplin, MA, LS, a Somatic Sexologist and Gerontologist as they discuss this titillating topic.

IF YOU GO: Sex and Power: The Quest

for Wholeness, January 22 at 7 p.m.

Malaprop’s Café/Bookstore, 55 Haywood St., downtown Asheville. For more details please call (828) 254-6734 or visit www.malaprops.com.

Vol. 16, No. 5 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — January 2013 7

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new + noteworthy Artist Business Brainstorm Sessions The Asheville Area Arts Council and River Arts District Business Association (RADBA) are offering the second round of Artist Business Brainstorm Sessions in January and February.

For more information and to sign up (required): http://tinyurl.com/aqtz3g7 Artist Business Brainstorm Sessions are by donation one-onone brainstorming opportunities for artist entrepreneurs with professionals in the business field who would like to brainstorm and assist with arts business support. We are interested in supporting artists who are serious about strengthening, developing and growing their businesses.

We believe we can support each other through growing challenges, as well as enhance our neighborhood and our businesses together.

Brainstorm sessions will be held between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. on specific Fridays at the Asheville Area Arts Council (346 Depot Street, Asheville, NC 28801) at Pink Dog Creative in the River Arts District.

For more information on the River Arts District Business Association please visit www.radba.org.

For more information on the Asheville Area Arts Counci visit www.ashevillearts.com.

Rapid River ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE

16th Annual

Poetry Contest 5 WINNERS! Prizes Include: Tickets to local concerts; Tickets to the theatre; Mellow Mushroom Gift Certificates; and books from Malaprops.

Any unpublished poem 35 lines or less is wanted!

Deadline January 15, 2012. Winning poems will be printed in the March 2012 issue.

Reading fee: $5 for three poems. For more information please call (828) 646-0071.

Send poems to: Rapid River Poetry Contest, 85 N. Main St., Canton, NC 28716

John Urbain: No Ideas But in Things

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he Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center is proud to announce John Urbain: No Ideas but in Things, an exhibition of collages and paintings by Black Mountain College alumnus John Urbain, opening January 18, 2013.

The project includes a retrospective exhibition of Urbain’s paintings and collages (including selected work from BMC), a publication, and a rich array of public programming, all designed to honor and recognize Urbain, sharing his work with a diverse audience in the WNC region and beyond.

The opening reception will take place from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Friday, January 18.

Admission is free for members and students, $3 for non-members.

John Urbain (1920 - 2009) was a student at Black Mountain College (BMC) in 1946 and 1947 after returning from the war.

He enrolled at the suggestion of his friend and colleague Ray Johnson, then a student at the college. BMC proved to be a central influence on his future. As a student of Josef Albers, John began a life-long exploration of matière–a French word and concept that Albers emphasized at BMC to describe a focus on the physical and visual properties of materials. This way of thinking was central to his artwork from that point forth.

He also met his future wife, Elaine Schmitt, in Albers’ class.

Urbain wrote, “The visual arts involve the optical senses. With matière, there is

Red X, 1988, mixed media, collage on masonite, 12x10"

involved an additional factor, that of the tactile senses. We desire to touch and feel the matiére studies.” One of the best-known 20th century collage artists, Ray Johnson, was also a student at Black Mountain College. Irwin Kremen is another prolific collage artist who emerged from BMC, having entered the school to study writing. All of these artists were profoundly influenced by their time at BMC, and the legacy of Albers’ focus on matière ties all of their collage work together.

We are proud to have featured both Ray Johnson (From BMC to NYC: The Tutelary Years of Ray Johnson 1943-1967 in 2010) and Irwin Kremen (In Site: Irwin Kremen in 2012). We plan to build upon this successful history with John Urbain:

No Ideas but in Things, furthering our mission to preserve and continue the unique legacy of educational and artistic innovation of Black Mountain College.

The project includes a retrospective exhibition of John Urbain’s work (from early design studies made in Albers’ classes to mature work from his final years), accompanied by an exhibition catalogue and public programming, including a collage workshop, a lecture about the history of collage in the twentieth century and two poetry readings.

The exhibition will open at the Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center on January 18, and close on June 1, 2013.

Prior to installation in Asheville, a version of the Urbain exhibition was installed at Yvette Torres Fine Art, a gallery in Rockland, Maine. The Asheville exhibition will incorporate work from the BMC Museum + Arts Center collection, including Urbain’s meticulously illustrated notes from Albers’ classes and two design studies from 1946.

The Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center preserves and continues the unique legacy of educational and artistic innovation of Black Mountain College for public study and enjoyment.

IF YOU John Urbain: No Ideas but in GO Things. Opening reception takes

place Friday, January 18 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center, 56 Broadway, downtown Asheville. Hours: Tues.-Wed. 12-4 , Thurs-Sat. 11-5 and by appointment.

For more information call (828) 350-8484 or visit www.blackmountaincollege.org.

Works by Matthew Zedler on Display at Hotel Indigo

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otel Indigo will host a reception for Matthew Zedler, a Madison county-based artist on Thursday, January 10 from 5 to 7 p.m. The display features thirtyfour works by Zedler in the public areas of the hotel.

Matthew Zedler is a modern/contemporary fine artist with a studio and gallery in downtown Marshall, NC, about 30 minutes north of Asheville, NC. His gallery has been open to the public since early 2008, but his involvement in the arts and fine arts extends throughout his entire life. His repertoire includes variety of cutting edge abstract-ex-

8 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

Hotel Indigo is a contemporary ecofriendly boutique neighborhood hotel featuring 100 guest suites, luxury condominiums, sixteen penthouse level luxury suites, and the oneFIFTYone Boutique Bar & Kitchen. The design and support of locally talented architects, designers, artists, and craftsmen is evident throughout the award winning hotel.

pressionist contemporary and geometric-linear-cubist paintings.

His work is currently featured at Hotel Indigo, NewZart Gallery & Studio in Marshall, NC, and Nelson Fine Art in Johnson City, TN as well as the “It’s a Small, Small Work 2012” show at Gallery 86 in Waynesville.

IF YOU Meet the Artist Reception for GO Matthew Zedler Thursday, January

10 from 5 to 7 p.m. The reception will be followed by the live music of Ben Hovey at 7 p.m. Hotel Indigo, 151 Haywood Street, downtown Asheville.

For more information please visit www.ashevillehotellodgingdowntown.com, or www.matthewzedlerfineart.com.

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fine art INTERVIEW WITH

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David Simchock

RAD Photographer / Artist / Instructor

native of New Jersey, awardwinning photographer David Simchock has had a life-long interest in the arts, although his early career aspirations brought him into the corporate world, practicing as a mechanical engineer in New York City and later in corporate management in Great Britain.

Life as an ex-pat inspired David to further experience our planet’s many cultures, and in late 1999, he departed from his technical and managerial career and embarked on a world journey that would bring in the new millennium – an adventure that eventually lead him to five continents over a three-year period – while creating an impressive photo essay that would be admired by even the most seasoned travel photographer.

In early 2003, David founded Vagabond Vistas Photography – a creative venture combining his passion for both travel and photography. He and his partner, Beth, have since moved to the Asheville where they have a happy home in Weaverville. David operates a photography studio /gallery in Asheville’s River Arts District.

INTERVIEWED BY

DENNIS RAY

Vistas Photo Tours is the home of my “teaching” business. And, finally, soon-to-be launched David Simchock Fine Art venture is where you’ll find my artwork endeavors. I also run a photo blog called got f-stop?. Oh, and I write a monthly “Photography Tips & Tricks” column for Rapid River Magazine! How can I forget that?

David J. Simchock in the Sahara Desert in Morocco.

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RRM: Wow! You’re a very busy man!

Where do you find the time to do all of that?

DS: At times, it’s not easy, especially now as I continue to get settled into the Asheville scene, while progressing the restructuring of my activities. Once all of the website work is complete, I should be able to free up some time and, hopefully, do some traveling, and spend more time with Beth and the kids.

RRM: You have quite an impressive

portfolio of work. You must have a lot of stamps in your passport.

DS: I guess I have a few, but it’s been

almost four years since I made it out of the country. All being well 2013 will bring with it two or three exciting excursions.

RRM: What do you have planned?

DS: I’m in the

process of expanding the reach of my Vagabond Vistas business into international photo Old Taxi, Marshall, NC Photo by David Simchock tours. I started doing day tours a Rapid River Magazine: Tell us a little few years ago in New York City and about what you see as the most imporin Philadelphia and, since moving tant aspect of your photography. to Asheville, I’ve gotten things up David Simchock: Actually, I now have and running here. I’ve been offering three key aspects to what I do as a “mini” tours in Asheville, and also photographer. I am a photographer. I full-day events in the mountains. am a fine artist. And, I am a teacher.

But, the bigger news is that All three are distinct business activiI’ll be running a week-long tour in ties, and I am in the process of splitting Italy at the end of April, covering the these activities into their own, dediTuscany region (including Florence). cated businesses and websites.

I’m also about to announce another David Simchock Photography is tour in Ecuador for mid-August, and be the home of my creative “shoothave a couple of other destinations in ing” (e.g., commissioned editorial and mind, possibly for the 2013 calendar. commercial assignments). Vagabond Basically, I’m linking up with tour

Moai Sculptures, Easter Island, Chile Photo by David Simchock

companies who are expert in logistics, and together we’re offering multi-day, educational photo tours.

For the Italy event, I’m partnering with a local company, Private Italy Tours Ltd (www.Private-Italy.com).

Mark Smith, the owner, is a great guy with an abundance of experience in Italy and other parts of Southern Europe.

It’s going to be an amazing journey!

For the Ecuador trip, I’m teamed up with another compnay that I met via an Asheville Chamber of Commerce networking event (Amazon Andes Sky www.AmazonAndesSky.com).

Whereas the Italy tour will be more about the famous Tuscan landscape and medievil architecture, the Ecuador trip will focus on indigenous culture and people in the Andes Mountains.

I’m also interested in forming alliances with tour companies who specialize in other parts of the world, particularly Asia and Africa, but wouldn’t rule out New Zealand and Australia.

I’m also exploring itineraries here in North America as well.

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RRM: Photo tours. That sounds like a great idea for Asheville!

DS: Well, I’ve been doing them for a

while in the Northeast, but I’m taking things to another level with the move south, and with my overseas trips. As can be seen by the many eclectic tour companies operating in Asheville, it’s a great place to establish my “photo tours”. There’s a lot of creative energy here in the local community and, of course, we get our fair share of tourists passing through.

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‘D. Simchock’ continued on page 15

Vol. 16, No. 5 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — January 2013 9

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fine art

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INTERVIEW WITH WILLIAM THOMPSON, OWNER OF ASHEVILLE’S

Satellite Gallery

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he Satellite Gallery specializes in bringing local, national and international artists to the Southeast. These artists represent the changing dynamic of contemporary art.

Rapid River Magazine: How did you first get interested in selling art?

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story about how it all came about.

But, art has always been a passion of mine and there came a point in time where my best friends, Brad Stengel, Josh Liner and I decided we would just go for it. We wanted to open up a place to show this passion and the genre(lowbrow) of art we were into.

So we opened up Lineage Gallery in Burlington, VT to highlight this style of art and the many artists out there.

INTERVIEWED BY

DENNIS RAY

Art has always been a passion of mine. lite. Artists are on point when it comes to finding a gallery to rep them as well. They seek you out so choosing whom to show is the hard part.

RRM: What medium of art tends to sell the best here in Asheville, and why do you suppose that is?

WT: That is a question where I think

NOBODY has the answer to. People love what they love when it comes to art – the medium doesn’t matter. What does sell in this town is Kitsch, Craft and Folk Art. People come to Asheville to bring a piece of Asheville home with them, that’s why these styles sell over others.

Asheville is an “Artsy” town.

William Thompson, owner of the Satellite Gallery The styles I show are just another aspect of Art in After a few years we moved it to Asheville yet it tends to be a little to Philly and during that time I opened contemporary and forward for those The Satellite Gallery here in Ashethat visit. Most of my clients are larger ville. I felt that there was something city oriented, so the “commercial” lacking here in the art world and it styles don’t appeal to them. But when was a gallery that is in step with the it comes to buying Art – if you feel it, zeitgeist of art today and I wanted to you know it. bring this to Asheville.

RRM: You have artists from all around

RRM: Tell us a little about some of

WT: There are so many talented artists

WT: Well, first and foremost the artist

the world. How do you choose and or find your artists? out there, both here in Asheville and elsewhere that it is somewhat easy to find artists. They just have to fit in line with the styles I show at Satel10 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

Give Me A Home by Brian Mashburn

your artists and what initially drew you towards their work? has to fit with the galleries style. Also for me, the artists I carry have to really be speaking to me with their work. It can be style, subject matter or even

Clockwork Dosage by Chris Mars

Listen to what the artist is saying.

All art speaks. how clean their line is. But it all comes down to their work. There are so many artists that I use and know that it’s difficult to name just a few. Besides I don’t like alienating anyone.

Everyone that I show in The Satellite Gallery is being shown for a reason and that reason is – the work speaks.

Now it’s just a matter of teaching people that aren’t familiar with what I show to listen to what the artist is saying. All Art speaks – whether or not you want to listen is up to you. Just be open to it.

The Satellite Gallery 55 Broadway St., Downtown Asheville (828) 505-2225 Tues. – Sat. 11-6 p.m., Sun. 11-5 p.m. www.thesatellitegallery.com

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authors ~ books ~ readings Prosperous Heart: Creating a Life of “Enough”

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WRITTEN BY JULIA

lmost two decades ago, I found a copy of The Artist’s Way in the library in the small Mojave Desert town where I was living. Unable to resist its bright red cover, I picked it up, read the first few pages—and began to weep. The voice in my head whispered clearly, “This book will save your life.”

I had recently left Hollywood after a devastating experience in which my agent, literally, allowed my screenplay to be stolen by a Canadian production company. I received a mere pittance for years of labor and no screen credit. No lawyer would touch my case because the foreign studio was considered too influential to sue.

Shell-shocked, I moved to the desert to start a new career as an archeologist/oral historian at Edwards Air Force Base. Though the new work was fascinating, it wasn’t writing. All my life I’d been a writer. Now I was a writer who wasn’t writing. I felt dead.

As author Julia Cameron described me, I needed creative recovery. Just like people who drink too much need a road to sobriety, so, too, said Cameron, did creative people need a path to recovery.

And she came up with one that has helped millions of people world-wide.

She designed a 12week program, based somewhat on the AlJulia Cameron coholics Anonymous Photo: Mark Kornbluth principles but much funnier, less rigid and more inclusive. Her program reminded creative people of their connection to the Creative Force.

The lesson each week concentrated on an area of creative blockage that few of us recognize and thus rarely face, such as falsely believing that our interior critic tells the truth, or giving up just before the miracle happens.

Two simple steps guide her program.

Morning Pages is the practice of hand-writing three pages of free-associate writing first thing every morning. That unclutters your brain from all the stuff blocking it, allowing your creativity to flow. (After a while you learn that Morning Pages is as crucial to a productive day as turning on your computer or making your first brushstroke.)

CAMERON WITH EMMY LIVELY

Artist’s Dates are times spent alone, once a week, priming the creative well by taking artistic trips, such as to art galleries, fabric stores, antique shops— anything that takes you away from your routine day and to something new.

Like a woman dying of thirst, I read The Artist’s Way, one week at Way a time as it insisted, and followed its principles devotedly. After completing the course, my new play was produced by the local playhouse.

Since then I have followed The Artist’s Way principles religiously.

(In fact, often when people ask what my religion is, I answer The Artist’s Way Way—that’s how all-encompassing the principles of the book have become.) Hundreds of people in Asheville are Artist’s Way “graduates” and more join each week.

One problem is so pernicious among creative people that Cameron felt an entire book, not just a chapter, was needed to solve it—artists and prosperity. Many artists fail to earn what they deserve. Others are so ill-equipped to manage their finances, they can’t balance their checkbook.

“Worry about money is one of the primary blocks to creativity.”

