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Meet Wishful, Wicked Painter Francesca Bifulco

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:04 GMT

Francesca Bifulco is a painter, mixed media, and multimedia artist from Pæstum, an ancient city in Southern Italy, where she was raised on a rather magical campground her family owned and operated — which explains a lot, actually. In her interdisciplinary work merging painting with sound, sculpture, video, and narrative histories — and now in a new exhibition of mixed media, sculptural paintings and installation called Candles Burning in the Wind — Bifulco is drawn to a fiery, visceral palette and an expressive, gestural manner of image-making. Capable of holding wit and curiosity alongside loss and trauma, Bifulco’s works process memories both personal and societal through the extrapolation of striking images and theatrical motifs. In this case, she considers the windswept, sharp-edged beauty of the palm tree, a non-native species that has come to all but define the city she now calls home. Inspired further by L.A. as a perennial muse to iconic rock ‘n rollers, the works are their ...

Sonoma winegarten: Kivelstadt Cellars and its al fresco restaurant reboot

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:04 GMT

It is totally fitting that I learned about Kivelstadt Cellars from a chef.We were in the middle of a recipe testing party for her forthcoming plant-centric cookbook, and I was one of a dozen female food-industry professionals gathered in a cozy San Francisco kitchen to make Micah’s scrumptious dishes. She’d arranged a private tasting of Kivelstadt wines to wash everything down.A nibble of such-and-such hummus, a sip of zippy rosé and so forth. The wines went so well with the food that by the time we made it to the pinot noir, a restrained and elegant wine from Kivelstadt’s estate vineyard in Santa Rosa, I knew where I would be stopping on my next wine country weekend.A month later, my best friends and I pull into the gravel-covered parking lot of Kivelstadt Cellars & Winegarten off Highway 12 in Sonoma. Open since 2020, it’s a casual, completely outdoor tasting and restaurant venue with an approachable yet creative, California-centric seasonal menu and an...

Warner Bros: Celebrate 100 years of movie magic by touring the studio

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:04 GMT

I’d driven by Warner Bros. countless times, admiring the colorful banners and billboards showcasing hit TV shows and coming attractions being filmed at the landmark studio complex in Burbank, and always longed to get a look at what was going on behind those walls.So it felt like I was checking something cool off my to-do list, when I pulled up to one of the guard booths at the studios earlier this year and — resisting the urge to say, “I’m here to see Mr. Spielberg” — told the gatekeeper I was going on a studio tour. These hourlong tours, which cost $59 to $69 and run daily, offer not just a glimpse behind the scenes but a dash of Hollywood-style — Burbank-style? — history.In the case of Warner Bros., it’s 100 years of cinematic history, recapped for us tourists by a short introductory video about the company and its centennial. Founded in1923 by four brothers — Harry, Albert, Sam and Jack Warner — the studio moved a few years later to this ...

Ready for your close up? Go behind the scenes with 3 movie studio tours

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:04 GMT

Looking to go behind the scenes in Hollywood?Fans can see where some of their favorite films and shows were made by signing up for a movie studio tour. Warner Bros. is celebrating its 100th anniversary this spring, so that’s certainly one option, but here are three more.Universal Studios HollywoodUniversal first began inviting tourists onto its lot more than a century ago. Of course, a lot has changed as the film world went from silent films to “talkies” and black and white to color — and Universal grew into a massive theme park business, with locations in four countries.But the famous Studio Tour — aka, the Backlot Tour — is still the best reason for visiting. Fans queue up in lines for the popular tour, just like they do for the park’s Revenge of the Mummy ride. But unlike what you’ll find at other studios, Universal’s hour-long tour is one part behind-the-scenes tour and one part thrill ride. The combination works very well, as movie lovers go ...

