Voice-Tribune Jan 2026 by ameliatheobald

Arm

Breast

Facelift

Liposuction

Neck

Scar

Thigh

Weight-loss

Tummy

Nerve

is month’s cover gives readers a glimpse at the remarkable young women who represent one of Louisville’s most cherished traditions. Featured on the cover are the 2026 Princesses of the Kentucky Derby Festival, photographed by Matt Johnson with production assistant Vanessa Smith on the historic grounds of Locust Grove, a setting as timeless as the legacy they carry forward.

e Princesses wore looks from Mamili Boutique, styled by Cleo Heine. Hairstyling was provided by Mariah Sanchez of J Michaels Spa and Salon, with makeup by the VOICE-TRIBUNE’s favorite independent artist, Matt Goodlett, who returned for his second year collaborating on this project.

CONSIDER THIS YOUR OFFICIAL PREVIEW.

In next month’s Derby issue of VOICE-TRIBUNE, we’ll introduce you to the 2026 royal court, sharing their stories, their passions, and what it means to represent Louisville during its most celebrated season.

THE CROWN IS ONLY THE BEGINNING. STAY TUNED.

Dear Louisville Voices & Readers,

March always brings a different kind of energy. Things start moving again, the creative juices are flowing, people emerge from their winter hibernation and come together.

This issue reflects exactly that. I am incredibly proud to share one of our most ambitious fashion and editorial productions of the past three years, made possible by a team and city that continue to rise to every occasion.

As of February 17, we also found ourselves running into the year of the fire horse through a beautiful stretch of global celebrations, including Chinese New Year, Fat Tuesday (Happy Mardi Gras!), a blessed Ramadan, World Human Spirit Day, Random Acts of Kindness Day, and my personal favorite, International Pancake Day. After experiencing so many cultures over the years, one thing I have learned is simple but true: You can put practically anything in a pancake, and somehow it always brings people together. In many ways, that spirit of togetherness touches this entire issue.

Of course, behind every strong finish is usually a story of perseverance.

This production cycle presented more than a few unexpected hurdles. COVID impacted nearly half of our office at one point, creating real challenges for an already full editorial calendar. At the same time, I was presented with a great once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I could not turn down. What none of us planned for was that this moment would coincide with a historic ice and snowstorm that briefly stranded me in New York with one of my best friends, Amanda. (Yes, this included a tattoo parlor… one of the few spots open during the storm.)

In full transparency, this month’s fashion shoots became the first two major photoshoots I have ever missed in person. Letting go of the reins, even temporarily, is never easy for me. But if this month proved anything, the VOICE-TRIBUNE team has a knack for making things happen no matter what—rain, sleet, COVID, even a historic ice storm.

What stood out most was the way our team members and creative partners leaned in and lifted one another up. The collaboration and grace under pressure reaffirmed something I deeply believe. We have built a team capable of making just about any miracle in this city come to life.

And the results speak for themselves.

In this issue, strength and craft appear in many forms. At the Frazier History Museum, the artists of the Louisville Ballet showcase the extraordinary athleticism required to master their art, paired beautifully with tailored menswear from Rodes For Him. In the culinary world, Chef Noam Bilitzer continues to expand his thoughtful, team-driven approach, while Louisville’s vibrant food scene shines through our Spring Food and Dining Guide and our “Plates Worth Posting” influencer feature.

We are also honored to present a powerful collaboration between the Frazier History Museum and the Louisville Ballet, the fifth-oldest ballet company in the United States, celebrating the depth and artistry of Louisville’s creative community. Our Derby Princesses grace the cover at historic Locust Grove, a fitting tribute as we approach the 250th anniversary of our nation’s founding. Meanwhile, our Spring Fashion shoot at Worldwide Showcase Gallery captures the color and style that continue to define our city.

Beyond the pages, Louisville’s community impact beats strongly this month. From Gardening as an Art to Sharon LaRue’s work with the Kentucky Foundation for Women, creativity is alive in our homes and neighborhoods. The upcoming Korean Festival celebrates heritage and connection, while the Young Nonprofit Foundation’s Derby Charity Soirée brings attention to weekend food insecurity among local families. When Louisville shows up, it shows up with purpose.

You will also find plenty of excitement on the court as both of Louisville’s basketball programs head into postseason play with strong momentum and high expectations. March is built for big moments, and this city knows how to meet them.

As always, thank you for reading, supporting local, and being part of what makes Louisville so dynamic.

To the Many Voices of Louisville,

Amelia Frazier Theobald Publisher & CEO, The VOICE-TRIBUNE

Editor’s Note

Spring has arrived. A little later than expected, but suddenly everywhere at once, and honestly, I’m just glad it showed up.

This issue leans all the way into the season. We have two fashion editorials of locally sourced looks styled by the lovely Cleo Heine, a home feature that might just make you want to rearrange your furniture immediately, and a dabble into the garden for those of you who have been eyeing seed catalogs since January. We also venture into music, art, and culture, because a full life needs more than a good sofa, and we close with a spring dining guide to fill our bellies as well, because one of the best things about the warmer weather is finally having an excuse to eat outside again.

Welcome to the light side of the year.

Take care,

Alisha Proffitt Chief Director of Editorial & Editor

PRESIDENT/CEO, AMELIA FRAZIER THEOBALD

OPERATIONS MANAGER, MARY ZOELLER

CHIEF DIRECTOR OF EDITORIAL & EDITOR, ALISHA PROFFITT

CHIEF REVENUE OFFICER & DIRECTOR OF SALES, JULIE KOENIG

CHIEF GRAPHIC DESIGNER, JOSH ISON

COPY EDITOR, RENAE ISON

SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER & EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT, BRYLEA PEACH

CHIEF EVENT PHOTOGRAPHER & DIRECTOR, EDITORIAL PHOTOGRAPHER & VIDEOGRAPHER, GRAPHIC DESIGNER, KATHRYN HARRINGTON

FASHION & EDITORIAL PHOTOGRAPHER, MATT JOHNSON

FASHION & EDITORIAL PHOTOGRAPHER & VIDEOGRAPHER, ANTONIO PANTOJA

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE & FASHION DIRECTOR , CLEO HEINE

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE, MIKE TOMES

DISTRIBUTION, KELLI & RAGAN VAN HECKE, JILL & JOHN MINNIX, TANNER BATEMAN

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: ALISON CARDOZA, ALISHA PROFFITT, CHRIS MORRIS, CLEO HEINE, CONNIE VICE, JACKIE ZYKAN, KATHRYN HARRINGTON, KELSEY KNOTT, KEVIN MURPHY WILSON, MCKENNA GRAHAM, RUSS BROWN

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS: GIOIA PATTON, GUY TEDESCO, JACKIE ZYKAN, LOUISVILLE POTTERS, MARTY KING, ROBERT BURGE, TAYLOR KILLOUGH, UOFL ATHLETICS

Documenting Kentucky’s Architectural Heritage: The Work of John David Myles

Kari Farris for Bittners: A New Chapter Ahead

LaVelle Smith Jr.: Leave It

on the Table: From YPAS Student to Choreographer

Solid Foundation: Sharon LaRue on Art + Activism at KFW

Fashion at

Showcase

Styled By Cleo Heine

By Kathryn Harrington & Matt Johnson

By Mckenna Graham

Chris Morris

THE WORK OF JOHN DAVID MYLES

By VOICE-TRIBUNE • Photos By Matt Johnson

John David Myles is an attorney, former family court judge, historic preservationist, and architectural historian whose writing focuses on the history and built environment of Kentucky and the Ohio Valley. Myles earned degrees from Centre College and the University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law, after which he practiced law and later served as a judge in the 53rd Judicial Circuit of Kentucky, covering Anderson, Shelby, and Spencer counties. Alongside his legal career, Myles has developed a reputation as a historian and author, documenting Kentucky’s architectural heritage and regional history.

Myles’ work is characterized by detailed research, a focus on historical accuracy, and a dedication to preservation. His books largely center on specific buildings, neighborhoods, and architectural figures, combining archival research with photographs, historical documents, and personal narratives. They serve as both reference works and records of cultural history, particularly for communities in central Kentucky.

One of Myles’s most widely recognized books is Walter H. Kiser’s Neighborhood Sketches Revisited. In this work, Myles retraces the locations documented in Kiser’s original series of sketches, which appeared in the Louisville Times from 1934 to 1942. Kiser’s original sketches depicted 404 buildings and landmarks across Kentucky and southern Indiana. Myles’s book updates these sites, pairing Kiser’s sketches with current photographs and detailed commentary on the structures’ histories. The book highlights which buildings remain, which have been altered, and which have been lost over time, providing both a visual and narrative record of the region’s architectural evolution. Neighborhood Sketches Revisited received the Samuel W. Thomas Book Award from the Louisville Historical League, recognizing its significance to historical scholarship and preservation efforts.

Myles is also the author of Historic Architecture of Shelby County, his first published book. The work documents notable structures throughout Shelby County, exploring them through historical research, architectural analysis, and photography. In addition to receiving the Samuel W. Thomas Book Award, Historic Architecture of Shelby County, Walter H. Kiser’s Neighborhood Sketches Revisited, and Louisville Classics have each been honored with Publication Awards from the Kentucky Historical Society.

Most recently, Myles published Louisville Classics: The Architecture of Hugh Lloyd Nevin and Frederic Lindley Morgan, a comprehensive study of two influential architects whose work shaped much of Louisville’s early 20th-century built environment. In Louisville Classics, Myles goes further than examining individual structures to explore how Nevin’s and Morgan’s designs reflected broader trends in architectural movements and local cultural priorities, documenting residential, civic, and institutional projects through photographs, plans, and historical analysis. This book underscores Myles’s ongoing interest in architectural history as a lens for understanding regional identity and cultural change, and it represents his most ambitious effort to date to contextualize Kentucky’s historical architecture within a larger narrative. Readers interested in architectural evolution, preservation, and the individuals who shaped the physical character of communities will find this recent work emblematic of Myles’s detailed, research-driven approach to historical writing.

MYLES’ BOOKS CAN BE FOUND AT MANY LOCAL LOCATIONS, INCLUDING:

www.whitepicketky.com

A NEW CHAPTER AHEAD

By VOICE-TRIBUNE • Photos By Robert Burge

In this month’s feature, we revisit a residential project that exemplifies the way Kari Ferris approaches design: with clarity, purpose, and respect for how a home is lived in. As part of Bittners, a firm well known for its quality and craftsmanship since 1854, Ferris worked with her clients on this project from 2022 to 2024 to create spaces that feel resolved and intentional.

The kitchen, completed in 2024, became the project’s anchor, setting a clear direction for the rest of the home. Throughout, interiors were planned to support the clients’ art collection and daily life, ensuring each space functions as well as it presents. When the residence sold off-market with its furnishings intact, the design story reached a natural close.

Now, that collaboration continues in a new setting. Ferris is leading a comprehensive renovation of the clients’ Glenview residence on Blackberry Hill. This next project revisits familiar themes while expanding the scope. New kitchens, bars, bathrooms, fireplaces, and dedicated living spaces, all designed with the same thoughtful approach.

The clients are avid art collectors, and the Glenview home will feature several significant pieces integrated into the design from the start. The completed home will be revealed later this year, marking an exciting next chapter in her work.

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GET TICKETS AT FRAZIERMUSEUM.ORG/NIGHT-AT-THE-FRAZIER

Fletcher Barr is from Owensboro, Kentucky, and began dancing at age five. He decided to focus on ballet at nine years old, training and performing with Evansville Ballet, Ballet Indiana, and Owensboro Dance Theatre. In addition to attending summer intensives at Louisville Ballet and Indiana Ballet Conservatory, Fletcher has also trained at the Harid Conservatory, the Bolshoi Ballet summer intensive in New York, and toured in China with the Long Beach Ballet Summer Intensive. He graduated in 2024 from Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music with a Bachelor of Science degree in Ballet Performance. There, he performed roles in works by George Balanchine, Justin Peck, Dwight Rhoden, and Michael Vernon. Fletcher joined Louisville Ballet as a Company Artist in 2024.

Fletcher Barr

Photo By: Matt Johnson

TAILORING THE ATHLETE WITH RODES FOR HIM

Photos By Matt Johnson and Kathryn Harrington

Ballet is one of the most physically demanding art forms in the world. It requires endurance, balance, and precision. The right clothing demands the same. It supports movement, sharpens presence, and reflects confidence.

Inside the Frazier History Museum, the artists of the Louisville Ballet step into a different kind of uniform. Known for strength, control, and relentless discipline, these athletes bring the same focus to this editorial photoshoot, wearing men’s styles from Rodes For Him.

Set against a backdrop of history, this shoot highlights men who have mastered their craft and the clothing that meets them at that level. The result is simple. Strong men. Well made clothes. No compromise.

