Evince Magazine November 2022

Pittrell

Editor’s

f you want strangers to talk to you, get a dog.

If that’s too highmaintenance, get clothes made by Kei Pittrell. The only time strangers strike up conversations with me is when I’m wearing Kei’s brand, Hello Boogie.

It’s weird, because Hello Boogie’s vibe is unapproachable by design— Kei uses the word “aggressive.” With patterns like a panda skull and crossbones, it’s interesting that so many people will walk up to ask me what I’m wearing.

Kei calls her clothes “athleisurewear basics with sarcasm and great art… We’ve all had bad days right? Ok, cool. If I have to continue telling you what this brand is about, I’m going to be sick. Just go.”

We’re heading into the holidays, when family, colleagues, commercials, and complete strangers will want you to get into “the spirit of the season.” And if this season reminds you of estrangement, loss, or loneliness, then what those admonishments mean is

“pretend to be joyful.”

In Barbara Kingsolver’s book

The Poisonwood Bible, one of her characters is nicknamed “Beene-beene,” which means “the truest truth.” I think that’s what Kei conveys in her art, and what people resonate with when they see it—the truest truth. When we’re having a bad time, we need something that says for us, “I’m over it, go away.”

Kendall Ratliffe is the editor of Evince Magazine and a results coach at www.tryonething.co.

CEO / Publisher / Andrew Scott Brooks

Editor / Kendall Ratliffe kendall@evincemagazine.com

Contributing Writers

Linda Lemery, Josh Lucia, Marc Muneal, Dave Slayton, Mack Williams

Art & Production Director

Demont Design (Kim Demont)

Finance Manager

Cindy Yeatts (1.434.709.7349)

Advertising

For ad information contact a marketing consultant listed below.

Lee Vogler

Director of Sales and Marketing (434.548.5335)

lee@evincemagazine.com

Kendall Ratliffe Account Executive kendall@evincemagazine.com

Kim Demont Graphic Design, Marketing (434.792.0612) demontdesign@verizon.net

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24541 www.evincemagazine.com 434.709.7349

On the Cover: Photo of Kei Pittrell by Jameel Austin Photography

J O I N U S I N R E I D S V I L L E F O R

Hometown Holidays

DECEMBER 2

H O M E T O W N C H R I S T M A S T R E E L I G H T I N G

T h i s y e a r ’ s e v e n t w i l l b e h e l d o n S o u t h S c a l e s S t r e e t f r o m 6 9 p m w i t h S a n t a t a k i n g u p r e s i d e n c e a t M a r k e t S q u a r e ( 3 0 3 S . S c a l e s ) .

T h e r e w i l l b e d a n c e g r o u p s , f o o d , h a y r i d e s , a n o u t d o o r m o v i e w i t h m a r s h m a l l o w r o a s t i n g , a b o u n c e h o u s e a n d a S a n t a ’ s W o r k s h o p a t t h e R e i d s v i l l e C h a m b e r o f C o m m e r c e C o m e j o i n i n t h e f u n !

DECEMBER 3

H O L I D A Y M A R K E T A T T H E P E N N H O U S E F R O M 9 A M 2 P M ( 3 2 4 M A P L E A V E )

H o l i d a y M a r k e t A r t i s a n s s e t u p t h r o u g h o u t t h e h i s t o r i c P e n n H o u s e a n d g r o u n d s T h e h o m e i s f u l l y d e c o r a t e d f o r C h r i s t m a s A l l g r e a t h a n d m a d e g i f t s !

H I S T O R I C L A N T E R N T O U R S T A R T S A T 6 P M I N M U R A L P A R K B Y T H E " R "

W a l k t h r o u g h d o w n t o w n a n d l e a r n t h e h i s t o r y o f b u i l d i n g s , b u s i n e s s e s a s w e l l a s p e o p l e o f R e i d s v i l l e . S p a c e i s l i m i t e d . T i c k e t s r e q u i r e d .

