VISIONS

Photos courtesy of Jeff Fasano Crossovers between musical styles can capture the essence of seemingly disparate worlds and create something new entirely. There’s a vibrant synergy where infectious pop hooks meet the power of rock ‘n’ roll electric guitars, or where the rhythmic beats of hip-hop combine with the narrative storytelling of country music. Other […]

Photos courtesy of Shelem  In 2018, musician Isaac “Shelem” Fadiga would finish up a Friday at his day job and head to the streets of Charleston, WV, to perform his songs on the sidewalk, hoping that those headed to the city’s nearby free summer concert series would hear something they liked. He had just graduated […]

Photography by Star Shoults Huntington, West Virginia, singer-songwriter Alan “Corduroy” Brown knows what people think of Appalachia.“ You can look anywhere and say, ‘This place is bad,’” he said. But he knows there’s more to a place than unsavory news specials and documentaries will have you believe. “Growing up in Appalachia has its quirks as […]

In the southern West Virginia town of Beckley, the state’s only traveling dance company flourishes with a mission to enrich the lives of many through professional dance and educational opportunities across the region. The West Virginia Dance Company (WVDC), founded in 1977 as the Appalachian Dance and Music Ensemble, produces touring programs each year that […]

From printmaking to sculpture to filmmaking, Pittsburgh-based artist Derek Reese connects with his Appalachian heritage to create “anti-art” about mining in the region and abroad. Derek and I met up in his studio, a basement of an old warehouse in a Pittsburgh neighborhood. We planned to talk there until we realized he only had one […]

The first stone is cast when a child expresses artistic aspirations and is met with: “Yes, but what will you do to make money?”  Although these norms shift with each concurrent generation, for many of us, the idea of being a career artist has been synonymous with risk and a desperate hope, bordering on delusion. […]