Styled By | Cleo

Heine & Chris Burns

Hair Styled By | J Michaels Spa & Salon

Creative Director | Amelia Frazier Theobald

Production Assistants | Brylea Peach, Mike Tomes

Photo By: Matt Johnson

Daniel Scofield

Photos By: Kathryn Harrington

Daniel Scofield joined Louisville Ballet as a Company Artist in 2022 and has performed roles and works including Romeo in Alun Jones’ Romeo & Juliet, The Nutcracker and Sugar Plum Cavalier in Val Caniparoli’s The Brown-Forman Nutcracker, an Ugly Stepsister in Alun Jones’ Cinderella, Andrea Schermoly’s Appalachian Spring, Ching Ching Wong’s 502 and Grass Is Green, Adam Hougland’s Broken Totem and Cold Virtues, and Anne Jung’s #fourwithsix.

A Louisville native, Daniel began his performing arts training primarily in musical theatre, later focusing more heavily on dance. Daniel graduated Cum Laude from Butler University in 2021, earning a B.S. in Dance/Arts Administration and a Minor in Business. Repertoire performed at Butler included Paul Taylor’s Piazzolla Caldera, Gerald Arpino’s Light Rain, Patrick de Bana’s Falling Sky, The Firebird, and The Sleeping Beauty.

As a faculty member of The Louisville Ballet School, Daniel has taught in almost every program, including the Summer Intensive and Louisville Ballet Youth Ensemble. He has created original works for Louisville Ballet (Soma, 2024), for The Louisville Ballet School, and has choreographed multiple local musical theatre productions. When he isn’t dancing or teaching, Daniel loves to hang out with his pets, family, and friends and enjoy the outdoors.

Photos By: Kathryn Harrington

Daniel Scofield

Alexander Kingma began his ballet training at age 17 at the Lafayette Ballet School in Lafayette, Indiana, under the direction of Sandra Peticolas and Lisa Douglas. From there, he pursued a B.A. in Dance Performance at Ball State University, studying under Vladimir Stadnik (ballet), Audra Sokol and Susan Koper (modern), and Christie Zimmerman and Michael Worcel (jazz). Additionally, he participated in Ball State Dance Theatre, the performing company, for all four years of study.

Alexander then moved to Louisville for the first time, where he completed the then two-year trainee program under the artistic direction of Robert Curran. Upon completing the program, he danced professionally with Ballet Quad Cities (Artistic Director Courtney Lyon) for two years, dancing roles such as Billy in Billy the Kid and the Red Queen in Alice in Wonderland. He then moved on to Central Illinois Ballet (Artistic Director Rebekah von Rathonyi) in Peoria, where he was a principal dancer for four years. During his time at CIB, he danced roles such as Prince Charming (as well as a stepsister!) in Cinderella, the titular role in Dracula, Antoni in Sweeney Todd, and the Cowardly Lion in The Wizard of Oz.

Having returned to Louisville Ballet as a Company Artist in 2023, Alexander has since had the opportunity to perform several exciting roles, such as the second principal male in Adam Hougland’s Cold Virtues, the Nutcracker in Val Caniparoli’s The Brown-Forman Nutcracker, and Paris in Alun Jones’ Romeo & Juliet. He is thrilled to return for the 2025-2026 Season!

Photos By: Matt Johnson

Alexander Kingma

By: Kathryn Harrington

Joel Morin-Kensicki received his early training at Durham School for Ballet and The Performing Arts from Tama Guerra Rivero, Pablo Perez, Aline Molina, Miguel Campaneria, and Bolyn Willis Zeger. After graduating in 2014, he attended Butler University to perform with Butler Ballet under the direction of Larry Attaway. During his time at Butler, he studied under Marek Cholewa, Rosanna Ruffo, Ramon Flowers, Derek Reid, Michelle Jarvis, Laura Byram, Patrick Hinson, Susan McGuire, and Cynthia Pratt. He also had the privilege of performing principal roles in ballets such as The Nutcracker, Giselle, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, The Four Temperaments, and La Bayadére, along with many contemporary works. While at Butler, he had the honor of traveling to Europe with Marek Cholewa and Rosanna Ruffo to study at the national ballet schools of Poland, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. He graduated from Butler University in 2018 with his BA in Dance Pedagogy. He joined Louisville Ballet as a Company Artist in 2024.

Joel Morin-Kensicki

Photo

Caleb Emory comes from Corpus Christi, Texas, where he began his training with Corpus Christi Ballet under Cristina Munro (2009). He then moved to Houston to further his training with Houston Repertoire Ballet (2020). Caleb joined Louisville Ballet’s Studio Company after the 2022 Summer Intensive and is now a proud member of the Company. In his free time, he loves to play guitar, drums, and video games. His favorite ballets are Giselle, Don Quixote, and Cold Virtues.

Caleb Emory

Photo By: Matt Johnson

Khalil Jackson is from Dallas, Georgia, and joined Louisville Ballet as a Company Artist in 2023. He has performed in works by Adam Hougland, Ching Ching Wong, Mikelle Bruzina, Alun Jones, and others, and performed roles such as the Cavalier, Arabian, and Russian in Val Caniparoli’s The Brown-Forman Nutcracker.

Khalil Jackson

Photo By: Matt Johnson

Ian Anderson-Conlon, originally from Madison, Wisconsin, Ian trained and graduated from Indiana Ballet Conservatory’s Advanced Pre-Professional Day Program on full scholarship. He then joined Kansas City Ballet as a Trainee on full scholarship, and after one year was promoted to Kansas City Ballet II. Thereafter, Ian joined Ballet Austin as an Apprentice. Ian has danced numerous roles in Val Caniparoli’s North American premiere of Jekyll and Hyde, Michael Pink’s Dracula, Septime Webre’s The Wizard of Oz, Mark Morris’ Sandpaper, Devon Carney’s Peter Pan, Giselle, and Cinderella, George Balanchine’s Jewels, and Stephen Mills’ The Nutcracker and Romeo and Juliet. He has performed works by Peter LeBreton-Merz, Rex Tilton, Parrish Maynard, Christopher Ruud, Gabriel Lorena, Christopher Swaim, and Jimmy Orrante. Ian also performed at The Kennedy Center in Devon Carney’s The Nutcracker.

Ian Anderson-Conlon

EXPERIENCE

THE BIG BLOOM

Check out our annual display of nearly 30,000 spring-blooming bulbs!

BITTNERS

FROM YPAS STUDENT TO

CHOREOGRAPHER

FOR MICHAEL JACKSON AND SOME OF MUSIC’S BIGGEST STAGES

By Alisha Proffitt • Photos By Kathryn Harrington

At Louisville’s Youth Performing Arts School, the hallways are familiar to LaVelle Smith Jr. “Ever since I can remember, I wanted to dance,” he recalls. That ambition did not come with certainty or privilege. It began with a kind-hearted suggestion. “I had a wonderful teacher, a music teacher in 8th grade, who told my mom about performing arts school,” LaVelle said. “And she said that will be fine if he gets his grades up. So, I got my grades up, and I was able to come for 10th grade here, sophomore year. And it changed my life.”

The school provided him with technical discipline. Ballet, in particular, became foundational for LaVelle. “This school changed the way that I dance. I didn’t know ballet before I came here,” he said. “I had brilliant teachers here, so when I was sent off into the real world of dance, I was armed with everything that I needed. I had it all.”

At the time, his ambitions were modest. “All I really wanted was to be able to have my own apartment and eat,” he said. “That was pretty much what I wanted, and I surpassed that a long time ago. But that’s all I really wanted was to be a working dancer who could eat.”

Instead, he became one of the choreographers behind some of the most recognizable performances in contemporary music.

After leaving Louisville, LaVelle joined Giordano Jazz Dance Chicago, then moved to Los Angeles, where technical training and timing converged. He found steady work as a dancer and began assisting with choreography. His opportunities expanded quickly. “I really would love to say that I was so brilliant and I orchestrated everything,” he said. “I would say lots of prayer is how I got there. Lots of prayer.”

His early choreographic recognition came through his work with En Vogue, where he created the choreography for “My Lovin’ (You’re Never Gonna Get It)” and “Free Your Mind,” both of which earned MTV Video Music Awards. “I didn’t really think about it being choreography, I was just enjoying a job, making these girls look the best that I could make them look, they were beautiful singers, and I wanted the dancing to match their voices, so that was my mission,” LaVelle said of the collaboration.

The moment that really clarified the scale of his success came later, during his work with Michael Jackson. LaVelle had already been part of Jackson’s creative circle when he was called into a rehearsal to replace another choreographer.

“We got a choreographer, Michael wasn’t happy with what he was doing, and he was like, ‘somebody go get Lavelle,’” he said. “So I go in the room, Michael is there, the choreographer is there, Michael said simply, ‘What would you do?’” LaVelle stepped up to the plate and put his vision on the table, “and he said, ‘That’s what I want, everybody out of the room.’ It took us about half an hour, and we got the opening of ‘Jam’.”

That sequence would become the opening number of Jackson’s Dangerous tour, seen by massive audiences worldwide. Lavelle continued to work on Jackson’s tours and stage productions, helping translate Jackson’s ideas into choreography that could be executed consistently across large-scale productions.

Jackson’s influence meant a lot more to LaVelle than opportunity. “Michael always just allowed me to do what I wanted, but always told me to go take the human body to places it’s never been before,” he said of his time with Michael.

LaVelle’s work expanded to include accomplished artists such as Janet Jackson and Beyoncé, Diana Ross and The Rolling Stones, along with television and live event productions. Over time, he accumulated multiple MTV awards and industry nominations. “Legends, so many legends,” he said. “It’s been a blessing and I was saying earlier- you don’t think about it, at least I don’t think about it while it’s happening.”

His creative influences were not limited to collaborators. He cites choreographer Bob Fosse. “Bob Fosse is someone that I really admire, his work, and I had the chance to audition for him. Didn’t take the job, but when I got to see his process, I think that helped me a lot,” he said.

By: RUSS BROWN • Photos Provided

From a very early age, there wasn’t much doubt about what direction Louisville native Guy Tedesco’s professional life would take.

At six years old, while watching the movie “The Agony and The Ecstasy” in which Charlton Heston portrayed the artist Michelangelo, who painted the Sistine Chapel from 1508-1512, Tedesco posed a question to his mother. He looked up at mom and asked, “Can I be a famous artist one day?” She replied, “You can do anything you want if you want to badly enough.”

That was the first clue as to his future vocation. A more telling one came two years later during one of his devoted Catholic family’s frequent visits to Sacred Heart Church in Jeffersonville, Ind.

“I would go up and pray with her and every week she complained because the hands were broken off the statue of Mary,” Tedesco recalled. “There were just wires sticking out where there should be fingers. She finally went to the priest and told him she had a son who could fix it. So I go pedaling up on my bicycle one day with a bucket of plaster. They had to take the statue down because I couldn’t reach it. So I say that was kind of my first sculptural work.”

However, little did Tedesco suspect that his affinity for art would one day decades later lead him to the Vatican and one of the highlights of his varied, highly successful career. More about that later, but first some background on the 63-year-old sculptor, artist and designer, who has an unusual wealth of experience in a broad range of artistic fields. Using all kinds of materials and styles, he is truly a renaissance man of art.

For the past 30 years, Tedesco has focused on monumental sculpture installations, working a variety of media and processes -primarily bronze, glass and resins. But he has also been productive in many other facets of the art world and is a trusted source of information and guidance for other artists.

“My work is created to inspire others to their own thought,” Tedesco says. “And if that occurs, then I consider my work successful.”

After earning a degree in Apparel Technology and Fashion Design from Purdue University -- “at the time it was 96 women and me in my major”-- Tedesco spent seven years in New York’s fashion industry working for private clients and many of the city’s top apparel designers. He also was involved in designing the first Planet Hollywood restaurant in New York City. Later he designed masks for the Rio Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

“I felt like a fish out of water when I went to New York,” he said. “I was staying with a friend in New Jersey and I took the train into the City, and when I came out of the subway I felt like I was on Mars. But I truly grew to love New York City.”

Tedesco has painted murals for the New York Children’s museum and worked as the chief sculptor on a $30 million project for the Saudi Arabian Government, under the supervision of Prince Bandar.

35’ tall x 12’ wide, 8,000lbs cross sculpture. Forged bronze and kiln formed glass. The texture in the glass is thumbprints from members of the church.

His background also includes creating wearable art, theatrical costumes and set designs, including over 200 costumes for the New Albany (Ind.) High Theater Department’s presentation of “Beauty and the Beast.”

Tedesco moved back to Jeffersonville in his early 30s. “I hated the fashion industry, so I finally said, ‘Aw, screw it.’”

He currently works out of a large metal building that is crammed with projects past and present in a New Albany neighborhood. It’s a fascinating, veritable museum of art, containing examples of his creations in an array of disciplines.

