Arts and culture
Robin Donovan’s 13-year-old son didn’t get to trick-or-treat last year because of the pandemic. Instead, he and some friends shared a big bag of candy in the family’s El Cerrito backyard. Donovan’s son wasn’t alone. “Normally we got a lot of trick-or-treaters, hundreds in the past. Last year we didn’t have any,” Donovan said. “When I talked to people last year, nobody was planning to send their kids trick-or-treating.” Donovan’s son, 12 at the time, was old enough to understand…
In honor of Indigenous People’s Day, the Richmond Art Center will host “Gathering in the Spirit of Gwarth-ee-lass,” a free event on Sunday featuring spoken word, candid conversations and live music, all in the backdrop of artist Rigo 23’s newest exhibit “Time and Again.” The exhibit’s centerpiece is a 12-foot sculpture created from a self-portrait of Native American political activist Leonard Peltier. Peltier has been in prison for about 45 years, serving two life sentences after his controversial conviction in…
It was a big week for Betty Reid Soskin, who turned 100 years old on Wednesday and was honored that day with the renaming of an El Sobrante middle school for her. Soskin has been an activist in the Bay Area and a park ranger in Richmond for many years and shows no sign of slowing down. She’s familiar to West Contra Costa school children who have taken her tours through Richmond’s National Historical Park, which has sites throughout the…
Live music, food, artists and vendors return to Richmond this weekend, with the 13th annual Spirit & Soul Festival. The annual ticketed event , hosted by the Richmond Main Street Initiative, celebrates the city’s arts and culture scene. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it will be presented as a hybrid this year. The free virtual broadcast will stream from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m., with an in-person VIP Watch Party from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at El Garage, 1428…
Cruz Arroyo owns and operates Tamales Tamazula in Richmond, where his passion for food and tradition drives his business and keeps his customers returning week after week. The 41-year-old tamalero parks his stand at 23rd Street and Lincoln Avenue, where he sells tamales from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m., Wednesday to Sunday. He’s had to move his business to various spots in Richmond in the past eight years and jump a few hurdles to keep it going during a global…
Bryan Goldenberg has been a glassblower for 27 years. He holds weekly classes for students of all experience levels in his new studio, Slow Burn Glass, in Richmond. In August, Richmond Confidential filmed one of Goldenberg’s classes and chatted with students. Some were inspired to take the class after watching the Netflix series “Blown Away,” which is about glass-blowing. Others said they were looking for a communal activity after a year of lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic. For all, the…