January

Made in Fredericksburg: WM Mason II Violin Shop

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Front Porch Magazine
January 2015 (pg. 28)

Amati, Guarneri, Stradivarius, oh my!  Bill and Elaine Mason run Wm Mason II, a full service violin shop specializing in lessons, bow rehairing, repair work, and now, violin design and craftsmanship.  Together with six interns, the Masons hope to put Fredericksburg on the map as a premier location for affordable, handcrafted violins, violas, and cellos.   

No novice luthier, Bill Mason spent four years in Pennsylvania under the tutelage of master makers Ed Campbell and Nelson Steffy, followed by another year with master maker Oded Kishony.  Mason is on the board of the Southern Violin Association and is on the new professional program committee with the Violin Society of America. While area music teachers and musicians may know of the Masons’ shop, many locals are unaware of the evolution it has undergone since opening seven years ago.  Elaine Mason describes the shop’s progress, “We started off with repair work, and then we added the rental program.  Two of our interns approached us about making instruments, and that’s what led us to developing our own line of violins that we make here in the shop.”  Bill Mason continues, “We have started The Violin Making Studio of Virginia where we’ve put together a program that allows interns to spend three years making five instruments.” 

Photos by A.E. Bayne

The Grace Oughton Cancer Foundation’s Legacy of Hope

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Front Porch Magazine
January 2015 (pg. 31)

It is often in our darkest hour that we experience true selflessness from those around us.  So it was for the Oughton family between 2005 and 2007, when their youngest, Grace, was diagnosed with Neuroblastoma, a rare cancer that most often strikes children under five years of age.  It was during these two years, amidst leaving jobs and moving closer to specialty centers in Boston and New York, that the Oughtons experienced an outpouring of kindness from Alec’s coworkers in Henrico County, the likes of which they had never expected.  This culminated in the establishment of The Grace Oughton Cancer Foundation.  

Grace Oughton Cancer Foundation Mobile Lab - Photo provided by Alec Oughton

 

Andi Gabor: The Art of Playing Skillfully

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Front Porch Magazine
January 2014 (pg. 8)

The first thing Andi Gabor does when her students bolt toward her classroom door is ask for the password; then she turns them around and reminds them to make eye contact with their families as they say goodbye for the morning.  The energy may be ramped in Gabor’s junior kindergarten class at the Ron Rosner YMCA in Spotsylvania, but respect remains front and center while she is working with Spotsy’s youngest pupils.  

David Lovegrove: Exposed

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Front Porch Fredericksburg
January 2013 (pg 19)

David Lovegrove has something to show us. As an abstract artist, Lovegrove embraces the abandoned, derelict remains of the world and reconstructs them into symbolically meaningful gestures. He revives our perspective by exposing us to disregarded structures and reveals the potential in the everyday objects we so easily discard.

Tattoo: The Art of Impermanence

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Front Porch Magazine
January 2012 (pg. 27)

An artist’s work traditionally reflects their era with an attention to thematic details that allows future generations to connect with their pieces. Artists using conventional materials, such as paper and canvass, have the benefit of knowing their work will last if maintained under the right conditions. Yet tattoo artists embrace life’s organic transience, understanding that living art is as fragile as the canvass upon which it is displayed.

Jack Brown's Tattoo Revival

Kelley Drake working, Tattoo by Kelly Drake, Kenny Brown working, Tattoo by Kenny Brown