For private clients in 2021, Tedesco installed a hammered copper repousse relief mural depicting a herd or running horses measuring 24.5 feet wide and 8 feet tall. His most recently completed large-scale sculpture is a 25-foot tall, 8,000-pound bronze and glass for a memorial garden as its setting. It was created to represent religious community, individuality and unity for Harvey Browne Presbyterian Church.

He has also completed other projects for that church, as well as multiple works at Sacred Heart, including a 15-foot crucifixion/resurrection multi-figure sculpture. His work can also be found in the chapels at Norton Pavillion and Norton Audubon. In Southern Indiana, his projects have included a Thomas Jefferson sculpture in Jeff’s Warder Park, a 10-foot tall bronze figure weighing approximately 2,000 pounds; and a life-sized, reclining bronze of St. Francis of Assisi at Mount St. Francis in Greenville, Ind.

Next is a special project for Columbus, Ind. that will be 20 feet tall and take about two years to complete. Unlike many sculpture artists, Tedesco doesn’t sketch the sculpture before beginning.

“I say if it’s going to be a sculpture when it grows up, it’s got to be a sculpture when it’s born,” he says. “I have a vision in my head, so I just pick up the clay or whatever and start working.”

Now for that classic, impressive Vatican experience. . .

Cardinal Joseph Ritter, who served as Archbishop of Indianapolis, Archbishop of St. Louis from 1946-1961 and then as Cardinal until his death in 1967, was born in New Albany. His home at 13th and Oak Streets was restored by the Cardinal Ritter Birthplace Foundation, Inc. It currently serves as a community resource center and museum, and Tedesco has designed a large monument made of bronze and glass with five life-sized figures that will be installed outside the home when money is raised for it.

Presenting the bust and maquette sculpture to Sig. Raniero Salvagi, of hereditary Italian noble title and Vatican noble title, Speaker for the Pope’s Cabinet.

Tedesco learned that the father of Raniero Salvaggi, who is speaker of Pope Leo’s cabinet and his principal advisor on political matters after serving in the same role for Pope Francis, was an important member of Cardinal Ritter’s team. Tedesco began corresponding with Salvaggi, via email and sent him photos of a bust of Ritter that he had completed.

“Raniero was very nice and he was real excited to hear about things with the Ritter House,” Tedesco said.

“He was like, ‘that’s a beautiful bust.’ He remembered meeting Cardinal Ritter as a young boy and there were communications between the priest and Salvaggi’s dad where he asked, ‘How’s young Rainero doing?’ So there is a very direct connection. Raniero is descended from Italian Nobility and his family has served the Vatican, Popes and Cardinals for generations.”

Tedesco has a large family in Italy and when he told Salvaggi he was planning a visit, Salvaggi invited him to the Vatican.

“He said, “I welcome you to Rome with open arms.’ He had no idea I was bringing him the bust. When we unveiled it he wept for probably ten minutes.”

Tedesco also took a maquette, which is a small study model of a larger sculpture. And there was already a bust of St. Francis that he had donated to the Vatican and which resides in a private office. So now he has three pieces in the largest museum on earth because the Vatican holds 30 percent of all the art treasures in the world.

I asked Tedesco if he could name his favorite piece of all the thousands he has created during his career.

“People ask me what’s my favorite food?” he said. “It depends on my mood. I have different favorites for different reasons. I often say that creativity is a form of insanity. I’ve had many an artist be offended by that, but then come back and say , ‘Yeah, you’re right.’

“Every project reaches a certain level of success and nothing leaves until I am happy. And that has been frustrating to a lot of people, but I tell them beforehand, you’re paying for my vision, you’re paying for my craftsmanship and I am a much harder critic than you will ever be. The heart doesn’t know how to tell time. I say, ‘you are paying me for this expertise and this level of dedication to craftsmanship, and I will not let you down.”

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FROM BRUNCH TO BOW TIES, HATS & SHOES, BAGS & TOTES, OR EVEN HOME DECOR & GIFTS... AS ALWAYS, THINK CHENOWETH SQUARE FIRST.

LOUISVILLE POTTERS HAVE KEPT TRADITION ALIVE FOR 50 YEARS

By RUSS BROWN • Photos Provided

Ceramics is one of the most ancient industries in the world, going back thousands of years, born when humans discovered that clay could be found in abundance and formed into objects by first mixing with water and then firing. The oldest known ceramic artifact is dated as early as 28,000 BCE, during the late Paleolithic period. Today a small group of artists, the Louisville Potters, is helping keep that tradition alive locally and has built its own legacy over a half-century.

“People really need handmade things in their life,” said Amy Elswick, owner of Clay House Pots on Chestnut Street in the Phoenix Hill neighborhood and a Potter since the late ‘90s. “The world is full of so much manufactured stuff. Yes, you can buy a vase, a coffee mug, or a bowl at Target or wherever, but it’s not the same. Someone will put that out in a yard sale in a couple years. Whereas if you buy a piece of handmade art, you’re going to pass it on to someone because it has a soul. We are all professional artists. We are creating ceramic art, teaching the public about clay, all kinds of things that can be made.”

The Potters consist of nearly a dozen professionals, most of them friends with a common bond, who love working with clay and spreading the word about their craft. It’s an informal group and their get-togethers are almost as social as professional.

“It’s so nice that we can come together and share our story and our art,” said Suzy Hatcher, another long-time Potter who owns Suzy Hatcher Pottery, a workshop where she holds weekly classes and meets clients by appointment. “We support each other and have the opportunity to talk shop.”

“What I like about it is we’re sharing common work experiences, life experiences,” Elswick said. “If you need something like cobalt carbonate at midnight, you can get it from somebody. And you can share ideas. ‘Check out this new work I made. Is it crap or is it good? What do you think?’ We’re serious about our work.”

Wayne Ferguson put it a different way in a Courier-Journal story several years ago, saying “We’re hooked on clay. We’re pyromaniacs. Every single one of us has an affinity for clay.”

The Potters’ signature events are two sales, one in the summer and the other near the Thanksgiving/Christmas holiday season. This year the summer sale is set for July 4 on the grounds of the Masonic Home on Frankfort Ave., while the second sale will be on Nov. 14 at the Waterfront Botanical Gardens.

Mike Imes

Because of the independent nature of artists, there are challenges planning the sales and any other matters that need attention, according to Hatcher. “We’re not working in a community cooperative space,” she said. “Each of us has our own place, so in some ways I feel it’s like herding a group of cats. Like meow, meow, meow, everybody is doing their own thing. It’s like, ‘Come on, let’s get it together.’”

Several factors set the Louisville Potters’ sales apart from the famed St. James Court Fine Arts and Design Show held annually in early October. Foremost, St. James offers a wide range of handcrafted art, whereas the Potters’ events are all about clay, a designation that encompasses ceramics, porcelain and stoneware in various styles. Furthermore, participating artists plan and operate it themselves and it is not juried.

“It’s important that people value work by hand, and in a temporary, throwaway society I think it’s even more important,” Elswick said. “It’s nice to make those connections with people who come to the sales.”

The Potters can trace their origin from the small sales that well-known and highly respected artist Sarah Frederick had at her Crescent Hill home in the early ‘80s. Frederick traveled throughout the U.S. and was an adjunct faculty member at the University of Louisville.

“We call her the matriarch of the Louisville pottery scene,” Elswick said. “It’s not an easy way to make a living, you’re not going to get rich. You can certainly make a living if you work hard, but you have to figure out how to do it. The competition is tough. It’s tricky.”

Hatcher was mentored by Frederick while she was finishing her Master’s Degree in ceramics at U of L. “She had a slightly bigger than a broom closet area and she told me if I did so many hours of work for her, I could have that area to do my own work,” Hatcher recalled. “I helped her with various chores, make glazes, fire up the kiln. And she introduced me to other people in the ceramics community.”

Mike Imes began participating in Frederick’s pottery sales when she was hosting them in either her home in the winter or her back yard in the summer and he was living in Nelson County, Ky. Since moving to Waukesha, Wisconsin in 1987 to teach ceramics courses at Carroll University, Imes hasn’t let time or distance discourage him from returning to the Bluegrass State with his wife Dawn to attend both Potters’ sales.

“I still enjoy selling my clay work,” he said via email. “I do eight or nine art fairs each year. Louisville is a city where my work is well received. I also enjoy going there because I have many good friends and it’s such a beautiful place to visit.”

An important goal of the Potters is to continue trying to attract young artists to take an interest in the group to assure future success. One such person is Alex Adams of AA Clay Studio on South 4th St., founded by Adams in 2013 and offering classes, memberships and workshops for all skill levels.

“We are always on the lookout to add younger people to our group,” Elswick said. “It’s something we look to all the time. We’ve got some new people in our mix and we’re hoping some of the young people will stick with us and carry this on because that’s our goal, to continue the legacy.

“It seems to me that there’s a lot of people that do ceramics part-time or use it as a creative outlet they can also monetize, but that’s not really what we’re looking for. Ceramics aren’t going anywhere, we just have to keep reinforcing that it’s a good thing to have this creativity around and in your life, so come support us.”

Mike Imes

Amy Elswick

Caroline Zama

Tonya Johnson

Sharon LaRue told the VOICE-TRIBUNE that she always knew she wanted to dedicate her professional life to empowering women and girls through art and creativity. And along the way, that’s just what she has done. For example, as an Art Therapist, LaRue developed a children’s coloring book for use in child abuse prevention programs. Later, as the director of a program at the University of Louisville that was designed to eliminate interpersonal violence, she managed Arts as Activism endeavors utilizing the art-making process to generate dialogue between diverse populations, foster social change, and spark creativity. And in her current role as the Executive Director of the Kentucky Foundation for Women (KFW), LaRue boldly leads an entire organization that “honors the feminist perspective of collective strength and recognizes art as a powerful catalyst for transformational change” by facilitating grants and residencies for practicing (and aspiring) artists. Notably over the years, LaRue has also received a variety of awards and accolades [including the Liberation Award to End Human Trafficking, and the UNA USA Human Rights Civil Rights Award] for her efforts. We recently caught up with this proud Kentucky Colonel to discuss her journey and the ongoing work of KFW.

VOICE-TRIBUNE: Are there any specific artists or activists who have inspired you?

Sharon LaRue: “My grandmother was the first artist I knew. She created new works until she was 87 through the traditional arts of quilt-making, crochet, tatting, and embroidery. My mother taught me these too. Other artists, writers, and performers that have inspired me include Frida Kahlo, Nina Simone, Judy Chicago, Faith Ringgold, Alice Walker, Ruth Asawa, Amy Sherald, Loretta Lynn, Mickalene Thomas, Lisa Aisato, Jabani Bennett, [the musical duo] Rising Appalachia, Crystal Wilkinson, and countless others.”

VT: How would you describe your own approach to practice?

SLR: “In my own creative practice, art and spirituality are intricately intertwined. Making art provides a way of perceiving that unlocks the realm of possibility and opens a space for critical thinking so that we can ‘do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with my God’ [a reference to Micah 6:8]. I also recognize the Ayni principle of equality, respect, and the mutual flow of giving and receiving. Ayni is gratitude, and sacred reciprocity that honors the space between.”

VT: What attracted you to the role of Executive Director for the Kentucky Foundation for Women?

SLR: “In my [prior] work at the PEACC Center [at U of L], we received two Arts as Activism grants from KFW. It was monumental to have a foundation here in Kentucky that focused on feminist arts and activism working on social change for women and girls. I wanted to be part of this movement! I started serving in this capacity in 2014, and KFW is still unique in 2026. There are very few organizations nationwide that focus only on feminist arts and activism for women, trans, and gender nonconforming. It is still an honor to support the artists and activists in Kentucky whose work speaks to the times we live in, challenges the status quo, highlights a pressing need, and connects to a broader community dialogue, especially in light of recent anti-affirmative action, anti-trans/LGBTQIA+ legislation, challenges to democracy, bodily autonomy and other pressing issues.”

VT: Where is the Foundation currently headquartered and how can Kentucky artists access your resources?

SLR: “KFW has office space adjacent to the Kentucky College of Art + Design [in the historic Speed Mansion] at 505 West Ormsby Avenue. KFW is based in Louisville but funds four types of artistic expression [Visual, Media, Performance, Literary] across the state. Grant application information is found on our website and is accessible to all. We hold grant workshops across Kentucky and now remotely through online platforms, so applicants can ask questions of staff and peers and create movement to share resources for collaboration.”

VT: Do you have any words of wisdom for aspiring artists out there?

SLR: “For all those feminist artists with dreams that refused to be buried, here is a quote from Sallie Bingham Award-winner [named for KFW’s founder, The Sallie Bingham Award recognizes Kentucky women who are leaders in changing the lives of women and girls across the state], Bianca Spriggs, ‘nobody knows what a woman like that - she who sees the unseen, yet no one believes - is actually capable of until you hand her a match.’”

