Pink House Gallery

Housed in the oldest standing tavern building in the South, (circa 1694), the Pink House Gallery features the art work of Alice Stewart Grimsley, Nancy W. Rushing, and Audrey D Price. We offer landscapes, florals, wildlife, and Charleston scenes in both originals and reproductions. It is also the exclusive Charleston venue for the traditional plantation paintings of the late Ravenel Gaillard, the antique photographs of well known turn of the century Charleston photographer George W. Johnson,  and the paintings and prints of Charleston and Florida artist Anne Clanton Thomas.  The prints and photography of former partner, Bruce W. Krucke, and prints of the late Alexandria H. Bennington are still available at the gallery.

The New York Perspective Part 2

For the second installment of the New York Perspective I have conjured up an old fashioned rant, so there is no need to use video cameras. By the time you are finished reading this article you will thank me for leaving it in its protective case.
We care so much about the reputation of Tiger Woods, sifting through useless details of why he crashed his expensive car into a fire hydrant and some foliage. This is what happens when you text and drive. More specifically, this is what happens when you text one of your mistresses at three in the morning, with your wife chasing your car, wielding your nine-iron and trying to take your head off because she caught you cheating. Tiger’s last words were almost typed in Arial Black font, not a very manly way to end it.

Now it seems like every scantily clad cocktail waitress in the country is coming out to expose Tigers stripes, in more ways than one. So far, there have been ten women over the last eight days that have proof that they slept with Tiger. How many will this add up to in the end? If Tiger keeps up this kind of pace, then he will sleep with almost a thousand women in a two year span. He already has every golf record does he really need to break Wilt Chamberlains too?
Our hearts skip a beat when we find out that a well dressed couple James-Bonds-it past the secret service and into the White House; getting close enough to president Obama to share Martini’s. They did not even have to use their laser-shooting watches to knock out security, they were simply ushered in! We get shaken and stirred due to these insignificant events that really have no bearing on anything. I assumed that Tiger’s plight and the White House crashing couple story were unrelated events, until I did the math and calculated that Tiger must have slept with at least three women present at that party.
Then, we demand action. Can’t anyone make Tiger tell us what really happened? Shouldn’t those horrible people be incarcerated for crashing President Obama’s first steak – I mean state dinner? Can’t they beef up security in the white house so this never happens again? Can’t we have the secret service interrogate tiger until he caves; giving us all the juicy details of that fateful night and just how many women he is sleeping with on the side? We must catch Tiger by the toe, please oh please we have to know.

The thing that gets under my olive colored skin, is the fact that there are plenty of other things to concern ourselves with that have far more of a direct impact on our lives. The couple that snuck into the white house claim they were invited and had every right to attend the extravagant shin-dig – then changed their story. So, should this even be news? Who cares how many women Tiger has been with besides his wife or the text messages that prove it? The bottom line is that none of this has an immediate effect on our lives. Also, let’s not be naive, multiple infidelities among the rich and famous are as common as a double or triple bogey on America’s fairways. With my rant in full swing, let me give you something that we can concern ourselves with that has a direct effect on our lives here in the low country.

South Carolina is ranked as one of the worst states when it comes to dropout rates in the nation. We can’t even graduate 50% of minority students in our schools; that is how bad it is. Is anyone up in arms that there are more residence in South Carolina that have dropped out of school then there are with four year degrees? No, because Tiger has been caught out of his cage and someone shook the presidents that did not use purell first.

Here is another one for you: 30% of 8th graders are testing below state standards in both math and reading in our school district. The scariest part of this statistic is that it is UP from 25% in 2005. Will it be 50 percent in 2015? The Post and Courier reported last year that only half of the eight graders entering 9nth grade in N. Charleston High School could read at a 4th grade level. This type of story hardly gets local attention and look at how much we care about the insignificant affairs of famous people who have as much bearing on our lives as starving children in Africa – which should be a bigger headline and cause us to shed more tears than we shed for Elin Woods.

Someone is saying to themselves as they read this article: “I live a pretty good life, how can the drop-out rate of minority students possibly affect me?” I’m very glad you asked; let me tell you how.
Brian J. Gottlob is the Principal of PolEcon Research and develops econometric models. His report, “The High Cost of South Carolina’s Low Graduation Rate” is a sobering read for anyone who thinks he does not have to worry about dropout rates in our county. I encourage all to give this article, which is research based, a good read (http://www.friedmanfoundation.org/downloadFile.do?id=250).

