Artist examines the subconscious and art
Columbia artist George Sakkal, known for making dynamic collages out of little bits of torn paper, is now concentrating on what he considers the biggest of pictures — how seeing and the subconscious interconnect in the creation of art. Sakkal, 76, said in a recent interview that he has laid aside his paper-on-canvas work to explore through written words the true nature of great art... READ MORE
A philosopher explores the midlife crisis
We’ve probably all been there. That question we ask ourselves when we hit our middle years: Is this all there is? For some of us, the so-called midlife crisis can hit in our 30s, for some not until their 40s or even 50s. No matter how successful we may be, personally and professionally, the realization that there are fewer years ahead of us than behind us, that our waistline may be... READ MORE
Energetic cast enlivens Disney’s Newsies
The ragtag group of orphans and homeless youth who hawked newspapers on street corners in 1899 never could have dreamed how the delivery of news would be transformed 120 years in the future. Nor could they have imagined that their story would be danced across stages throughout the country. But the story told by Newsies has quite literally leapt from a dusty corner of history into an... READ MORE
Reducing opioids’ heavy toll
Ellicott City resident Barbara Allen — who lost a son, a brother and a niece to drug addiction — has become a key player in Howard County’s battle to stem the growing opioid crisis among its citizens, which includes many victims 50 and older. She has been appointed chair of the newly formed Opioid Crisis Community Council, intended to help the county rev up its fight against the... READ MORE
Bringing a lifetime of experience to writing
It’s never too late to become a published poet (or a writer of any genre, for that matter). Just look at Shirley Brewer. The 70-year-old Charles Village resident wrote poetry while she was in high school and college, but then put her writing aside as she worked as a speech therapist for 32 years. “I used poetry with my clients to help them with their pronunciation,” Brewer said. ... READ MORE
Azaleas are your garden’s spring royalty
Bright regal blossoms make azaleas a favorite in the spring garden. Most azalea varieties bloom from mid-April to mid-May in the mid-Atlantic area. While the hardier deciduous azaleas, which lose their leaves in fall, are native, you may be more familiar with evergreen azaleas, originally from Japan. Because azaleas have been hybridized (cross-bred) over many years, there is a wide ... READ MORE
Contemporary Art Institute opens at VCU
The $41-million Institute for Contemporary Art at Virginia Commonwealth University — built entirely with private money and opening April 21 — is the most recent feather in Richmond’s many-feathered cap. Almost five years ago, Forbes magazine listed Virginia’s capital city as one of the top 10 up-and-coming cities in the world for entrepreneurial startups. And last year Virginia... READ MORE
First lady of public television
If you’ve watched television in Baltimore during the past five decades or so, you have undoubtedly watched Rhea Feikin. “I’ve been around a long time!” the native Baltimorean laughed. Often dubbed the “First Lady” of Maryland Public Television (MPT), Feikin is currently familiar to viewers as host of the station’s on-air membership drives; anchor of MPT’s weekly... READ MORE
Up and raring to go at the crack of dawn
It was 8 a.m. on the East Coast. I was poised over my computer keyboard, stuck for an answer to a student’s question. So I picked up the phone and called the guy who would know — a former colleague from ages ago who had become an expert in the appropriate field. He answered on the first ring. “Didn’t wake you, did I?,” I asked. “Are you kidding?,” he replied. ... READ MORE
Allison Janney finally wins her first Oscar
The Academy Awards seemed like a formality when it came to the best supporting actress category this year. Since the world devoured Allison Janney’s brilliantly acidic performance as Tonya Harding’s abusive mother in I, Tonya, she has won nearly every major award she’s been up for — including a BAFTA, a Screen Actors Guild award, a Golden Globe and a Critics’ Choice... READ MORE