For more information visit kfw.org

SPRING FASHION SHOW

THURSDAY, MARCH 26 5 –

By Kevin Murphy Wilson

Holding something creative together for 50-plus years is an extraordinary accomplishment. Amazingly, that’s how long it has been since the band America’s founding members--Dewey Bunnell, Gerry Beckley and Dan Peek--first assembled in, ahem, Great Britain. As Bunnell explained straightaway when we first spoke over the phone, “The name America came from a lot of little things, but it was mainly [intended] to reflect the fact that we were American kids in England, which we felt gave us an edge over some of the British upstarts we were competing against.” In Bunnell’s own words, the band has seen its share of “peaks and valleys” over the years, including the departure of Peek in 1977 and Beckley’s retirement from the road in 2024 [although he still remains an official member of the group]. These days, however, Bunnell is primarily concerned with presenting America’s history in the best possible light by playing shows built around all the hits that comprise the act’s lengthy legacy. And as part of that mission, Bunnell’s America returns to town for an intimate concert at Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts on April 2. Read on for more of our conversation.

VOICE-TRIBUNE: Were the late 1960s and early 1970s strange days to be teenagers on the loose in London?

Dewey Bunnell: “Being young and out of our element, we really clung to each other over there and we were always running around taking in all kinds of great music together including Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, and the Rolling Stones.”

VT: It wasn’t too long before everything clicked for America and you found yourself sharing stages with some larger than life figures, right?

DB: “Yeah, that’s correct. We actually opened for Pink Floyd, Elton John, the Who, Traffic, Rod Stewart and the Faces, and Cat Stevens, which was a real learning experience for us. It’s fair to say that we had to pay some dues along the way, but you couldn’t have asked for any more success than what we had with our first album and single. From there we were able to just continue doing what we do best.”

VT: Working with legendary L.A. drummer and band leader Hal Blaine seems like it must have been an impactful collaboration. Was that the case?

DB: “Well, our managers at the time were David Geffen and Elliot Roberts and they set it up. We didn’t even know who the Wrecking Crew were at that age and at that stage of our career. We were oblivious to the world of session musicians. So, that was all part of our ongoing education.”

VT: The double-team of [producer] George Martin and [engineer] Geoff Emerick, who famously functioned as the Beatles’ two-man hit factory, were also along for the ride at one point. What do you remember from that period?

DB: “We had a long, beautiful relationship with them--something like seven projects in all, five which were studio albums of original material, one of remixes created for our initial greatest hits package, plus a live release.”

VT: Later on, there were even some noteworthy America sessions with James Iha, of Smashing Pumpkins, at the helm. At this juncture, what is your take on that?

DB: “It was nice to find out that there were a lot of younger musicians who wanted to get involved with us. I was actually coaxed into recording a version of ‘Golden,’ which was written by Jim James from My Morning Jacket. That experience forced me to go outside my comfort zone.”

VT: You have had a hand in writing some of the classic rock era’s most enduring songs, including “A Horse With No Name,” “Ventura Highway,” and “Sister Golden Hair.” Do you have any thoughts on where these tunes came from?

DB: “A lot of my lyrical imagery comes from spending so much time outdoors, but there must be some kind of magical thing that happens, because if there was a formula, everyone who owns a guitar would be following it and writing popular music.”

For more information on Dewey Bunnell and America, visit venturahighway.com.

By Kelsey Knott • Photos By Matt Johnson

As one of the most in-demand road musicians and sought-after session players in the city, Chris “Roadie” Rodahaffer earned his nickname after years touring as a guitarist, banjoist, songwriter and pedal steel player before more recently stepping into the spotlight as a solo bandleader.

An early love for music born from his father’s tape collection, Roadie was 13 when he first picked up the guitar. “The feeling of joy that comes from playing with other people… it got me hooked.” Right out of high school, Louisville’s own Kentucky Shakespeare Festival provided his first paid gig. “We’d rehearse six days a week at Louisville Gardens. I got to write all these little instrumental ditties we were doing for Taming of the Shrew.” Roadie attended Berklee College of Music, living in Boston for four years before returning to Louisville, since making major impacts on the city’s music scene over the last two decades. “There’s just so many great musicians and friendly folks here. I’ve had so much support from the community in my musical endeavors.” He recognizes the great creative community being fostered within The Monarch scene as well.

In his own band, ROADIE, the songs feel true to that joyful childhood feeling he found in jamming with others. “We’re exploring how to play more openly together. I’m trying to play more melodically and leave more space to have it feel more like a dialogue, instead of trying to be a guitar hero.” Dani Markham on drums, Jose Oreta on bass, and Woody Woodmansee on keyboards complete ROADIE’s sound. “Dani is phenomenal. She’s an instructor at Louisville Leopards and plays percussion for Childish Gambino. Jose is brilliant, and we connected the moment I met him. He and I’ve been playing together for 10+ years now, and he’s actually going back to school to be a lawyer. And I’ve known Woody forever and am glad the stars aligned for him to join the band.” Before ROADIE, he found his place in two other bands: Houseplant and Tyler Lance Walker Gill. “In Houseplant, a long time friend of mine, Tavis Conley, is lead singer and plays mandolin. We also had a band called Slow Down Johnny… I’ve been playing for Tyler Lance Walker Gill’s band for eight years now, and I love that guy. It’s a super fun crew and we do lots of bluegrass stuff.” Ultimately, Roadie hopes listeners feel happiness when listening to his music.

His method for finding inspiration as a songwriter mimics the easygoing sound you’ll find humming throughout many of his original songs: “Stay open to the world and stay curious about things.” Roadie takes several paths to songwriting. “I practice a lot late at night, just working on a guitar thing and suddenly a pattern or melody will come into my head. I’ll think, ‘let’s latch onto that.’ Or sometimes, I’m walking my dog, and lyrics will pop into my brain.”

At the Louisville Folk School, Roadie pays it forward as an instructor, floating in and out to work with students of all ages–kids just starting out, older adults working to keep their minds sharp, and people interested in trying their hand at a new skill they always wanted to develop. “Teaching kind of fell into my lap, after working as a chef and hanging drywall for a while when I first moved back. Frankly, I probably wasn’t very good at it for a number of years. But I’ve been teaching for 20 years now, and I feel like the more I do it, the better I get at it.” He enjoys finding different ways to explain similar concepts to meet the diverse needs of his students, emphasizing the importance of reinforcing the basics. “I studied with Craig Wagner, a local guy who I consider the best guitar player in the world. When I came home, I sought him out again–he’s a great friend these days and was an important mentor in my life when I was younger. I asked him what I should work on, and he immediately went back to basics. With teaching, it’s reinforcing all that. The more ingrained that stuff gets, the less you have to think about it.”

Catch Roadie with Houseplant on March 7 at Headliners, with ROADIE in Dani Markham’s undercover series at Galaxie Bar, or at the psychedelic square dance he’s cooking up this summer. Follow him on Instagram @roadie_ky!

By:

Photo

Kathryn Harrington

Model: A'nya Winburn Outfit: Rodes For Her Jewelry: Aesthetics in Jewelry

AT WORLDWIDE SHOWCASE GALLERY

Spring begins as a whisper — a subtle brightening of mornings, a gentler edge to the wind, a sense that something beneath the surface is stirring. Long before runways declared the season open, ancient cultures marked this threshold through Imbolc. This Gaelic festival, rooted in Ireland and Scotland, honors the first return of light and the quiet promise of renewal.

Today, its symbolism feels like the perfect inspiration for spring fashion — a season not just of trends, but of transformation, creativity, and self-expression.

Imbolc falls midway between winter solstice and spring equinox, celebrating the gradual triumph of light over darkness. In style, this transition mirrors the soft shift from winter’s protective heaviness to spring’s luminous layering

The spirit of the season is closely tied to Brigid, the Celtic goddess of poetry, craft, and healing — a figure who embodies creation in all its forms. Her influence reminds us that fashion is not merely consumption; it is craft and storytelling.

Spring fashion, infused with the spirit of Imbolc, is not about perfection or performance. It is about awakening the creative ember within and allowing it to shape how you show up. It is about honoring growth and self expression.

Because like the earth at Imbolc, you are allowed to bloom. Welcome to the light!

- Cleo Heine, Stylist

A huge thank you to our creative team and partners

Photos By: Kathryn Harrington & Matt Johnson

Styled By: Cleo Heine

Location: Worldwide Showcase Gallery

Hair & Makeup By: J Michael’s Spa & Salon

Featuring Fashions From: Mamali Boutique, Rodeo Drive, Rodes For Him| For Her, Sassy Fox Upscale Consignments

Featuring Flowers By: Susan’s Florist

Featuring Jewelry From: Aesthetics in Jewelry

Production Management: Cleo Heine

Production Team: Trina O’Brien, Brylea Peach, Alisha Proffitt, Mike Tomes, Mary Zoeller

Modeled By: Christie Perez, A’Nya Winburn, Kaylee Plunkett, Vanessa Rachelle, Margaret Streeter, Grant Goodman, Joshua Peñaflorida

Photo By: Kathryn Harrington

Model: Margaret Streeter

Outfit: Sassy Fox Upscale Consignment

Jewelry: Aesthetics in Jewelry

Photo By: Kathryn Harrington

Model: A'nya Winburn

Outfit: Rodes For Her Jewelry: Aesthetics in Jewelry

A'nya Winburn

Outfit: Rodes For Her

Jewelry: Aesthetics in Jewelry

Outfit

Vanessa Rachelle

: Mamali Boutique

Jewelry: Aesthetics in Jewelry

Skirt: Rodes For Her

A'nya Winburn

Mamali Boutique

Margaret Streeter

Top: Sassy Fox

Grant Goodman Rodes For Him

Vanessa Rachelle Rodeo Drive

Photo By: Matt Johnson Jewelry By Aesthetics in Jewelry

Cleo Heine Rodes For Her

Joshua Peñaflorida Rodes For Him

Christie Perez Rodes For Her

Kaylee Plunkett Sassy Fox

Model: Kaylee Plunkett

Outfit: Rodeo Drive

Jewelry: Aesthetics in Jewelry

Photo By: Kathryn Harrington

By:

'nya Winburn

Outfit: Sassy Fox Upscale Consighnments

Jewelry: Aesthetics in Jewelry

Photo

Matt Johnson

Margaret Streeter

Outfit: Rodeo Drive

Vanessa Winburn Outfit: Rodes For Her

A'nya Winburn Outfit: Rodeo Drive

Christie Petez Outfit: Sassy Fox

Photo By: Matt Johnson Jewelry By Aesthetics in Jewelry

Model: Vanessa Rachelle

Outfit: Rodes For Her jewelry: Aesthetics in Jewelry

Photo By: Matt Johnson

Model: A'nya Winburn

Outfit: Rodeo Drive

Bag: Mamali Boutique

Jewelry: Aesthetics in Jewelry

Photo By: Matt Johnson

Model: Christie Perez Outfit: Sassy Fox Jewelry: Aesthetics in Jewelry

Photo By: Matt Johnson

Kaylee Plunkett

Tops: Mamali Boutique

Pants: Rodes For Her Jewelry: Aesthetics in Jewelry

Him

Grant Goodman RodeS For

Joshua Peñaflorida Rodes For Him

Photo By: Matt Johnson

Outfit: Sassy

A'nya Winburn

Fox Upscale Consighnments

Jewelry: Aesthetics in Jewelry

Grant Goodman

Outfit: Rodes For Him

By:

Photo

Matt Johnson

By:

Joshua Peñaflorida Rodes For Him

Christie Perez Outfit: Rodes For Her Bag: Mamali Boutique Jewelry: Aesthetics in Jewelry

Photo

Matt Johnson

Model: A'Nya Winburn

Outfit: Rodeo Drive

Jewelry: Aesthetics in Jewelry

Photo By: Matt Johnson

Artist Highlight: Humberto Lahera in front of his paintings

By:

Artist Highlight: Andy Llanes Bulto in front of his painting titled: Men Don't Cry, Oil/24 k gold leaf/ canvas

Photo

Matt Johnson

PHOTOGRAPHER Clay Cook Photography ARTIST: Christa Watson MODEL: A’nya Winburn

CHET AND FAMILY

Chelsie Dunning is a proud mom of three girls, a social media manager, food critic, and business owner. Born and raised in Eastern Kentucky, the mountains are her roots and the foundation of her grit and heart. She now calls Louisville home, but the mountains will always shape her hustle. Known for her authentic voice and family-first values, Chelsie brings warmth, energy, and real-life relatability to everything she does.

Her husband, Amone, a Louisville native and owner of Heavy Plates 502, matches her passion bite for bite. Together, they’ve built a vibrant, family-powered platform that celebrates Louisville’s thriving food scene. From hosting high-energy foodie events to spotlighting hidden gems, local favorites, and kid-friendly hotspots, they turn every outing into an experience. With their three girls often along for the ride, this family proves the best memories are made around the table and they’re inviting the whole city to pull up a seat and join them.