Here are just two highlights from the article:
1) “Each new class of dropouts produces public costs of $98 million every year for the rest of their lives, or about $3,193 per dropout”. Who pays these severe fees? We do as taxpayers.
2) “Over an expected lifetime of 50 years, one year’s class of dropouts will cost South Carolina $4.9 billion.” Don’t you think this enormous figure has something to do with why there is not enough money to supply public schools with all they need?

The reason in which the problem is such a threat is that the state loses money in taxes that drop-outs cannot pay. The state also loses money due to incarceration fees because those who drop out are twice as likely to go to prison then those who graduate. Also, the state loses massive amounts of cash due to the Medicaid costs of drop outs, who cannot afford health care and end up being more likely to get sick.
Gottlob Argues for school choice, which simply means that students should have the option of attending either public or private school with public funds. The competitive nature of private schools – which only the upper echelons of society in this state can afford – can push a child towards the graduation finish line. Private schools have amazing graduation rates; therefore Gottlob argues that more children should be given an opportunity to attend them so that the dropout rate will decrease.
So here we have a real problem that effects us here in the Low Country: the dropout rates. Perhaps Gottlob and his researchers have come up with some sort of solution, but who knows if it would actually work like the research projects it to. The main point is that this subject is far more relevant than pondering over Tiger’s obsession with Caucasian woman or what harmless poser was allowed to shake the honorable hand of the president.

I Sit

I sit across from you and hear your words

Listening as you share experiences and dreams,

And I think back to a time with wildflowers in hand

You look up and say “I love you”.

 

I sit across from you and watch your smile 

As it slowly turns into a mischievous grin, 

I think of the joy and laughter you have given me

And now, pride and comfort in knowing the person you have become.

 

I sit across from you and my eyes fill 

As I think of the boy who is now a man,

Loving, caring and spiritual to all in the world

My bright light on dark days, my Sunshine, my Son.

 

 

Peter O’Neill Gallery

A professional art career came late to Peter O’Neill but in truth, it was close to not coming at all.  After two failed marriages and a botched suicide attempt, Peter O’Neill felt he had nothing and found himself in a New Jersey hospital hopelessly despondent and in treatment for acute depression.  Then something clicked within him.  He looked around at the others with truly severe mental impairments and realized that he did not belong where he was.  He checked out of the hospital and literally, checked himself back into life. Peter’s childhood dreams had been to become an artist; but he received little in the way of positive re-enforcement.  “I liked to draw when I was a kid, but art classes weren’t even offered and when I’d sketch in my notebook, they’d tell me, ‘stop drawing, and pay attention!’”  With no positive influence, he took a job in real estate with the lure of riches and prestige.  Still, Peter could never shake the feeling that art was his true calling in life.  When his career crumbled along with his second marriage, he found himself at a crossroads.  So, in April 1996, with only his inner resolve, a heart filled with creative need and relatively empty pockets, he boarded a Greyhound bus for Florida determined to become an artist.  “I think I was too numb to know the risk I was taking,” he said.  It was just something I did.”  At age 36, he arrived in St. Augustine with under $200 in his pocket and nowhere to stay.  For a year, he eked out a living as a street artist, doing pencil portraits.  His first commission earned him $15.00 – not a lot of money, but proof positive that people would pay for his work. Peter worked as a street artist for about a year and then moved into a small gallery on Treasury Street where he began exploring other mediums.  He, like the Old Masters, finally settled on oils and continues to use them today.  Mr. O’Neill is entirely self-taught, a fact of which he is quite proud.  “I haven’t had to unlearn the garbage poured on students in art school,” he said.  “I never had to shed the concept and design theories.  I could immediately make art that connected with people and their emotions.”  For him, art is a communication between the viewer and the creator.  “It should never be judged.  There is no good or bad art, only the message of the piece.  I am living proof of that.  I paint from life experience.  My work can be sad, sentimental, happy, rude, or whatever – but it must convey feeling at the core level.” 