F i n d o u t m o r e a t R i s e U p R e i d s v i l l e . c o m

V I E W O N S O C I A L @ T E A M R E I D S V I L L E

Kei Pittrell is an artist, in the biggest sense possible. She is a graphic designer, fashion designer, writer, sketcher, and painter. For many years she worked professionally as an artist, creating commissioned works. Now, Pittrell is taking a step back from creating for others. She needs her focus for something big, the culmination of her artistry.

And it’s a good thing Pittrell is taking a step back, because art takes time, she says. “You can’t get a piece of art done in one sitting and be completely satisfied with it,” Pittrell says. “People see the product, but if they aren’t an artist, they don’t know the work that went into it.”

Anyone who has watched Pittrell sketch in a brewery (she is rarely without a sketchpad) can see how quickly Pittrell can fill a onceblank page with an impressive drawing, but they don’t see the many revisions that happen later. What’s also not immediately apparent is how many years Pittrell has put into her craft.

As a child, Pittrell designed costumes and created elaborate

narratives for her paper dolls. She drew comic books in her head. While a student at Westwood Middle School, an art teacher helped Pittrell move to the next level. “She loved my art,” Pittrell says. “She really got me into honing my art and it stuck from there. I kept drawing on my own and then took another art class in high school. That teacher prepared me a future of being an artist; she wanted me to go to college for it, and she had high hopes. That makes a difference.”

Pittrell honed her craft on early internet art websites like DeviantArt. “I was playing video games, which have stories, watching anime, having an online community, and my art viewed and commented on by other people. It gave me the motivation to keep going,” Pittrell says.

Drawing with others has drawbacks, however. “I love to learn from other people and especially people I deem as greater,” Pittrell says, “and it’s easy for me to look at some whose art I admire and go I wish I could do this. Or if they aren’t

that good and they are getting the most attention, that can be disheartening. I like to re-focus with “Draw My Style”-challenges–it’s a positive way to make comparisons. Everyone knows that they have a different style; you’re making artistic choices so your work stands out.”

Pittrell has no problem standing out with her fashion line, Hello Boogie. “Aggressive is definitely the word I would use to describe my style. In both art and fashion, I like doing things that get a reaction,” Pittrell says. “My brand is geared on being in a bad mood. You’re going to get a reaction if you’re wearing a shirt that says ‘Don’t Talk to Me.’ “

Pittrell’s fashion comes out of her art in more ways than one. “I was designing a character for my graphic novel, and wishing that I had his shirt. And I was like Wait, I can print that on a t-shirt. So that was my foray into fashion, printing one of my character’s hoodies. My friends encouraged me to make more and I started to think that maybe I could make money this way.” Pittrell designed a line for the second annual Danville Fashion Week, and the brand has taken off

Kei Pittrell

Art Takes Time

by Kendall Ratliffe photo by Jameel Austin Photography

from there, all from one t-shirt design.

Pittell’s late father had always believed in her art and, as an entrepreneur himself, had encouraged her to make money from it. The sales and visibility of her brand are not only satisfying as an artist but are a connection to her father and the encouragement he poured into her.

And now Pittrell is ready to fully integrate her artistic visions. She is spending the next year finishing her graphic novel with an integrated fashion line built around the characters. The characters in her novel are all anti-heroes, and the fashion matches, Pittrell says. “I decided I didn’t want a story with good guys–I want bad people versus worse people.” An aggressive statement from an in-yourface designer. There are days when all of us need that sort of energy.

Follow Kei on Instagram, @ helloxboogie

While reflecting on the passing of Betty White, I thought about how many teachers, like myself, loved The Golden Girls. Teaching is central not only to many a Golden Girls plot but to the relationship dynamics among the show’s four major characters as well. From on-screen teacher Dorothy to beloved naïve Rose—portrayed by the even more beloved late Betty White—the Girls offer a surprisingly comprehensive representation

of the trials and triumphs of the profession. As we kick off the school year, join me in recalling what made these characters great in this four-part series.