Agave and Smoke

Pasilla Shrimp Tacos

LOUISVILLE BITES

Emily is the voice behind Louisville Bites. She has always had a passion for food, but she didn’t launch Louisville Bites until the COVID-19 pandemic, when restaurants were limited to carryout. What began as a way to support her favorite local spots during a difficult time quickly grew into something much bigger.

Today, Louisville Bites has become nearly a full-time commitment, though Emily still balances it alongside her career as an accountant. She loves discovering new restaurants and trying new dishes, but what she enjoys even more is watching others experience them too. It gives her a sense of connection and purpose within Louisville’s vibrant food scene.

As her following has grown, so has her sense of responsibility. Emily believes in using her platform to help small businesses thrive, especially in a challenging economy. She understands the power that a single photo or video can have, and if her work makes a difference for even one restaurant, she considers it a success.

Flautas De Pato

Dia De Los Muertos

LOUISVILLE FOOD LIFE

Erica is the creator behind the Instagram account Louisville Food Life, where she invites her audience to experience the city’s dining scene right alongside her and is easy to recognize around town, with her signature purple lipstick and fun style. Her content feels immersive, as if you’re at the table together, tasting every bite, laughing through candid moments, and occasionally making a mess along the way.

Her passion for food began long before social media. Sharing restaurant discoveries through photos and conversation has always come naturally, making Instagram a seamless extension of her love for connecting people through memorable meals.

Through Louisville Food Life, Erica blends authentic reactions with thoughtful storytelling and playful energy. For her, food is about more than flavor, it’s about atmosphere, connection, and the moments created around the table. She highlights local spots that pour heart into what they do and brings her community together through foodie meetups, turning everyday dining experiences into something truly special.

Paloma

Tlayuda

LOUISVILLE FOOD TOURS

Meet Lia & Jeremy Garcia, Co-Founders of @LouisvilleFoodTours and @LetsGoLouisville. In 2016, they quit their jobs to take what they now call a disastrous year-long honeymoon, a leap that led to the creation of one of the world’s largest travel blogs, Practical Wanderlust. Years later, they felt called to make a deeper impact in one place rather than a small impact in many, and founded Let’s Go Louisville and Louisville Food Tours.

Today, they do more than recommend where to visit and what to eat. Through their award-winning guided tours, they bring nearly 10,000 visitors to local restaurants each year, reach an annual audience of more than one million locals and visitors across social platforms, and have paid over $850,000 directly to Louisville restaurants.

They believe storytelling and connection over food build stronger communities. Every place holds the stories of the people who shaped it, and through content creation and tour guiding, they share those stories in ways that foster meaningful connection and tangible economic impact, continually reinvesting in the people and places that make Louisville. Instagram: LouisvilleFoodTours

Surf & Turf Fajitas

Mango Picante

THINGS TO LOU

Instagram: ThingsToLou

ThingsToLou is a place where John highlights restaurants and bars, as well as local events, shopping, music, and more around Louisville. He tries to promote things he believes people will get excited about and feature culture that is accessible to everyone.

What sets him apart is that he prefers to keep the focus on the content he creates rather than on himself.

When John created ThingsToLou, his goal was for it to be a resource for people to find out about events around town. He started by simply reposting event posters. Over time, ThingsToLou has evolved from a curated list into an original content channel, as well as a community for locals and tourists to discover new parts of Louisville and learn more about local culture.

He also strives to be a force for positivity in the way he creates content. He honors the zeal and skill that go into creating incredible dining experiences, to the best of his ability.

When he’s in a Louisville restaurant, he is often awestruck by the passion that emanates from local chefs, cooks, restaurateurs, bartenders, mixologists, and bakers, the lifeblood of the city’s restaurant scene.

Ta-Killa-Ya-Swirl

Salmon Pibil

By VOICE-TRIBUNE • Photos By Matt Johnson • Sponsored

Chef Noam Bilitzer, in many ways, has built quite a reputation through his culinary work. Most notable, MeeshMeesh, where he focuses on Levantine cuisine influenced by his personal background and professional training. His newest restaurant endeavor, Mill Iron 4, takes a clear shift in culinary style. While MeeshMeesh centers on Levant-inspired food, Mill Iron 4 explores American steakhouse traditions, ranch culture, and whole-animal butchery.

Much of Bilitzer’s reputation has been influenced by his work at MeeshMeesh. In 2024, Bilitzer was named a finalist for the James Beard Foundation’s Best Chef: Southeast award and received national recognition. He was again named a semifinalist in 2025. When he attended the awards ceremony in Chicago, he brought members of his team with him, reinforcing his view that the recognition reflected the restaurant as a whole, rather than any single individual.

Bilitzer describes MeeshMeesh as “Levant-inspired cooking filtered through my personal experience.” The restaurant draws from the flavors of Jordan, Syria, Palestine, Israel, and Lebanon, along with the broader culinary traditions of the region. The food emphasizes seasonality, vegetables, and shared plates. “It’s seasonal, vegetable-forward, bold, and meant to be shared,” he said. “It’s the food I grew up with. The flavors, the balance of acid and spice, the way meals are meant to be shared. That all feels very natural to me.”

The beverage program at MeeshMeesh follows the same framework as the food. Wines are selected to reflect the regions that influence the menu, and the list prioritizes balance and compatibility with the dishes rather than scale. Cocktails are developed with a similar approach, intended to complement the flavors of the kitchen.

Even as MeeshMeesh first gained recognition, Bilitzer’s core approach did not change. He continues to view the restaurant as a team effort rather than an individual achievement. “The recognition is meaningful, but it’s never felt personal; it reflects the team,” he said. “Restaurants aren’t individual sports. Every plate that goes out, every service that runs smoothly, every guest that feels taken care of is the result of a group of people showing up for each other and our guests.” His focus remains on maintaining consistency and creating an environment where staff can develop professionally. “I’m still focused on consistency, training, and creating an environment where people can grow and take pride in what we’re building together.”

That perspective has influenced how MeeshMeesh operates day to day. Bilitzer has emphasized creating a kitchen where staff can develop professionally and build long-term careers. Training and mentorship are part of the structure, and team members are given opportunities to expand their skills both within the restaurant and beyond it. Some have participated in stages, working temporary shifts in other notable kitchens to gain experience in different environments and bring that knowledge back to Louisville.

Mill Iron 4 grew out of Bilitzer’s long-standing friendship and professional partnership with butcher and pit master Dustin Olsen. The two met while Bilitzer was working at Red Hog and quickly found common ground in their shared work ethic. Bilitzer said the idea for the restaurant “came out of a long-standing idea between me and one of my best friends, Dustin Olsen.” He also emphasized Olsen’s expertise, saying, “Dustin’s knowledge of whole-animal butchery and pit barbeque is truly one of a kind and I wanted to help be a part of the team to build a space to showcase just that.”

Bilitzer describes Mill Iron 4 as “a neighborhood steakhouse with intention.” A key part of that intention is working directly with local producers and handling much of the preparation in-house. “We butcher whole beef in house and work directly with Kentucky ranchers we know personally,” he said. This approach allows the restaurant to stay closely connected to its ingredients while maintaining control over quality and preparation.

Guests can expect dry-aged steaks, slow-smoked barbecue, seafood, and a range of supporting dishes. The beverage program also plays an important role. Bilitzer noted that diners can enjoy “unique cocktails and a thoughtful curated wine list.” The wine and champagne program was curated in partnership with John Grisanti, Certified Sommelier & Kentucky’s only Champagne Master. While the food differs from MeeshMeesh, the same care and attention guide the decisions behind it.

He described the project as a chance “to explore a more classic American style of food through my own lens.” The pace and structure of the kitchen differ from his Levantine restaurant. “It’s a different rhythm from MeeshMeesh, it’s heavier, smokier, rooted in ranch culture and steakhouse traditions but it still carries the same intention around scratch cooking and techniques.”

The atmosphere at Mill Iron 4 shines a light on Bilitzer’s preference for straightforward hospitality. He said, “It’s elevated in execution and hospitality, but the atmosphere stays relaxed without theatrics, unnecessary fluff, and just food and service done right.” His goal is to create a space where guests feel comfortable, whether they are visiting for a casual meal or a more involved dining experience.

Bilitzer was deliberate about the timing of the new restaurant. He does not see expansion as something that should be dictated by attention or demand alone. “Growth isn’t about popularity. It’s about whether the food, the team, and the processes can be replicated without losing what makes the place special,” he said. For him, the strength of the team and the stability of the operation were essential before taking on a second concept.

What excites him most about Mill Iron 4 is not only the food, but the opportunity to build something lasting. “The process and the team,” he said, are his main motivations. “The space is beautiful and the food is exciting, but what really motivates me is building something sustainable. Providing a kitchen where people can grow, learn, and take pride in the work. That’s what lasts.”

Mill Iron 4 is a different culinary perspective, but it remains connected to the foundation Bilitzer established at MeeshMeesh, where his approach to food, team structure, and hospitality has remained consistent even as the restaurant continues to gain wider recognition.

is Sponsor an Artist program gives businesses and individuals the opportunity to directly support local artists by sponsoring in-depth features that highlight their work, stories, and impact on the community. ese features have always been a cornerstone of our publication, showcasing the creatives who bring color, culture, and soul to Louisville. rough sponsorship, you can help elevate these voices while aligning your brand with the heart of the city’s arts scene.

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By McKenna Graham • Photo By Arturo Añez (pexels.com)

Long before the farmers markets swell with the flesh of ripe tomatoes, long before kitchen tables are transformed by the cornucopia of summer’s vegetable bounty, you may, if you’re like me, find your mind turning to the garden. If you are an avid gardener, you may be wringing your hands each day as you fret and toil, tending to trays of newly germinated seedlings tucked safely away under grow lights inside. It will be many weeks before these summer-loving vegetables find a welcome home in the outdoors and so as gardeners, we must practice patience. Best to heed the advice of Wendell Berry in such matters, as he says in A Timbered Choir, “The seed is in the ground. Now may we rest in hope while darkness does its work.”

But alas- how to wait? It is such a joy to wander into one’s own backyard for a little something homegrown and bursting with a kaleidoscope of flavors unknown to grocery store produce. At the end of the long slog of winter, the palette yearns for the green flavors of a new season. Yet, in these capricious spring days when the weather is as likely to be seventy degrees one day as it is to be seven the next, it’s challenging to find anything worth eating emerging from the still frozen earth. This moment calls for the dependable and humble allium vineale, commonly known as onion grass, cow garlic, or field garlic.

Growing wild in nearly every backyard, pasture, parking lot, and easement, onion grass is a testament to vigor and reliability. This member of the allium family is technically an invasive European weed, but every part of the plant is edible- and delicious! It can be easily identified by its pungent onion aroma, long hollow green stalks aboveground, and firm white bulb belowground. It is important to always reference a reliable foraging resource to ensure you are not harvesting look-alikes. Once you know what you are looking for you will notice it everywhere. You can find its green shoots emerging from the melting snow, undeterred by winter’s fury. It announces the beginning of spring, hell or high water, ice be damned, and it does not get the adoration it deserves. In need of scallions or chives? Use onion grass. Check your backyard and I bet you will find some there, plentiful and ready to use. Chop them up and throw some in scrambled eggs or top a baked potato with their green stalks. But for a true delight, pickle them and use both the bulb and brine to make an exquisite spring Gibson cocktail.

My grandfather, Kenneth, was a great lover of the Gibson so I dedicate this recipe to him and hope you too will enjoy all the delights that spring, and its wild onion, has to offer.

KEN’S GIBSON

• 2 oz Fords London Dry Gin

• Fill shaker with ice.

• Spear spring onion bulbs carefully onto a cocktail pick. Smaller bulbs might need a delicate touch to prevent them from

arnish drink with cocktail onions and imbibe while dreaming of warm days in

By Chris Morris • Photo By Aaron Lares (Pexels.com)

Why is the measure for the alcoholic strength of a Kentucky Bourbon measured in “proof”? What does “proof” mean? Kentucky Bourbon aficionados may be surprised that the rest of the world does not use the term “proof” when stating the amount of alcohol present in a Whiskey.

Globally, the percentage or amount of alcohol found in a Whiskey, such as Scotch, is measured in ABV. ABV is the acronym for “alcohol by volume.” That term describes a technical measurement or calculation to determine the percentage of alcohol in the liquid. Here in the United States “proof” is the old-fashioned term for ABV. Its use goes back to the 18th century when a customer would ask for “proof” that the whiskey they were buying was of superior quality.

In those days, the term “superior quality” translated into “Is there a lot of alcohol in this whiskey?” or “Am I getting my money’s worth?” Up until the mid-19th century the determination of proof or alcoholic strength of a spirit was a very inexact measurement. I have experienced this fact firsthand.