Nowhere is that more true that in his work “Two Minutes of Silence,” painted in response to the September 11th attacks in Manhattan.  The painting depicts a kneeling New York City fireman, his head resting on his shovel, against the backdrop of the collapsed World Trade Center.  So powerful was the imagery of that piece that it was chosen by the FDNY and the office of the mayor to grace the cover of the program for a memorial service held at Madison Square Garden.  Mr. O’Neill sold the piece for $20,000 and donated the proceeds to the relief fund.  In addition, he has donated over 17,000 prints free to Fire, Police, and Emergency Service Stations across the country and plans to continue until the piece is in every station in America.  “This is my way of saying thank you to these brave men and women who risk their lives every day.”  A limited number of prints have also been donated to raise an additional $100,000.

CBS has referenced Mr. O’Neill as one of the fastest rising talents in America and joins FOX, NBC, newspapers, and magazines in touting his success across the nation.  Several national galleries have purchased directly from the O’Neill Gallery to share his talents with their clientele.  In March of 2003, Mr. O’Neill was commissioned by Independence Bank in Owensboro, KY to create a series of paintings based on the Revolutionary War titled “From When We Came.”  The works depict the struggles of our forefathers.  Several private collectors have also commissioned special pieces from Mr. O’Neill and are proud to own his work as part of their collection   

Today, Mr. O’Neill owns one of the largest artist owned galleries in both St. Augustine and Charleston, South Carolina. In May of 2009, Peter was asked to join Disney Cruise Line and travel as their guest artist on board. His work is still on display in their permanent collection aboard the Disney Magic and the Disney Wonder. In June of 2009, Peter’s work was chosen to grace the set of the nationally syndicated television show Army Wives, filmed in Charleston SC. His iconic image “Two Minutes of Silence” was hung in the general’s office on the set. September 2009 marked the grand opening of O’Neill Studios, INC, a gallery owned and operated by Peter’s previous business partner, Martha Polito. O’Neill Studios can be found on Royal St. in New Orleans.

Charleston Comedy Festival!

Some of the country’s hottest improv, sketch, and stand-up artists will descend upon Charleston, S.C., for what has become the annual event you don’t want to miss! Produced by Theatre 99 (Charleston’s Home for Improv Comedy) and the Charleston City Paper (the premier source for news, arts, and entertainment), 38 shows will be performed in nine different venues in just four nights.

Several returning artists are slated to perform in the Charleston Comedy Festival 2010, including Cook County Social Club, an improv and sketch comedy group from Chicago that played to packed houses in 2009. Cook County will team up with The Dangerous Strangers of Cabaret Kiki, the band behind Charleston’s favorite burlesque show who will reunite for a one-night only performance.

Another festival favorite is Elephant Larry, an uproarious NYC sketch comedy troupe who debuted in Charleston at the Comedy Fest in 2006 and returned for that year’s Piccolo Fringe Festival in May. The Uprights Citizen Brigade Touring Company makes its semi-annual pilgrimage to town with Pangea 3000, a four-man sketch comedy group comprised of writers and contributors to The Onion, and Sidecar, a group that will perform a compilation of their greatest sketches.

Plenty of stand-up comedians from around the country will be taking the mic. Kenny Zimlinghaus, a former 96Wave deejay who is now on Cosmo Radio on XM and Sirius, will return to perform and emcee the annual Charleston Stand-Up Competition.

Venues for the festival this year include Theatre 99 (280 Meeting St. above the Bicycle Shoppe), The American Theater and Stars Bar (446 King St.), Charleston Ballet Theatre (477 King St.), Trio Club (139 Calhoun St.), the Music Farm (32 Ann St.), and Eye Level Art 103 Gallery (103 Spring St.). The festival has expanded to the suburbs with two new venues: the Charleston Pour House on James Island (1977 Maybank Hwy.) and Centre Pointe Bar & Grill in North Charleston (4950 Centre Pointe Dr.) This festival is the South’s premier comedy event and the only event of its kind in the Carolinas.Ticket prices range from $5 – $20 and are available at here or by calling Etix at 1-800-514-ETIX.*

Tickets will be sold at Theatre 99 (280 Meeting St.) the week of the festival from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m (cash or check only). If the show is not sold out, tickets will be available at the door starting one hour before showtime.

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The Charleston Comedy Festival is almost here and we have a new website! 
www.charlestoncomedyfestival.com

Charleston Comedy Festival tickets make GREAT Christmas presents!

