Preserving Tradition | Resurrecting the Family Photo Album
Photography has always held an important place within the family. The process of creating an image became pervasive in the mid 1800s. Families embraced this new innovation and had photographs produced of friends and relatives. The photo album became an integral part of the family’s home and history. The tradition of creating snapshots of time and place remained popular for generations. As the world changed centuries, so did the process of photography. Recording an image became easier and more accessible with the introduction of digital imaging. The mysterious process of producing an image from camera film was simplified to using the review button on the back of the camera or […]
Artist Spotlight | The Aiken Center for the Arts presents “The Dog and Pony Show,” Friday Studio Painters, and Snap SRS
From October 29 through December 2, the Aiken Center for the Arts showcases works from 44 artists in three exhibits: “The Dog and Pony Show,” Friday Studio Painters, and Snap SRS. In celebration, there will be a public opening reception, sponsored by the Sullivan Turner Team, at the Arts Center on Thursday, November 7 from 6 to 8pm. Learn more about these artists and come view their works as we celebrate our community through art. Featured in “The Dog & Pony Show” is artist Heather LaHaise from Columbia, SC. Heather brings abstraction and realism together with layers of color and graphic spaces to create paintings that transcend the singular category […]
November Cabinet of Curiosities
The month of November is full of so many traditions. Between Dia de los Muertos and Thanksgiving festivities, the month is packed with celebrated occasions. Some of the more unique celebrations in Aiken County are the Chitlin Strut Festival in Salley and the Blessing of the Hounds in Aiken. The Chitlin Strut began in 1966 when the newly elected mayor of Salley, Jack Able, needed to raise funds for new Christmas decorations for the town. Able, along with Salley council members Maxie Adams and P.G. Sharpe, went to visit a radio disk jockey named “Friendly” Ben Dekle in Cayce, South Carolina, to see whether he could suggest a fundraising idea […]
Be Grateful
Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family: Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one. Jane Howard Our tribe, it’s our family. Our Bella Family. Each month new members are added to an ever-growing network of friends. Each new member adds richness to our story and in-turn a level of gratitude we could never have foreseen. New contributors. New stories. New connections. We like to think of each contributor to Bella as a precious thread woven into the fabric of Aiken. In every issue of Bella we are privileged to tell the stories of those who impact our community. […]
Gratefulness + Happiness
Happiness is not getting everything you want; rather it’s being grateful for what you have. The Aiken characteristic for the month of November is gratefulness. As Thanksgiving approaches, there is heightened attention to thankfulness and expressing the things we are grateful for. Gratefulness is the key to happiness, and humility is the key to peace. Gratefulness is self-less. It’s related to love and peace, and achieving it takes awareness and understanding. There is someone I wanted to recognize this month for gratefulness as I have witnessed her exhibiting gratefulness on numerous occasions through the authentic show of thankfulness, happiness, and appreciation in all she does. A humble smile and peaceful […]
A Tradition of Learning | Journalism in the Classroom
This year at Leavelle McCampbell Middle School we have taken our journalism class and developed it to its full potential. As a school, we have been challenging ourselves to use technology more often and strategically in our classroom. Our goal for this school year is to stream a daily morning video announcement throughout the entire school building and to post our newsletter through a blogging website. Our main purpose is to show positivity within the school while reaching these goals. Our morning announcements have taken off in a positive and effective direction. We have implemented mandatory announcements using fun trends, community activities, and every student. For example, we have applied […]
A Tradition of Inspiration | Bella’s Featured Artist: Julie Adams
Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time. ~ Thomas Merton In her second story studio, Julie Adams was energized as the portrait of her son came to life on canvas. It was a new style for her; an oil finished in pencil. It gave the impression that the painting was not quite completed, “like my son,” she mused. “He’s not finished yet, as a person. None of us are.” Then she learned that English artist Mark Demsteader was gaining fame and popularity in his country for the using same technique; her enthusiasm grew. “That’s what I was doing, too. When I saw his work […]
A Tradition of Taste | Turkeys on the Table
When we think of holiday traditions we think of Christmas, Thanksgiving, turkey, sides, parades, mistletoe, Christmas trees, egg nog, carols, stockings, presents, and all else that comes along. The definition of tradition is the transmission of customs and beliefs from generation to generation. The most meaningful traditions are those we create and celebrate with family and friends. Those traditions we celebrate all originate from older traditions and customs we have in common, such as Thanksgiving. We all know Thanksgiving as the traditional holiday we all celebrate, but do you know about how the holiday came about for the entire country? In 1846, editor and author Sarah Josepha Hale, considered the […]
Speaking with Authentic Voices
Like the old “Change Your Voice” book itself, I sometimes feel woefully worn and dog-eared and torn around the edges. But, perhaps like the book, I have old truths that I am meant to speak, in a voice to be made worth hearing. It was an old book. Not rare or antique, but rather vintage. Just old enough to smell of aging library glue and dried damp, and to have sepia-toned edges and dog-eared corners that marked passages now long-forgotten in spite of the inspiration they must have once incited. It was a book my father had given to me, but I don’t remember why. It is entitled: “Change Your […]
A Tradition of Community | Aiken’s One Table Food for the Body and Soul
Until you see the smiling faces hovering over steaming plates of food, until you hear the laughter and music drifting through the Alley, until you brush your arm against a friend you’ve met for the first time as you reach for your fork, you cannot understand what happens at Aiken’s One Table on Thanksgiving Day. More than just eating mashed potatoes and turkey dripping with gravy, more than splurging on spicy pumpkin pie and chocolate cupcakes, Aiken’s One Table is a feast of fellowship, friends, and fun. When sliding your chair forward to the table, people leave their worries and differences behind to celebrate the holiday of gratefulness and thanksgiving. […]
