Arts and Culture : Featured Stories

For those who call Baltimore home the Inner Harbor is easy to take for granted. For some it's even an object of derision, loaded as it is with tourist traps. Individual opinions aside, this much is clear: it's a landmark piece of urban planning and development with broad lessons to teach, both good and bad. We took a look at some of the pros and cons with an eye on what Baltimore can teach the rest of the world.

Anyone who's ever spent time in the vicinity of North and Greenmount can tell you: there is perhaps no more stark a reminder of Baltimore's troubles than the seemingly endless panorama of abandoned or derelict properties found there. Yet in empty and neglected space there's more than just rubble and ghosts. There's opportunity. For proof look no further than the Steady Baltimore Museum Project, which takes aim at two abandoned Barclay rowhouses with an eye on remaking them as community art space.

With the mercury hovering right around freezing as we enter 2010's home stretch, it's officially winter in Baltimore. We decided to take the opportunity to look back at some of the traditions and rituals that help make this city what it is, then invite you to join us on Facebook and Twitter to share some memories and ideas of your own.

What do you do when the kind of music you enjoy and would like to hear simply isn't being staged in your area? For Brian Sacawa the answer was simple: make it happen. Today he's the curator of the Contemporary Museum's Mobtown Modern Music Series, through which he's rapidly turning Baltimore into a contemporary music hub. Read on to find out how.

As the world becomes ever more mechanized -- and, sure, convenient -- some folks stop to wonder if we might be losing something in the process. Meet Kyle Van Horn, proprietor of Baltimore's first full-scale, public access print studio.

It's one of the east coast's largest comedy venues and it's growing fast -- right here in Maryland. Owner Andrew Unger has positioned Magooby's Joke House for an impressive run.

Our mission? To discover the inexpensive pleasures Charm City residents enjoy. What we found? We're a city that loves to eat. Whether it's a visit to a locally-owned restaurant or a trip to one of the area farmer's markets, what brings a smile to the faces of many in Baltimore is, quite simply, a good meal and a sense of community.

While Christian Siriano's rise to the heights of the U.S. fashion scene via the Project Runway fasttrack was an anomaly, his talent wasn't. The Baltimore area is replete with young designers toiling over muslin, pressing the sewing machine peddle  to the metal to bring their designer visions to life. As Baltimore's Fashion Week looms on the horizon, here's a peek at a few style makers we think have the goods.