A nonstop flight away, Richmond reckoning with history across arts and culture scene | Arts and Travel

RICHMOND, VA. — It starts with a newly launched Friday morning nonstop flight from Charleston and ends with a final piece of pink taffy at the Quirk Hotel.  

But in between, Richmond  has much to offer and much to ponder during a weekend getaway. I’ll be sharing some of my personal highlights with you from my weekend stay in late May, but it all starts with a reckoning. 

The food lover, history buff, and arts and culture aficionado alike can appreciate Richmond’s embrace of diversity and head-on approach to tackling a controversial past — as the capital of the Confederate States of America during the Civil War and, before that, a hub for the Powhatan tribe when European settlers invaded and decimated the native population. Enslaved Africans built the city of Richmond on the unmarked graves of native people.

It’s not a pretty past, but it’s not unlike Charleston’s own, which is why this visit perhaps resonates deeply. 

Even before the pandemic, the art- and history-centric institutions of Richmond were already dedicating their resources to evening the playing field of the past, letting go of some former heroes and telling the many stories that hadn’t yet been told. In recent years, that mission has been more synchronized and robust than ever, it seems. 

Perhaps it all came to a head on July 1, 2020, when the Stonewall Jackson monument — a stalwart symbol along the city’s famous Monument Avenue — came tumbling down. One by one, the other city-owned Confederate statues were removed, each splattered with protest paint in the wake of a national Black Lives Matter movement. 

Surrounded by multimillion-dollar historic homes and the museum district, the state-owned Robert E. Lee monument saw more than a year of protests before it was removed. 

The Valentine

Area museums began to take note of what monuments were among their own collections. The Valentine, which shared director Laura Bragg with the Charleston Museum in the 1920s, was one of them.

Current museum director William “Bill” Martin took a good look at the stockpile of racist caricatures, statues glorifying Confederate soldiers and all the collectibles taken from various cultures that were on display and in the archives. He and staff decided to return hundreds of artifacts to their original native tribes and families. 

“You can’t tell a new story with the same old stuff,” Martin said. 

In addition, the museum brought in the removed Jefferson Davis monument to display in its graffitied state with modern context. The museum’s namesake, Edward Valentine, built that monument and one other along the avenue.

“We knew as a city this was an institution that needed to lead discussions because so many of them started at this spot,” Martin said. “Jefferson Davis being made here is one story, but Jefferson Davis covered in protest paint is a story for 2020.” 

Virginia Museum of History & Culture

Among other museums reconciling with a troublesome past is the Virginia Museum of History & Culture. Formerly called the Virginia Historical Society, the museum has undergone an extensive overhaul and rebrand that included updating exhibits and artifacts, creating a powerful video that explores the state’s history in a new, more inclusive light and making the space more accessible and welcoming to everyone in the community. 

After 18 months of construction, the privately funded museum with more than 9 million artifacts and 12 galleries reopened in May of this year. 

“History is important,” said Tracy Schneider, vice president for marketing and communications. “We want to make sure we’re telling the factual story of our state but also what makes this state unique is telling the stories of everyone.” 

Among exhibits were “The Lost Cause: Myths, Monuments and Murals and Our Commonwealth,” a multisensory journey through the five major regions of Virginia that reveals it’s less about geography and more about the stories we tell about ourselves. 

Black History Museum

The story of the iconic Maggie Walker comes to life during a walking tour with Gary Flowers, a staple figure of the Black History Museum because of his unrivaled passion to tell Black stories and amplify Black voices. 

Walker was, simply put, a “girl boss” that history pages overlooked. Born in 1864 to enslaved parents, she was a rebel and entrepreneur who boycotted her own high school graduation to protest educational inequalities. She then became a history teacher, as well as the first woman of any race to charter a bank in the United States and the first Black woman to become president of a bank in the United States.

She was also the first woman to have a statue in Virginia’s history, and that happened only in 2017. That statue stands at the Memorial Plaza in Richmond. 

The Black History Museum, of course, also details slavery, white supremacy and gerrymandering, among other facts about the historically Black Jackson Ward district. Flowers added during his tour that one in four African Americans can trace their roots to Richmond in some shape or form, as it was the largest hub for trading enslaved people outside of New Orleans from the 1830s to the Civil War. 

“We’re ground zero to the American empire in a way,” Flowers said. “The good, bad and the ugly started in Virginia.” 

Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

While some museums are telling the truth about Richmond’s dark history, others are dedicated to continuing to showcase diversity. Open until 9 p.m. so people can come after work, this massive museum that spans from Tibetan contemporary art to American impressionism is another Richmond must.

The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is one of the biggest and most comprehensive art museums in the country, and recently brought in the largest public collection of Fabergé eggs outside of Russia. “Tsherin Sherpa: Spirits” was a special display during my visit featuring the Nepalese-born artist and his Buddhist-grounded art with a colorful contemporary twist. 

In addition to some incredible exhibitions that could’ve easily taken a day to peruse, the outdoor sculpture garden features a mesmerizing optical illusion. The 24-foot-tall “Chloe” by Catalan artist Jaume Plensa looks normal from a distance, but once approached it becomes clear the statue is incredibly thin. It’s quite a treat to see up close. 