Beginning in 2000, I had the great honor of periodically collaborating with some legendary master distillers over eight years of activities at the George Washington Distillery at Mount Vernon. The reconstruction of this distillery which dated to the 1790s was a project sponsored by Distilled Spirits Council of the United States and Brown-Forman.

As part of the project, the distillers team followed actual 18th century recipes and processes used then in the handcrafting of Whiskey. Keep in mind the standards of identity that govern our industry today did not exist. One of the recipes we followed was used at George Washington’s distillery by his distiller John Anderson. We learned how our distilling forebearers mashed their grain recipes in small tubs and then subsequently fermented the mash into distiller’s beer in that same vessel. That was a fascinating experience, but most exciting was the fact that we distilled these beers in a small copper pot still over an open fire just as it was done over 200 years ago.

That still had been crafted by Louisville’s famed Vendome Copper & Brass Works and was a copy of a still owned by the Smithsonian Institution. Allegedly that still was from the original George Washington Distillery. So, a team of experienced distillers from Kentucky who have grown up in the industry and were responsible for crafting some of the world’s iconic Bourbon brands are using 18th century techniques to make Whiskey. We were flabbergasted. How did John Anderson determine when to make his spirit flow cuts, known as the “heads and tails” cuts without modern measuring techniques or equipment? Today the cuts are made at modern distilleries based on several factors, but basically by the alcohol strength of the spirit as it comes off the still. This is measured using various pieces of modern equipment, such as a computerized densimeter or a hydrometer and temperature gauge combination. Since these pieces of equipment were not available to John Anderson in the 1790s, we wondered how we would determine the proper cuts. After some debate and practice it was determined that we would feel the texture of the spirit as it dripped from the still. The heads were thin and watery while the tails were thick and oily. The center, sometimes called “the heart of the run,” seemed to be just right. We were following one of the ways our forebearers judged the quality of the Whiskey, by its “bead” (viscosity). That would not make the cut (no pun intended) technically today but that is what they did.

Another method I have experimented with is based on historic practice is to mix spirit with gunpowder into a paste and then set it afire. If the combination sparked it meant there was too much water in the spirit. If it burned with a blue flame that meant that there was a higher percentage of alcohol present. Basically, a ratio of 50% water and 50% alcohol is the dividing line for this. So, if you got a blue flame you had “proved” that the spirit was of good versus poor quality. You had “proof” that the spirit was desirable. These inexact practices are no longer in use today. When did this change and where did the change happen?

It happened in Woodford County and the mid-19th century at the Old Oscar Pepper distillery, now the home of Woodford Reserve. Master distiller, Dr. James Christopher Crow, introduced the use of the thermometer and hydrometer to accurately measure the amount of alcohol present in his Whiskey. That was an important moment in the development of not only Kentucky Bourbon, but of our industry in general.

By Jackie Zykan

Oooo it is getting zesty out there, folks. The warmth of the sun starts to thaw our lethargic wintered selves and although green is just beginning to return, we can feel it sprouting from our very core. Spring brings awakening, effervescence, and much needed relief from dark, cold contraction. This year it seems we longed for this shift in a profoundly deeper way than times past, but consistent as ever is the enthusiasm of renewal expressed in the form of almost-ritual cleaning. Our energy is finally perking up enough to get up, get moving, and start fresh and as a fragrance enthusiast, I get disproportionately excited to see what new scents will be showcased in this season’s spring cleaning product binge. This same situation happens every year when the weather cools and fall/winter scented candles hit shelves. I just can’t help myself. It’s almost embarrassing. Scent is so interwoven with memory and emotion that it makes perfect sense for it to play a primary character in the moments of transition, especially seasons, and especially for a perfumer. But this year is different, and I am different, and the entire world seems different. The way we spend, the way we waste, the way we consider toxicity, sustainability, the way we have grown less apologetic to hold standards - including those that pertain to nitty gritty personal preferences like the smell of seasonally available household cleaners. Spring marketing reliably showcases the smells of pastels, as I call them, light florals and tender herbs. Fall will always showcase warm baking spices and creamy gourmand notes. And you will find a wide variety of options from sprays, scrubs, diffusing blends, candles, detergents, etc. to accessorize your season with your preferred scents. And you’ll also find a wide range from synthetic to natural products. As well as a wide range of prices. Now is the appropriate time to share, as someone who makes her own skincare and grows her own food, I have a dark confession: I still grapple with my conditioning towards natural cleaning products. They can cost more, and the voice in my head sneers “they aren’t as effective”. Despite my out of place and snarky inner monologue about it, I still buy “clean” ingredient laden products, alas I just don’t feel the same satisfaction. I feel I’ve been duped. They’re not entirely “clean” and my green guilt chooses to pay the premium, surrendering to the notion that a little bit less toxic is at least better than not. I fully recognize this is a “me” issue, not an industry issue. I also fully recognize the only way to reboot my brain is to prove myself wrong on the subject, and maybe this perspective would best serve as an addition to the list of things to clean up this spring.

Household cleaners (disinfectants, degreasers, etc.) are one of the least expensive, easiest things to make from scratch. The only thing stopping me is clearly a trust issue. I work with the powers of plants in every other realm, so I’m embarrassed to admit their countertop and bathroom cleaning contributions just feel invasive somehow. In a way it feels disrespectful to them, even though internalized remedies that rely on their antiviral or antibacterial properties feel morally sound? Again, my issue. Not the point. I justify this disconnect with various brick walls. Sometimes blaming the cost of the rabbit hole when one decides to take on a “homemade” passion project. Much like anything else, you can really rack up a tab if you have to buy all of the individual ingredients, especially when essential oils get involved. Then add in time, storage of ingredients, and it makes sense why a plastic bottle on a shelf is so seductive. But I can, and I will, rewrite this story. And I invite you to join in the experience. We will once and for all give earnest effort to make the change and finally believe fully in our capacity to make simple, natural, safe, effective products that still smell amazing. We can do it without buying the entire essential oil collection at the store and we can create signature scents to match the season or mood. We won’t shame ourselves for the emotional roller coaster of withdrawal from our old stand by’s and we will trust the plants have our back. But wait there’s more! We can also spring clean our spice rack in the process, find uses for the graveyard of store bought herbs wasting away in the fridge, and … drum roll please… end up with a cocktail mixer to celebrate our fresh space. It’s going to get raw, it’s going to get weird, and it’s going to feel amazing once we show ourselves it can be done. Now let’s clean this mess up…

MULTIPURPOSE CLEANER (MPC)

Equal parts: Plant infused vinegar* & Distilled water

A splash of Kentucky bourbon

Combine in a glass bottle with a spray top. Shake.

*Plant Infused Vinegar

In a glass jar, add plant ingredients and fill with white distilled vinegar. Allow to infuse for 1-2 weeks. Strain using a coffee filter, store in a glass bottle.

About that cocktail…

INGREDIENTS

Of course you can buy essential oils, however the real reward is clearing out long forgotten clutter, such as your refrigerator and cabinets, and putting your waste to work. My contributions to this experiment were a mix of wilted herbs and spices well past their expiration. Some really lovely pre-Covid vintages too. If dried spices still have a signature smell to them, there is oil to work with. Other resources are spent eucalyptus stems or dried lavender, evergreen needles from your own yard, and trimmings from overgrown herbs. Please note vinegar based cleaners can be too abrasive to use on stone, granite, or limestone.

What plant ingredients are actually “working”?

Aromatic plants can be a goldmine of various antiseptic, antimicrobial, antiviral, antifungal, and pest deterrent compounds. The majority of industrially synthesized antimicrobial agents are nothing more than a mass produced copy of these functional derivative mechanisms. My collection included lemon & orange peels (citric acid, limonene), rosemary (eucalyptol, borneol, pinene, camphor), allspice (eugenol, caryophyllene, gallic acid), ginger (shogaol, gingerol), cardamom (pinene, eucalyptol, limonene, linalool), bay (eucalyptol, eugenol, linalool, myrcene), nutmeg (eugenol, myristicin, sabinene), thyme (thymol), oregano (carvacrol, thymol), eucalyptus (methyl glycol, eucalyptol), sage (eucalyptol, camphor, borneol, viridiflorol).

Why is there bourbon in it?

The addition of alcohol increases the antiseptic properties of our concoction as well as provides a subtle oak base aroma to round out the scent. This is the exact approach I use for my perfume brand, ODUOAK. The majority of our functional ingredients are notorious top and heart notes, and Kentucky bourbon is our subtle anchor.

Signature scents

For maximum customization, prepare individual infusions of white vinegar instead of cramming a potpourri of ingredients into one jar. When your infusions are finished and strained, choose at least a combination of two to make up the vinegar volume in the final recipe. The majority of the herbs or spices you’ll encounter for your project are either top or heart notes, most functioning as either depending on their counterparts, aromatically speaking. Choosing at least two different botanicals helps build depth in the scent. This approach takes more storage space, but here’s a pleasant discovery made during this process: if your children make their own scent blends they want to use them. Wink, wink. Some of my favorite combinations are listed below if you aren’t sure where to start:

Degreasing MPC blend #1: Eucalyptus + Lemon + Rosemary + Mint

Degreasing MPC blend #2: Orange + Bay + Cardamom

Bathroom blend: Rosemary + Coriander + Thyme

IF you are using culinary herbs and spices (not essential oils) in your vinegar infusion, then suffice to say once you steep and strain the mixture, it’s really just flavored vinegar. And safe to ingest. Whether you want to add an extra dab of bourbon or keep it a mocktail, a shrub is a sweet and tangy way to craft a celebratory beverage.

The simplest shrub recipe follows a 1:1:1 ratio of fruit:sugar:vinegar. Apple cider vinegar is a bit more subtle than the acidic blast of white vinegar used for the infusions in this article, so if you’re not interested in scrubbing the baseboards but just want a drink…I would recommend apple cider for your shrub. You can still infuse it however you wish. The preparation for the shrub is the same regardless of most ingredients: combine the fruit, sugar, and vinegar in a medium saucepan. Stir over low/medium heat until sugar dissolves. Chill in the refrigerator. Strain the solids. To serve, add club soda to taste, or sparkling wine, or beer, or whiskey…you catch the drift. Here are some combinations using the infused white vinegar in this feature

Orange & Ginger Vinegar + Pineapple + Raw Sugar

Lavender & Lemon Vinegar + Blueberry + Granulated Sugar

Allspice & Cinnamon Vinegar + Cherry + Brown Sugar

BOURBONVILLE

Photo By Javon Swaby (Pexels.com)

VOICE-TRIBUNE

There is something artistic and a little rebellious about gardening. Not every gardener thinks themself an artist. But gaze upon any thoughtfully planted garden, and you can see that art doesn’t only hang in galleries; it grows from the ground up, too! A garden, after all, is simply another medium.

Gardening is one of the most accessible art forms there is. And it doesn’t require formal training or expensive supplies. The key, like any art form, is intention.

START WITH COLOR, NOT JUST PLANTS

One of the easiest ways to elevate your garden is to think like a painter. Instead of choosing plants one at a time, think in color palettes. Decide how you want your space to feel. Soft whites, pale pinks, and lavender create a calm, peaceful atmosphere. Bright reds, oranges, and yellows bring energy and warmth. Even an all green garden, layered with different shades and textures, can feel rich and sophisticated. Repeating colors throughout the space helps unify the design. This doesn’t even require a large yard; even a few thoughtfully arranged containers can create a cohesive and striking effect.

USE HEIGHT AND LAYERS TO CREATE DEPTH

Professional designers rarely plant everything at the same height; they use layers to create dimension. Taller plants, like sunflowers or ornamental grasses, can form a backdrop. Medium-height plants fill the middle space, while shorter flowers or herbs create a border along the front. This layering allows every plant to be seen and appreciated. It also makes the garden feel fuller and complete.

Containers can help with this as well. Placing pots on steps, stools, or ledges creates variation in height and adds visual interest. This technique works especially well for patios, balconies, or smaller outdoor spaces

EDIBLE GARDENS ARE BEAUTIFUL

An edible garden can be just as eye-catching. Vegetables and herbs grow in a surprising range of colors, shapes, and textures. The deep purple of eggplant, the bright green of basil, the ruffled edges of lettuce, and the glossy red of tomatoes can make as big a statement as any ornamental flower bed. Planting with visual contrast in mind can make an edible garden feel more intentional. Pair tall tomato plants with low-growing herbs. Mix leafy greens with upright plants like peppers or onions. Consider how the plants will look as they mature, and how their colors will complement one another.

There is also something pretty satisfying about creating a garden that nourishes both the eye and the body.

CREATE A FOCAL POINT

Every great work of art has something that draws your attention. In a garden, this could be a particularly vibrant plant or a flowering tree. A focal point gives the space structure.

This doesn’t have to be elaborate. Sometimes, the most powerful focal point is simply the healthiest, happiest plant in the garden!

