ARTIFACTS: All of nature is a cathedral.

• Patrice Vecchione launches her new book of poetry, Step Into Nature, at Carmel Art Association 6pm this Thursday with a chat and read from her book; also, David Holodilof plays music and snacks will be served. 624-4955.

• Art commissioned by the Works Progress Administration were located all over the country – in California from Visalia Municipal Airport to King City High School. The murals inside San Francisco’s Coit Tower were among the first. That work is being restored and to celebrate, Carl Cherry Center is putting on Coit Tower: The Carmel Connection, artwork and sculpture by Maxine Albro and Parker Hall (a married couple who lived in Carmel for a spell), photographs of all 25 original Coit Tower muralists, and biographical material. It opens 5-7pm this Friday; on Saturday at 2pm, a slideshow and talk ($10) by Jon Golinger. 624-7491, www.CarlCherryCenter.org.

• CSU Monterey Bay’s Visual and Public Arts Department continues its Visiting Artist series with talks by Reanne Estrada and Mike Blockstein, both of Los Angeles-based Public Matters, which works with people to “create media about their neighborhoods” on issues like healthy food access and immigrant contributions. It happens 6pm Friday at VPA’s Building 72 on Inter-Garrison Road.

• Free tours of Pacific Biological Laboratories (aka Ed Ricketts’ Lab) are going down this Saturday at 9am, 10:30am, 12:30pm, 2pm and 3:30pm. Call to reserve by 4pm Friday. Once there, docents will lead you through the history. 646-5640.

• The Center for Photographic Art opens this year’s Photography Lecture Series on David Pace. He’s photographed the small village of Bereba in the West African country of Burkina Faso. The lecture is 3pm on Sunday in Sunset Center’s Carpenter Hall ($20) but the artist reception that follows in the CPA Gallery is free. 625-5181, www.Photography.org.

• Monterey Peninsula College’s Gentrain Society presents a free presentation by Peter Hiller, curator of the Jo Mora Trust Collection, titled “On the Jo Mora Trail in Monterey County.” And the Uruguayan-born artist, writer, photographer and mapmaker was prolific. He was funded by the Works Progress Administration to create a bas-relief sculpture on the facade of King City High School (see the second entry above). And he was adept at seemingly everything. Hiller speaks 1:30pm Wednesday at MPC’s Lecture Forum 103. 646-4224.