City Week

Bugs Bringing People Together

The first Thursday of each month, the Sculpture Resource Center is hosting a night of craft-making delights, along with an array of local visual and performance artists.

"We're really trying to create something here where people feel welcomed (with) lots of generations of people," said David Campbell, event coordinator for the Sculpture Resource Center.

There is always an enticing theme to go along with the evening. This month's theme: insects! Guests are encouraged to dress accordingly.

"It's about being together as a community enjoying and creating art," Campbell said.

This month's creepy-crawly art event will feature performances by DJ Diabolic, the Grub Spring String Band, Will Elliott, Mat Bevel, Cosmic Slop and Infernal Racket.

The event will also feature an art opening from 6:30-7:30 p.m. of visual pieces by local artists Bevel, Gavin Troy and Theresa Catalano.

Children can enjoy an art table with a themed project. This month, children will get to make insect masks.

"(This event) allows people like me who have children to be able to come out and still be a part of the art community," Campbell said.

The Sculpture Resource Center is a multiuse art studio that offers space for artists to make works in ceramics and glass; it also offers a metal shop, a wood shop and a wax room.

"I invite people from the community to make it what they want," Campbell said. "It inspires me to see what people create."

Admission to the First Thursday Art Event is $5.

"It's a $5 charge to be able to come and enjoy four to five hours of performance art, get to hang out with other parents and kids, and come away with something." --T.A.

One Giant Leap for Mankind

The escalation of the Cold War in the '60s led to the development of unthinkable technologies, especially in regards to space. First came the launch of the Soviet Union's Sputnik, followed later by Neil Armstrong's famous moonwalk.

But what began as an exploration of space for the sake of science has, in recent years, developed into a question of ownership.

"Most scientists are in favor of the principle that you can't own space," said Dr. Chris Impey, of the Astronomy Department at the UA.

Impey will lecture alongside Lynda Williams, more commonly known as the Physics Chanteuse, at "Keep Space for Peace," an event meant to increase awareness of the somewhat obscure uses of space.

"The dangers of space ... are not on people's radar," Impey said. "But no one should assume that space is destined for peaceful uses."

For the last three years, the United States has refused to sign a United Nations resolution that bans weapons in space, Impey said.

The Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, the organization hosting the event, wants to provide insight into United States' refusal.

"The argument is that we need missiles in space to ... intercept intercontinental missiles that are aimed at our territory," Impey said. "That makes the assumption that the entire lower orbit is available as a playground for developing and deploying missiles."

Of course, the space race has changed drastically since its conception in the '60s. Today, myriad nations possess the technology to launch objects like missiles into orbit, Impey said.

The lecture will follow a viewing of the film Space 4 Peace. This event is free and open to the public. --M.N.

Motown Returns!

To all of you who still sing in the shower to the likes of Marvin Gaye and The Temptations: You may want to get down to Centennial Hall this Friday.

UApresents is launching its new season with "A Motown Celebration" featuring Motown idols Mary Wilson, of The Supremes, and the legendary Funk Brothers.

"We wanted a fun, lively and exciting season opener," said Mario Di Vetta, marketing and publicity associate for UApresents.

Wilson is a founding member of The Supremes--and she helped form the group when she was barely a teenager. She recorded 12 No. 1 hits with the female super-group, including "Stop! In the Name of Love," "Where Did Our Love Go" and "Baby Love."

"Motown is still alive and well," Di Vetta said.

The Motown movement, along with the Supremes, will celebrate their 50th anniversaries next year. "We like to celebrate early here," Di Vetta said.

The Funk Brothers are the band that helped make Smokey Robinson and The Four Tops the legends they are known as today. They were the original house band of Motown Records, and they played on all the major hits of Motown's golden era, including "Heat Wave," "My Girl" and "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted."

"They were just the backup band that didn't get much recognition, but they're the ones who created that Motown sound," Di Vetta said.

Tickets for Friday's concert range in price from $25 to $65, with discounts for students, seniors and members of the military. --T.A.

Tangerines Typically Titillate

Words like tangerine are meant to titillate the senses. That's why Susan Warren named her eye-popping midtown art venue Tangerine Gallery.

The gallery is currently featuring artwork that highlights the human form--specifically, the female figure. How's that for titillating?

With 12 artists' work on display, the mediums used to create the elusive "she" will vary dramatically. Take David Adix, for example.

"He uses materials that he finds in the desert that already have significance," Warren said. "He calls the forms he creates 'native figures.'"

Another featured artist, Neil Weinstein, uses a more traditional medium in his sculptures: clay.

"Weinstein's figures ... are not overly worked--they're still a little bit rough," said Warren. "It gives his pieces a real sense of movement and spirit."

In addition to sculptures, drawings and paintings will be available for viewing (and purchasing)--and art-lovers can meet the artists at Saturday evening's reception.

If you call yourself an artist, a live figure model will be posing at the reception for your poised hand. In fact, you can sketch a model every Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m. for the duration of the exhibit--but the model will be fully clothed. On the bright side, Tangerine Gallery will provide light refreshments at the reception.

If you can't get enough of the human figure (or, should I say, the idealized human form), the staff at Tangerine Gallery recommends you check out the Drawing Studio's Figures for Life exhibit, which, along with numerous other downtown art exhibits, will also be at the center of a reception on Oct. 4, from 6 to 9 p.m.; check out Page 34 for more information.

This event is free and open to the public. --M.N.