Blanche Devereaux (portrayed by Rue McClanahan)

Blanche has become a cult figure for how she embodied sexual freedom and the pursuit of pleasure. She was often preoccupied with achieving her

most devastatingly attractive ideal, and her focus was sometimes so single-minded that she failed to see the bigger picture, becoming blinkered in her zeal. No one ever doubted, though, that she would achieve her aim.

Along these lines, Blanche did assume the role of teacher on several episodes, sharing with her roommates the secrets of a widely acknowledged expert in matters romantic. This piece will not suggest a direct parallel or recommend borrowing Blanche’s lesson plans. Instead, we might more appropriately observe her hidden curriculum.

Blanche understood that her students needed not only information and know-how, but confidence and self-assuredness in that knowledge. Like many an academic and teacher, she could fall prey to insularity, but when she tapped into the caring individual at the core, she helped those in her care feel possessed of a sense of personal worth and growth.

Marc Muneal is a professor of English at Averett University in Danville, Virginia.

Why Teachers See Themselves in Betty White’s Rose (and the Other Golden Girls)

by Marc Muneal

November Calendar of Evince

Abbreviation Key

• CP = Carrington Pavilion, 629 Craghead Street

• DMFAH = Danville Museum of Fine Arts & History, 975 Main St. 434.793.5644

www.danvillemuseum.org

• GML = Gunn Memorial Library, 161 Main St, Yanceyville, NC, 336.694.6241

• MSAC = Main Street Art Collective, 326 Main Street, 434.602.2017

MainStreetArtCollective.com

• RBA = Ruby B. Archie Public Library, 511 Patton Street, www.readdanvilleva.org

• SS = Smokestack Theatre Company, 319 Lynn Street, Danville, VA 24541

Ongoing

Wednesdays

Farmers’ Market: Open each Wednesday through August 31.Fruits and Vegetables, Crafts, Baked Goods and more. 1:00pm6:00pm. 434-797-8961. 629 Craghead Street, Community Market Parking Lot

Thursdays

Caswell Farmers’ Market: Presented by the Caswell Local Foods Council. 4:00-6:30pm. Bright Leaf Square (by Goodwill) 2246 NC Hwy 86 N, Yanceyville. More info at CaswellLocalFoods@ gmail.com or Facebook.

Saturdays

Danville Farmers’ Market: Fruits and Vegetables, Beef, Chicken, Lamb, Jams and Jellies, Eggs, Honey, Baked Goods, Crafts, and more. 7:30am-12:00pm. 434797-8961. 629 Craghead Street, Community Market Parking Lot Free Ti-Chi: on the DMFAH lawn each at 11:00am.

Multiple October Dates

Pottery classes: Free Admission Weekend: 2nd weekend of each month, DMFAH.

November 2

Wednesday Club: Shakeva Frazier. Shakeva grew up in suboptimal conditions and the odds were against her success in life. Now, with a bachelor’s degree behind her, she guides youth through their circumstances with an understanding ear. She works full-time at Project Imagine, the gang prevention program, and part-time at Danville Church and Community Tutorial Program.

November 5

Barn Quilt Painting: Choose your size. 1’x1’ $45, 2’x2’ $65 or 3’x3’ $85. 12-4 pm. MSAC.

November 9

Square, Yanceyville, NC. Racing for Heroes will have their tribute vehicle on display; Caswell Arts will premiere the documentary VETERANS OF CASWELL COUNTY episode 1 on the big screen tv; Five original designs of the American Flag made out of LEGOs will be auctioned at the end of the reception. Light refreshments will be served. This event is free and open to the public.

November 12 &13

Holiday Living Show – Arts, Crafts, Food & More 9:00am-5:00pm; 1:00-5:00pm. $$, children free. Halifax County High School

Storehouse stock the shelves! Community members are invited to bring a donation of five canned goods or a monetary donation to have their personal papers shredded. 9am-12pm. 750 Memorial Drive. 434793.3663, visit our Facebook page or www.godsstorehouse. org.