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CHARLESTON STAND UP COMPETITION PRELIM ROUNDS

The Charleston Comedy Festival expanded its stand-up competition this year, holding four preliminary rounds in the lead up to the final competition on Wed. Jan. 20. Two rounds have been completed with four finalists from each show moving on to the finals.

The final two preliminary rounds are already full of performers, but it’s not too late to make plans to attend:

Friday, January 15 at 10:00 p.m.
Saturday, January 16 at 10:00 p.m.

Theatre 99 (280 Meeting Street)
Tickets are $5

Call 843-853-6687 for reservations. They go fast!

See the Downtown Charleston Christmas Parade in Music Video format!

Click above to watch the 2009 City of Charleston Christmas Parade. Shot and edited by Ryan Ricker.

The Beat

Lying here I hear the beat
Deafening at times, 
I wonder how much louder?
How much faster?

Lying here I hear the beat
Barely audible now,
I wonder at times
When will silence come?

Lying here I hear the beat
The instrument breaking,
Do you hear it as well?
No wonder the symbol is for love.

For when loves dies
The beat is quieted,
The heart is broken
And the days and nights lonely.

palmetto tree and moon pendant

Chicora Antiques Inc

Chicora Antiques, Inc. Fine English and American Decorative Arts of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries. Apprasial Services Available. By Appointment Only.

Chicora Antiques, Inc., has been proudly serving the needs of connoisseurs of finer 18th and 19th century American and English antiques and decorative arts since 1990. After twenty-years, we have relocated from Charleston to Columbia, South Carolina, and are open by appointment only. While we presently do not have a retail store, we remain active in serving our existing clientele with items in our current inventory, as well as objects that are brought to our attention throughout the United States and the United Kingdom. Appraisal services are available as well. Chicora Antiques encourages all your inquiries. Simply e-mail us at chicoraclm@msn.com or call 1-803-834-3787.

Our emphasis has always been on objects of true rarity, superior quality, originality, form, and condition. All of our merchandise is accompanied with a comprehensive written guarantee of authenticity and condition. It has been a pleasure establishing long and lasting relationships with our clients and hope to count on you to become familiar with our merchandise and services.

NEW ARRIVALS

 

A fine George III mahogany and gilt looking glass, circa 1760, from a lower Church Street, Charleston, South Carolina estate

A particularly attractive Louis XV parquetry bureau plat with ormolu mounts and fine leather inset top

An English porcelain dinner service, attributed to the Rockingham factory, vibrantly decorated with flowers and a cobalt blue reserve, circa 1830

An exceptional fine pair of George III Sheffield wine coolers, English, coat of arms engraving, and the original liners, circa 1810

A masterful American Federal Pier mirror with eglomise inset, original gilding, and glass, probably New York City, or possibly Boston, circa 1800. A rare offering!

A set of four English Regency ebonized armchairs with caned seats, circa 1805

An English Hepplewhite concave corner cupboard with exceptional inlays, circa 1780

A collection of American and English glassware, circa 1790-1840

•A very rare late eighteenth century American mahogany triple pedestal dining table, in untouched original condition, including the surface, probably Philadelphia in origin

 

Our clients’ utmost satisfaction is our number one goal. We endeavor to provide them with a great selection of antiques of superior form, To that same end, we proudly warrant the authenticity and condition of everything we offer and provide this guarantee in writing as described in our descriptions and comprehensive invoices. We take great pride in offering this assurance of guarantee to collectors of fine antiques and decorative arts. Our stock is carefully reviewed for quality and condition, conserved as needed by qualified artisans, then fully documented and described in our shop texts.

Our web page enables collectors to conveniently profile a sample of our offerings, but it by no means encompasses our entire stock. Many of our better pieces are placed in private and public collections before they reach our shop floor. Therefore, we strongly advise interested parties to make their needs and wishes known to us. We keep extensive client files of collectors, and are more than happy to notify them through the mail or internet when a piece reaches our inventory that may hold interest to them. The best way to help us in assisting you is simple: contact us with your needs or suggestions and we will be happy to notify you through the mail or internet at no cost should something pertinent to your wants present itself.