“Worry about money,” says Cameron, “is one of the primary blocks to creativity.” With the help of fellow author Emmy Lively, Cameron wrote The Prosperous Heart: Creating a Life of “Enough.” “Prosperity is never just about money,” Cameron says, leading the way into another book that is spiritual as well as practical. Hitting home her points, Cameron fills the book with stories of money-challenged artists who learned how to turn prosperity into their friend. A new definition of the concept of “Enough” makes us learn what true prosperity is—having “Enough.”

Following a similar format as its progenitor, The Prosperous Heart also lays out a 12-week program explaining the specific problems creative people have with money and what steps can be taken to solve them.

This program is based on five principles: Morning Pages, Counting, Abstinence, Walking and Time-Outs.

REVIEWED BY

MARCIANNE MILLER

JANUARY

We host numerous Readings, Bookclubs, as well as Poetrio!

PARTIAL LISTING More events posted online.

“Prosperity is never about money.”

Counting means exactly that—writing down each and every penny you make and where you spend it. Such meticulous, but easy, recordkeeping makes us conscious about money (sometimes for the first time in our lives) and is the foundation of financial clarity. “Prosperity begins with clarity,” Cameron says.

Abstinence is assiduously avoiding debt.

Walking is one of Cameron’s favorite meditative techniques. Time-outs are 5-minute brain breaks twice a day. It’s all doable—but, breaking the bad money habits of a lifetime takes commitment and resistance to change is difficult.

Just as Cameron saw creative recovery as the product of a creative soul making itself one with a creative universe, so, too, does Cameron see Prosperity as connecting to a universe that is by its nature prosperous.

Her writing is so effective and the stories so illustrative, that you feel as if she’s writing directly to you. For Cameron, “Enough” is the operative principle of Prosperity, and learning to live with “Enough” is what creative people do.

You can find The Prosperous Heart at Asheville’s independent bookstores.

For more information visit www.JuliaCameronLive.com

BOOKSIGNINGS & BOOKCLUBS January 3 at 7 p.m. Matthew Hughey, White Bound: Nationalists, Antiracists, and the Shared Meanings of Race.

January 4 at 7 p.m. Larry Cammarata, 52 Quotes & Weekly Mindfulness Practices.

January 5 at 3 p.m. Paul Reid, The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill Defender of The Realm.

January 8 at 7 p.m. Karen Berg, To Be Continued: Reincarnation and the Purpose of Our Lives.

January 10 at 7 p.m. Astrology of Awakening with Eric Meyers.

January 12 at 7 p.m. Jubal Tiner, The Waterhouse; Katherine Scott Crawford, Keowee Valley; and Joseph Cutshall-King, The Burning of the Piping Rock.

January 13 at 3 p.m. Trey Carland, A Seeker’s Guide to Inner Peace; Brian Piergrossi, The Big Glow.

January 15 at 7 p.m. Eating Disorders & Wellness with Michelle Mendez-Youell.

January 17 at 7 p.m. Memoirists, Dorothy Foltz Gray, and Georganne Spruce.

January 19 at 7 p.m. T Cooper presents his memoir, Real Man Adventures.

January 22 at 7 p.m. Sex & Power with Sajit Greene and Rebecca Chaplin.

January 24 at 7 p.m. Star Wolf presents Spirit of the Wolf: Discovering the Transformative Power of Lupine Energy.

January 25 at 7 p.m. Hub City Press Authors Tommy Hays, John Lane, & Helen Correll.

January 26 at 7 p.m. Frank Lentricchia, The Accidental Pallbearer.

55 Haywood St.

Recommendation: The Prosperous Heart:

Creating a Life of “Enough” is Julia Cameron’s most helpful book after The Artist’s Way. But it should be read, and practiced, Way not by itself, but only after you’ve read and practiced the first book, or if you practice each book at the same time.

828-254-6734 • 800-441-9829

Monday-Saturday 9AM to 9PM PG. 32 Sunday 9AM to 7PM M

Prosperous Heart: Creating a Life of “Enough”; written by Julia Cameron with Emmy Lively; Tarcher, 2012; 240 pp, paperback; $13.98.

Marcianne Miller is an Asheville writer/reviewer.

Vol. 16, No. 5 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — January 2013 11

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spinning discs CD Reviews

by James Cassara

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Spring and Fall Gawdaggie Records

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Arriving as it does at the onset of our winter, even as his native Australia (where he is universally adored) blooms with the promise of rebirth and warming temperatures, Spring and Fall signifies a steady, inexorable shift for Kelly, returning to the minimal roots that has anchored much of his post 2000 output while reengaging his incurable knack for understated charm and whimsy.

The twin seasons serve as bookends for his current emotional and spiritual state; newfound love abounds but, as always, trepidation and scorn lie just below the surface. Kelly’s straightforward songs have never been difficult to parse — he eschews the labyrinth lyrical approach of his admitted hero Bob Dylan — but they’re hushed, seducing the listener into his swaying chords and lilting melodies.

At this stage of his career, with three decades of recorded music behind him, Kelly is certainly an experience crafter of song, and Spring and Fall evidences this in the strongest possible sense. Its songs unfold at a leisurely pace, benefiting from repeated listens as their subtleties emerge. This is especially true of the melodies, whose relaxed tempos shift unexpectedly — and at just the proper moment — from cadence to cadence.

Spring and Fall is a record about heartache and healing, but it’s also about our universal tendencies towards finding solace in both pleasure (“Someone New”) and pain (“Cold As Canada”). In this Paul Kelly has again asserted himself as a national treasure too good for only one nation. ****

Mr. Blue Sky The Very Best of Electric Light Orchestra Legacy Music Having rediscovered the joys of do-it-yourself record making, Jeff Lynne has gone back and remixed what is generally considered the finest of many ELO compilations. Much like a film director who cannot resist the urge to tinker with past triumphs, Lynne is determined to recreate his old arrangements with new technology.

Strictly speaking, these are not reinterpretations of the bands incredible 1970’s streak of top ten hits, but rather newly 12 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

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Last month I was able to plow through a stack of discs left over from previous months. This go around I enter into the New Year with a pair of new albums, a hybrid recast of a best of, and a glorious boxed set celebrating one of the great albums of our generation.

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recorded versions (with Lynne playing virtually all the instruments) of songs familiar to even the most casual of fans. The result is a cleaner and more brightly sounding collection that while on the one hand might be a tad superfluous is an undeniably engaging listen.

Lynne’s voice is in remarkable good shape, the harmonies are impeccably layered, and he’s even managed to replicate old-fashioned analog synthesizers with scant loss of compression. Whether this is reason enough to trade in your old ELO hits album in favor of this years’ model is open to debate but there’s no getting around that for sheer entertainment value Jeff Lynne’s latest vanity project is no mere trip down memory lane. ***1/2

The Idelsohn Society ‘Twas the Night Before Hanukkah: The Musical Battle Between Christmas and the Festival of Lights Idelsohn Society Music www.idelsohnsociety.com This generous two disc set explores the ever evolving 20th century musical role of both Hanukkah and Christmas.

Furthering its mission to educate, edify and promote Jewish musical history, The ldelsohn Society has compiled a highly enjoyable collection of Hanukkah songs, both traditional and contemporary, as well as Christmas music sung (and in many cases written) by Jews.

Each disc features 17 tracks, compiled from a wide array of performers, musical styles and genres, from the 1930s to present. Disc One (Happy Hanukkah) highlights both well-known and somewhat lost Hanukkah classics from the past. Disc two, (Merry Christmas) features Christmas songs secular and holy.

The collection tells a uniquely American story: once Christmas was declared a national holiday in 1870, the competitive campaign to increase the visibility of Hanukkah began. The once obscure and relatively minor Jewish holiday grew both in religious prominence and commercial importance.

For reasons both sentimental and out of a simple love for the music, every major Jewish performer of the time re-

corded a Christmas track. The result was a truly American phenomenon: a category of Christmas music, as sung by Jews, became a vital part of the holiday fabric.

Twas The Night Before Hanukkah is a musical songbook highlighting both rare and iconic holiday music across both faiths. To further illustrate the musical journey, a deluxe 35-page booklet of Hanukkah photos, holiday themed artwork, rare holiday album art from years past and a list of 16 ways (who knew?) to correctly spell Hanukkah compliments the set.

Additionally, the package includes extensive liner notes on both holidays’ history in American culture along with essays by noted music critic Greil Marcus and George Washington University historian Jenna Weissman Joselit. Each of the 34 songs included receives a track-by-track description.

Performers range from the obvious (Mel Torme) to the unknown (Gladys Gewitz).

And who among us recalls that Woody Guthrie cut a Hanukkah tune or two?

Obviously not everything will resonate with everyone but for an educational and entertaining overview of holiday music from the twentieth century this works as both primer and remedial course. I wish my copy had arrived early enough to recommend it for this year but, unless the Mayans are somehow accurate, there’s always 2013 to look forward to. ****

Reissue of the Month Rage Against The Machine: XX

20th Anniversary Deluxe Box Set In more than a few ways the decade of the 1990’s seemed a bit schizophrenic, a period in which the music never quite seemed reflective of the zeitgeist of the country.

Even as the peace and prosperity of the Clinton years lulled us into a national trance ‘CD’s’ continued on page 15

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sound experience Camper Van Beethoven AT THE GREY EAGLE

Before indy and alternative rock became acceptable-if not mainstream-the mixture of punk, folk, ska, and world beat music offered up by Camper Van Beethoven was a genuine revelation.

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nchored by the twin virtues of lead singer and principal songwriter David Lowery, whose keen knack for smart aleck lyrics, irrepressible hooks, and a laid back approach that could have come from nowhere other than California, and Jonathan Segel’s violin-an instrument rarely taking lead in rock music-the band had a sound that was, following on the era of big hair and bigger synthesizers, a breath of fresh air.

Twenty years after its inception, that sound is still remarkably bright, and its influence on alternative music indisputable and resounding. Once declared by Lowery as “surrealist absurdist folk,” Camper Van Beethoven had its beginnings in the summer of 1983 when Lowery and boyhood friend Victor Krummenacher (bass) started playing music together around Riverside and Redlands.

Upon relocating to the Northern California college town of Santa Cruz, they enlisted friends Chris Pedersen (drums) and Chris Molla (guitar), to join the fold; Greg Lisher (guitar) and Segel were added in 1985, and collectively they created a repertoire built on acoustic and electric, merging both traditional and proto-punk aesthetics.

The band’s self-released 1985 debut, Telephone Free Landslide Victory, which included their signature song, “Take the Skinheads Bowling,” made many a critics top ten list for the year.

‘CD’s’ continued from page 14

the youth culture-especially those damn kids from Seattle-were wallowing in confusion and an angst that bordered on self loathing.

This apparent bifurcation was best amplified in the music of Limp Bizkit and Pearl Jam (two bands that held more in common than might at first seem obvious) but in the long run not many albums of the time he aged as well as Rage Against the Machine’s self titled debut. From the start Tom Morello and company (Tim Commerford, Zack de la Rocha, and Brad Wilk) channeled their aggression into something that approached true art.

While other bands used their often feigned indignation as a means to sell music,

Their second album — the oddly titled II & III, was equally well received while the self titled third release, which followed only months later, was the bands’ real commercial breath through. In addition to the punk and ska elements both efforts dabbled in lo-fidelity sounds, with touches of country (as in “Sad Lovers Waltz” and the twangy cover of Sonic Youth’s “I Love Her All the Time”) that fit perfectly with the time. The band’s gift was an ability to switch styles, from Balkan folk to psychedelic rock; they did so with remarkable ease, and often within the same song.

By the time of their Virgin Records debut-which coincided with the label’s U.S. 1988 re-launch- the band took a more serious tack for its fourth album, Our Beloved Revolutionary Sweetheart. With Molla having left, the group was officially a five-piece, though a cadre of friends assisted them both on tour and in the studio. Given a larger budget to play with the band experimented with sound, but in some ways that experimentation backfired. Sweetheart met with mixed critical response, causing Lowery to begin questioning both Camper’s future and his own musical impulses. Following 1989’s elegiac Key Lime Pie, and amid creative and personal strife, the band (then featuring fiddler Morgan Fichter in place of Segel) soon called it quits.

Krummenacher, Pedersen, and Lisher went off to form the instrumental prog rock consortium Monks of Doom, while Segel released a series of albums under the pseud-

Rage intentionally left such premeditated marketing off the table and went straight for the kill. Over the course of 52 minutes, and with unerring precision, they eviscerated everything from imperialism to consumerism, fair-weather political impulses, and bogus cultural icons.

Now, two decades later, fans both old and new are invited to recapture the moment with a deluxe box set stuffed with unreleased demos, select live tracks, and DVD extras. And while repackaging the album and stuffing it with an abundance of extra material would seem to go against the spirit of the album its hard to argue with success.

Even after all this time the album sounds as fresh and resilient as ever; if anything its’ grown with the years, a wonderful

BY JAMES

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onym Hieronymus Fire Brain. In the wake of the band’s dissolution, Lowery formed Cracker, by far the most successful of the post-Camper ventures; it served as a vehicle to keep him on the road as well as a way to keep Camper’s legacy in circulation. AlCamper Van Beethoven performs Friday, January 25. though he relocated from California to militia, which featured all the original Virginia Lowery and his Camper band mates members including Pedersen on drums remained on relatively good terms; in fact and original guitarist Molla sitting in. the band never made any official announceSince then they’ve yet to release an ment of their dissolution. They simply album of new material but have erratiquit playing together. That proved a wise cally toured, occasional in tandem with strategy.

Cracker (as Lowery pulls double duty), By 1999, Krummenacher, Segel, and and often in support of the many bands Lowery got together to compile an unthey influenced. orthodox rarities collection, Camper Van Their upcoming show is their Beethoven Is Dead: Long Live Camper Van first Asheville performance in nearly Beethoven, a mash-up of rare cuts utilizing two years, although the ever mercurial the band’s catalog. That sparked a renewed Lowery has played the occasional solo interest in again making music, but Lowery, show in our area. Either way you slice it, still immersed with Cracker, was unwilling seeing one of the truly great early indeto fully commit to a full fledged reunion. pendent bands, one whose footprint still In 2002, they officially issued their songlooms large in our world, is a treat not to for-song version of Fleetwood Mac’s Tusk, be missed. which they recorded back in 1987 but had consigned to the vaults.

In the process of reissuing and archiving, the original members (sans PederIF YOU Camper Van Beethoven with sen) quietly reunited for a handful of live GO special guest Kenny Roby at the shows and began work on a new batch of Grey Eagle. Friday, January 25. songs. In 2004 they released New Roman Tickets are priced at $15 in advance Times, a peculiarly successful concept album and $17 day of show for this 9 p.m. about a Texas teen who joins the military standing room only performance. then leaves ranks to join an anti-government

amalgam of style and substance. There’s the sociopolitical slant of bands like Public Enemy and The Clash, the bluesy guitar leanings of Led Zeppelin and the earnest, unadulterated wrath of hardcore metal.

The demos that follow the remastered tracks might not deviate too much from the original studio versions, but there’s a slightly rougher, unpolished quality to them that better compliments the bands’ ethos.

So while the bonus material is welcome it neither detracts nor significantly adds to the original. But with any hope for a new Rage Against the Machine album grow dimmer by the year this is a great way to become introduced or reacquainted with a seminal album that truly deserves such status. *****

Kris Allen On his new album Thank You Camellia, Kris Allen delivers hook-filled pop melodies and heartfelt lyrics that explore the ups and downs of love. Kris, an Arkansas native, won the eighth season of American Idol.

IF YOU GO: Kris Allen performs

Thursday, January 17 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $20 or $50 for VIP. The Altamont Theatre, 18 Church St., Asheville.

More details at (828) 270-7747 or visit www.myAltamont.com

Vol. 16, No. 5 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — January 2013 13

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sound experience MoogFest 2012 Round-Up

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y most accounts the success of 2012’s edition of MoogFest was a mixed bag. While I enjoyed those acts I saw, my perspective — as one who doesn’t have to purchase a ticket and is awarded full access to all events — is admittedly different from that of the typical attendee.

