RVA’s Neon DNA; Smoke Signals of Deliciousness; Inspiration and Validation; Reconnecting to Civics; Architectural Prowess.

RVA 5z5 ALT 5 - July 2, 2024

No algorithms. No content filters. No A.I. — Honest and insightful analysis from Richmond, VA.

This week check out our five stories on:

• A fun and colorful look into the only neon shop in RVA that has been producing and creating for decades and become part of the city’s DNA and creative matrix.

• A shout out to Original Ronnie’s BBQ in Varina which won a “Best Chef” contest in Chicago and beat out a bunch of pitmasters from places like Memphis, Raleigh, and Louisville, who are learning what Varina BBQ is all about!

• This week as we celebrate July 4th, the CEO of the Virginia Museum of History & Culture has a great op-ed and quote about the importance of reconnecting and re-energizing civic education and the role his institution is playing.

• Draw inspiration from the small non-profit Milk River Arts program helping pair adult artists with disabilities with mentors to create art for a living and serve a special message of validation and love.

• You probably walk, run, or drive by some of Richmond’s rich architectural history every day without knowing much about it, so meet one of the more well-known local architects and learn more about the mark of his legacy on those prominent buildings.

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THE ALT 5

ALT #1 — BUSINESS OF THE WEEK: RVA’s Neon DNA
Richmond is overflowing with great museums — from VMFA to the Science Museum, from The Valentine to the Virginia Museum of History & Culture, and everything in between. But if there is room left on the nominee form for the next museum, it should name Uptown Neon as the city’s next museum that everyone will want to visit.

Kevin Johnson has a fantastic deep dive in Richmond Magazine about the eclectic and mesmerizing shop on Cary Street in the Fan owned by Chloe Kottwitz, who just celebrated her one year anniversary of taking over the store.

Neon signs blend art, advertising and architecture into fragile, hot and buzzing landmarks. In Richmond, neon is a glowing backdrop for our city, lighting up landmarks such as The Triple pool hall, illuminating the Westland Shopping Center with a saguaro cactus and showing off some impressive branding in tattoo parlor windows. Though the works themselves may be easy to spot, the city’s neon sign makers are a rare breed, with only one shop dedicated to the commercial art form.

Every neon sign made to beckon you is made from the same blueprint of six or so basic bends. For an artist, there’s no limit to what those basic bends can become.

The store was the brainchild of Doug Solyan who opened the doors in 1987 and survived the phasing out of neon and was the last neon shop in Richmond. Kottwitz became an apprentice under Solyan in August 2021, but he passed away suddenly in February 2022. Kottwitz ran the business and fulfilled the orders they had, and then purchased the store in April 2023.

Kottwitz studied at the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University in western New York, where she leaned neon bending as a creative medium and specialized in neon production.

“That’s really what neon is,” Kottwitz says. “It’s a gas trapped in the glass. When it’s excited by electricity, the photons are visible, and we’re able to see that wavelength.” Not all neon signs contain neon gas; other noble and non-noble gases are popular for the variety of colors they enable.