The Funk Series: A Creative Happening
- Friday, Nov. 18
- 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
- The Funk Lab: 1007 NW Grand Ave.
- Getting there: Bike — Grand Avenue and Taylor Street
- Price: FREE
Recommended if you like: visions of the future, multimedia art, propinquity
International urban design studio EDGE Industries brings you the first in a series of art happenings and lectures in its Funk Lab art space on Grand Avenue. For the first event, the group is bringing together a Phoenix visionary, flowing poetry, food-truck favorite and fresh new art to provide a “State-of-Downtown-style evening for the community. The first hour of the night will feature light refreshments as well as food from Valley institution Short Leash Hot Dogs, alongside the cutting-edge art the Funk Lab has become known for in its few short months on the Grand Avenue arts scene. Following at 6 p.m. are two poetry readings by Thomas Stanton and Merlin Dito. Then at 6:15 p.m. comes the main event, a presentation on “The Phoenix Campaign” by ASU urban planning alum and Phoenix Public Market employee Keith Mulvin detailing his new, comprehensive community project coming soon to downtown. All of downtown’s greatest movers and shakers will be on hand to take note at this latest Phoenix vision of the future, just as the state looks ahead to its 100th anniversary.
The DOGBAD Icehouse Show
- Friday, Nov. 18
- 6 p.m.
- The Icehouse: 429 W. Jackson St.
- Getting there: Bike — Fifth Avenue and Jackson Street
- Price: FREE
Recommended if you like: animation, comic-styled art, absurdism
Veteran national artist and cartoonist Robert Steinhilber returns to the Icehouse in the Warehouse District for this one-night-only show of epic proportions. With such a massive space to fill, Steinhilber is pulling out all the stops, bringing samples of his animation work, painting, and prints to fill the three massive rooms of the Icehouse. The show will largely serve to showcase the artist’s acclaimed webcomic Dogbad, an ongoing absurdist Western encompassing talking animals, reckless lawmen and radioactive fallout, all taking place in the fictional town of the same name. Halal food will be served to gallery patrons as prepared by Zerina Cufurovic and live entertainment will be provided by four local acts, including legendary Phoenix experimentalist and Icehouse vet Eddy Detroit, and the Valley’s favorite preacher/singer/performance artist Paisley Yankolovich.
Nowness
- Friday, Nov. 18
- 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.
- Eye Lounge: 419 E. Roosevelt St.
- Getting there: Walk — Fifth Street and Roosevelt
- Price: FREE
Recommended if you like: hip local art, mixed-media
In taking a break from showcasing its impressive stable of member artists, long-time downtown gallery Eye Lounge decided to open up its Rolodex and bring together the best visual artists the Valley has to offer for November and December. All manner of subjects and media will be on display, from the hyper-real-yet-deconstuctionalist paintings of Colin Chillag, to the mixed-media masterpieces of Fausto Fernandez, to the apocalyptic digital photo reworkings of Dayvid Lemmon. All tastes will be satisfied, as the group show seeks to cover as much ground as possible in this display of the city. These and other nationally and internationally-renowned artists will all be on hand for the exhibit’s opening reception this Third Friday, while the show itself will continue through December 12. This is contemporary art in Phoenix at its very best.
Conspire’s Four Years on Fifth Street
- Friday, Nov. 18 to Sunday, Nov. 20
- All day Friday through Sunday
- Conspire: 901 N. Fifth St.
- Getting there: Walk — Fifth Street and Garfield
- Price: FREE
Recommended if you like: communal spaces, local art happenings, urban camping
This Third Friday weekend, the long-time Fifth Street troublemakers at Conspire are gathering to celebrate. The collectively-owned and volunteer-run gallery, performance space, retailer, vegan cafe, and soon-to-be skate park was among the first to stake its claim on the now-booming block just south of Roosevelt Street. To commemorate the space’s fourth birthday, organizers are encouraging visitors to stay the weekend with urban camping offered in the venue’s yard so no one will miss a minute of the action. All weekend, music, live art, movie screenings, skateboarding, workshops and many other surprises will envelop Fifth Street to showcase the kind of cutting-edge expression for which Conspire has become known not only in downtown, but across the Valley. No excuse to miss this one, as activities will begin on Friday night and continue almost non-stop until Sunday evening. And with such a variety of activities, all are sure to find something to enjoy.
Places, Spaces, and Faces Community Dinner
- Saturday, Nov. 19
- 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
- CO+HOOTS: 825 N. Seventh St.
- Getting there: Walk — Seventh Street and Garfield
- Price: FREE
Recommended if you like: building community, potlucks, meeting new people
This month’s Place, Spaces, and Faces event serves as a sort of re-imagining of the acclaimed long-running downtown potluck and mixer, bringing together the most vital minds the city has to offer. This new iteration seeks to scale down the operation, refocusing on its original purpose of building community. Each month, organizers pair the ever-popular potluck with a unique Phoenix venue. Past events have visited such landmarks as the Historic First Presbyterian Church, After Hours Gallery, and the PURL. This month’s meal will begin an hour earlier than normal, as attendees are invited to take a peek at the now-blooming Valley of the Sunflowers just across Seventh Street, before returning to the event’s headquarters for the night at CO+HOOTS. There, community members will be encouraged to break bread with one another in downtown’s only co-working space, where creatives of all kinds can rent office or event space by the hour, day, month, or year, and collaborate with fellow minds to develop their ideas. Those planning to attend are simply asked to bring a dish or drink according to their last name and be ready for a night of learning, laughing, and eating!
B-Boy Sunday: Furious Styles Crew 18 Year Anniversary
- Sunday, Nov. 20
- 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Civic Space Park: 424 N. Central Ave.
- Getting there: Walk — Across Central Avenue from ASU campus
- Price: FREE
Recommended if you like: breakdancing, hip-hop culture, Valley institutions
Think Phoenix doesn’t have a hip-hop culture? Think again. Since 1993 b-boy (breakdancing) crew Furious Styles has been bringing hip-hop dance from Phoenix across the world. The crew is Arizona’s biggest and most highly-acclaimed dance crew in the state. After winning the USA Battle of the Year in 2008, the crew represented the United States at the world championships in Germany, placing eighth out of 19 participating nations. But even with all this success, the crew has never forgotten their roots in Phoenix. Each year, the now 22-member group brings together the best graffiti writers, DJs and dancers the state has to offer and throws a weekend-long bash to celebrate Furious Styles and the Phoenix hip-hop scene. This year is no different, with events taking place at the Yucca Tap Room, ASU’s Tempe campus and North Phoenix’s Church for the Nations. It all comes to a raucous conclusion on Sunday at Civic Space Park in downtown Phoenix, with 1-on-1 footwork battles, live art, DJs and a performance by special guests, Phoenix-based modern dance troupe Epik Dance Co. Furious Styles knows how to celebrate and with this free event, they’re bringing their art to the people.
Events compiled by Connor Descheemaker and ShowUp.com
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