Cal Shakes goes dark for 2023, aiming for full 2024 season

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:04 GMT

California Shakespeare Theater, long a popular staple of the Bay Area summer outdoor theater season, has announced it will present no shows during 2023, but will focus on offering a full season next year, when the company celebrates its 50th anniversary.The announcement comes as the Orinda company, which operates at the scenic and popular Bruns Amphitheatre, deals with a prolonged struggle brought on in part by the COVID pandemic and resulting lockdown.Cal Shakes produced fewer shows than normal in its 2021 and 2022 seasons, and last year saw he departure of both artistic director Eric Ting and managing director Sarah Williams. Clive Worsley, a longtime Bay Area director, administrator and teacher, was named to handle both positions last year. He remains in that position now, although company’s announcement regarding its 2023 season was credited to “The Cal Shakes Team.”Cal Shakes said it anticipating an arrangement similar to recent past seasons, when the company&...

Jill On Money: Lessons from Silicon Valley Bank’s failure

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:04 GMT

Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), which catered to technology startups and the venture capital firms that financed them, was taken over by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). (The FDIC is an independent agency of the U.S. government that protects customers of insured banks against the loss of their deposits, up to $250,000, per depositor, if an insured bank fails.)Related ArticlesBusiness | Two one-way flights or one round-trip ticket: Which is better? Business | Best times to book the lowest-priced international flights in 2023 Business | How to avoid these 3 common banking scams Business | 3 ways to get your income and other money without the wait Business | Collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank explained: What to know SVB was the second-largest bank failure on record and has led many to question the stability of other, similar small to medium-sized niche banks that provided funding to...

Several arrested during Petaluma DUI checkpoint

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:04 GMT

PETALUMA, Calif. (KRON) -- The Petaluma Police Department conducted a DUI checkpoint at two locations last Friday and arrested several people including four DUI suspects as a result, according to PPD. Checkpoint locations are evaluated based on where the potential is to have the largest impact, officials said. Friday's checkpoints were located on East Washington Street between Parkland Way and Executive Drive between 7:00 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. and Petaluma Boulevard South near Highway 101 between 11:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m.  Anti-trans rant at Cheesecake Factory in San Francisco caught on video At the East Washington Street location, officers screened a total of 235 vehicles, arrested one DUI suspect, one person on an outstanding warrant and cited or arrested four drivers for operating a vehicle unlicensed or while suspended or revoked, according to PPD.At the Petaluma Boulevard location, officers screened 89 vehicles, arrested three DUI suspects and cited or arrested two drivers f...

Sheriff: 3 people dead, suspect detained in Georgia shooting

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:04 GMT

CONYERS, Ga. (AP) — Three people are dead in what authorities said was a shooting in an Atlanta-area home early Monday, according to a news report.The Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office received a report of gunshots at 12:10 a.m. in the Honey Creek Country Club neighborhood of Conyers, Georgia, about 30 miles (48 kilometers) east of Atlanta, the sheriff’s office said in a statement.Deputies arrived and found three people who had been shot. The victims, who were not immediately identified, were pronounced dead at the scene.A suspect who was not immediately identified was in custody and an investigation was ongoing early Monday, according to the sheriff’s office.Officials with the sheriff’s office planned to release more information later on Monday.Source

Countries urged to rally behind court probes in Ukraine

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:04 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Ukraine’s justice officials and the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court appealed Monday to countries around the world to boost funding and support for the global court’s investigations into alleged war crimes in Ukraine to ensure Russia is held accountable.Justice ministers from over 40 countries travelled to London for the war crimes conference, jointly hosted by Britain and the Netherlands, aimed at rallying extra support for the International Criminal Court’s probes into atrocities allegedly committed by Russian forces in Ukraine.The conference came days after the global court issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin, accusing him of personal responsibility in the abduction of children from Ukraine. Friday’s move was the first time the court has issued a warrant against a leader of one of the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council.“We share the belief that President Putin and the wider leadership must be held to account,”...

Man killed in shooting near District Heights

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:04 GMT

A man is dead after being shot during the predawn hours on Monday in Prince George’s County, Maryland.It happened in the 6200 block of Alpine Street in District Heights just after 2 a.m., according to Prince George’s County police.More Prince George’s County NewsMore Crime NewsPolice said they responded to reports of shots fired in the area, and when officers arrived, they found a man with gunshot wounds. He died at the scene.The man hasn’t been publicly identified.Police are investigating the shooting and are asking anyone with information about the shooting to contact the department’s crime solvers at 1-866-411-TIPS.Here’s a map of the area where the shooting happened. Source