Regional Teacher’s Workshop: American Revolution Institute. 9am-3pm. Space is limited! Please email cindy@ danvillemuseum.org with questions.

November 7

Forever Motown: Remember songs like My Girl; I Heard It Through the Grapevine; and Stop!

In the Name of Love? Danville Concert Association. 7:30pm GWHS Auditorium. Season and individual tickets danvilleconcert. org; Eventbrite; Karen’s at the Mall; Ginger Bread House; and Main Street Art Collective. 434.770.8400

The Wednesday Club Contemporary American artist, Jane Carter, will discuss “Understanding Abstract Art”. Jane is an award winning artist living and painting in North Carolina for thirty years. Free and open to the public. 3:45 pm. The Wednesday Club, 1002 Main Street, Danville, Virginia.

November 12

Basket Weaving: Santa’s Pants. $40. 1 pm. MSAC.

November 10

Paint a Door Hanger: Merry Mug. $35. 6 pm. MSAC.

November 11

Veterans Day Ceremony and Reception: Ceremony 11:00am at the Veterans Memorial located at the intersection of E. Church Street and North Avenue. Reception will begin at approximately 12:30pm at CoSquare located at 106 Court

November 16

In the Short Rows: Celia Rivenbark, bestselling author and journalist. Her humor blends this country tradition with her love of all things pop culture for a unique

DCA presents Forever Motown

take on the ever-changing South. Free. The Wednesday Club, 1002 Main St. in Danville.

November 18

Paint a Door Hanger: JOY $35. 6pm. MSAC.

November 19

Make a Live Wreath 11 am. $4. MSAC.

November 26

Small Business Saturday. 10-6, MSAC.

November 30

Becoming a Best Selling Author

After 70: The How, Why, and What was I thinking.

Leah Wiess, author of If the Creek Don’t Rise and All The Little Hopes.

December 1

Paint a Snowman Door Hanger. $35. 6 pm MSAC.

December 3

Family Tree Paper Art $45. 11 am. MSAC.

oming soon for anyone who has dreamed of opening a business: Dream Launch 2023, the Danville River District Association’s (RDA) free, 6-week-long boot camp training program for how to successfully plan for, start, and run a business.

Diana Schwartz, the executive director of the RDA, brings her characteristic excitement to this program. People with an idea learn business basics, from plans to operations, while building a network with successful local business owners. Prospective entrepreneurs who complete the entire 6-week program can pitch for a grant to start their business locally. Schwartz is also excited about RDA’s new Start-Up Slam. This event gives budding entrepreneurs a lower-stakes chance to pitch and win a cash prize while still refining their plan and building a network.

Wise Words from Dream Launch Grads Who Started Their Own Businesses:

Adam Jones (Recipient, 2022 Dream Launch Expansion Grant Award):

“… most helpful coursework of the Dream Launch Bootcamp was pairing with business consultant Michael Duncan. Personal meetings to review the business plan, make corrections, and suggestions provided confidence and final preparation leading up to the pitch… [I would] advise any attendee to COMPLETE the bootcamp after signing up… absorb all knowledge …utilize tools available … even if you don’t plan to open your business now, capitalize on gaining a bird’s eye view of what it will take to open and successfully operate your business.”

Catherine Carter (Recipient, 2021 Dream Launch Pitch Award):

“Dream Launch was … incredible …it taught me so much about how to start and run a business.

I came out of Dream Launch with more confidence … which proved to be incredibly helpful when hiccups would arrive in the opening process. My biggest

advice to anyone looking to attend Dream Launch would be to do the work throughout the course, don’t procrastinate, ask plenty of questions. If you’re confused … don’t be afraid to ask for clarification … everyone on the Dream Launch team wants to help you succeed … that alone makes the process worth it.”