While attendance was clearly down (by roughly 30% from the previous year according to released numbers) over the weekend of October 26 and 27 it still dominated the downtown landscape.

On the plus side, reducing the number of venues made it easier to navigate from one show to another. It also lessened to likelihood that one would have to choose between two essential offerings pitted one against the other. However, of the many attendees I spoke with, careful to not identify myself as member of the small press, few felt this years offerings were as strong as the

BY JAMES

A dream come true?

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previous two.

That of course is all a matter of taste. The opportunity to see The Magnetic Fields and Thomas Dolby in the same evening and at the same venue were for me a dream come true. I also managed to catch a few bands I knew more by reputation than acquaintance; the Brooklyn based Bear In Heaven introduced me to an act I was only passing familiar with, while Mike Snow was the among the highlights of the weekend. Primus were of course astounding, but, having seen them twice before, the sheer excitement was slightly muted. But only slightly!

A few days before I wrote this, it was

announced that MoogFest was ending its relationship with AC Entertainment. The reasons for this are myriad and I doubt any of us will fully understand the complex relationship between both camps.

AC Entertainment has announced plans for its own 2013 Mountain Oasis Electronic

WNC Jazz Profiles: Rick Dilling

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“From big band, to swing, to bebop, to original music, Rick’s knowledge of and expertise in playing many jazz styles enables him to always passionately and tastefully serve the music and the artists with whom he shares the stage.

“More importantly, he’s there for the music first — not for himself. For me, this is the most desirable and admirable trait of any performer; and precisely what elevates Rick to the level of a true artist.” ~ Vocalist Wendy Hayes

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orn and raised in Pennsylvania, Rick listened to all the big bands growing up. “Of course I knew all the top 40 stuff of the 60s and early 70s and loved the Tijuana Brass, but Basie, Ellington, Goodman and Herman really sounded great! At age 12, my drum teacher gave me a Buddy Rich album that changed my life. I knew there had to be more to drumming than just what I’d heard the early swing players doing, and Buddy was just that!

I also heard a lot of combo recordings, but did not realize till later they were jazz legends; people like Miles, MJQ, JJ Johnson, Brubeck — records my dad would bring home. Later it was young Tony Williams that turned my head, plus many others: Grady Tate, Ed Thigpen, Joe Morello, Frankie Dunlop, Mel Lewis, Shelly Mann.”

Just days after high school graduation in 1973, Rick drove to the Boone

area to play golf. “I thought I wanted to be a teaching pro. That first week, a jazz pianist hired me and I never went back home. A year later, I started school at Appalachian State University and graduated with a degree in Music Industry Studies.”

“I had the opportunity to play with real jazz professionals when I was about 19 — piano and bass. That first time, I felt the beauty of a walking bass line with jazz piano voicing over my cymbal and couldn’t sleep for a long time after that!” Since then, Rick has performed professionally with the likes of Clark Terry, Herb Ellis, Ernie Watts, Joe Temperly, the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra, Margarette Whiting, Billy Taylor, and the Unifour Jazz Big Band. Having relocated to Asheville in 2011, his main focus performing these days is with the Todd Wright Quartet, the Asheville Jazz Orchestra and with Wendy Hayes. Rick is also an Adjunct Instructor in the Jazz Department at ASU.

14 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

Music Summit, promising “to build on the success of the past three years.” Meanwhile, Moog Industry president Michael Adams has reiterated that “there will be a 2103 MoogFest” with an emphasis on making it more reflective of Bob Moog and the town he adopted.

How that all shakes out is anyone’s guess but you can be certain Rapid River Magazine will keep you updated. For now let’s just enjoy the prospect of two electronic music events to look forward to, and rejoice in living in an area with such an abundance and variety of entertainment.

Rick Dilling Photo: Frank Zipperer

“Herb Ellis played tunes faster than anyone I’ve ever worked with. He would lean back in his chair, lift one leg and rip off these long lines and I kept thinking the chair would tip over backwards. Once Ernie Watts called for an up tempo Latin piece, which I’d told him was not my strong suit, and then turned to me, ‘Just you and me up front.’ It turned out fine. He taught me something that night — don’t shy away from your weaknesses!”

He added, “I did a performance at the Brevard Music Center one summer with the Unifour Jazz Ensemble, an eighteen piece big band. Our special guest that night was the legendary drummer Louie Bellson. I set up my drums beside Louie’s and played the first half of the concert. Louie came out and did the second half. The crowd wanted an

EDDIE LESHURE

encore so Louie got on the microphone and to my surprise, asked me to come out and play the tune with him and announced we’d have a drum battle! The band launched into “In a Mellow Tone” and half way through the chart, the band stopped and it was just Louie and me, trading licks. He was very kind as he could have blown me away with his unbelievable chops. It was one of the musical highlights of my life!”

“Everybody wants to work with ‘Mr. Tasty’. He listens and supports the soloist like none other and loves to swing! He does everything you want without you having to ask. Rick is the consummate drummer, plus an incredibly fine human being!”

~ Saxophonist Todd Wright

Eddie LeShure is a jazz radio host, currently off-the-air, who encourages all readers to enthusiastically support local jazz.

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new + noteworthy Collaboration Celebration

PHOTOGRAPHY, SPOKEN WORD POETRY, MUSIC, SINGING, VIDEO

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hat happens when you gather

BY CHLOE KEMP six talented people to collaborate on a multi-media art CollapseAble Recording project? If you’re lucky, Magic Studio, came on Happens! board to help “The Mannequin” is with the music full of magical synand recording. chronistic moments, He lined up blended together in a world-renown perfect harmony. saxophonist, Created and Jacob Rodriguez produced by local artto co- create ist and activist Chloe Jarret Levine, musician and Poet, Caleb Beissert the music that Kemp, “The Mansinger. Photos: Chloe Kemp accompanies nequin” will grab you Mira Shani, singer.

Beissert’ poem. and not let go. Chloe’s Sunday, January 13 at 7 p.m. at Isis, 743 Jacob brings quite a long list of acdesire to use art as a Haywood Road, in West Asheville. Come complishments, including workmedium to inspire, early for dinner and cocktails. Stay aftering with Aretha Franklin, Michael motivate, educate and ward and listen to amazing jazz music with Buble, Cyrus Chesnut, and the Balchallenge is definitely renown musicians Justin Ray on trumpet, timore Symphony Orchestra, as well accomplished here.

Steve Alford on clarinet, Jacob Rodriguez on as with jazz contemporaries Walter “Each piece built saxophone, Mike Holstein on bass, and Ben Smith III, Ambrose Akinmusire, and perfectly onto the next Bjorlie on drums Marcus Gilmore. one,” said Kemp. Local Monday, January 21, 7:30 p.m. at Jarret Levine and Mira Shani, poet Caleb Beissert, The Altamont’s monthly poetry series, 18 whom Kemp discovered performwas the first to join.

At the Collapseable Church Street, downtown Asheville. ing at a West Asheville Yoga Kirtan, The hauntingly beautiRecording Studio with brought a beautiful mix of guitar ful spoken word poem musician Aaron Price. and song to the ending credits of the Caleb wrote for the IF video Chloe created. project blended beautiYOU The Mannequin, Sunday, January After only a few takes for each fully with Kemp’s GO 13 at 7 p.m. at Isis, 743 Haywood performer, Aaron and Chloe knew vision. When she read Road, in West Asheville. they had a winner. Listening to the Beissert’s draft of “The Monday, January 21, 7:30 p.m. at The final recording at the end of the Mannequin” for the Altamont, 18 Church Street, downtown day Aaron noted that it was so good first time – a hair-raisAsheville. For more dates and locations people would think it was created in ing, chills induced, please visit www.facebook.com/ New York City. Indeed, Asheville tear-producing experiTheMannequinMultimediaProject has some amazing talent and heart. ence – she knew they Come see for yourself were on the right track.

Join us in January for the AsheAaron Price, Chloe Kemp is an Asheville artist ville premiere of the multimedia known as ‘the man and award-winning writer, editor, project, The Mannequin. behind the Asheville art director and publisher. sound’ and owner of Jacob Rodriguez, musician

‘D. Simchock’ continued from page 9

RRM: What does a typical local tour look like?

DS: Tours can range

from a two-hour “mini” experience in Downtown Asheville to a full-day nature tour at the Biltmore or in the mountains. The maximum group size for my local tours is only eight people, which allows me to provide personal attention to individuals, as well

as work with everyone as a group. My job isn’t to merely show people the sites of Asheville. My job is to teach and to mentor.

They’re fun events, and a great way to meet likeminded, creative spirits.

We will continue our interview with David in an upcoming issue of Rapid River Magazine.

Duomo Cathedral, Florence, Italy Photo: David Simchock

Vagabond Vistas Photo Tours c/o David J. Simchock 375 Depot Street, Suite 101 Asheville, NC 28801 (828) 216-6457 www.vagabondvistas.com Also check out…

David Simchock Photography www.DavidSimchock.com got f-stop? Photo blog www.gotfstop.com And, soon to be launched…

David Simchock Fine Art www.DavidSimchockFineArt.com

Start the New Year in a Beautiful New Place!

FOR LEASE Available now, entire top story in Beverly Hills home. Sparkling, Bright, Cozy and HUGE – 2,000 square feet!

Includes utilities (water and electricity), A/C and heat. Two bedrooms with large closets, 1 bath with huge party shower and two sinks. Plus grand-size den with cherry wood floor, rear office.

Enormous entry/rec room, plus dining room. Spacious kitchen perfect for entertaining. Tons of cabinets and gorgeous Spanish tile flooring, includes stove/fridge, washer/dryer.

Small back upper deck. Outdoor parking for 2+ cars. Use of beautiful large yard with fire pit and picnic table. Ideal location, minutes from golf course, Asheville Mall, VA hospital, Blue Ridge Parkway and Woodrow Wilson College.

Beautiful light, perfect for writers and artists. Quiet. Rent: $1,050/ month, which includes utilities.

Call (828) 707-3211 for appointment.

Vol. 16, No. 5 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — January 2013 15

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Creekside Artists Retreat

• Mat Cutting/ Framing Shop

Share house and four outbuildings.

1 acre on Richland Creek in Waynesville, across from park.

MUST love dogs. Free Cable. $500/month plus utilities.

Call Rick (828) 452-0228

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There Is No Way to Understand When Bad Things Happen to Children

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ny informed person in this country must be touched by the school deaths in Connecticut. Small children cut down in their class rooms far too soon. Before they could ever imagine or understand in their young minds, “why is this man with a gun doing this to us?”

School for any youngster in this country has always been a place to learn and feel safe in their classrooms. A feeling felt early in my life as a child in the 1940s. My generation felt safe and we were allowed to enjoy our time. These children from December’s incident never had the chance to live life as we once knew it so long ago.

They just never had the chance!

As we age we all tend to think and recall times when we were that age. All our little friends and the fun we had in school each day. The big difference in those days was the innocence we had. None of us ever imagined the horrible happenings ahead that we would see years later in our adulthood.

Here I am now with others my age just aging out. But, I for one am saying loudly that what happened on Friday is too much.

Count the times we have seen this happen in other places in this country, but none like this incident in December.

It is time for all of us to stand up and

I Help Judy Ausley avoid foreclosure! This is a space that a creative person would choose. 2 bedroom, 2 bath town home. Close to town, university, Greenlife (Whole Foods), Lexington and Merrimon Avenues. Large screened porch and screened entrance. Special laminated floors, some carpet, all appliances.

Complete garage underneath home. $139,000. Call Judy at your earliest!

(828) 253-3655.

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COLLECTED STORIES AND PROSE OF WRITER, JUDY AUSLEY

BY JUDY

AUSLEY

say strongly, “This has got to stop in this country.” The violence and hatred for others is too much. This could not have happened at a good time, but several days before Christmas during a time of seasonal peace, this is just too awful. Those little children were waiting impatiently for Christmas like their peers in school. Now they are gone.

Their beloved teachers are dead as well without time to prepare. They were unarmed, they could not do more than they did to protect the children from the shooter.

They were mere targets to this sick young man in his deranged mind.

There is no understanding and no justification or excuse for what happened.

It should have never happened. It should not ever happen again. Something has got to be done about firearms in this country. It is time for this to stop for good.

We must all take a stand and demand that something be done. Dear God, please hear our prayers, please let this stop, we are all broken. We are broken hearted with no words left to say except in prayer.

ASHEVILLE COMMUNITY THEATRE’S YOUTH PRODUCTION CLASS PRESENTS

HOME FOR SALE

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southern comfort

Room and Studio Space For Rent • Beach and Campfire area • Painting Studio • Woodshop

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You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown

t’s a day in the life of Charlie Brown, and it’s filled with fun, laughter and familiar characters.

Join the Peanuts gang in this fast paced, lighthearted musical, guaranteed to please audiences of all ages! This production is performed by a class of 18 students ranging in age from 6 to 12!

IF YOU GO: Performances

are Friday, January 18 at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, January 19 and Sunday, January 20 at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are $5 Join the Peanuts gang at Asheville Community Theatre! and available at the door, by calling (828) 254-1320, or online at www.ashevilletheatre.org.

Asheville Community Theatre, 35 E. Walnut in downtown Asheville.

16 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

A fast paced, lighthearted musical.

My idol, famed writer, Ernest Hemingway once wrote, “Life breaks us all – but some grow stronger at the broken places.

Writer Judy Ausley has been a reporter with newspapers in NC for 40 years.

She retired in 2005 and continues to freelance at her home in Asheville. She can be contacted by e-mail at Judyausley@aol.com. If you know a character in Asheville who has not had a conventional life, put them in touch with Judy for an article in this column, Southern Comfort.

Performing Arts Showcase Prepare to beat the winter blahs at a performance that will move your heart and soul as well as your feet. The artistic community of Evergreen Community Charter School invites you to a familyfriendly festival of music and stories. Featuring performances by the school’s EMBE Marimba Band, guitarists, violinists, singers and storytellers. All proceeds go directly to the school’s performance-based music program.

IF YOU GO: Evergreen Family

Performing Arts Showcase, Sunday, January 27 from 2-5 p.m. All ages admitted for $5. Children under 10 free. Food also available for purchase.

Lexington Avenue Brewery, 39 N. Lexington Ave., downtown Asheville.

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NORTHSIDE NEIGHBORS LOCAL SHOPPING INTERVIEW WITH SAMUEL WOOD, OWNER OF ASHEVILLE’S

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Rise ‘n Shine Café

ise ‘n Shine is a locally owned INTERVIEWED and operated small business who use local and organic products to make a wide selection of breakfast dishes, sandwiches, fresh juices, and smoothies. Free range eggs and chicken, organic carrots, organic greens, organic milk and organic yogurt are all featured on the menu.

Dynamite Coffee Roasters supply a shade-raised and fair-trade organic Sumatra coffee. Humanely harvested meats always served and free Photo: Liza Becker range eggs are always cooked in real butter; local honey is provided by Haw Creek Honey.

BY

DENNIS RAY

Rapid River Magazine: Tell us a little about the Rise ‘n Shine Café?

Samuel Wood: Rise n’ Shine Cafe was founded over 4 years ago with the goal of providing as fresh, organic and local food as can be found in our area.

RRM: What do you offer that other restaurants in town do not?

SW: We offer an authentic hollandaise sauce made only with real butter, fresh-

squeezed lemon juice, and free-range egg yolks. It has to be tasted to be believed.

RRM: What is your most popular dish and why do you suppose that it is?

SW: Our omelettes are extraordinary. We offer a

PG. 32

wide selection of organic items to fill them with as well as some excellent cheeses. Occasionally we feature goat cheese from Looking Glass Creamery.

Also, our flapjacks are made with whole wheat flour and really stick to your ribs.

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RRM: Will

your menu be offering any changes in 2013?

SW: In 2013,

we will continue our efforts to showcase locally proPhoto: Liza Becker duced items and offer them as seasonal items and specials.

