Matthew Farrell, 1990s Charlottesville art scene figure, murdered

It saddens me to share here that Matthew Farrell, a unique figure of the vibrant 1990s art scene in Charlottesville, was the one shot and killed at his home on Stoney Point Road on Tuesday. His girlfriend and housemate, Shawna Marie Natalie Murphy, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder. I sold him the hard-topped sedan in this story by Hawes Spencer.

Matthew was an eccentric who was not a flake. When I sold him a Volkswagen Rabbit I owned back in the 90s he was courteous, thoughtful, and organized (always a hint of his military service mixed with a desire to buck convention) as we negotiated the price and completed the documentation. And when I handed him the keys he casually mentioned that he planned to hacksaw the roof off and turn it into a convertible. I suggested that might be problematic as Rabbits had a unibody frame, meaning the body was the structural framework of the car -- and it did end up being problematic -- but Matthew was determined, cutting the roof off wi…