Attention Prospective Entrepreneurs:

Dream Launch 2023 Starts in January!

by Linda Lemery

Charles Walker (Recipient, 2020 Dream Launch Pitch Award): “(Dream Launch coursework] was a lot of information to retain. I strategically used what was applicable for my present situation. I took notes for future references that I now use….I found that the working capital and projected future financials helped me to be more prepared at the launching of the business … [I learned] to be prepared for the unexpected … [I would advise any Dream Launch participant] to be in attendance at every meeting, ask lots of questions, and to remember that the program is to launch your dream, not make it come true.”

To register for Dream Launch Boot Camp (registration deadline January 05, 2023) or Start-Up Slam, contact Alyssa Turner, RDA Office Manager (T [434] 791-0210, E alyssa@ riverdistrictassociation.com). For general information, see www. riverdistrictassociation.com.

About the author: Linda Lemery llemery@ gmail.com, Dream Launch graduate, urges prospective entrepreneurs to register for RDA’s innovative Dream Launch Boot Camp and Start-Up Slam.

Diana Schwartz, Executive Director, RDA (photo/courtesy Diana Schwartz)

Adam Jones, The Brick Running and Tri Store (photo/courtesy Linda Lemery)

Catherine Carter, The Dog-Eared

Bookshop

(photo/courtesy Catherine Carter)

Annette Walker, Ma’s Cakes (photo/courtesy Linda Lemery)

Movies You Missed from 20 years ago

by Josh Lucia @jlucia85 artwork: “The Quiet American” by Tamara Lovelace Lucia

The Quiet American (7/10 Rating)

Released November 22, 2002

For rent/purchase on all major platforms.

Genre: Drama, Romance, Thriller Rated R: Images of violence and some language 1h 41m

I grew up during the peak of movie rental stores. During high school and college, some evenings consisted of one to two hours of just walking around Blockbuster or Movie Starz, checking out box after box to find something to watch. We rarely left empty-handed. Kids today have most movies at their fingertips, ready to watch in seconds, but in the 90s and early 2000s, if the movie store didn’t have something, you just had to watch something else. That could lead to discovering a hidden gem or sitting through some really terrible movies.

Which brings us to this month’s review. For years, The Quiet American has been an ongoing joke between my best friend and me. It was on one of those long visits to Movie Starz that we were not having luck finding something to watch. My friend had pulled The Quiet American, and while it was not my choice, I did not have an alternative, and that was the movie we went home with. We were maybe ten minutes into the movie, and we gave up on it. For almost twenty years now, I have given him a hard time about how terrible the film is with no valid reasoning. So, when it showed up on my list as a November 2002 release, I figured it was time to give it a fair chance.

Part of the magic of movies and art, in general, is that surrounding

elements can affect your viewing - your age, your knowledge of the world, relationships with others, whether you have children, your current emotional status, and so much more…All of these things can change your outlook on a film or other piece of art. So, perhaps the timing is to blame for my initial thoughts on The Quiet American, a remake of the 1958 version and originally a Graham Greene novel.

The central plot revolves around a love triangle between a British journalist, a U.S. doctor, and a beautiful Vietnamese woman with the surrounding tensions of 1952 Vietnam in the middle of a war with the colonial French powers. Michael Caine, as the lead and narrator, received a well-deserved Oscar nomination. His character garners both empathy and disdain at varying points. Brendan Fraser as “Pyle” shows exactly why he is making a comeback. (Keep an eye out for The Whale, releasing December 9.) He is as likable as always, and this pays off in particular by the end. Thi Hai Yen Do as “Phuong,” the love interest, is stunning and complex in her debut English-language film.

One fault I noticed was the costuming; everyone appears to be in clothing right off the rack. Otherwise, the on-location filming makes the setting feel palpable and true. The movie can be slow at times, but the storytelling is fantastic. Pyle is shown to be dead within the first few minutes, and yet as the film continues with the events leading up to this, you almost forget this fact and your assumptions of character motives consistently change. There is a dash of mystery, thriller, romance, and history that makes this a very worthwhile watch. It won’t be for everyone, but neither would the first option for this month, Solaris, an artsy Sci-Fi romance that challenges whether we love a person or the version we create of them. I guess now, “It’s no Quiet American,” takes on a new meaning, and I owe my friend an apology.