PG. 32

VA

Rise ‘n Shine Café 640 Merrimon Ave., Asheville, NC 28804 (828) 254-4122, www.risenshinecafe.com Monday-Saturday, 7:30 a.m to 2 p.m.

Sunday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Support Your Local Merchants * Buy Local Vol. 16, No. 5 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — January 2013 17

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ASHEVILLE’S RIVER

Support Local Artists ❖ Suppo Indulge and Support Self Expre

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Exhibits at the ARTery

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Children battling cancer and other serious illnesses and disabilities in Western North Carolina will be showing the community that “Home Is Where the ART Is” in the Asheville Area Arts Council’s January 2013 featured exhibit.

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ABOUT THE RIVER ARTS DISTICT

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Home is Where the ART is

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The River Arts District Artists (RADA) is a 165+ artist member strong collective, who, along with dozens of Associate Members and Friends, provides a unique experience for locals and visitors alike who are looking for high-quality, affordable art for any aspect of their lives. The River Arts District is just down the hill from Patton Avenue, and is easily accessible from downtown, West Asheville and the Biltmore.

One will also find several delicious breakfast, lunch and dinner options, the Asheville Area Arts Council, and a variety of unique businesses, all sharing a growing community that features amazing art down every street, in every building.

Home Is Where the ART Is, on Display January 4 through February 5, 2013. Opening reception on Friday, January 11 from 6-9 p.m. For more information on Arts for Life visit www.aflnc.org.

My Name is a Verb The works of Joshua Spiceland, a WNC native from Boone who graduated from UNCA in 2008 with a degree in Studio Art. His current body of work incorporates figurative analogies into layered geometric organic abstractions.

Color and shape are used intuitively to create rhythm intended to suggest music, Joshua Spiceland which is a large influence on Spiceland’s creative process.

Universal simple geometric elements are combined and repeated, executed freehand, and reflected.

Some of the themes explored in this show are life and death, creation, connection/separation, wealth, and attraction.

The large and small format acrylic/ mixed media paintings will punctuate a full immersion space, as Spiceland will paint behind and between the paintings on the walls. Joshua is a member of the Asheville Mural Project and worked on the project under I-240 at Lexington Street.

“My Name is a Verb” will be on display at The Artery February 7 through March 5, 2013. The Opening Reception will be held on Friday, February 8 from 6 to9 p.m.

IF YOU GO

The Artery, 346 Depot Street, in Asheville’s River Arts District. For more information call (828) 2580710 or visit www.ashevillearts.com.

ARTS FOR LIFE Watercolor Pattern Robots Combine simple drawing and painting techniques to create an original work of art. Explore patterns using different brush techniques, shapes, and/or colors. Visit www.aflnc.org/projects for great art projects for all ages.

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18 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

Lovesick Robot by Annie Rogers

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ort Local Creativity ❖ Buy Local ession ❖ Invest in Our Future

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Image courtesy of www.artistgeek.com

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new gallery in the River Arts District opens in the New Year!

Jewelry by Pat Phillips Three artists have joined together to form a new, diverse gallery at 344 Depot Street, located in the Pink Dog Creative Studios.

Pat Phillips (formerly at Phil Mechanic Studios) is a goldsmith artist, creating one-of-a-kind works.

The techniques incorporated are pulled from modern to ancient methods. Each piece is generally hand wrought in gold and silver with gemstones added for balance.

Judy Levine (formerly at Ware-

Scarf by Judy Levine

house Studios) is a fabric designer and weaver specializing in passementerie (trims for draperies and pillows). Levine also creates complex and beautiful scarves and belts.

Each one underlining her desire to create works that express her love of color and texture.

Mary Webster (formerly at Ware-

house Studios) is a painter that specializes in public and private murals, decorative painting and personal, noncommissioned paintJackson Weaver by ings. Much of her work is inspired Mary Webster by nature. Her latest series of paintings on canvas are complex bird nests and gilded bird icons on wood.

Gallery - Phillips, Levine and Webster 344 Depot Street, in the Pink Dog Creative Studios (828) 505-1562 Open Tuesday - Saturday 12 to 5 p.m. or by appointment

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RIVER ARTS STUDIO BUILDINGS * 240 Clingman * 347 Depot * 97 Roberts Street * Cotton Mill Studios * CURVE studios * Galaxy Studios * Hatchery Studios * Northlight Studios * Odyssey Center * The Old Wood Co.

* Phil Mechanic * Pink Dog Creative * Riverside Studios * Riverview Station * Roberts St. Studios * Roots Studios * Studio 375 Depot * The Wedge * Warehouse Studios

More information on the River Arts District is available by calling (828) 280-7709 or visit www.riverartsdistrict.com.

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Vol. 16, No. 5 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — January 2013 19

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Photography Tips & Tricks Travel Photography

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re you planning a vacation in 2013?

Will you be bringing your fancy digital camera along, with hopes of coming home with a few (hundred) photos that are sure to launch your career with National Geographic?

Okay, maybe you don’t aspire to be a top pro photographer, but wouldn’t it be nice if, for once, you came back from vacation with a bunch of photos that your friends and co-workers actually wanted to look at?

This month’s “Photography Tips & Tricks” will be the first in a four-part series dedicated to travel photography. We will begin with a selection of “generic” pointers relating to photography, and continue next three months with some specifics on photographing people, places and things. First, let’s cover a few fundamentals…

1. Why are you taking pictures?

Before you set out to take a photo on your travels (or any other time for that matter), you should be clear in your own mind what it is you are trying to achieve. Are you sim-

– Part 1 of 4

BY

DAVID SIMCHOCK

ply recording memories? Are you creating artwork? Telling a story for others? Is it a combination of things? The clearer you are with your creative objective, the easier, and more enjoyable, it will be to achieve it!

2. Establish a consistent creative approach to your photography.

What do I mean by that? Simple. Don’t just “wing it”. Think through creativity in a logical way (sometimes in a matter of seconds!). In summary: 1) Identify your subject; 2) Evaluate the light; 3) Compose your subject; 4) Select your lens / focal length; 5) Set your focus point; 6) Set your exposure (aperture, shutter speed and ISO); and, 7) Use your accessories as needed (tripod, filters, etd.).

3. Evaluate the light on your subject or in your scene.

Is it the ideal light for your creative objective? If not, what can you do about it? Move your subject? Use a flash? Come back another day or time? You may have the ultimate subject to work with, but if the light isn’t too good, you may end up with just an

Photo by David Simchock

average photograph. Remember, photography is all about the recording of light. And, if you don’t have the “best” light, then you need to know what to do about it. Also remember that sometimes no matter what you do, the light won’t be “ideal”, so just make the best of it!

4. What gear do you need?

Well, that all depends on point Number 1 above! A trip to the Grand Canyon will likely require different gear (e.g., lenses) than an African safari. In most cases, you want to pack as light as possible. Having said that, if you are going on safari, you’ll likely want to have a “big gun” in your camera bag (i.e., a 500mm lens).

5. A note about photography ethics.

Whether you’re traveling in Bangkok or in Boston, always remember that you are a guest of the locals. Be respectful of them.

Where appropriate, ask permission when photographing people or property. If you’re in a foreign country, it always helps to learn a few phrases from the local language. “May I take your photo, please? and “Thank you.” come to mind.

And, finally… “Leave only footprints.

Take only memories.”

Tune in next month for Part 2 of our Travel Photography feature.

Looking for more insight? Check out the got f-stop? photo blog: www.gotfstop.com

David Simchock is a professional photographer and instructor based in Asheville’s River Arts District.

Photo by David Simchock

20 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

For more about David, including his popular Vagabond Vistas Photo Tours, visit www.DijonCreative.com.

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artful living If Not Now, When?

“Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.”

“If you cannot find the truth right where you are, where else do you expect to find it?”

~ Buddha

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fundamental Zen question concerning enlightenment is, “If not now, when? If not here, where?” As far as Buddhism is concerned, the here and now is the only gateway to spiritual realization, and that realization is nothing more than the realization of the truth of who you are at the deepest level.

In Buddhism, the concept that roughly equals the concept of Heaven is called Nirvana, which translates as “extinguishing ignorance;” put another way, it is the truth of the way things are. It is not another metaphysical realm for after-life, it is the quality of realization one has of this life.

Hell is called Samsara, which translates as “ignorance” or “illusion.” Its literal meaning is: “wandering about in the cycle of ignorance.” These are states of mind, ways of experiencing our existence. It is about this life, here and now, not some future state beyond this life, and it is about this moment, just as it is. The Heaven of spiritual realization is not meant to be in some great ritualistic catharsis or idyllic retreat quite separate from everyday life. It is everyday life, or not at all.

I speak with so many people, including those who consider themselves Buddhist or inspired by Buddhism, who tell me stories of their spiritual journeying, of beautiful retreats they have experienced, and of mesmerizing teachers they sought out who took them to deeply moving experiences. As they tell their stories, I sense the same anxious, distracted person I knew them to be before the marvelous spiritual experience they are now recalling.

There is nothing wrong, and much that is wonderful and valuable about such experiences, but what value do they actually have if, as seems so often the case, there seems to be very little residual effect of this seeking that translates and continues into the here and now of these people’s lives? They still seem to be “wandering.”

“In wholeheartedness of presence the Buddha is realized.” ~ Dainin Katagiri, 20th century

“There is one person we must meet… it is the true self.” ~ Sekkei Harada, 20th century

~ Dogen Zenji 13th Century

Over and over Buddhist masters and teachers point to the realization of true Self in the rising of the present moment in awareness, in the rising of the present moment as awareness, yet it seems to be a barred gate for most people, no matter how many times they hear it.

Our cultural training into seeking and looking for the “peak experience” as the path to fulfillment and meaning in life is so strong that it seems very difficult for many to get beyond collecting words and experiences of wisdom as the sum of their spiritual path. It is very difficult to realize that the masters are talking about experiencing any moment, no matter how mundane, perhaps the more mundane the better, as the gateway to self-realization, as the moment arising in awareness, as awareness.

BY

BILL WALZ

The contemporary master, Eckhart Tolle, has a most provocative teaching that instructs us that enlightenment is in “renunciation of our need to get to the next moment.”

The choice of the word “renunciation” is most subtle and helpful. Renunciation means to release allegiance, to no longer find or be searching for our identity in something, as in renouncing a religious or political affiliation, and so it is with our relationship with time and the future, in anticipation of experiences that will fulfill us. We look to find ourselves, to complete ourselves, in time, in the future.

The very core of Zen instruction is to renounce this attempt to be “somebody” through some activity, accomplishment or experience yet to be achieved. Renounce this compulsion, and discover – I am here.

sense of place in the world, and after all, isn’t that the itch we cannot scratch? Where do I belong? What is the significance of my life, of me?

When we place ourselves at the center of the experience, as the center of the experience, separate from what we believe to be all else, we are caught in our human side, and as Buddhism teaches, we are then prone to much suffering. This is samsara, the wandering in circles of ignorance. We cannot see and experience the connectedness of life that we are within, the infinite connected circles of Being.

Rather, Buddhism suggests, allow the experience to be the center of you, you see the moment arising as what it is – a field of consciousness, this moment, no separation.

Realize – the space of the moment does not separate — it connects. The phenomenon of the moment is what we are. Nothing more is needed. No other time holds the secret.

This is it! Our place in the Universe is right where we are, just as we are. Ignorance is extinguished. Nirvana opens. Look about you. See the moment arising. Where does continued on page 29

“An oak tree is an oak tree. That is all an oak tree needs to do. If an oak tree is less than an oak tree, we will all be in trouble... We can learn a lot from an oak tree.” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

The problem with human beings is that we don’t know how to relax into our “This moment, what is lacking?” human beingness, emphasis on “beingness.” ~ Rinzai, 9th C. The species designation “human being” is a most perfect capture of the dilemma, the Yet, our ongoing consciousness conparadox of our species. “Human” designates tinues to be scanning the moment with a the uniqueness of the species with its capaclow-level dissatisfaction, as if something is ity for abstracting itself out of Nature into lacking, leaning forward, so-to-speak, into artificial structures of society and into ideas the next moment and beyond, attempting to about life. This creates the barrier to graspgetting to somewhere other than where we ing that we are life, every bit as much as any already are. It’s not that our consciousness plant or animal. tells us that the next moment will be better; Being, however, is the sharing of esBeing it’s just that we are caught in a conditioning sential nature with all of Nature. To be that tells us that this moment can’t be it. human is certainly quite We must be going complicated. To be, on somewhere with our the other hand, simply Human beings don’t know lives, otherwise, like a is. And we are both. how to relax into our shark that must keep The genius of Budswimming to breathe, human beingness. dhism is in its recomwe will lose all meanmendation to balance ing and importance. our humanity and our beingness as the Onward! Like a donkey chasing a carrot tied “right” way to live. After all, Buddhism is to a stick in front of them, we keep looking also known as “The Middle Way.” Without to the future for our realization – in the next real grounding in our beingness – which is accomplishment, relationship, personal enthis moment, just as it is, infinite and perfect hancement or security, in a retreat, experi— our human doing will always be inadence, or from the next teacher. equate to fulfill our need for an unshakeable Vol. 16, No. 5 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — January 2013 21

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the curmudgeon Saving Water in WNC!

T Events at the Weinhaus Thursday, January 17 Join us for a wine dinner at the new Chestnut restaurant. Owners Joe Scully and Kevin Westmoreland of Corner Kitchen fame have a new venture in the heart of downtown Asheville. Chestnut is located directly across the street from the new Aloft Hotel on Biltmore Avenue. The restaurant features local and seasonal flavors to create uniquely American cuisine. Join us for a coursed dinner from Chef Matt Tracy with wines selected by the Weinhaus staff. Time: 7 p.m. Price: $75. Please call the Weinhaus for reservations at (828) 254-6453.

Friday, January 25 Friday Night Flights presents Summertime in the South. And by South, we mean South America. As we are in the doldrums on mid-winter it is comforting to know that it is summertime somewhere in the world.

This tasting will compare and contrast the characteristics of both red and white wines from Chile and Argentina. The wine will be accompanied by light hors d’ouvres. The price is $10. Held at The Weinhaus from 5:30-7:30 p.m.

The Weinhaus, 86 Patton Avenue Asheville, NC (828) 254-6453

hey are trying to steal our water,” said Curmudgeon. “Moffit’s Raiders are straight out of the Civil War ragamuffins who tore towns apart, but today act as ‘tho the law was on their side.”

“It often is,” said Breadman.

“Here! Here!” exclaimed Mrs. Storekeep.

“What would you, the Curmudgeon, suggest?” asked Postman who was sorting Christmas circulars for the box holders.

“Why, a contest about new and exciting ways to save water. For example, this week I myself thought of a good one: I suggest that children take their showers during the commercial break of their favorite TV program, which would lead to short showers–” “And smelly kids,” said Breadman.

“Seriously,” said Mrs. Storekeep, “I would think that universal water meters for everybody who uses public water would probably help.”

“There are many empty swimming pools around WNC,” said Gasman, who just came in the front door from filling the store’s gas tank. “I suggest they be used for mass bathing facilities every Saturday night. Or perhaps each Township could have its own pool and we could cover them with plastic canopies until the weather warms again, and sell advertising space on their surface to influence overflying helicopters that pass overhead on their ways between various hospitals.”

At that point, Dawn, Mrs. Storekeep’s sister from Atlanta rose up from the lower shelf of the handy tools counter and said: “A lot of people raise tropical fish and use more water than they deserve and I think

BY

PETER LOEWER

it’s a crime that guppies and gold fish should be paddling about Illustration by Peter Loewer when industry goes without – the various Townships could set up special grants for fund apartments for finny pets.”

“Wouldn’t it be easier to periodically have patrols to check leaky faucets?” asked Gasman.

“No!” shouted Dawn, “What do you think this is, a police state?”

“Stop serving water in restaurants unless it’s asked for,” volunteered Mrs. Storekeep. “In words that echo the late Queen of France, ‘Let ‘em drink coke!”

“Well, my uncle Ed is a wellknown chicken entrepreneur,” said Breadman, “so how about giant flocks of chickens loaded with silver iodine pellets to fly out over the clouds and seed them for rain?”

