Portraits shine in Alleghany Camera Club exhibit
1. 41-vehicle wreck ties up traffic Sunday on I-81 in Rockbridge County
2. Virginia Tech football roster has holes on picture day
3. Medicare penalties hit hospitals in Roanoke, New River Valleys
4. Microfestivus beer event gets downtown Roanoke hopping
5. McFarling: 2 little numbers are a big hurdle for Virginia Tech football
6. DAN CASEY: Copter cost still stirring up dust
7. Arrest made in case of missing Nelson County teen
8. Roanoke farmers markets making local foods more accessible
9. Virginia attorney general's office grows under Ken Cuccinelli
10. Man's drowning is 5th in Lynchburg area
Sunday, July 7, 2013
The Alleghany Camera Club is sharing the fruits of an unusual project, now in its third year.
“True Grit-3: Character in the Alleghany Highlands” opened last week at the Clifton Forge School of the Arts (518 Church St., Clifton Forge) and will remain on display through the end of August.
For the “True Grit” shows, members of the club go out into their community and conduct interviews. The subjects can be friends or complete strangers, people from “all walks of life,” said Chuck Almarez, the club president.
The photographers create a biography to go along with the photo to try to capture the essence of the person’s personality in word and image. They’re allowed to enhance the picture with software to further emphasize the mood they want.
Sometimes, though, the simple approach is best.
Almarez referred to a picture by Covington photographer Donna Rhodes of Vietnam War veteran Doody Morris, a former mayor of Clifton Forge who owned a convenience store that served as an informal meeting place for its regulars. Rhodes snapped a shot of Morris wearing a Veterans of Foreign Wars hat, putting a flag on a veteran’s grave.
“It’s absolutely perfect,” Almarez said. “It captured the guy in character doing something he really cares about.”
This newest show contains about 15 photos, fewer than usual because the small club hasn’t been able to have regular meetings as a result of this year’s tumultuous weather. Meetings usually take place at 7 p.m. on the last Friday of each month.
For more information on the club, call Almarez at 540-862-1718. For more information on the Clifton Forge School of the Arts, call 540-862-7275.
Carillon bells
At 8 p.m. Sunday, Greene Memorial United Methodist Church organist Richard Cummins will perform “A Midsummer Night’s Carillon Concert.”
The word carillon refers to an instrument made up of a set of stationary bells, each capable of producing a single note. Nowadays carillon compositions usually get played on a keyboard.
Cummins will play folk songs and Broadway tunes on the John Wynn Myers Memorial Carillon, named in memory of a previous pastor of the church.
Attendees should bring lawn chairs to the outdoor concert. Kids and well-behaved dogs also are invited. The event is free and even includes free ice cream.
For more information, call 344-6225.
On the Arts blog
After two years, dancers with the Southwest Virginia Ballet in Salem have returned to the New Prague Dance Festival in the Czech Republic to compete. Last time they went, they won a few awards.
Artistic director Pedro Szalay and his students have been sending me photos and updates on their progress. Read about their adventures on the Arts & Extras blog at blogs.roanoke.com/arts.
1. 41-vehicle wreck ties up traffic Sunday on I-81 in Rockbridge County
2. Virginia Tech football roster has holes on picture day
3. Medicare penalties hit hospitals in Roanoke, New River Valleys
4. Microfestivus beer event gets downtown Roanoke hopping
5. McFarling: 2 little numbers are a big hurdle for Virginia Tech football
6. DAN CASEY: Copter cost still stirring up dust
7. Arrest made in case of missing Nelson County teen
8. Roanoke farmers markets making local foods more accessible
9. Virginia attorney general's office grows under Ken Cuccinelli
10. Man's drowning is 5th in Lynchburg area
THE ROANOKE TIMES
