This is our monthly curated roundup of maker/artist/explorer events!
Angle brackets (>>) point to related info on our site.
U.S.
National Park Service Centennial
Aug 25. There are programs throughout the United States to celebrate the Park Service’s 100th birthday.
- Now – 2017. Art Quilt Tour: 13 art quilts created in celebration the National Park Service Centennial are touring the National Parks they depict now through 2017.
- Read on to find out about celebrations in Arizona, Hawaii, and Massachusetts!
+Arizona
Tucson Movies in the Park
Jul 22, Aug 5, Aug 19 at Reid Park, Demeester Performing Arts Pavilion, Tucson. Free admission.
>>Ongoing Phoenix-area movie events.
Sewing Classes with Oxford Dogma
- Aug 3, 6pm. Sew a Waxed Canvas Shave Kit at TechShop Chandler.
CraftHack
2nd Mondays, 6pm at Gangplank Chandler. Free monthly meet-up of artists and crafters. Learn something new or bring your own project to work on!
- Aug 8: Craft Swap!
- Sep 12: Project TBD
Hilton Indoor Fine Art Festival
Jul 16, 10am-6pm at Hilton Tucson El Conquistador Golf & Tennis Resort.
Juried fine arts festival with artisan displays from around the region and live strolling acoustic violin, jazz and bluegrass performances.
National Park Service Parks in the Pines Birthday Bash
Aug 20, 10am-5pm at Flagstaff City Hall Parking Lot. Celebrate the National Park Service’s centennial with a free park fair, photo booths, and cake.
Maurice Sendak art exhibit
Now – Jul 17 at Burton Barr Central Library. 50 original pencil drawings and other early images from Where the Wild Things Are author and illustrator Maurice Sendak.
Blended Conference
Sep 15-16 at Windmill Winery, Florence. Blogging conference with workshops, speakers, and networking.
>>Our visit to Windmill Winery.
+California
Pasadena Summer Concert Series
Now – Sep 25 at Levitt Pavilion band shell in Memorial Park, Pasadena. Free concerts featuring both emerging and established musicians of many genres.
- Thursday through Sunday evenings.
- Thursdays are children’s nights.
- Festival opens two hours before music starts.
- You can picnic on the lawn.
Balboa Park San Diego Summer Events
- Now – August 29, Mondays, 7:30pm at Spreckels Organ: 2016 International Summer Organ Festival. Free outdoor concert series.
- Now – Sep 2, Fridays: Balboa Park After Dark. Extended musuem hours, food trucks, and entertainment.
- Now – Sep 5, 3:30pm at San Diego Zoo: Nighttime Zoo. Artisan demonstrations, movies, live music and other performances to celebrate the San Diego Zoo’s centennial.
- Now – March 3, Sundays, 2pm at Spreckels Organ: Sunday Organ Concerts. Free weekly concerts at one of the world’s largest outdoor pipe organs.
Citrus Historic State Park
- Most Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays at 10:30am, 12:00pm, and 2:00pm. Tour and Tastes: Learn about citrus trees, sample fruit, and pick some of your own.
- Jul 16, 9am. Groves on Wheels: Wheelchair and stroller accessible guided tour through the Park’s citrus groves.
>>Our visit to Citrus Historic State Park.
dineLA Restaurant Week
Jul 18-31. Fixed-price menu at restaurants throughout Los Angeles.
#BlogHer16: Experts Among Us
Aug 4 – 6 at JW Marriott LA Live, Los Angeles. BlogHer annual conference.
- Aug 6, 10:30am. Mobile-Readiness Blog Review Geek Lab: I’ll be leading this interactive small group session. (See online schedule.)
The Junk Show
Aug 14, 8pm at Copper Still, Los Angeles. A monthly comedy-focused variety show at the bar inside Jaraguá Salvadoran restaurant.
+Colorado
Animalia exhibition
Now – August 21 at Loveland Museum/Gallery, Loveland. Art with animals as the subject, which explores their complex relationship with humans.
- “The Rat Race” sculpture (and photo) above by Ken Newman will be included in the exhibit.
+Hawaii
Volcano Art Center
“Where people, art, and nature meet.” Educational center and fine arts gallery with handcrafted work by over 300 local artists, as well as a performance series and rain forest tours in Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park.
- Jul 15 – Aug 7. “Quilts in the Forest, Quilts in the Park” at Niaulani campus: Volcano Art Center’s first annual quilt show, in celebration of the 100th birthday of both Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and the National Park Service.
- Mondays at 9:30am. Weekly Forest Tours at Niaulani campus: Free, one-hour guided tour to learn about Niaulani rain forest and other rare native Hawaiian rain forests.
- Photo above by volcano art center on Flickr.
Return of ‘Alalā: Restoring The Voice Of Hawaii’s Native Forests
Sep 3 – Oct 9 at Volcano Art Center, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park campus. Juried exhibition of multimedia artwork featuring depictions of the Alalā, Hawaii’s native crow, in anticipation of its reintroduction into the wild this September.
+Indiana
Outdoor Concerts in Indianapolis
There’s a great round-up of free summer concerts on the Visit Indy blog.
- Now – Aug 3. Summer Under The Sails at The Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art, Wednesday evenings and midday Thursdays.
- Now – Dec 16. Fountain Square 3rd Friday Music Series at New Day Craft monthly.
>>Our visit to Fountain Square.
+Massachusetts
Bring the Park to the People!
Aug 20, 1-4pm at Eagle Park, Lowell. Interactive pop-up museums with crafts and informational materials, neighborhood tours, and a community weaving project in celebration of the National Park Service’s 100th birthday.
+New York
Point of Vision: Celebrating Women Artists in Fantasy and Science Fiction
Now – Aug 20 at Museum of Illustration at the Society of Illustrators, New York.
The Great Food Truck Derby
Aug 19, 4pm at Hayground School, Bridgehampton. At least 15 New York City and Long Island food trucks serve food and drink during the Community farmers market. Event benefits Hayground schoolyard projects providing culinary arts training for local kids. (Graphic via Edible East End.)
+Virginia
Virginia Craft Brewers Fest
Aug 20 at Devils Backbone Basecamp Brewpub & Meadows. Celebration of Virginia’s craft beer industry.
>>Over 60 participating breweries, including South Street, which we visited in Charlottesville.
+Washington
Graphic Masters: Dürer, Rembrandt, Hogarth, Goya, Picasso, R. Crumb
Now – Aug 28 at Seattle Art Musuem. Exploration of how six historical artists used prints and drawings to express personal sentiments.
Shoe Camp with Jason Hovatter
Jul 21-24 at White Salmon Studio, White Salmon. Intensive 4-day shoe-making workshop. Finished shoes will be custom built to a casting of your foot and based on a classic 10th century Northern European design.
+Washington DC
Objects Out of Storage
In conjunction with the ongoing Patrick F. Taylor Foundation Object Project, the Objects Out of Storage program temporarily displays related objects with talks from experts at National Museum of American History about once a month.
- Aug 3, 12pm. Fort Collins
INTERNATIONAL
+UK
Star Wars Celebration
July 15 – 17 at London Excel Centre, London. Star Wars fan convention.
>>Things we saw at last year’s Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim.
WORDfest on Beckenham Green
July 16, 12pm at Beckenham Green, Bromley. Free community festival of all things book-related – crafts, workshops, bands, groups, poets!