“That’s stupid,” said Dawn.

“And chickens don’t fly when released from coops,” said Curmudgeon.

“I’ve got it,” said Cityfella, who was silently stooping behind the glass-topped cabinet that held rounds of ammunition, “– let’s buy icebergs and float them down to the coast and use them to fill giant water tanks built along the shoreline, then pipe all the water to Raleigh and wait for our fine government to send out metered gallons to the various counties who belong to Moffit’s Raiders. After all I think the French were planning to follow such an idea in Africa – and remember the French know best.

~

Tastings ~ Wine Classes

Great wines for any occasion and budget.

22 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

Peter Loewer has written and illustrated more than twenty-five books on natural history over the past thirty years.

INSPIRATION AT MALAPROPS Karen Berg on Reincarnation Tuesday, January 8 at 7 p.m.

Karen Berg, author of To Be Continued…

Reincarnation in Our Lives, speaks about mysticism, Kabbalah, reincarnation and the purpose of our lives.

(See review in Rapid River Magazine, October, 2012, www.rapidrivermagazine.com.)

Three Enlightenment Authors Trey Carland, local author of A Seeker’s Guide to Inner Peace (Rapid River Magazine review, September, 2012, www.rapidrivermagazine.com), speaks of his life-changing personal spiritual journey. Joining him are fellow spiritual seekers, Brian Piergrossi, author of The Big Glow: Insight, Inspiration, Peace and Passion, and Prajna Ana, author of Dying into This.

FREE Wine Tastings on Saturdays from 2 to 5 p.m.

Wine Retail

Think of the taxes that the state could mete out to once again fill our state coffers.”

Silence reined until Curmudgeon said: “Knowing the efficiency of the Paris sewer systems from stories of old, we should always approve of using the French for ideas on water. After all, 40 million of them were never wrong.”

Silence reined for another forty seconds, until the front door burst open and a bunch of kids from the schoolbus noisily entered the store.

Sunday, January 13 at 3 p.m.

Great values & styles Tasting wine is not only fun, but it presents a chance to learn about wine and what it is about a particular wine that you like, or don’t like. You can sip while you shop. Find some new favorites — try it before you buy it. We will usually have a few whites and a few reds open, with the occassional guest speaker. Please stop by!

Think of the taxes that the state could mete out.

www.theAshevilleWineGuy.com 555 Merrimon Ave. (828) 254-6500

IF YOU GO: Malaprop’s Café/

Bookstore, 55 Haywood St., downtown Asheville. For more information call (828) 254-6734 or visit www.malaprops.com.

Reel Take Reviewers:

∑∑∑∑∑ - Fantastic ∑∑∑∑ - Pretty darn good ∑∑∑ - Has some good points ∑∑ - The previews lied ∑ - Only if you must M- Forget entirely

CHIP KAUFMANN is a film historian who also shares his love of classical music as a program host on WCQSFM radio.

MICHELLE KEENAN is a long time student of film, a believer in the magic of movies and a fundraiser for public radio.

For the latest REVIEWS, THEATER INFO and MOVIE SHOW TIMES, visit www.rapidrivermagazine.com

Illustration of Michelle & Chip by Brent Brown.

Questions/Comments?

BRENT BROWN is a graphic designer and illustrator.

View more of his work at www.brentbrown.com.

You can email Chip or Michelle at reeltakes@hotmail.com

Hitchcock ∑∑∑∑1/2 Short Take: An utterly entertaining look at Alma and Alfred Hitchcock’s marriage during the production of Psycho.

REEL TAKE: I admit that prior to seeing

Hitchcock I had reservations. From the Hitchcock, trailers, I thought Anthony Hopkins looked possibly even creepier as Alfred Hitchcock than he did as Hannibal Lechter. After seeing it, I can tell you the trailers don’t do the film justice and Hopkins is delicious as ‘The Master of Suspense.’

Unfortunately Hitchcock is being critically maligned for being too light and not a serious biopic. They are right, it is light

Theatre Directory Asheville Pizza & Brewing Company Movieline (828) 254-1281 www.ashevillepizza.com Beaucatcher Cinemas (Asheville) Movieline (828) 298-1234 Biltmore Grande 1-800-FANDANGO #4010 www.REGmovies.com Carmike 10 (Asheville) Movieline (828) 298-4452 www.carmike.com Carolina Cinemas (828) 274-9500 www.carolinacinemas.com Cinebarre (Asheville) www.cinebarre.com The Falls Theatre (Brevard) Movieline (828) 883-2200 Fine Arts Theatre (Asheville) Movieline (828) 232-1536 www.fineartstheatre.com Flat Rock Theatre (Flat Rock) Movieline (828) 697-2463 www.flatrockcinema.com Four Seasons (Hendersonville) Movieline (828) 693-8989 Smoky Mountain Cinema (Waynesville) Movieline (828) 452-9091

Psycho gets a re-edit by Alma Reville (Helen Mirren) while ‘The Master of Supsense’ himself (Anthony Hopkins) looks on with the grateful eyes of a director and a husband.

and it’s certainly not a biopic. It’s an utterly good-hearted romp and entertaining look at the marriage of Alfred Hitchcock and Alma Reville (Helen Mirren) during the making of Psycho. Hitchcock himself would (I think) be quite pleased with the result. If it’s good enough for the great Alfred Hitchcock, it’s good enough for the rest of us.

The film is fun and wonderfully odd in an Alfred Hitchcock Presents kind of way.

Director Sacha Gervasi, whose only previous directing credit is for a documentary about the Canadian rock band Anvil, has a knack for comedy and obviously a healthy respect for the titular character. The film picks up as Hitchcock is looking for his next project, following the success of North by Northwest. He is at the top of his game, but Northwest wants to raise the stakes of the game. When he sets his sights on Psycho, he owes one more picture to Paramount, they don’t want it. Even when Hitchcock finances the film himself, the studio still pushes back against it, dubbing it a picture “about a queer killing people in his mother’s dress.”

The risk Hitchcock takes to make Psycho puts a strain on his 30 year marriage to Alma Reville who, fed up with being taken for granted and annoyed by his fantasy affairs with his leading ladies, decides to make Hitch sweat a little by collaborating with a man who does pay her attention, screenwriter Whitfield Cook (Danny Huston). With the mere power of suggestion (a distinctly Hitchcock trait), we see what happens in the mind of the man, whose imagination is in the process of creat-

ing the scariest horror movie to date, as he frets about his wife’s fidelity.

As his mind runs wild, he is occasionally given advice by the serial killer who was the inspiration for Norman Bates. These are odd deviations and don’t necessarily fit with the rest of the movie, but I found them inventive and befitting the Hitchcock imagination. Alma, of course, does not leave Hitch or nor does she leave him hanging.

He needs her expert eye to help edit Psycho into the cinematic phenomenon that was to take the world by storm. You know the old saying, “Behind every great man …”

Hopkins seems to relish the role with every Hitchcockian syllable. Helen Mirren doesn’t look like Alma, but she’s fantastic, so a lack of resemblance mattered not to me.

James D’Arcy as Anthony Perkins is eerily, wonderfully good. The rest of the supporting cast including Scarlett Johansson, Jessica Biel and Danny Huston all turn in fine performances. Hitchcock may not be a great film, but it great fun.

all, as a heavy drinker and a philanderer who is having an affair with his distant cousin Daisy (Laura Linney) but who is still the Commander-in-Chief and very much in control of his surroundings despite the interference of his mother (Elizabeth Wilson) and his wife Eleanor (Olivia Williams).

In addition to a family that is anything but harmonious (Eleanor’s bisexuality and dominating personality are fully on display here), FDR must entertain the King and Queen of England marking the first time the British Royal family has ever appeared in America. They are King George VI (of King’s Speech fame and the current monarch’s father) and his wife Elizabeth who are wonderfully portrayed by Samuel West, complete with stutter, and Olivia Colman.

Rated PG-13 for some violent images, sexual content and thematic material

REVIEW BY MICHELLE KEENAN

Hyde Park on Hudson ∑∑∑1/2 Short Take: Pleasant but not particularly engaging movie about FDR’s ongoing affair with his cousin Daisy during a visit by the King and Queen of England right before the outbreak of World War II.

REEL TAKE: Moviegoers of an earlier time

will recall a different film of FDR, that of Sunrise at Campobello (1960) based on a Broadway play and starring Ralph Bellamy in his signature role. That took place in 1921 and dealt with the 40 year old, pre-Presidential FDR coming down with polio and his attempts to master the disease that left him crippled for the rest of his life. Buoyed by adoring family and friends, he is able to overcome numerous setbacks and make a successful return to the public eye at the 1924 Democratic Convention.

Hyde Park on Hudson takes place in 1939 just before the outbreak of World War II and gives us a very different picture of FDR (Bill Murray). Here, uninhibited by the production code, we see FDR, warts and

Bill Murray as FDR strikes a classic pose in the entertaining but underwhelming Hyde Park on Hudson.

The movie is essentially a character study, but done in the style of a Lifetime Movie of the Week. Bill Murray makes an excellent FDR showing his complete control of whatever situation he happens to be in.

He conveys considerable charm when it comes to dealing with the ladies (except Eleanor) and makes an approving father figure for the young King George who so desperately needs one.

Laura Linney is normally a very fine actress but in Hyde Park she is just sort of there. It’s not entirely her fault as the screenplay by Richard Wilson, based on the letters and diaries of the real Daisy, doesn’t really give her very much to do. Elizabeth ‘Movies’ continued on page 24

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Marvel, fresh from The Bourne Legacy, makes a strong impression as Missy, FDR’s aide and occasional tryst partner.

Director Roger Michell, best known for Notting Hill (1999), has captured the look and the period feel of the late 1930s but his easy going approach to the essentially bland material insures that the film itself will be rather on the bland side. Hyde Park on the Hudson is not a bad movie and it will certainly appeal to an older audience but despite some fine performances it could have been so much better.

Rated R for brief sexuality.

REVIEW BY CHIP KAUFMANN

Les Miserables ∑∑∑∑∑ Short Take: Outstanding film adaptation of the long running musical has a strong cast (Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway), spectacular cinematography, and remarkable direction from Tom Hooper (The King’s Speech).

Hugh Jackman gives a powerhouse performance as Jean Valjean in the blockbuster musical Les Miserables.

REEL TAKE: During my junior and senior

years in high school, I worked my way through several of Victor Hugo’s novels in English translations. I began with The Hunchback of Notre Dame because I had seen several different movie versions of the story. I then moved on to Les Miserables, The Man Who Laughs, and The Toilers of the Sea with the latter being my favorite at the time. After college, when life took over, I forgot about Victor Hugo and Les Miserables for many years even after seeing three different film versions.

Almost 40 years later, the last 30 of them here in Asheville, I became acquainted with Les Miserables once again through the musical version affectionately known as Les Miz. Originally a concept album (like Jesus Christ Superstar only in French), the stage version opened in London in 1985 to initially lukewarm reviews until word of mouth made it the sensation it is today. My daughter became interested in it a few years ago and because of her I listened to the score and fell in love with it.

Movie adaptations of stage musicals can be problematic to say the least ranging from excellent (Phantom of the Opera) to indifferent (Sweeney Sweeney Todd Todd) to terrible (Man of La Mancha). I am happy to report that this film adaptation is an unqualified success in virtually all departments.

First and foremost are the characterizations which are very good indeed from Hugh Jackman’s touching, defiant, and humble Jean Valjean to Russell Crowe’s magisterial Inspector Javert to Anne Hathaway’s endearing and pathetic Fantine. The really pleasant surprise is Samantha Barks’ heartbreaking interpretation of Eponine who dominates every scene she’s in. All are in great voice with the exception of Crowe who makes up for it with his powerful and dominating presence.

The only discordant note for me and it’s a very minor one are the performances of Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter as Eponine’s parents, the nefarious Thenardiers. Instead of characterizations both actors indulge in shticks that they have done before in other movies but this is a minor quibble as their roles are reduced from the original musical.

After the characters comes the look of the movie itself and it is lavishly staged and superbly photographed and was everything that I was hoping Les Miz would be. Tom Hooper directs all this with a sure hand showing that he can handle the large scale complexities of a project this size with the same assurance that he brought to the intimate personal drama of The King’s Speech.

So ignore the hype and forget the trailers. Les Miserables is finally here and it makes for the perfect holiday offering especially on the big screen and with glorious sound. I haven’t gotten this involved in a movie musical since The Phantom of the Opera back in 2004. When everything comes together as it did then and it does here then it makes for a truly remarkable movie going experience.

Rated PG-13 for suggestive and sexual material and for violence and thematic elements.

REVIEW BY CHIP KAUFMANN

Promised Land ∑∑∑1/2 Short Take: This well meaning message picture from Matt Damon about the consequences of natural gas fracking is just too lightweight to be truly effective.

If this movie had been made a generation ago, then the director-star would have been Robert Redford. Star Matt Damon was originally scheduled to direct but due to prior commitments he wound up relinquishing the director’s chair to his old friend Gus Van Sant renewing a partnership that began with Good Will Hunting in 1997.

24 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

the talent that was involved, I was expecting more and I just didn’t get it. Maybe you will.

Danny Elfman’s score didn’t help either.

Rated R for language.

REVIEW BY CHIP KAUFMANN

Silver Linings Playbook ∑∑∑∑1/2

Steve Butler (Matt Damon) is all false sincerity as a natural gas company representative trying to put his case to the people in Promised Land.

REEL TAKE: So far, so good or so it would

Short Take: A delightfully edgy romantic comedy about two people that proves the old adage, “there is someone for everyone.”

REEL TAKE: The idea of a mainstream

Hollywood romantic comedy about two mentally unbalanced and socially inappropriate people was cringe inducing. However, when I heard David O. Russell would be directing the adaptation of Michael Quick’s novel, I had hope for the project. With Russell at the helm, so-called ‘quirky’ characters would likely be allowed to be themselves without being made over to a more pasteurized, conventional version of quirky. Nor would it be insulting to people with mental illness. My hunch was right.

Silver Linings Playbook is one of the best films of 2012. It is simultaneously edgy and dark, funny and touching. Pat (Bradley Cooper) is a former teacher with bi-polar disorder and anger management issues. At the beginning of the film his mother (Jackie Weaver) is springing him from the mental institution, where he’s spent the last eight

seem yet somewhere between concept and execution, something got lost in the process.

What should have been a really good film is only an OK film that could have been a lot better. It plays well but when it’s over you realize that you’ve already forgotten most of it.

Damon plays Steve Butler a conglomerate representative who, along with his partner (Frances McDormand), are sent to a small rural town in Pennsylvania to obtain land contracts so that the company can begin extracting natural gas from people’s properties through the process of fracking. A local schoolteacher (Hal Holbrook) raises objections and asks the town to put it to a vote.

While trying to fit in with the locals so that he can get their votes on the local referendum, Butler becomes attracted to a local woman (Rosemary DeWitt) but then has to deal with the sudden appearance out of an outside environmentalist (John Krasinski) who threatens to win the people over and have them vote his way.

Fracking has become a hot button topic of late and Promised Land does have that in its favor. However it can’t make up its mind as to whether it wants to be a hard hitting expose or an examination of the values of small town America that had been hit hard by the Two socially inept, troubled souls (Jennifer recession. In trying to do both it winds Lawrence and Bradley Cooper), dance their way to a silver lining, if not a mirror ball trophy. up doing justice to neither.