An “Art of the American Guitar” exhibition is slated for Oct. 8 through February. It will include a pop-up recording studio in which musicians develop an album on-site, and it might just be a prime reason to visit for the music lovers. 

The Poe Museum 

Nevermore will Richmond visitors be in the dark about an iconic macabre American poet (who also has a tie to Charleston) after visiting The Poe Museum, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary.

Curator Chris Semtner can’t tell you exactly how Edgar Allan Poe died, but he can give you his best scientific guess and express Poe’s tragic and dramatic love life and travel stories through various artifacts. 

Museum black cats Edgar and Pluto, who have their own Instagram page, also make pretty good tour guides; the story is they simply showed up at the museum one day and were taken in. Pretty spooky stuff to me, but so is this entire place, from the lush garden and Poe bust out in the courtyard to individual rooms that show slices of Poe’s life. 

Semtner said guests leave random items, from coins to roses to kiss marks, on Poe’s bust. It’s become a local shrine. And the private museum’s “unhappy hours,” in partnership with local breweries and band The Embalmers (whose members dress up as morticians), are a hit on the fourth Thursday of each month.

It might be worth planning your Richmond trip around this museum if you’re a Poe’s Tavern regular. (He was stationed at Fort Moultrie on Sullivan’s Island for just over a year.) 

ZZQ

Another Charleston connection arises in the Richmond food and beverage scene. Texas barbecue joint ZZQ uses a smoker built by the father of John Lewis of Lewis Barbecue. 

“He has four and we have one,” said co-owner Alex Graf during a particularly filling, delicious lunch. “It’s 107 degrees in there right now, and it can get up to 130. In other words, it’s pretty cozy in the winter.” 

The “pitmistress” is better known as Orange, and she’s been a part of the James Beard Foundation’s women’s leadership program. 

Brisket, pulled pork, chorizo with pork belly, smoked turkey, sausage and pork spare ribs were sprawled out on a group platter for lunch, along with sides of jalapeño mac and cheese, collard greens, Cajun-style corn, cowboy beans, cold bean salad or “Texas caviar,” sweet tea beets, coleslaw, cucumber salad and buttermilk potatoes. 

What a spread! This one isn’t for the vegetarians. 

Jubilee

For a casual fine-dining experience, this new Black chef-owned restaurant is an ideal one for celebrating, as everyone gets a complimentary glass of champagne on arrival. 

Jubilee is Mike Lindsey and his wife Kimberly Love-Lindsey’s fifth concept in town, alongside star restaurant Lillie Pearl.

A watermelon and heirloom tomato salad, steak tartare, seared scallops or charred caulilini are among appetizers, before entrées like the beef filet medallions, West African seafood pot and pan-roasted beet steak (now this one’s for the vegetarians) steal the show. 

Hotel Greene

This Richmond attraction is fun for the whole family, or ideal for a lighthearted date night. 

I thought it was an actual hotel, but I was mistaken. Hotel Greene is, in fact, a one-of-a-kind indoor putt-putt course that looks straight out of a Wes Anderson movie. The entryway includes a lobby staff equipped with luggage carts, and there are some hidden peek-a-boo hideaways along the course that reveal miniature replicas of various landscapes and scenes. 

I’m a sucker for putt-putt and I love some detective work, so this place was right up my alley. Plus, my cocktail matched the color of my golf ball. They were both purple. Coincidence? I think not!  

GWARbar & Cobra Cabana

While Hotel Greene brought a splash of class, I’m also always here for a good dive bar. These are two treats I got to experience during my Richmond stay, and I highly recommend both. 

The first, GWARbar, is owned by and themed after GWAR, the outrageous heavy metal band known for spraying fake blood into the audience and wearing over-the-top freaky fantastical costumes. The theme is spot on, with dangling eyeballs, band paraphernalia and a giant monster claw hand coming out of the wall.

Plus, on the menu you can order bar foods from cauliflower nuggets to Twinkies. 

Next up we have Cobra Cabana, an outdoor bar featuring a giant skeleton figurine and disco ball among the décor. This is your classic beer-and-a-shot bar, with fries to soak up any bad decisions. 

Quirk Hotel

I’ll end this travel piece with the very place I ended up every night: the Quirk Hotel. Pink and dreamy, this downtown abode made for lovely sleeping quarters. 

Rooms come with a bowl of pink taffy, sparkling water, and unique bathroom tile and light fixtures in addition to perfectly fluffed pillows. There’s a downstairs bar or rooftop bar with magical lights for a nightcap, if you so desire. 

You can certainly sleep here, but don’t sleep on Richmond. Especially if you’re looking for some rich, cultural thought-provoking experiences that might just apply a new layer of contemplation to your own historical perspective. But also, good barbecue. 

Editor’s Note: Part of this trip was funded and curated by Visit Richmond. The tourism group paid for the hotel stay and museum experiences in addition to some of the food experiences for The Post and Courier’s arts and entertainment reporter in addition to writers from publications across the United States.

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