PROTECTING YOUR WORK AND KEEPING PESTS OUT NATURALLY

Like any living thing, a garden faces challenges. Insects, rabbits, and other pests can very quickly undo weeks of effort. But protecting your garden absolutely doesn’t require harsh chemicals. In fact, some of the most effective solutions are also the most natural. One of the best strategies is prevention. Healthy plants are naturally more resilient. Proper sunlight, good soil, and consistent watering help plants develop the strength to withstand minor pest damage.

Plant selection is also key to a healthy garden. Certain herbs and flowers naturally repel unwanted insects. Lavender, mint, marigolds, and basil not only add beauty and fragrance, but also help deter common pests. These plants can be placed throughout the garden, forming a lovely and natural defense system.

Physical barriers are another simple solution. Garden netting can protect vegetables from birds and insects, while fencing can discourage rabbits and other animals. Even small steps, like regularly inspecting leaves and removing pests by hand, can make a significant difference.

Encouraging beneficial insects is equally important. Ladybugs and pollinators help maintain balance by feeding on harmful pests. A diverse garden, filled with a variety of plants, naturally attracts these helpful visitors.

LET YOUR GARDEN REFLECT YOU

Perhaps the most important thing to remember is that there is no single “correct” way to create a garden. Like any art form, it is an expression of personal taste and curiosity. Some people are drawn to bold colors and dramatic arrangements, and others soft, subtle palettes.

Gardens also teach us patience. They evolve over time. Plants grow, seasons change, and each year brings with it new opportunities. And whether you realize it or not, you are participating in one of the oldest and most universal forms of art. You don’t need to call yourself an artist. If you have ever planted something and imagined what it might become, you already are one.

Photo By Connor Gardenhire (Pexels.com)

SUPPORTS

LOUISVILLE FAMILIES FACING WEEKEND HUNGER

By VOICE-TRIBUNE • Photos By Kathryn Harrington • Sponsored

Louisville’s food insecurity doesn’t always look the way people expect. Children may eat well during the week at school but go without on weekends. Parents juggling multiple jobs can struggle to keep groceries in the house. That’s where the Young Nonprofit Foundation (YNPF) steps in with its Weekend Warrior Food Program (WWFP), providing families with the groceries they need when other support falls short.

This year, the foundation is turning the spotlight on the issue with its Derby Charity Soirée, a fundraising event designed to combine art, fashion, and community spirit while supporting families in need. “We’re hoping the Soirée raises money and starts real talk about hunger in our community,” says Anthony Young, founder of YNPF. “It’s a chance to bring people together in a fun, meaningful way. Because when people truly understand the need, that’s when they step up and help.”

The Soirée promises an upscale evening of “Charitable Art,” with live performances, free food and drinks, and an atmosphere of celebration with purpose. Every dollar raised will go directly toward the Weekend Warrior Program, which helps thousands of children each year access groceries on weekends.

Weekend Warrior works by partnering with local preschools, schools, churches, and other trusted community spots. Families fill out a short survey so the program can reach neighborhoods with the greatest need. “We supply real groceries on the weekends to allow families to use those funds on other necessities such as clothes, gas, and utility bills,” explains Jacque Young, COO of YNPF. She recalls a teacher and single mother of four who said the program helped her worry less about food, so she could focus on rent and other essentials. “It really hit home that this is about more than just meals,” Jacque says.

The program’s impact is just filling stomachs. “If the thread of regular meals starts to unravel, all the others begin to fray too,” Jacque says. Weekend Warrior strengthens that thread, supporting children’s focus in class, parents’ peace of mind, and overall family stability.

Running a program like Weekend Warrior comes with challenges. YNPF relies heavily on volunteers and strong local partnerships. “It’s just a handful of us here, and we’re fueled mostly by amazing volunteers…friends and neighbors, who step up week after week,” Anthony Young says. But the payoff is clear: steady, reliable help for families who need it most.

Looking ahead, YNPF plans to expand its reach through a free grocery store and a fleet of mobile food vans to deliver support directly to neighborhoods. But it all starts with awareness and community involvement. “Every bit of help counts,” Anthony says. Donations, volunteering, or sharing the story of Weekend Warrior all help families thrive.

The Derby Charity Soirée is the perfect opportunity to do just that. So come on out and enjoy an evening of art, music, and celebration while supporting Louisville families! By attending, guests become part of the solution, ensuring that Weekend Warrior can continue providing critical food support to children and parents when they need it most.

CONTACT YOUNG NONPROFIT FOUNDATION

TICKETS FOR CHARITY FASHION SHOW SOIRÉE

RETURNS WITH K-POP, HANBOK, AND HIGH-FLYING KICKS

By VOICE-TRIBUNE • Flyer By Louisville Korean Festival and Showcase • Image by natanaelginting on Freepik

Did you know Louisville has its own Korean heritage festival?

It does, and it’s bringing Taekwondo kicks, K-pop beats, and Korean street food to the Kentucky Expo Center on Saturday, March 7, 2026.

The Louisville Korean Festival and Showcase runs from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in West Hall A & B, and admission is free. Families, food lovers, and the simply curious can spend the afternoon watching live performances, trying traditional clothing, and sampling flavors.

The event is organized by the Jung Hwang Legacy Foundation and Hwang’s Martial Arts, continuing the work of Grandmaster Jung Oh Hwang. After earning an Olympic silver medal, Hwang built a martial arts school in Louisville and helped introduce thousands of students to Korean martial arts and values. His legacy now lives on through scholarships, community programs, and events like this one. Since 2019, the Foundation has raised more than $250,000 for scholarships, food donations to Wayside Christian Mission, and nonprofit partnerships.

Expect action early and often. Taekwondo students will take the stage with demonstrations, including choreographed forms and board-breaking routines. Cultural performers will follow with music and dance that reflect both traditional Korea and its modern global influence.

Visitors can also try on hanbok, the traditional clothing known for its bold colors and flowing design. Festival booths will offer crafts, goods, and information about Korean culture, while local vendors share their work with the community.

Like any good party, there will be food. Asian food trucks will line the space, serving everything from Korean specialties to popular street snacks. The smell alone is worth the trip. K-pop performers will keep the energy high!

A silent auction held during the festival will help fund the Foundation’s ongoing programs, including scholarships and charitable outreach. For performer Ångel 004, this year’s festival is a special one. “As a Kentucky Korean American who is reconnecting with their Korean heritage for the first time, events like the Korean Cultural Festival are really important to get introduced and take my first step,” they said. “I look forward to performing at the festival and connecting with other Koreans in Kentucky.”

For Louisville, the festival has become a place where the community can come together, meet, and celebrate one another. For visitors, it’s a chance to see something different, try something new, and spend a few hours experiencing a different culture. Variety, after all, is the spice of life.

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By: Alison Cardoza • Photograhy by Matt Johnson • Sponsored

Ballet engages the entire body throughout all of its movements. From the tip of one’s head to the tip of one’s toes – and beyond. Ballet forms the basis of dance and is essential for building core strength, posture, and discipline. We have all experienced the beauty of a ballet recital or performance, either live or through television. Ballerinas embody sophistication, poise, and precision, executing their movements with apparent ease; however ballet remains one of the most physically demanding exercises for mastering body control.

“Ballet Basics” class is offered by Denee on Wednesdays and every other Saturday at Baptist Health Milestone Wellness Center. “This class focuses on fundamental ballet techniques that improve posture, flexibility, and strength while fostering a love for dance in a supportive and encouraging environment. This class is perfect for those new to ballet or looking to revisit their earlier training,” says Milestone‘s ballet instructor Denee.

“Our participants range from raw beginners, who wanted to just try it, to very experienced former dancers who loved the ballet technique and the joy it brings them. This class at Milestone does not include the high impact or vigorous turns and jumps that they did when they were younger,” explains Denee.

Denee grew up with Ballet as an integral part of her life. Her grandmother and mother were both dancers. Denee taught tap, jazz, ballet, and creative movement as the full-time dance teacher at Noe Middle for 22 years and was director of her ballet school at Village Dance Theatre in Crestwood KY for over 35 years. 2 1/2 years ago, she came to Milestone, looking to keep in shape after retiring as a ballet teacher. She then began teaching ballet at Milestone. Her clients are very loyal to her.

“I love the Milestone ballet class! The exercise sequences work my memory; moving with the tempo of the music tickles my brain. Those two benefits combine to make ballet class my favorite form of meditation,” says Milestone member Tina.

Because of its physical and cognitive health benefits as we age, ballet is not just for kids and professionals anymore. Adult ballet class programs are spreading around the world. “Through my own experiences with this class, the ballet technique, recovering after foot injuries, input from class members, and research into the benefits of ballet for 40+ adults I have gained an even greater respect for the benefits of a traditional ballet class far beyond practicing plies, arabesque, combinations at the barre, and adagio in the center. I love the connections with its members and the joy and camaraderie present as the class comes to an end with a traditional reverence, “ says Denee.

This ballet class offers a comfortable place to unwind and release stress and tension while practicing the beauty of ballet movements. Join today.

Alison Cardoza- ACSM Certified Personal Trainer and Fitour Group Exercise Instructor at Baptist Health Milestone Wellness Center. BS Exercise Science and Sports Medicine with a minor in Health Promotions from University of Louisville. Former UofL Ladybird and NFL Colts Cheerleader.

U OF L WOMEN POISED FOR FINAL FOUR RUN

By RUSS BROWN • Photos Provided By Louisville Athletics

Back in late November when the 2025-26 college basketball season was still in its infancy, any suggestion that Louisville had another potential Final Four team would have been met with skepticism. After all, the Cardinals had lost decisively to the two Top 20 teams they had played at that point -- No. 1 UConn (79-66) and No. 16 Kentucky (72-62).

But things have changed. The turnaround began with a hard-fought 79-77 loss to No. 3 South Carolina on Dec. 4 in the KFC Yum! Center that U of L had a chance to win with a last-second shot. Since then the 8th-ranked Cards (26-4) have won 20 of 21 games and are one of the hottest teams in the nation going into postseason play. The lone setback was a 59-58 squeaker against No. 9 Duke on Feb. 5.

With a final 16-1 Atlantic Coast Conference record good for second place behind the Blue Devils (17-0), Louisville secured a double bye into the league tournament March 4-8 in Gas South Arena in Duluth, Ga. Near the end of the regular season U of L was 9th in the NCAA NET rankings, a metric evaluation tool that is an important factor the selection committee uses to select the 68-team NCAA Tournament field and assign seeding.

The Cards are projected as a No. 2 seed in the tourney (March 18-April 5). That would earn them the right to host the first two rounds of the tournament in the Yum! for the first time in four years as they try to reach the Final Four for the fifth time in coach Jeff Walz’s 19-year tenure at the school. They also have a chance to win 30 games for the first time since the 2018-19 season. They have already bumped their streak of winning 20 or more to 16 straight, and their ACC mark is their best since 15-1 in 2017-18.

What’s to credit for all that success?

“We all just want each other to be better,” senior guard Reyna Scott said. “It’s just happiness, seeing everybody put the work in and they get in the game, have the confidence to score. That’s huge, just everybody pouring into each other with that happiness. So it’s a blessing.”

That unselfishness is reflected in the Cards’ scoring balance. Seven players average between 8.0 and 11.8 points per game. During one 10-game stretch, seven different players were the leading scorer, and on the season, nine have led the team in scoring. U of L leads the ACC in scoring at 82 points per game, but has no player among the top 25, and also tops the conference with 27 games featuring three or more players scoring in double figures.

The Cards have created a competition for who can hand out the most assists from game to game. Right now it’s a close race between sophomore Tajianna Roberts and senior Laura Ziegler, with 94 and 86, respectively, while Scott has 78 and sophomore guard Imari Berry 72. Roberts is 7th in the ACC in assist to turnover ratio at 1.96 and Ziegler is 8th (1.95).

“I think with the transfer portal it takes some time for your kids to get adjusted to playing with a new team,” Walz said on a Courier-Journal podcast. “You can practice all you want, but I really think now they have a good understanding of who does what well. They’ve bought into it. They understand we don’t necessarily have a leading scorer. We’ve got about seven of them and they’re okay with that.

“I’ve got a group of players that want to win and winning is more important to them than their individual stats. As I explained to them, individual success will find you when team success is there. Whoever has the hot hand we’re getting the ball to them and that’s what we have to continue to have happen.

“As the season has evolved it’s shown itself that we have seven or eight who can get 12-15 any night. One night it might be my turn to get 15-20 and the next night it might be yours, and they’re okay with that. When we share the basketball we’re a good team. I challenge our players, you can go score a bunch of points, or do you want to be on a really good team and have an important role? They’ve all bought into that and I appreciate it.”