Damon is likeable enough and is months after violently attacking his wife’s more than ably supported by McDormand lover. Pat is newly invigorated; inspired by who gets all the good lines but DeWitt’s part his belief is a silver lining. He intends to is so insignificant as to be negligible. Hal win back his wife and rebuild his life. The Holbrook is as wise and as patriarchal as you problem is he’s still bat shit crazy. would expect him to be but the real surprise At a dinner party, he meets Tiffany here is John Krasinski. His environmentalist (Jennifer Lawrence). Tiffany is a young who turns out to have a secret is effortlessly widow and the town tramp. Her issues are engaging. I found myself caring more about born more from insecurity, depression and him than I did Damon. pervasive loneliness than anything else. One In the long run Promised Land is well of the film’s funniest scenes comes at the intentioned and well made but it has no dinner party when Pat and Tiffany swap staying power and that’s not good for a stories about psychiatric medications and movie that wants to make a statement. If their side effects, much to the dismay of Damon and Van Sant didn’t want to make their hosts. a statement than the movie needed to be more entertaining than it was. Considering

‘Movies’ continued on page 26

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film reviews

Reel Takes Favorite Films of 2012

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ast year, The Artist Artist, The Descendants, Hugo and Midnight in Paris topped virtually everyone’s critical lists. For me, they topped my critical and personal top tens. This year was quite different, and ranking my critical top 10 films for the Southeast Film Critics Association ballots proved a bit of a challenge. What wasn’t a challenge was assembling my top ten favorite films of the year, and for the first time in a long time the two lists bore little resemblance to one another.

Turns out the good Professor Kaufmann was suffering the same dilemma. In comparing our critical and personal top tens, Chip and I agreed

Michelle Keenan’s Favorite Films of 2012 In Alphabetical Order

1. Argo – Ben Afleck’s latest turn behind the camera turns the now declassified story of the extrication of six Americans, during the Iranian Hostage Crisis, into nail bitingly suspenseful, crowd-pleasing entertainment.

2. Best Exotic Marigold Hotel – A lovely ensemble piece about a group of British pensioners who outsource their golden years to India. Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Tom Wilkinson lead the stellar cast.

3. Hitchcock – Helen Mirren and Anthony Hopkins star in an utterly entertaining and enjoyable film about the legendary director and his wife Alma during the chapter of their lives during the production of Pyscho.

4. The Impossible – Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor star in the suspenseful and moving true story of one family’s struggle to survive the 2004 tsunami and its aftermath.

5. The Perks of Being a Wallflower – A touching and thoughtful film of friendship, fear, loss and coming of age, with wonderfully raw performances from its young cast.

6. Moonrise Kingdom – Wes Anderson’s kitschiest film to date tells the tale of two oddball adolescents in the summer of 1965 who fall in love and run away together with parental units and the assorted authorities in tow.

7. Safety Not Guaranteed – It may not be the best movie you see this year, but it will be one of the most special. Three Seattle Magazine writers decide to track person who placed a classified ad for someone to time travel with him.

BY

MICHELLE KEENAN

that our favorite films definitely made for more interesting lists. Besides, you’ll hear all about the best films of the year, the award contenders, and our votes for the best of the best, in the February issue of Reel Takes.

We’ve tried not to let our lists overlap too much, and we could certainly add more titles to the line-up (see our runners up). Some of the films included in our lists are pure entertainment, while others push boundaries, but all of them earned a place in our hearts in one way or another. We hope you enjoy them too.

8. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen — Ewan McGregor is at his lovable best as a fisheries expert who gets a lesson in life, love and politics when tasked with making a sheikh’s dream come true by bringing the sport of fly fishing to the desert.

9. Seven Psychopaths – Irish playwright, screenwriter and director Martin McDonough has done it again – walking the fine line between blood-splattered macabre and brilliant comedy. This one isn’t for everyone; if the title is off-putting to you, you best put this one off.

10. Skyfall – Daniel Craig and Judi Dench are reunited as 007 and M for the 23rd film of the franchise. Bond’s power to protect M are stretched to the limit when her past comes back to haunt her.

Runner Ups: The Intouchables, Killing Them Softly Softly, Monsieur Lazhar Lazhar, Silver Linings Playbook Playbook, The Woman in Black, and Zero Dark Thirty Thirty.

Chip Kaufmann’s Favorite Films of 2012 In Alphabetical Order

1. A Late Quartet – Remarkable film about the members of a string quartet and the challenges they face after one of their members (Christopher Walken) is diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease.

2. Anna Karenina – Joe Wright (Pride & Prejudice) elevates another 19th century literary classic into a 21st century masterpiece thanks to typically stylish direction and strong central performances from Keira Knightley and Jude Law. 3. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel – A diverse group of British retirees headed up by Judi Dench, Maggie Smith and Tom Wilkinson

Bond, James Bond (Daniel Craig) in Skyfall.

Judi Dench stars as a pensioner who outsources her retirement to India in The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.

Keira Knightley is ravishingly beautiful as the titular Anna Karenina.

Sam (Jared Gilman) and Suzy (Kara Hayward) are two misfits who run away together in Wes Anderson’s delightfully kitschy Moonrise Kingdom.

decide to outsource their retirement to a budget friendly hotel in India where their lives are forever changed.

4. The Dark Knight Rises – The last film in Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy turns out to be the best of the lot thanks to a storyline that has plenty of heart to balance out Nolan’s typically heavy head games.

5. Hitchcock – A simply delightful yet critically misunderstood look at the fabled director (Anthony Hopkins), his wife Alma (Helen Mirren), and their trials and tribulations during the making of Psycho.

Christopher Walken gives another brilliant performance in A Late Quartet.

6. Les Miserables – An outstanding adaptation of the long running musical with a marvelous cast (Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway) and remarkable direction from Tom Hooper (The King’s Speech).

7. The Odd Life of Timothy Green – A charming and fragile fantasy about lonely parents (Jennifer Garner, Joel Edgerton) who are unable to conceive and the magical child (C.J. Adams) who grows in their garden.

8. Take This Waltz – Director Sarah Polley’s bittersweet story of what happens when one partner (Michelle Williams) in a marriage falls out of love with the other (Seth Rogan) and the repercussions it has for them both.

9. Trouble With the Curve – A surprisingly effective sports drama about an estranged daughter (Amy Adams) trying to reconnect with her baseball scout dad (Clint Eastwood) who has come to the end of his career.

Daniel Radcliffe plays a bereaved young widower in a wonderfully atmospheric ghost story, The Woman in Black.

10. The Woman in Black – Vividly atmospheric, old school horror film about a young lawyer (Daniel Radcliffe) who has recently lost his wife and his encounter with a vengeful spirit in a small English village.

Vol. 16, No. 5 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — January 2013 25

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film reviews ‘Movies’ continued from pg. 24

and humanity to Pat that makes us root for him. Meanwhile Jennifer Lawrence, who impressed me enormously in Winter’s Bone, thoroughly shines as Tiffany. Tiffany is ball of insecurities; defensiveness is wrapped around self-loathing, she’s lonely but socially a bit of misfit, but somehow at the center of it all is hope.

The ups and downs and twists and turns of our character’s personalities are a terrific ride. The supporting cast, including Robert DeNiro as Pat’s father and Chris Tucker as a fellow psych case, is great. The climax of the movie was more conventional than I would have expected, but I didn’t mind. Ironically by the end of the movie our bi-polar hero with violent tendencies is Mr. Sensitive, but then again they don’t call it a silver lining for nothing.

Russell is purported to have a bit of a temper himself. Perhaps it’s his own issues that help him interpret this story with chaos, pathos and above all, heart.

Rated R for language and some sexual content/ nudity.

REVIEW BY MICHELLE KEENAN

Zero Dark Thirty ∑∑∑∑1/2 Short Take: The hunt and eventual capture of 9/11 mastermind and Al Quaida leader, Osama Bin Laden.

REEL TAKE: Considering we know how

it ends, Zero Dark Thirty is a remarkably suspenseful telling of the 10 year hunt for Osama Bin Laden. Director Kathryn Bigelow and writer-producer Mark Boal smartly set the tone from the get go with blackened screen and audio from September 11, 2001, starting with the initial news reports and then a reassuring conversation between a 911 operator and a worker in one of the towers – a conversation cut short, raising every hair on the back of our necks and sending every memory from that horrible day to the forefront of our minds. This was a powerful and effective creative choice.

I was extremely grateful that they did not subject us to images of the towers yet again, that so many filmmakers would have done.

When the screen brightens the setting is a secret interrogation site in Pakistan. The interrogation of an Al Qaida suspect with ties to Osama Bin Laden has been going on for quite a while. He is beaten and bloodied and strung up. When he is cut down he is water boarded and stuffed in a small crate.

Watching the process for the first time (just like the audience) is a young CIA operative named Maya.

Maya becomes the central figure in the story of the search for Bin Laden. To say the opening scenes are uncomfortable to watch is an understatement, but in time we harden to it right along with our heroine. Maya is younger than the rest of the team. When the

becomes friends with Dan and another operative (Jennifer Ehle), but these are the only bonds we see her form and they do not detract from her focus.

After years of interrogations and research, she stumbles on to a common thread involving a man who she believes is Bin Laden’s personal courier. Testing her theory, she realizes that if they can get to the courier, they can get Bin Jessica Chastain stars as a young CIA agent Laden. After navigating the bureaucratic who finds the link to tracking down Osama Bind waters of Washington for what seems an Laden in the controversial, powerful, and oddly eternity, her relentless steely resolve is suspenseful Zero Dark Thirty. rewarded with the covert operation that finally brings Bin Laden down. aforementioned interrogator, Dan, (Jason As we watch the SEAL Team 6 operaClarke) asks if she’s got the chops for this tion unfold, I found myself sitting forward work, he’s told, “Washington says she’s a in my seat and holding my breath. The flight killer.” Much later in the movie we learn in over the mountains and the raid of Bin that the CIA recruited her right out of high Laden’s compound, all seen through night school. Beyond that Maya has no back story. vision goggles, is riveting. Many will wonder She is singularly focused on their work. She

Chip Kaufmann’s Pick: “Les Miserables”

January DVD Picks

Les Miserables (1998) Now that the blockbuster musical version of Victor Hugo’s 1862 novel LesMiserables has hit the big screen (reviewed in this issue), it makes sense to recommend one of the non musical versions so that you can actually experience the story more or less the way that Hugo wrote it. There are numerous film versions of the story dating back to 1913 with the 281 minute 1934 French version considered to be the gold standard.

For those of us who want something a little less daunting there are 4 highly regarded English versions (1935, 1952, 1978, 1998) from which to choose. While each of them has something to recommend them, I have given the nod to the most recent one from 1998 which features Liam Neeson, Geoffrey Rush, and Uma Thurman in the high profile roles of Jean Valjean, Javert, and Fantine.

Danish director Bille August (The House of the Spirits) knows how to adapt epic literature and at 134 minutes his version is not too short and not too long and the casting of well known performers helps more of today’s audience get into the story of a French convict and his relentless pursuit by an obsessed police inspector while he raises the child of an unfortunate prostitute.

Good performances and strong production values (it was shot in Prague doubling for 1832 Paris) make this the Les Miz of choice although for old movie buffs the 1935 B&W version with Frederic March and Charles Laughton is hard to top while the 1978 TV version

26 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

with Richard Jordan and Anthony Perkins seems to be most people’s favorite. Unfortunately it is only available in a heavily edited version. The 1952 version which comes on DVD with the 1935 version is the weakest of the four but still worthwhile.

So there you have it, four different non-musical versions to choose from. You have my recommendation which is readily availablebut whichever one you select (and the others are all on DVD) make sure you rent it soon as either preparation for the musical version or as a different take after you’ve seen it.

Psycho (1960) After reviewing Hitchcock this month, it seemed an opportune time to offer Psycho as my DVD pick. Made in 1960, Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho pushed the boundaries of the horror film genre and with the sensors. As a result, horror movies were forever changed and, well let’s face, what little boundaries are left with the censors, we’re still pushing.

Hitchcock was looking for his next project on the heels of the wildly successful

how in heck we ever pulled it off, but we did.

There couldn’t have been a more perfect teaming than reteaming Kathryn Bigelow and Mark Boal (The The Hurt Locker Locker) to make Zero Dark Thirty Thirty. In researching the story, Boal said one woman in particular caught his interest and that’s how they came to form the story around the character of Maya.

Bieglow and Boal elegantly show the complexity and layers of the story without sacrificing suspense and action. They raise moral and ethical questions in the hunt for Bin Laden, but leave the audience to make up their own minds. As Jennifer Ehle’s character says in the film, “Here’s to big breaks and the little people who make them happen.” If there is a must see film for 2012, Zero Dark Thirty is it.

Rated R for strong violence, including brutal disturbing images, and for language.

REVIEW BY MICHELLE KEENAN

Michelle Keenan’s Pick: “Psycho” North by Northwest. He read the novel Psycho by Robert Bloch and was inspired to adapt it for the screen. Paramount would not finance the film so Hitchcock financed the project himself. Shot for $800,000 and change he got his money’s worth.

The plot revolves around Marion (Janet Leigh), a secretary who embezzles $40,000 in order to help her divorced boyfriend. En route to rendez vous with said boyfriend, she makes a fateful stop at a little roadside motel. The young owner/manager, Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins), tries to befriend the aloof blond. He seems sweet, but he’s lonely and creepy. The creep factor is enhanced by the spooky house on the hill above the motel that Norman shares with his unseen mother.

After the (now infamous) shower sequence at the Bates Motel, Marion never makes that rendez vous. Eventually Marion’s sister Lila (Vera Miles) and a private detective (Martin Balsam) come looking and the plot thickens.

With its lusty subplots, shocking shower scene and homosexual antagonist, Psycho shocked audiences and became a cultural cornerstone in film. By today’s standards it is tame, but Hitchcock can thrill an audience more with the power of suggestion and innuendo than anyone can do with fake blood spatter and gratuitous violence. Dubbed ‘The Master of Suspense,’ Hitchcock’s films stand the test of time, and Psycho is among the best of those films.

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local favorites INTERVIEW WITH MANOJ LAMA, OWNER OF ASHEVILLE’S

Kathmandu Café

U

sing high altitude herbs and spices, Kathmandu’s curries are not only rich in flavor but equally rich in nutrition.

From the sea shore of India to the highest peak in the world, Mt. Everest, they are committed to bringing you the best and most traditional recipes from the Himalayas.

Rapid River Magazine: What is Himalayan cuisine?

Manoj Lama: Nepal is a very rich and

diverse in its culture and population, particularly in Kathmandu valley.

Historically, people who have migrated from India and Tibet have brought their unique spices and dishes to the valley, adding variations to create their own unique cuisines like “Newari” and “highland-himali” cuisines. The unification of these three culture’s cuisine is popularly known as “Himalayan Cuisine” in Nepal and also in European countries like Germany, France and England.

RRM: What is your most popular dish and will describe it for us?

ML: Our popular vegetarian dish is

“Navaratna Korma” which is a mixture of nine different vegetables in a sweetened coconut and onion sauce with cashews and raisins. “Bheda Poleko” is the popular non-vegetarian dish on the menu. “Bheda poleko” in Nepali means grilled lamb. In the Himalayas Lamb and Yak are in abundance and are also a source of living.

RRM: What does the name Kathmandu

INTERVIEWED BY

DENNIS RAY

restaurant business?

ML: It has been more

than 10 years now since I opened my store “Himalayas Import” in Battery Park downtown, sharing the Nepalese arts and crafts. I thought of sharing more of our culture with Asheville by introducing Himalayan cuisine.

RRM: Tell us a little we can find on your menu.

ML: We have the selected

popular and traditional dishes from Nepal, India and Tibet, with lots of vegan and gluten free options. Spice level, however you like it – very spicy hot or mild with sweet flavor.

RRM: What is your favorite dish?

ML: Dal, Bhat and Tarkari; lentil, rice and curry. A very filling, healthy and satisfying meal.

Photos by Liza Becker

Kathmandu Café serves healthy, satisfying meals.

PG. 32

Kathmandu Café

PA

90 Patton Ave. Downtown Asheville Hours: Lunch 11:30-2:30 p.m.

Dinner 5:30-9:30 p.m.

(828) 252-1080 www.cafekathmanduasheville.com

translate to?

ML: Kathmandu

valley has many historic fine arts and structure.

Built during the 16th century, all the hand-crafted wood structures are the treasures of the valley. So, the name Kathmandu was derived from the Sanskrit word “Kasthamandap” which means wood craft.

