If you’re an art lover craving a bit of flower power and the work of an artist who changes his styles as much as he changes his sweaters, this is your weekend.
Kansas City painter Helen Lea’s “Always in Bloom” exhibit will be on display along with the late Ray Ottinger’s pieces in “The Boy in the Brown Sweater” at the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art from Nov. 22 to Jan. 11. There will be an opening reception from 1 to 4 p.m. on Nov. 22.

In less than two months, President-elect Barack Obama will be inaugurated into the highest office in the land. This means that our current commander-in-chief, President George W. Bush, will have to vacate the premises of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. No matter where your political loyalties lie, there is no denying that Bush wasn’t our country’s most popular leader. But for comedians everywhere, the exit of “Dubya” will be a day of unbelievable sadness.

This is: Carbon

Calendars for Nov. 21, 2008

If you haven’t heard that “Twilight,” the movie based on the best-selling young adult vampire romance, comes out today, chances are you haven’t been in the vicinity of a teenage girl recently.

The St. Joseph Music Foundation is using one more instrument to extend its reach. The local nonprofit organization, with a goal to unite the St. Joseph music scene, recently launched its own radio station. The station, which began broadcasting Nov. 1, is available to stream for free online at www.stjosephmusicfoundation.org. The idea of starting a homegrown radio station was always a goal since the music foundation’s inception in 2007. After acquiring a BMI license to air recorded music and securing an office in the Kirkpatrick Building in October, the foundation began loading music from foundation members into a computer program that rotates the songs and plays them online.

The last member of one of rock's most important, powerful and groundbreaking bands died on Nov. 12.

While it’s common for mainstream artists and musicians today to express their political views after they’ve made it big, it’s rare that a band attains that status because of those views.
But that’s what the Chicago hardcore quartet Rise Against has managed to do. The group, with singer/guitarist Rim McIlrath, guitarist Zach Blair, drummer Brandon Barnes and bassist Joe Principe, came up from the underground punk scene while keeping their political message intact.

November marks an interesting time for movies this year. Now that Hollywood is done raking in the bucks from a blockbuster-filled summer box office and a few successful fall releases, studios are beginning to trot out dramas they hope will be considered for Oscars.

It turns out the Saint Joseph Symphony can benefit from more than just playing a few recognizable works. A bit of friendly competition helps, too.
That was the case for the “Of Magic and Myth” concert on Sept. 27, which featured popular works by Mozart and Stravinsky along with guest conductor Mark Allen McCoy, the first of three finalists for the Saint Joseph Symphony’s musical director and conductor positions. This combination of circumstances has brought out a larger and more appreciative crowd.