Arts of Point Richmond artists' reception and exhibit today at Kaleidoscope Coffee

   POINT RICHMOND - Arts of Point Richmond is having an artists' reception and exhibit of their work today at Kaleidoscope Coffee, 109 Park Place from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.
     The title of the exhibit is Recent Photography and Works on Paper with featured artists George Tomberlin and Betsy Kellas. 
     AOPR says that "George Tomberlin is a photographer who delights in paying attention to ordinary things that become 'accidentally beautiful, visually puzzling, or emotionally touching.' Many of these photographs in were taken in Point Richmond. 
     "Betsy Kellas explores the intersection of visual and psychological space. She is presenting monotypes from two series, Troubled Waters, and Barriers and Boundaries, and one monotype titled “They are a lot of fun to shoot” in response to the recent horrors at a Florida school."

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Arts of Point Richmond (AOPR) is a volunteer association established to enrich the community by support, appreciation, and exposure for the arts. AOPR provides exhibition opportunities for members and creates events organized by an active coalition of artists. AOPR was established in 2008 and currently has over 80 members. For more information, visit the Arts of Point Richmond website here: AOPR.

BridgeStorage and Artspace to re-open doors soon - pre-launch open house set

   RICHMOND - The BridgeStorage and Artspace is having a pre-launch open house at its 23 Maine Avenue Richmond facility.
     The open house will be Wednesday, Dec. 13 from 4 to 8 p.m.

A work in progress - but almost ready

     There will be guided tours of co-working space, art space (in shared and private studios) gallery and meeting space, Bridge FilmSpace (a new facility for independent filmmakers) and Maker Space.
     There will be food and drink - and live music performed by Brian Lawrence.
     And every hour there will be a mini-film festival provided by Bridge FilmSpace.
     Attendees will also receive information about how to obtain a free month at the new facility.

AOPR Holiday Faire in The Point Saturday

   POINT RICHMOND - The annual Arts of Point Richmond Holiday Faire this Saturday will feature paintings, drawings, jewelry, photographs, textiles and books, all for the public to peruse - and purchase.
     The creators of the various pieces of art and books will be on site to chat also.
     And there will be refreshments.
     The event begins at 11 a.m. at the Point Richmond Community Center, 139 Washington Avenue in Point Richmond.
    The faire will close at about 4:30 p.m.

AOPR Holiday Faire set for December 9

   POINT RICHMOND - The annual Arts of Point Richmond Holiday Faire will be Saturday, Dec. 9 from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the Point Richmond Community Center, 139 Washington Ave.
     The public is invited to come to meet AOPR artists and authors.
     There will be artwork and books on sale as well as tasty homemade cookies for anyone who stops by.
     For more information about Arts of Point Richmond, follow this link: AOPR

Book releases celebrated Saturday at Saluté

   RICHMOND - Richmond residents Lily Iona MacKenzie and Michael Zimmerman celebrated publication their recently released books Saturday at Saluté Restaurant in Marina Bay from 4 to 6 p.m.
     As part of the festivities, there were appetizers and drinks.
   
      Lily's book - Curva Peligrosa - is described by author Steve Bauer as "a wildly inventive and amusing novel."
     Michael's book, Tyrants of the Heart is a look into the brilliant and often impenetrable literary world of James Joyce. Michael draws upon his years of experience as an English professor and psychoanalyst to uncover conflicts in Joyce's characters.
   
     Both books are also available through Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble.

'A Night in Venice' Friday in The Point

   POINT RICHMOND - Kaleidoscope Cafe in Point Richmond Friday night will feature music, a talk by local author and a performance by an acting troupe directed by Masquers Playhouse all beginning at 7 p.m.

     Beer, wine, coffee, tea and other refreshments are available to purchase from Kaleidoscope.
     A Night in Venice is a celebration of the publication of the novel, Venetian Blood by Point Richmond author Christine Evelyn Volker.
    The evening will begin with music played by the Town Quartet, followed by a presentation by Volker - including a short reading.
     Following the reading, actors will perform an dramatic scene of an interogation featured early the novel.

Christine Volker

     Volker's novel will be on sale at Kaleidoscope during the evening. She will also be available to sign copies of her book.
     Venetian Blood has been getting excellent reviews since hitting the market this summer - including this one published in July in The Point - Arts: Mystery & Intrigue Flow in 'Venetian Blood'

'Hillbilly Elegy' filled with cultural insight

   POINT RICHMOND - The tales recounted in J.D. Vance's memoir, Hillbilly Elegy (published in 2016)  can be as disturbing as they sometimes seem farfetched - the stuff of fiction or some badly written television program.
     But Vance's anecdote-packed book is true - at least to the best of his memory. And his memory is good, frequently backed up with research included in this enlightening portrait of growing up in Kentucky and Ohio.
     The full title of the book is Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a family and Culture in Crisis. It sounds almost like an academic study. But Vance's recounting of his growing up is not the stuff of academic tomes. It's real life, gritty, and at times almost too painful to read.

J.D. Vance

    "Teachers didn't tell us that we were too stupid or poor to make it. Nevertheless, it was all around us, like the air we breathed."
     Vance takes the reader on a cultural odyssey through Kentucky and Ohio while talking about growing up. He grew up in an big, extended family which by most measures would be labelled dysfunctional. Yet it worked, sort of, and Vance eventually did a stint in U.S. Marines, and graduated from Ohio State and Yale Law school.
   
     Vance explains in detail how for the hillbilly-Appalachian communities, everything was family.
     Everything.
     Hillbilly Elegy provided some special insights for me, growing up in the Southern Tier of New York State.
     That region, shown in the map below had - and probably still has - a sprinkling of people who resemble folks with the cultural norms and attitudes Vance talks about at length.
     Hillbilly Elegy is Vance's first book, but likely not his last.
     It's on the new book shelf at the Point Richmond library.

(Review by Michael J. Fitzgerald)