50 Broadway ~ Asheville, NC

RRM: How did

Specialt y Pizzas • Spring Water Dough • Salads Vegan Soy Cheese, and other Vege tarian Options!

you get into the

Bring in this Ad and We’ll Take

15% Off Your Order Excluding Alcohol 1 Coupon Per Table

(828) 236-9800

Delicious

Open 7 Days a Week

Hoagies & Pretzels Fresh-Baked Calzones PG. 32

B

Wireless Internet Access!

Vol. 16, No. 5 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — January 2013 27

Upcycle: \ʼup-sī-kəl\: the environmentally

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fine art

driven process of converting discarded materials into useful products of better quality and value.

Creative Mentoring ONE-ON-ONE INSPIRATION CAN LAST A LIFETIME

F

The place for upcycled goods.

92 Charlotte St, Asheville, NC 28801 828.255.2533 Free Parking Next to City Bakery

PG. 32

CF

digfoundry.com

PG. 32

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Advertise with

Rapid River Magazine (828) 646-0071

Free web links • Free ad design Easy monthly billing Our Monthly Magazine is iPad, Nook, & Kindle Friendly! www.issuu.com/rapidrivermagazine

www.rapidrivermagazine.com

ellow artists and creative professionals we encounter along the path give us so much. My own habitat is filled with arts and crafts that inspire me, and we as a species are immersed in a plethora of useful and attractive industrial and consumer product designs. All of these tangible, visual, sensory things are touchstones, and they ultimately connect to people.

In addition to input from family and friends, I’ve also been lucky to have many influential coaches on my path, from my wonderful high school art teacher, to college professors across a wide variety of liberal arts areas. I also had an awesome downloading of skills by a community of caring professionals in the form of an internship. Additionally, each company I have worked for since has revealed unique connections, many still in my Rolodex. A few are now social media friends, too.

However, when I specifically think about the word “mentor”, my friend Dale Riley is at the top. The first time I encountered Dale at Mattel Toys in 1994 (in a meeting that was WAY above my pay-grade), I had no idea who he was. Somewhere around, oh, eleven feet tall, this elegant oneman tour-de-force in a shocking green sport coat was describing a process the company was considering. I later learned he was a direct report to the CEO, ran our massive Package Design Group and that if he was presenting an idea, Mattel was most likely going to go with it.

Two years later, I had the good fortune to transfer to his department as part of a new venture. My oncea-week update meetings were fifteen minutes long. Sitting down with my

BY

GREG VINEYARD

Who have been your mentors along the way? stack of projects and issues, we’d go through them rapid-fire. We would get more resolved in onequarter hour than I’d seen some people in my previous department take care of the entire time I’d known them. The man was brilliant.

Some major lessons from him: 1) Solution-Oriented Suggestion. Have some ideas on how to solve the problem; 2) Manage Projects, and Develop People, not the other way around; 3) Always aim for On-Strategy, On-Budget and On-Time.

These are just three of many lessons learned. Over the years, Dale and I stayed in contact, and he even advised me on some of my creative decisions here. There was nothing he couldn’t do, and I’m glad I got to know him a little bit better. He was always there for me, right up until our last communications before he died.

He disliked his birthday, so my annual note every January always read: “Happy You-Know-What.” He knew that I considered him to be the ultimate creative mentor, and how grateful I was to also call him “friend.”

Keeping in mind what he taught me has been a comfort, along with other little observances, like frequently encountering his favorite number. He had a thing for numbers. And for design. And, despite

Mentors are like angels.

being quite private, for people.

Who have been your mentors along the way, in whatever field you find yourself in today? Do they know how much their involvement in your life has meant to them? There’s never a bad time to let someone know. And what can you do to pass the nurturing onward?

Wishing you much peace and joy in your reflections on mentors past and present, and in your new year.

Greg Vineyard is an artist, writer and creative consultant in Asheville, NC. ZaPOW Gallery in downtown Asheville carries his illustrations, giclees and cards.

Find his clay works at Gallery 262 in Waynesville, and at Taupe Gallery in North Wilkesboro. www.creativewayfinding.byregion.net

Behind the Seen: Encounters with Contemporary Art

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he River Arts District is home to a very special piece of artwork, often overlooked as just a mural.

The giant, 15-foot, barking dog painted on the front of the artist studios and retail spaces located at Pink Dog Creative (342 Depot Street), was inspired by nationally recognized artist CRO. CRO, who’s real name is Ray Noland, is best known for his politically charged satirical stencils which

28 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

can be found down alley ways and on street corners across the United States.

The Chicago native called Asheville home from October 2009 until March 2010. In that short time, he helped to create an icon completely by mistake.

For more information about the artist, or to invest in his project, visit www.creativerescue.org, or go to www.kickstarter.com and search for “Let Them Eat CRO.” Randy Shull painting the facade of Pink Dog Creative in the spring of 2009.

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healthy lifestyles Is There a Good Carbohydrate?

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he purveyors of popular fad diets are enraptured by the evils of sugar. Consequently, they try in every way possible to recognize sugar in all its forms (honey, dates, bananas, soda, etc.), which is a good thing, and eliminate it. But they confuse the issue when they label simple sugar as carbohydrate (which it is) and then try to eliminate all carbohydrates from the diet as if they were all as bad as sugar.

Carbohydrates come in many varieties. All are made up of sugar molecules attached to each other in different ways. Candy, cakes, rolled oats, potatoes, corn, pasta, donuts and bagels, whole wheat bread, squash, peas, beets, carrots, rice, soy, pineapple, strawberries are all carbohydrates.

Fiber in all its useful varieties is carbohydrate in an indigestible form.

The difference between the various carbs is how easily the sugar molecules are separated from one another and absorbed by the gut. The more easily separated and more rapidly absorbed are called high glycemic (another word for sugar) index carbs (candy, soft wheat pasta, potatoes, donuts, pineapple).

Carbs that require more digestion, the sugar molecules coming apart slowly, are called low glycemic index or complex carbohydrates (whole wheat bread, rolled oats, sweet potatoes, brown rice). All the foods just mentioned fall along a continuum from high to low glycemic range.

High glycemic index carbs release sugar into the blood stream extremely

rapidly, more rapidly than the body can burn them (if we are not doing any extreme physical activity at the moment).

Problem #1

What carbs the body cannot immediately use it converts into storage molecules, such as starch in the liver and in the muscles, what athletes call “carbohydrate loading” when eating large amounts of carbohydrates just before a contest. But the athletes know that the storage space for starch is limited. The rest of the excess sugar must be converted into triglyceride, cholesterol, and fat molecules for long-term storage. (Check your favorite magazine for how good these molecules are for you.)

Problem #2

High glycemic index carbs are absorbed rapidly. Insulin, which pushes sugar into cells for burning, shoots up rapidly, actually overshooting, causing sugar levels to drop rapidly (within 1-2 hours) and that let-down, dragged out feeling, requiring another shot of sugar pick-me-up. Insulin in high doses is inflammatory (read: arthritis, heart disease, kidney disease, auto-immune, chronic fatigue).

Problem #3

High insulin and high fat levels cause body cells to ignore insulin.

Sugar cannot enter the cells, raising the blood sugar level (read: diabetes, type 2). High fat storage levels increase body weight and raise blood

‘When?’ continued from page 21

it arise? It arises in consciousness, in awareness as the absolute Here. When does it arise? Now! Know this as your irreducible Self.

With this as our foundational sense of self, we can be a human being as effortlessly as an oak tree is an oak tree. For we, and the oak tree, and the bird on the wing, and the oceans, and the mountains, and the atoms and the galaxies are all the Universe. Right here and now. Nothing more is needed.

This is what it means to be awake in the truth.

You, “in wholehearted presence” is all that is needed to discover the truth of who you are — both the vastness of existence itself, and this human being manifesting in this moment in

Breathe, smile, relax. space and time that is your life and circumstances.

Breathe, smile, relax. Now go do something — something wise, skillful and compassionate, something simple or genius, serious or silly. Sit on your porch, go for a walk, go to work, go to the grocery store, say hello to the next person you pass. Look into the infinite sky. Commune with a bird in a tree. Dance a jig. Go to a retreat, a workshop, a pilgrimage, find a teacher.

Enjoy, learn, be inspired. Just know, what you search for you already have and are. Maybe this next experience will open that realization, will open the gate of Now.

BY

MAX HAMMONDS, MD

pressure. This combination is called metabolic syndrome and is disastrous on many levels.

What is the olution?

A high fat diet? No! Hardly. Think heart disease and stroke. A high protein diet? The body needs high energy, not high protein. It will have to strip off the nitrogen to convert the protein to carbohydrate for burning, straining the liver and kidneys to get rid of the excess nitrogen, pushing the body to burn fat causing ketosis, an acid condition that causes, nausea, headache, irritability (like diabetes).

Five meals a day? That’s only necessary if one continues to eat high glycemic index carbs with the 1-2 hour yo-yo blood sugar and insulin that results.

The Solution

Choose complex carbohydrates for energy, those that digest slowly, enter the blood stream slowly. Blood sugar levels do not shoot up. Insulin levels do not shoot up. Fat does not build up. Hunger stays away for up to 6-8 hours as sugar is being released slowly.

Fiber is provided. Energy is provided in controlled doses over a longer period of time, avoiding ketosis.

Choose to eat 60-70% low glycemic index carbs, the good carbohydrates, in a diet balanced with 10-15% fats (and their vitamins) and 10-15% protein. See, that’s not hard.

Bill Walz has taught meditation and mindfulness in university and public forums, and is a private-practice meditation teacher and guide for individuals in mindfulness, personal growth and consciousness. He holds a weekly meditation class, Mondays, 7 p.m., at the Friends Meeting House, 227 Edgewood. By donation.

Information on classes, talks, individual personal growth and healing instruction, or phone consultations at (828) 258-3241, e-mail at healing@billwalz.com.

Learn more, read past columns and schedule of coming events at www.billwalz.com

Vol. 16, No. 5 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — January 2013 29

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what to do guide Friday, January 4

Asheville Gallery of Art New Members Show Works by Mary Webster, Everett Schmidt, Eileen Ross and Jennine Hough will be featured. Their work is quite unique and representative of the gallery’s diversity. Reception from 5:30-8:30. Show runs from January 125. Asheville Gallery of Art, 16 College St. Call (828) 251-5796, or go online to www.ashevillegallery-of-art.com.

Sunday, January 6

Solo Guitar Recital featuring Marina Alexandra In celebration of Carl Sandburg’s 135th birthday. concert begins at 3 p.m. at the First Congregational Church in Hendersonville, NC. Suggested donation of $10 per person at the door. For further information, please call (828) 693-4178, or visit www.nps.gov/carl.

Thursday, January 10

Matthew Zedler Artist Reception A variety of cutting edge abstract-expressionist contemporary and geometric-linear-cubist paintings. Reception from 5 to 7 p.m at the Hotel Indigo,

151 Haywood Street, downtown Asheville. For more information please visit www.matthewzedlerfineart.com

January 10 through February 2

Sex and How To Have It A play written by and starring Brian Claflin, Kathryn Langwell, Valerie Meiss, and Glenn Reed, with additional material by Lisa Yoffee and Steven Samuels. Music and lyrics by Brian Claflin. Previews Thursday-Friday, January 10-11.

Official opening Saturday, January 12. Continuing Thursday-Saturday through February 2. All performances at 7:30 at The Magnetic Theatre, 372 Depot Street in the River Arts District.

Previews $8. All other shows $15.

Tickets also available online by visiting www.themagneticfield.com.

January 11-13, and January 18-20

Go, Granny, Go Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m.

Tickets are available through North Barbara Bates Smith Carolina Stage Company, at (828) 239-0263, or by visiting the theatre at 15 Stage Lane in Asheville. More information about showtimes and ticket prices at www.ncstage.org

Saturday, January 12

How to place an event/ classified listing with Rapid River Art Magazine Any “free” event open to the public can be listed at no charge up to 30 words. For all other events there is a $14.95 charge up to 35 words and 12 cents for each additional word.

65 word limit per event. Sponsored listings (shown in boxes) can be purchased for $18 per column inch.

Deadline is the 19th of each month.

Payment must be made prior to printing. Email Beth Gossett at: ads@rapidrivermagazine.com Or mail to: 85 N. Main St, Canton, NC 28716. Call (828) 646-0071 to place ad over the phone.

– Disclaimer – Due to the overwhelming number of local event submissions we get for our “What to Do Guide” each month, we can not accept entries that do not specifically follow our publication’s format. Non-paid event listings must be 30 words or less, and both paid and non-paid listings must provide information in the following format: date, time, brief description of your event, and any contact information. Any entries not following this format will not be considered for publication.

Appalachian Pastel Society Meeting from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. with a free presentation and tutorial about Digital Photo Preparation for online and CD art exhibition entries,

by David Rasberry and Suzy Hart, at the Black Mountain Library, 105 Dougherty St., Black Mtn., NC. Nonmembers welcome. For more details call Miriam Hughes, (610) 389-0058, or www.appalachianpastelsociety.org.

Saturday, January 12

Red June Tickets are $10 advance/$12 at the door. Seated show downstairs.

Limited tables available with dinner reservations. All ages show begins at 9 p.m. Isis Music Hall, 743 Haywood Rd., Asheville. Call (828) 575-2737 or visit www.isisasheville.com

Saturday, January 12

Pre-Inaugural Presidential Concert Under the direction of William Talley III, the award-winning Asheville High School Band will perform at 3 p.m. in the Asheville High School Auditorium.

A silent auction will accompany the

concert. Early viewing begins at 1 p.m. $10 suggested donation. More details at www.ashevillehighbands.com or call Janet Everson at (828) 423-6562.

Sunday, January 13

The Mannequin Six talented people to collaborate on a multi-media art project.

Come early for dinner and cocktails. Stay afterward and listen to amazing jazz music with renown musicians Justin Ray on trumpet, Steve Alford on clarinet, Jacob Rodriguez on saxophone, Mike Holstein on bass, and Ben Bjorlie on drums. 7 p.m. at The Isis Music Hall, 743 Haywood Road, West Asheville.

Friday & Saturday, January 18 & 19

Balsam Range From deep in the Appalachians where the Great Smoky Mountains meet the Blue Ridge comes the Balsam Range band, creatively blending Bluegrass, Folk, Gospel and Jazz into a new American acoustic music experience. 8 p.m. at The Altamont Theatre, 18 Church St., Asheville. Tickets $18 in advance, $20 day of. Call (828) 270-7747 or visit www.myAltamont.com

Friday, January 18

The Carvers

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Bill Gerhardt Piano Concert Bill’s prolific compositional style in any genre he explores is uniquely recognizable. Equally, his ability to weave story lines with pianistic improvisations communicates in the most direct fashion. FREE show begins at 8 p.m. at the Altamont Theatre, 18 Church St., Asheville. For tickets and show times call (828) 270-7747 or visit www. myAltamont.com

January 23-27

Fresh Preserves Wednesday through Saturday at 7:30 p.m.; 2 p.m. matinees on Saturday and Sunday.

Tickets are available through North Carolina Stage Company, at (828) 2390263, or by visiting the theatre at 15 Stage Lane in Asheville. More information about showtimes and ticket prices at www.ncstage.org

January 24-27

Asheville Fringe Arts Festival At various locations. Presented by the Asheville Contemporary Dance Theatre. Details at www.ashevillefringe.org.

Friday, January 25

Fire & Ice: Pottery, Glass, and Metalwork Haywood County Arts Council presents an exhibit which celebrates the heating and cooling process involved in the making of pottery, glass, and metal work. Opening reception from 6-8 p.m. On display from Wednesday, January 16 through Saturday, February 9, 2013. For more information visit ww.haywoodarts.org.

Friday, January 18

Naughty But Nice!

On display January 18-31. Flood Gallery is located in the Phil Mechanic Studios building at 109 Roberts Street, in Asheville’s River Arts District. For more information, call (828) 254-2166, or visit www.floodgallery.org.

