A lens on the Lowcountry. A long view on Mother Emanuel. Park Circle Pride.
Maura's Three for the Week in Charleston, 6/2/25 - 6/8/25
Whether fresh from another city or long rooted in native soil, unpacking Charleston past and present can be an all-consuming endeavor. I know I’m not alone in logging countless hours scouring the phenomenal Facebook group Charleston History before 1945. At the same time, I chase updates on seminal urban projects like the terrain-changing Union Pier and Lowline, and track shifts in the city’s social fabric, too.
Thankfully, local thinkers and artists are forever mulling this as well. Here are this week’s standouts.
Reflect on Mother Emanuel with a New York Times scribe
Charleston Library Society, 164 King St., downtown Charleston, Tues., June 3, 6 - 7 p.m.
This week marks the pub-day release of Mother Emanuel: Two Centuries of Race, Resistance, and Forgiveness in One Charleston Church. The comprehensive history of one of the nation’s most important African American church was penned by celebrated New York Times and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Kevin Sack. (Read Charleston City Paper’s cover story by Andy Brack). To launch the book, Charleston Library Society hosts the locally-based author, who engages in conversation with the always spot-on broadcast journalist Carolyn Murray.
For tickets and information, click here.
Be part of Park Circle Pride
Various locations and times throughout Park Circle, North Charleston, Tues., June 3 - Sun., June 8
On its fifth anniversary, the annual Park Circle Pride is set to further its renown as one of the South’s most vibrant and inclusive LGBTQ+ festivals. This year, over 40 events will span the Park Circle neighborhood, promising a lineup that is bigger and bolder than ever, with drag shows, a pool party, kids programming and more.
Among the highlights is Itinerant Literate’s June 4 Brewing on Books: Real Rainbow Row at Commonhouse Aleworks. For it, author and historian Harlan Greene leads a panel exploring Charleston’s LGBTQ+ history after dark. Festival proceeds support Alliance for Full Acceptance (AFFA) and We Are Family.
For information, visit parkcirclepride.com.
Take in a new Charleston view via famed photographer Nigel Parry
Corrigan Gallery, 38 Queen St., downtown Charleston, Wed., June 4 - Mon., June 30; opening reception during Charleston Art Walk is on Fri., June 6, 5 - 8 p.m.
Nigel Parry, the celebrated, Charleston-based photographer to the stars, returns to Corrigan Gallery with new landscapes. These minimal, colorful renditions on film of our surroundings capture the ethereal nature of our semitropical environment. British born with a stretch of professional miles logged in New York City, Parry adds to Corrigan Gallery’s roster of artists both contemporary and long renowned, including those of the famed Charleston Renaissance cultural movement, among them Elizabeth O’Neill Verner and Alfred Hutty.
For information visit Corrigan Gallery.
One for the future: Food & Wine Classic in Charleston passes now on sale
Downtown Charleston, Fri., Nov. 14 - Mon., Nov. 16
After an exuberant, mouth-watering first year, the three-day culinary extravaganza known as the Food & Wine Classic in Charleston returns to town from November 14 - 16. Hosted by Food & Wine, Travel + Leisure and Southern Living and presented by Explore Charleston, it rolls out a host of seminars and cooking demonstrations with today’s most talked-about tastemakers, along with its bounteous, convivial Grand Tasting Pavilion.
Having enjoyed myself thoroughly and expansively last year (with a well-loved wine glass and tasting tray to prove it), I would heartily encourage a full-on immersion.
Early bird passes are $1,450 through July 31, when they will increase to $1,950.
For tickets and information, click here.