Our sources for finer Americana are limited, but Chicora Antiques, Inc. is cognizant of the fact that items do surface at auction, estate sales, and privately throughout the country. Our experience allows us access to many of these sources that may not be available to the general public. Likewise, we strongly advise against the beginner considering these sources without the assistance and guarantee of a professional. We are, therefore, pleased to offer an inspection and authentication service for any piece that presents itself at any of these venues. At the client’s request, we will personally examine, and authenticate in writing, any object that presents itself. These items come with the same absolute guarantee that accompanies our stock. The commission rate for such services varies, but generally averages around 10% of the purchase price. Please contact us for further information.

We are happy to allow any item in our inventory out on approval for those who are seriously interested. Approvals are for 24 hours only. We do ask that any item taken on approval be accompanied by a check for the full amount, including tax, of the sale. We are happy to arrange for the delivery of such items for a small fee to cover our costs. Please contact us for further information.

Assembling a fine collection takes time. Therefore, we do offer extended payments at no extra charge for certain items. The only provision we require is that the piece remain on our premises until payment in full has been made.

Because we have great confidence in our stock, we own our entire inventory. Therefore, we are happy to issue shop credit for any item that was previously sold by Chicora Antiques, Inc. It is a pleasure to re-handle our own merchandise. Because of the generous nature of this policy, exchanges are not subject to negotiation.

* The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
* The Charleston Museum
* The Metropolitan Museum of Art, American Wing
* The Greenville County Museum of Art
* The High Museum, Atlanta Georgia
* The Historic Charleston Foundation
* The Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts
* The Winterthur Museum

Souvenir to open at the Village Playhouse

The Village Playhouse and Repertory Company continues the 2010 season with a hilarious, laugh out loud funny, comedy with music-just in time to kick off the New Year!
Long before there was the infamous “American Idol” contestant William Hung, who made millions singing the off-key Ricky Martin hit “She Bangs,” Florence Foster Jenkins dominated the music scene with her off-pitch singing that drew crowds to the Ritz Ballroom and Carnegie Hall. The high-brow, wealthy socialite who was the hottest ticket in Manhattan in the 1930 and 40s, is the subject of the comedy, Souvenir: A Fantasia on the Life of Florence Foster Jenkins, opening at the Village Playhouse January 8th through January 30th, 2010.

Souvenir is a heartfelt, wickedly funny look at the limits of self-perception and the unpredictable nature of friendship. It is the story of an eccentric New York socialite and tone-deaf diva who thought she was a great soprano. Unfortunately her great love of music was not matched by her own abilities. Her witty, wry accompanist chronicles Florence’s unlikely rise to cult status, which culminated in an infamous sold-out Carnegie Hall performance in October 1944. “We are excited to be presenting Souvenir for the first time in the region, says Keely Enright, Village Rep producing artistic director, “This wonderful, hilarious and poignant story is a real tribute to friendship and individuality.”
To many under 60, Florence Foster Jenkins is virtually unknown. The real-life Florence Foster Jenkins was born in 1868 to a wealthy family that resided in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. As a child, Jenkins learned to play the piano and begged her father to pay for music lessons. She was “discouraged” from singing by her family. When Jenkins met pianist Cosme McMoon, the two began a working relationship that would span more than a dozen years until her death in 1944. Her musical career took off when her private charity galas at the Ritz Carlton ballroom started drawing large crowds, turning her into a cult sensation. Despite her complete tone-deafness, the singer drew hundreds to her recitals. Audience members would routinely stuff their mouths with handkerchiefs to drown their laughter. When Jenkins would look out into the audience, she would misinterpret the tears as tears of admiration. She even gained the respect of such personalities as Cole Porter and Talluhah Bankhead.

Souvenir began its life off-Broadway in 2004. It later opened on Broadway on Nov. 10, 2005 at New York’s Lyceum Theatre, where it ran through Jan. 2006 with Judy Kaye and Donald Corren originating the roles of Florence Foster Jenkins and Cosme McMoon.
The Village Repertory Company production, directed by Keely Enright features Susie Hallatt as Florence and Randy Risher as Cosme in this two person comedy with music. Opening January 8th 2010, Souvenir will play for four weekends through January 30th.
Tickets are $25 for Adults. $23. for Seniors $20 for Students with $12.00 Student Rush at the door. Tickets can be purchased online at www.villageplayhouse.com or by calling 856-1579.

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