Saturday, January 19

Tomás Kubínek Certified Lunatic and Master of the Impossible. An exuberant blend of absurdist theatre and circus magic. Diana Wortham Theatre at Pack Place, 8 p.m. Tickets: Regular $35; Students $30; Child $15; Student Rush day-of-the-show (with valid ID) $10. Tickets/Info: (828) 2574530 or online at www.dwtheatre.com.

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A tastefully gritty combination of party crashing original songs and “Carverized” arrangements of surf, garage, and jazz gems. The shows are fun, energetic, tight and guaranteed to keep the dance floor packed! FREE. 9 p.m. at Jack of Hearts Pub, 10 S Main St., Weaverville. Call (828) 645-2700, www.jackofheartspub.com.

National Juried Exhibition Opens

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Saturday & Sunday, January 26 & 27 An intimate evening with the music of Cole Porter and Noel Coward. Saturday, January 26 at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, January 27 at 2:30 p.m. Tickets: $25.

The White Horse, Black Mountain.

Call the Box Office (828) 669-0816, www.whitehorseblackmountain.com

Sunday, January 27

Taste of Opera, A Mid Winter Gala At the Crowne Plaza Expo Center from 4 to 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased by contacting the Asheville Lyric Opera at (828) 236-0670 between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, or at www.ashevillelyric.org.

January 28-31

The Civil War The stories of individuals caught up in the war that divided the nation. Featur-

ing traditional songs of the era while sensitively illustrating this complex, tumultuous chapter in American history. Diana Wortham Theatre at Pack Place. Monday-Thursday at 10 a.m. and 12 p.m. Open to families, homeschoolers, and students.

Tickets $7; $6/ea. for groups of 11 or more (1 free teacher ticket per every 10 students). Recommended for Grades 3-9. Tickets and information, (828) 257-4530, www.dwtheatre.com.

Thursday, January 31

Listen to This Storytelling Series Original storytelling series will feature stories and original songs from locals.

Tickets are $10. 7:30 p.m. at Asheville Community Theatre, 35 E. Walnut St., Asheville. Call (828) 254-1320, or visit www.ashevilletheatre.org

February 1 & 2

Aquila Theatre: Two Plays One of the most exhilarating and inventive theatre companies in the country, Aquila Theatre’s cast presents back-to-back performances of Edmund Rostand’s Cyrano de Bergerac on Friday, February 1 at 8 p.m.; and Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew on Saturday, February 2 at 8 p.m. Diana Wortham Theatre. Tickets: Regular $35, Student $30, Children 12 & under $15; Student rush day-of-show (with valid I.D.) $10.

Tickets/Info: (828) 257-4530 or online at www.dwtheatre.com.

February 22-24

The 26th National Arts & Crafts Conference and Antiques Show An Arts & Crafts collectors delight: seminars, discussion groups, Preservation Society house tours, an Asheville Art Museum reception, walking tours, antiques, and works by contemporary craftsfirms. Held at the Grove Park Inn. Friday, February 22 from 1-6 p.m., Saturday, February 23, noon-6 p.m., and Sunday, February 24 from 11-4 p.m. $10 ticket is good for all three days and can be purchased at the door.

Deadline: February 15, 2013

Post Card Show Call for Artists Support the Asheville Area Arts Council and the arts councils of the western counties. This is an easy way to share the wealth of your creativity, strengthen the arts, and benefit your community!

Call (828) 258-0710, send an email to mica@ashevillearts.com, or go online to www.ashevillearts.com.

JANUARY EVENTS ~ ANNOUNCEMENTS ~ OPENINGS ~ SALES 30 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

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Best in Show

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Steep Canyon Rangers in Concert

to support literacy initiatives at Vance Elementary School.

Saturday, January 12 at the Orange Peel – Benefit

Callie & Cats

by Amy Downs

to support Evergreen Charter Schools ‘More Than a Gym’ campaign.

www.steepcanyon.com/tour

Michael Jefry Stevens Jazz Events Friday, January 11 - Aloft Hotel, 8-11 p.m. Michael Jefry Stevens on keyboard, Jesse Jr. on vocals. No cover.

Thursday, January 17 - Black Mountain Center for

Corgi Tales

by Phil Hawkins

Trip To Cuba

the Arts, 7:30 p.m. Michael Jefry Stevens on piano and Grammy Award winner Eliot Wadopian on acoustic bass performing a concert of Mr. Stevens’ original music. $10 donation

Friday, January 18 - The Phoenix Lounge, Brevard, NC, 8-11 p.m. Michael Jefry Stevens Organ Trio featuring Sonny Thornton on drums, Michael Collings on guitar.

www.michaeljefrystevens.com

Events at Grateful Steps Bookshop Dragin

by Michael Cole

Children’s Music Program, every Saturday from 11 a.m. to noon. Sonia Brooks uses TapNShake methods she developed. This interactive program is an opportunity for the whole family to experience.

Saturday, January 19 at 12:30 p.m. Life in America

Friday Dance Party at Arcade Asheville,

with Steve Jones. The author teaches children how history’s human experiences relate to life today.

130 College Street, in downtown Asheville. Featuring live DJs and plenty of room to shake your tush. 9 p.m. Free.

Friday, January 25 at 5:30 p.m. Ivy and Strange

Life with author Larry Morgan. The prolific writer of Appalachian tales comes from Winston-Salem to discuss his popular Civil War novel, Ivy, and his memoir, Strange Life, about growing up with OCD before the condition was well understood.

Dancing at Cinjades, 22 N. Market St. in downtown Asheville, 10 p.m.-2 a.m. every Friday and Saturday. Top pop, disco, hip-hop and euro dance music.

21+. College students free with ID. For complete info see www.cinjades.com

Appalachian Pastel Society Juried Show

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Friday, January 11 at the Orange Peel – Benefit

performance at the Performance Loft at the Asheville Music School downtown, 126 College St. Cost is $20 for adults, $10 for AMS students, and free for children 12 and under. For tickets, pay online at www.ashevillemusicschool.com.

Get Out and Dance!

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at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville.

Sunday, January 27 at 3 p.m.,

The Arts Council of Henderson County in partnership with AAA Vacations, is offering a rare opportunity to travel to Cuba. The 10-day itinerary reveals Cuba’s vibrant culture and lively traditions as well as its lush rural landscape.

For more information on joining this International Expeditions program, contact Cindy L. Perry, AAA Vacations, at (828) 697-8778 x15211 or at clperry@ mailaaa.com.

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Friday, January 4

Friday, January 25 at 7:30 p.m.,

March 19-28, 2013

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Amici music presents violinist Rachel Patrick and pianist Daniel Weiser performing music by Brahms, Rachel Patrick Piazzolla, Gershwin, Kreisler, and more. performance at the White Horse in Black Mountain. Tickets are $15 for adults and $5 for students/children. To reserve tickets go online to www.whitehorseblackmountain. com or call (828) 669-0816.

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Saturday, February 9 from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Awaken-

ing to the Dance with Georganne Spruce. The author shares her journey to find an authentic identity, creative expression and a meaningful spiritual life.

Ratchet and Spin

by T. Oder and R. Woods

Deadline for Entries: March 18, 2013 Call for pastel artists – On Common Ground: Pastel Paintings From the Mountains to the Sea. 2013 Statewide Pastel Exhibition will be held May 18 through August 18, 2013 in Hickory, NC. For more details and prospectus visit www.appalachianpastelsociety.org.

Grateful Steps Bookshop

159 South Lexington, Asheville (828) 277-0998 :: www.gratefulsteps.org

Beginner Belly Dance Class At the Woodfin YMCA on Monday evenings beginning at 6:30 p.m. The cost for non-members is $5 per class or $20 for the month. Contact the YMCA, (828) 505-3990. www.jackiewoods.org • Copyright 2012 Adawehi Press

CLASSES ~ AUDITIONS ~ ARTS & CRAFTS ~ READINGS Vol. 16, No. 5 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — January 2013 31

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find it here Bogart’s Restaurant www.bogartswaynesville.com

Frame It To a T www.frameittoat.com

Kitsch Fabrics www.kitschfabrics.com

Potter’s Mark www.pottersmark.com

Storm Rhum Bar & Bistro www.stormrhumbar.com

Canvas www.paintandmingle.com

Frugal Framer www.frugalframer.com

Liberty Bicycles www.libertybikes.com

Rise 'n Shine www.risenshinecafe.com

Charlotte Street Computers (828) 225-6600

Great Smokies Creations (828) 452-4757

Malaprops Bookstore/Cafe www.malaprops.com

Sagebrush of Waynesville (828) 452-5822

Studio 375 Depot BarbaraFrohmaderArt.com www.silverpoemstudio.com

Chifferobe chifferobehomeandgarden.com

Great Trade Solutions www.greattradesolutions.com

Mary Webster and Associates marywebsterandassociates.com

The Chocolate Fetish www.chocolatefetish.com

Great Tree Zen Temple www.greattreetemple.org

Massie Furniture Company www.massiefurniture.net

Satellite Gallery www.thesatellitegallery.com SIGNARAMA www.wncsigns.com

The Chocolate Bear www.thechocolatebears.com

Guitar Trader www.ashevilleguitartrader.com

Mountain Top Appliance

www.mountainviewappliance.com

Nancy Silver Art www.nancysilverart.com

Cottonmill Studios www.cottonmillstudiosnc.com

Hearn’s Bicycle (828) 253-4800

Mellow Mushroom (828) 236-9800

David J. Simchock www.vagabondvistas.com

www.Arts-CraftsConference.com

Double Exposure Giclee www.doubleexposureart.com

Kathmandu Cafe

www.cafekathmanduasheville.com

Nicos Cafe www.Nicoscafe.net

Soapy Dog www.thesoapydog.com

Asheville Symphony www.ashevillesymphony.org

Fast Lane Electric Bikes www.FastlaneEbikes.com

Jewels That Dance www.jewelsthatdance.com

North Carolina Stage Company www.ncstage.org

Southern Highland Craft Guild www.craftguild.org

BlackBird Frame & Art www.blackbirdframe.com

Foundry www.digfoundry.com

Karmasonics (828) 259-9949

On Demand Printing www.ondemandink.com

Stereo Innovations www.stereoinnovations.com

Appalachian Craft Center

www.appalachiancraftcenter.com

Arts & Crafts Conference and Antiques Show

BREVARD ROAD

BLACK MOUNTAIN

MERRIMON AVE.

Thyme in the Garden http://thymeinthegarden asheville.blogspot.com Turtle Island Pottery www.turtleislandpottery.com Updraft Fine Art Gallery www.updraftgallery.com Van Dyke Jewelry www.vandykejewelry.com Wendy Whitson Paintings www.wendywhitson.com The Wine Guy www.theashevillewineguy.com

WEAVERVILLE

WEST ASHEVILLE

CHARLOTTE ST.

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LEXINGTON AVE.

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WAYNESVILLE - 28786

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DOWNTOWN ASHEVILLE - 28801

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(828) 646-0071

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32 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

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asheville shops New Green Business

FiZi Futon Natural Mattress and Bedding

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new Asheville area green business, FiZi Futon Natural Mattress and Bedding, has been launched by Seán Marquis. FiZi Futon specializes in producing quality, handcrafted mattresses and mattress toppers made from all natural components – cotton and wool. The key to their mattresses is a layer of wool completely surrounding the cotton batting. This layer of wool acts as a natural fire barrier which means there is no need to use any chemical flame retardants in the mattresses.

“We started this business because we really believe these mattresses are the best thing you can possibly sleep on,” said Marquis. “My whole family sleeps on mattresses that I made — there is something so satisfying about that. I love working with the materials and knowing that they are safe, non-toxic and all natural — it really is a throwback to how things were made prior to chemicals. I am very proud to be able to offer people an affordable green bedding option.”

At present, all items are made in a home-based workshop in Black Mountain, NC. Marquis makes every effort to ensure that the products are as earth-friendly as possible. At

the end of their lifecycle everything he makes can either be recycled or repurposed. The mattresses are also designed to be fully supportive of your body with just enough “give” for a comfortable, healthy night’s sleep.

FiZi Futon was started to provide people with a natural, healthy, handmade alternative for their mattresses and other bedding. Marquis is committed to sourcing materials that are grown and/or manufactured in the USA. Currently futons are only available for sale online and at their booth at the Downtown Market, 45 South French Broad Avenue in Asheville. To place an order or to learn more call (828) 280-5285 or visit www.FiZifuton.com.

FREE

Backup with any HD Purchase 828.225.6600 828.651.6600

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WAYNESVILLE SHOPPING GUIDE The Classic WineSeller

BY

DENNIS RAY

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Elegant Interiors Bringing Your Home Together in an Elegant Manner Fine Furnishings and Interior Decorating

39 N. Main St., Waynesville, NC PG. 32

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828-452-3509 • Monday-Saturday 9-5

he Classic WineSeller, located just around the corner at Church Street and Main Street in downtown Waynesville, is truly an underground cellar.

The entire store is in the basement of the building, and over half is completely underground, making the entire space climate controlled — perfect for wines and atmosphere.

The WineSeller features more than 1,500 wine selections from over 12,000 bottles. There is a port room dedicated to ports from both the old world and new world, from Australian ports to collectible ports from as far back as the 1940’s. Champagnes are available including sparkling wines from Austria and around the world.

More than 40 beers are available, including local craft brews to European imports. The entire staff is dedicated to finding not only collectible wines for the climate controlled wine room but also to searching for affordable wines with great taste, thereby a great value. The WineSeller’s wine vault has many boutique selections, with wines of 100 or less cases produced.

The WineSeller also has a

Photo: Erica Mueller

Wine Bar with both indoor and outdoor seating, serving cheese platters, tapas and more. The outdoor bandstand features live music Friday nights, May through November, and continues with indoor music throughout the winter months. Many events, tastings, and dinners catered by the best restaurants are held in The WineSeller’s underground event room.

Like the WineSeller on Facebook or subscribe to their e-mail list to stay informed about tastings, events, and special offers. Send an e-mail to info@ classicwineseller.com.

The WineSeller features more than 1,500 wine selections.

Photo: Liza Becker

PG. 32

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Classic WineSeller

Photo: Erica Mueller

34 January 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 16, No. 5

20 Church Street Waynesville, NC (828) 452-6000 www.classicwineseller.com

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WAYNESVILLE Fire & Ice

POTTERY, GLASS, AND METALWORK

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he Haywood County Arts Council’s Gallery 86 presents Fire & Ice: Pottery, Glass, and Metalwork, an exhibit celebrating the heating and cooling process involved in the making of pottery, glass, and metal work.

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“not your ordinary...confectionary”

Wine, and Tapas Bar Piattino Ristorante River by Aaron Shufelt.

Thank You and Happy New Year to all of our Wonderful Customers!

20 Church Street, Waynesville 828-452-6000

www.classicwineseller.com

from all of us at the Chocolate Bear

Artist’s Featured in the Exhibition Brad Dodson from Mud Dabbers Ceramics and Pottery Studio (pottery)

170 N. Main Street

John Nickerson (pottery)

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Bob Brotherton (pottery)

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Special Orders & Shipping Available

Cathey Bolton from Art on Depot (pottery) Terance Painter from Different Drummer Pottery (pottery) Grace Cathey (metal work)

Waynesville, NC 828.452.6844

Tall Oval Landscape

by Terance Painter.

Teresa Sizemore from Nature of Steel (metal work) Susan Hutchinson (metal work) Dianne Lee from Stained Glass Bungalow (glass) William and Katherine Bernstein from Bernstein Glass (glass) Fitzallen Eldridge (glass) Aaron Shufelt (glass) Judy McManus (glass) Tadashi Torii (glass)

Untitled by Teresa Sizemore

IF YOU Haywood County Arts Council’s Gallery GO 86 presents “Fire & Ice: Pottery, Glass,

and Metalwork” beginning Wednesday, January 16 through Saturday, February 9, 2013.

An artist’s reception will take place on Friday, January 25 from 6 to 8 p.m.

Gallery 86, 86 N. Main Street, Waynesville, NC. Gallery hours are Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information visit www.haywoodarts.org or www.facebook.com/ haywoodarts.

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Vol. 16, No. 5 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — January 2013 35

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