Also check out: 8 Mile, Far From Heaven, The Santa Clause 2, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, The Emperor’s Club, Solaris (follow @jlucia85 for these reviews and more)

Not long ago, someone asked me to find out if a blue wine from California could be found locally. I searched the internet using the brand name she had given me, and I found it. The wine was made in Italy and sold by a California winery. Continuing my quest, it became apparent that it was unavailable in Virginia.

After ordering a couple of bottles from the winery in California, I shared a bottle with friends. We were all in agreement that it was a sweet, sparkling Italian prosecco that was blue instead of pale

Caroline Wood wrote an article for the British FoodUnfolded magazine entitled, “How Does Color Affect the Way We Eat.” She states, “All of us subconsciously associate certain colors with distinct tastes and flavors.” She went on to say that there was a recent experiment in which a clear blue drink was given to participants from the UK and Taiwan. The Taiwanese thought that the glass would taste of mint, while the UK participants thought it

would taste of raspberry - showing they had picked up different associations from their individual country’s food stores. Wood cites another experiment where social drinkers and wine students were given white wine with an odorless, tasteless red dye which caused them to describe it as red wine.

Ms. Woods says using completely unexpected food colors is a frequent marketing ploy to gain attention and boost sales. These efforts include Burger King Japan’s all-black burgers colored with bamboo charcoal and squid

A Wine of a

Different Color

by Dave Slayton

ink and green tomato ketchup launched by Heinz to promote the first Shrek film. She quotes Professor Spence of Oxford University, saying, “Blue-colored food and drinks are becoming increasingly popular amongst Instagrammers, bloggers, and food marketers. Because very few foods are naturally blue, these unique products stand out on the shelf and capture our attention.”

Perhaps next time I am having a birthday cake with blue icing, I will pair it with a blue, sweet, sparkling Prosecco. Cheers!

yellow. We guessed that blue food coloring was added to the wine.

Fog on All Fronts

by Mack Williams

While recently watching that venerable classic Sherlock Holmes movie, “The Hound of the Baskervilles” (1939), starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce, the fogginess of the studio’s “fog machine(s)” made me recall a sight I had seen back in November of last year.

The day had started out with a foggy mist. Each drop of mist was such a small fraction of a micron that it was almost as imperceptible to the skin as smoky, theatrical fog.

Later that afternoon, I drove along the Dan River, particularly Memorial Drive, in the vicinity of the Danville Water Treatment Plant. There was thickening fog, and despite it being water vapor, a solid impression was made upon my mind! The fog descending from above was increasingly joined by fog rising from the river’s length. With fog all around, I almost felt in danger of being enveloped in a “greyout” (even though I was driving, not flying).

I could see veins of exposed, white quartz in the high bank beside which I was driving. This rocky outcrop had been revealed by Tropical Storm Michael and Hurricane Florence mudslides in 2018. Despite that being several years ago, the fog turned it into a misty dream, in which the veins of white quartz rock seemed to have freshly emerged from the soil again!

Crossing the Robertson Bridge and looking over at the adjacent Schoolfield Reservoir Dam, through the fog, I saw thin streams of white water cascading over the dam’s center. The dam’s brown color

resembled the same brownishred, iron-oxide-stained color of the exposed, dark, rocky bank by which I had just driven. Likewise, the dam’s white-water spillways reminded me of the embedded veins of white quartz.

I then saw a large, white sycamore contrasting with the gray fog in the same manner as the quartz veins had contrasted with the darker rock, and the bright spillway water had contrasted with the darker, iron-stained stones of the dam.

This tree grew out over the water, seemingly more influenced in its growth direction by water (a sort of “aqua-tropism”) than by sun-drawn photo-tropism. The river fog was engulfing the tree, making its trunk seem to rise out of the river instead of the land.

I then thought of the novella, “A River Runs Through It,” along with its later film adaptation.

But as that late afternoon headed towards early evening, the tricks of fog, sight, shadow, and imagination were making it.