Artist Will Sanchez grew up in the La Villa Hispana neighborhood. But it wasn’t until he was sentenced to 18 months in prison in 2003 for trying to rob a convenience store at 5404 Storer Ave. that he discovered his love and talent for art—and re-embraced his childhood community. In 2018, he opened La Cosecha Gallery in the exact same location he tried to rob 15 years earlier.
These days, every day is a party for Catherine Blubaugh. After all, the owner of the new Oh Pink! Party Shop lives and breathes party supplies while she puts the final touches on her Ohio City storefront to gear up for its June 15th grand opening. But make no mistake—this is not your average strip-mall party shop.
The Cudell and Edgewater neighborhoods—rich in both working-class, industrial history to the south and waterfront estates of the wealthy to the north—are coming together to celebrate all the modern-day area has to offer with Cudell Improvement, Inc.'s first Edgewater Street Fest on Sunday, June 30.
A decade after Ohio City leaders began trying to capitalize on the success of West 25th St. by luring new businesses to Lorain Avenue, local entrepreneurs are moving to this funky west side main street to take advantage of affordable rents and a newly emerging restaurant, retail, and nightlife scene.
It’s 20 minutes before showtime, in a small banquet room at the Julia de Burgos Cultural Center, and Yasin Cuevas is glowingly ecstatic. For one, her first-ever Miss Latina Image fashion show—expanded from “Miss Puerto Rican Image” of years past—has attracted a packed house, more than any other program in the past few years. It’s also a signal of much more: a newer, more diverse Clark-Fulton community, one more gung-ho on the self-education of its youth, as La Villa Hispana grows gradually into the fore.
You’ve probably seen the mark of Graffiti HeArt all around Cleveland, whether you realized it or not. The nonprofit coordinates graffiti-style murals in the city’s private and public spaces, like the vibrant piece on the Stockyard Meats building in Detroit Shoreway and the “Welcome to Cleveland” painting that greets visitors to Ohio City. But with the opening of the Graffiti HeArt Gallery on May 31, the organization will welcome guests and artists to a permanent homebase.
Proposed cuts in the Ohio House budget means the curtain might fall on Cleveland’s thriving film scene. The Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit, which gives filmmakers an incentive to bring movie production to Ohio, is on the chopping block to make space in the budget for income tax cuts. But Senate Bill 37 is also in the works, with a goal of raising the tax credit from $40 million to $100 million to pave the way for more growth in the local film industry. It’s a pivotal moment that has the Greater Cleveland Film Commission on edge.
In many homes, Mother's Day means smiling children, fresh flowers, and homemade breakfast-in-bed. But for families facing loss, their mom might be a lifetime away. Yoga to Remember offers a remembrance event on Thursday, May 9, at St. John’s Episcopal Church to honor the memory of mothers—or any loved one—who is missed.
As a member of the South Dakota-based Cheyenne River Sioux tribe, lifelong Clevelander, and chairperson of the Lake Erie Native American Council (LENAC), Marlys Rambeau is accustomed to area organizations approaching her when they need a Native American to play a role in a theatrical production, but she says people usually just want someone who can play a stereotypical part. They’re not always interested in depicting the true Native American cultural story.
Mention Cleveland sports and the Browns, Cavs, or Indians probably spring to mind. But, if the weeks ahead are any indication, soccer might be ready to join that list. Everywhere you look, the beautiful game is taking off in Northeast Ohio.
Cleveland’s feminist chorus, Windsong, is celebrating an anniversary almost as old as modern-day feminism itself. This little-known cultural gem began 40 years ago with just a few members and has grown into a thriving arts mainstay since becoming official in 2002.
I’ll admit it: I’ve never cracked open a Harry Potter book, but I’m definitely a huge fan of the old-school, rabbit-and-hat variety of magic. So when our writer Ken Schneck invited me to test out the new glass wand-making class at Larchmere Fire Works with him, I was in faster than you could say, “Presto!” (After all, we can all use a little more magic in our lives.)
Today 78th Street Studios is regarded as one of Cleveland’s primary art meccas with more than 60 creative businesses housed in its cavernous 170,000-square-foot complex, but a decade ago, there were less than 15 businesses inside the space. When it opened in April 2009, contemporary art gallery HEDGE Gallery became one of them.
Jen Jones Donatelli and Dana ShugrueThursday, April 11, 2019
When Lakewood resident Katie Tackett started her Muse Room podcast in late 2018, fellow podcaster Katie Dalebout shared some sage wisdom: “Podcasting is the new networking.” This assertion rings true for just about every podcaster—affording the chance to curate a dream lineup of interviewees—and we listeners get to go along for the ride.
Fresh Water's monthly "Free Stamp" feature rounds up the freshest free events in Cleveland. This month's installment includes events from Sustainable Cleveland, Loganberry Books, HEDGE Gallery, and more. Give it a read here!
Running from March 27 through April 7, the 43rd installment of the Cleveland International Film Festival is in full swing. With a theme of “Welcome,” #CIFF43 is spotlighting 211 feature films and 237 short films representing 71 countries—but even with such a diverse cast of characters, there is no shortage of selections with Cleveland connections.