While, as Walz noted, Louisville doesn’t have a star, it has a close facsimile in Denmark native Ziegler, a versatile 6-foot-2 forward and post player who does everything but wash the team’s uniforms. In ACC play, the St. Joseph’s transfer leads the team in both scoring (12.3 ppg) and rebounding (11.3 rpg), and her 13 blocks are second only to Berry’s 14. She’s shooting 50% overall and .346 from 3-point range and she can also bring the ball upcourt when needed and trigger the offense.

“She makes it look easy, but it’s not,” Walz said. “She’s always around the basketball. She’s able to watch when a shot is taken, and she can tell if it’s short or long. And that’s really a gift. Whatever we need, she’s doing it. And it’s not just on the court, it’s off the court, it’s every day in practice. She brings positivity. She’s a happy kid. We’ve been fortunate to have her here. I’ll put my name on the line for her, whether it’s professional basketball or if it’s in the business world. I mean this kid is going to be successful. You want her in your locker room. You want her in your office.”

Ziegler said she transferred to U of L because she wants to play pro basketball and Walz has a reputation for developing players to move on to that level.

“I want to be the best at everything I do, (with) no regrets,” she said. “My role is doing a little bit of everything, whatever is needed. I knew coming in here what I had to bring was obviously my basketball skills, but also my leadership too.”

Walz earned his 500th career win earlier this year, all at U of L, becoming the third-fastest active head coach to accomplish that milestone. He has been named to the Naismith Women’s College Coach of the Year Watch List awarded by the Atlanta Tipoff Club. This is the sixth time Walz has been named on the list, and he has been a semifinalist each of the previous times.

“Expectations for the women’s basketball team here are extremely high, and I think that’s great,” Walz said. “But I think sometimes people forget what we’ve been able to do here.”

“They’ll likely be reminded in March when the Cards make another deep NCAA Tournament run.”

CARDS, KELSEY COULD END TWO NCAA TOURNEY DROUGHTS

By RUSS BROWN • Photos Provided By Louisville Athletics

For all of Pat Kelsey’s success during his 13 seasons as a head coach at three schools, there is one glaring hole in his otherwise impressive resume’. In 10 seasons at Winthrop, 3 three at Charleston and now in his second at Louisville, Kelsey’s teams have never won an NCAA Tournament game in five appearances.

That could change this year. Boasting a second straight 20-win season, the Cardinals are a cinch to receive an at-large bid to the Big Dance if they don’t earn the Atlantic Coast Conference’s automatic bid by winning the tournament championship to be held March 10-14 in Charlotte, N.C.

U of L, which was 20-7 overall and 9-5 in the ACC heading into the last four regular season games at this writing, is projected to be a No. 5 seed, which means it would meet a No. 12 seed in the first round, a significant improvement in seeding over last year when the Cards were surprisingly slotted at No. 8 and fell to No. 9 Creighton 89-75 in a first-round game in Rupp Arena in Lexington.

While Louisville would certainly be favored in such a scenario, it’s a notoriously dangerous spot. Almost every season at least No. 12 upsets a No. 5 and last year was no exception, providing clear examples in all three of the four regions. Not only did two No. 12 seeds prevail (Colorado State over Memphis and McNeese State over Clemson), but No. 5 Michigan barely escaped 68-65 against San Diego State. Only Oregon survived stress-free with an 81-52 rout of Liberty.

Selection Sunday is March 15. The tournament will begin March 17-18 with the First Four in Dayton, Ohio. First and second round games will be played March 19-22 and the Sweet 16 and Elite 8 are set for March 26-29 at four regional sites: East, Washington DC; West, San Jose, Calif.; Midwest, Chicago; and South, Houston. The Final Four will be played at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis April 4-6.

There will actually be two droughts in play this month because, incredibly for a storied program like Louisville, the Cards haven’t won an NCAA Tournament game in eight years, since defeating No. 15 Jacksonville State 78-63 in a first-round game as a No. 2 seed in Indianapolis before being upset by No. 7 Michigan 73-69. That was Rick Pitino’s final game as U of L’s coach; he was fired prior to the 2017-18 season.

“There’s a lot of ball yet to be played,” senior guard Isaac McKneely said. “We want to play all the way into April, the Final Four in Indianapolis. We’ve got a chance.”

The Cards will go into postseason play as one of the best offensive teams in the country. They are averaging 86.8 points per game, which is 16th and their 11.7 made 3-pointers rank 4th.

Kelsey describes the offense this way: “We want fluidity in our offense. We want to be in that flow state, we want the ball to move, we want people to move.”

But he says their success during March Madness will depend on the quality of their defense. That’s why he wrote this message on the locker room board prior to a game: “Our defense is the key to our destiny.”

“We can score with the best of them in the country -- everybody knows that” forward J’Vonne Hadley says. “We know that it’s just holding each other accountable on the defensive end. If we can do that (we’re a) Final Four team.”

Aside from playing a consistently high-level defense, the Cards will also have to perform far better away from the friendly confines of the KFC Yum! Center than they have for most of the season.

They are 3-5 in true road games, have been blown out by Tennessee, Arkansas and Duke and have been upset by Stanford and SMU. Their average margin of defeat on the road is 15 points, although the embarrassing 83-52 loss to the Blue Devils tilted that margin considerably.

“We haven’t been the best on the road this year,” senior guard Kobe Rodgers acknowledged. “But I think every opportunity we’ve had, we’ve kind of taken something away from it. That’s kind of helped us build up to get to this point. Do I think we are any sort of worried or anything like that? No. We know how good we can be. We know how good we are.”

Now it’s time to show everyone else.

MANY MORE NEW FACES ARRIVING NEXT SEASON

In his inaugural season, Kelsey started from scratch and built an entirely new roster by attracting players from the transfer portal. He’ll be facing a similar task, though not quite as severe, for 2026-27.

U of L will lose eight scholarship players -- seven seniors along with freshman guard Mikel Brown Jr., who is projected as an NBA lottery pick.

Just how massive those departures will be was brought home on Senior Day when that group scored all but nine points in U of L’s 8770 win over Georgia Tech.

“Those guys mean everything to me,” Kelsey told the fans in brief remarks following the post-game celebration on the court. “I love every one of them and that love is never going away. That’s an awesome group of dudes. The story of this team is going to be special and it’s yet to be written. Those guys are going to be remembered and revered like some of the great teams in the program.”

CARDS GET A VIEW FROM AFAR

Kelsey did something unusual the afternoon before Senior Day, taking his players to the last row in the upper level of the 22,000-seat Yum, from where the Cards and their opponent look like ants scurrying around to the fans in that lofty perch. It is no place for anyone with even a hint of acrophobia.

“First of all, it’s an enormous building,” Kelsey said. “You don’t realize it until you’re up there and the floor looks really small. I told (his players) that it’s perspective. We’ve all sat in the cheap seats growing up and when you look down you just dream of being on that floor. You don’t realize it when you’re a little kid, but when you’re out there on that floor, you feel the pressures and the anxieties to perform on a big stage.

“I talked to them about the privilege it is to have those expectations and those pressures. Coaches are always trying to figure out buttons to push. The season’s long, it’s a grind at times. So coaches are always trying to do some creative things to get their guys going or to make them think about things in a different way.”

Senior walk-on Cole Sherman is one of those players who is familiar with the view from above, having grown up in Louisville and starred at St. X High School.

“When I wanted to sit next to my buddies and there were no seats next to me (in the lower arena), we’d be in those seats up there,” said Sherman, who spent two years at Northern Kentucky University before transferring to U of L last year. “So it’s kind of funny, like a full circle moment. Being up there makes you think, man, we are really lucky to be playing in this big arena in front of all these great fans.”

Kentuckiana Honda Dealers

FESTIVAL DAY AT THE DOWNS

THURSDAY, APRIL 30 11:30 AM CHURCHILL DOWNS, 4TH FLOOR SKYE TERRACE

GET SOCIAL. GET HAPPY.

Experience the rush early during this action-packed day with the Kentucky Derby Festival! While the first race kicks off at 12:40 PM, the spotlight moment will be the third race, which is named in honor of the Festival.

Get access to special perks: reserved seating, a chef’s table buffet, open bar, covered views of the races, in-room mutuel tellers for a table of eight, and more. GET TICKETS (LIMITED SUPPLY). CALL 584-FEST OR SCAN QR CODE:

Photo Credit: 2025, John Fitzgerald

Time bends, says Einstein; less linear, less rigid, bent time?

I like it! Releasing me from fixed time into avant-garde freedom. They say ‘time is all we have, who’s to argue. . .Einstein? Can time be imagined as a huge universal Double-Helix? Infinite spirals, deep communication between all time.

TIME BENDS

Poems and Artwork By Connie Vice

Ever recycled yet new. Waving, rhythmic time, void of the harsh friction and burnt ashes of linear time. Gifted with that bending toward justice view of history; DNA does all its replicating, mutating. And just maybe the Universe throws out yet another paradox! And time is not all we have.

I’m from a place where the sidewalks weren’t flat challenging me . . . to float.

I’m from a place where barns, creeks, trees, mailboxes called to me come see, look closer.

FROM WHERE

I’m from a place where monkey bars roused the mountain climber in me and plank fences the tight-wire-walker.

I’m from a place where mysterious and peculiar matters mucked the air, frayed the nerve endings.

THE LOCKSTEP DANCE

Rhythmic highs and lows, pauses and inflections.

Body language to punctuate righteousness and vitriol humor to disarm.

Skilled in the drama we so love.

How clever, how ingenious . . . how flagitious, how unimaginative. Indignation spewing, all aimed to divert from our better angles.

The ugly finger of blame, ridicule, loser, buffoon, homely, weak.

On and on, ever pointing toward “The Other.”

Define “The Other.” Different race, different religion, different values, different blood line, different gender, different appearance, different party? Different! Different! Different!

A place uninhibited by helicopter moms opening wide the doors to wonder and wander, granting talents come forth!

Oh my! Could I be or become “The Other?”

Of course not, will not.

Let me heed the call of the lockstep dance. It’s thunderous stomping chant will blockade my differences . . .myself.

The beat, beat, beat of trusting no one.

The beat, beat, beat of me first.

The beat, beat, beat of deafness to nature.

The beat, beat, beat of numbing fear and anxiety.

The beat, beat, beat of boxed-in vistas

The beat, beat, beat of life UN-alive.

The price paid to never be “The Other.”

Of course, thank God!, we are the other via the Universal connection of all.

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WE AT VOICE-TRIBUNE WANT TO SHARE YOUR VOICE AND ENGAGE WITH THE COMMUNITY. SHARE YOUR STORIES, YOUR PHOTOS, YOUR ARTWORK AND SO MUCH MORE. CHOSEN SUBMISSIONS WILL BE PRINTED IN OUR MONTHLY VOLUMES, AND ONLINE AT VOICE-TRIBUNE.COM.

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By Kathryn Harrington

Ah, March, when the weather teeters unpredictably between “Time to start thinking about spring,” and “Wait, is that snow again?!” Whether you’re thawing out from winter or just trying to stay warm with a good drink, this month has plenty to offer. I’d wear some layers though, it is Kentucky after all.

First up, the Tailspin Ale Fest will take flight at Bowman Field, turning the historic airport into a playground for craft beer lovers. With 50+ breweries providing 250+ beers, and a special section reserved for brews from our own bluegrass (brew-grass) state, it’s the perfect time to sample everything from the classic to the quirky.

For art aficionados, the Speed Art Museum Ball is always a hit and transforms Louisville’s premier art institution into a luxurious wonderland. Guests don glittering gowns and dapper tuxedos while dining amongst the art, and honestly, the tablescaping is a work of art all on its own.

Over in NuLu, the NuLu Bock Fest & Wurst Fest will brew up excitement with its celebration of everything hoppy, malty and sausage-y. This is the kind of wacky quirky Louisville event that I’m particularly fond of, because it’s got something for everyone. Not a big fan of beer? Got you covered, there’s a wurst competition. Not a fan of beer or sausage? Great, because there’s goat races all day. Don’t like goats? You should reevaluate because goats are precious.

And for those who appreciate fashion with a twist, KMAC Couture proves every year that Louisville’s creative community isn’t afraid to take risks. This event showcases wearable art and designs that push boundaries and turn heads. I’m always flabbergasted by the innovation that I see from these artists, from the choice of fabric to use of mechanical components and creative lighting incorporated into the pieces. It’s definitely not an event to miss!

I’d like to end this month’s column by remembering a pillar in the photographic community and event scene in Louisville, Bill Wine. Bill was one of the first photographers I met when I started working for the Voice-Tribune, and he was incredibly generous with advice and tips for me during a time when going up to people I didn’t know to ask to take their photo was a terrifying concept. While I learned a great deal from him on how to take a photo, more importantly, I learned from him how to form lasting friendships and make genuine connections with the community members I photograph. As a pretty strong introvert for most of my life, I find that miraculous. I don’t know if he knew it, but Bill did that for me and I’ll always be grateful.

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Attitudes by Angie

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