Nature inspires artists, who then attempt to pay nature homage.

• Open Ground Studios won the last Community Palette art, craft and entrepreneur competition in Sand City. Painter Amanda Burkman placed second. Kudos to them both. They join forces in this two-year anniversary celebration of the Seaside art-making hub, as well as the unveiling of new work inspired by music and art by Burkman. The Ben Harod Trio will kick out the jazzy jams during the opening 5:30-8:30pm Friday, lubricated with wine and refreshments. 241-6919.

• It’s appropriate that the Carl Cherry Center should host a show called Meditation on Color and Form. The Carmel arts venue is big on zen meditation. The focus here are the photographs, sculptures and paintings of Nancy Genn and Peter Hiller, who both, in turn, focus on shape, texture, line, light and color as the subjects rather than the means to an end. The opening is 5-7pm Friday, with a formal conversation with the artists coming 3pm the following Saturday. 624-7491.

• Barbara Manning advocates for foster children because she once was one herself, spending her first 18 years in orphanages and five foster homes. She’s summed up that harrowing experience in a book titled Anybody’s Daughter: Grow Up with Me in Foster Care, which chronicles the abuse, addiction, cruelty and how she survived it all. There are 500,000 foster care kids in the U.S. She talks and signs her book 5-7pm Friday at Zeph’s One Stop in Salinas. 214-3032.

• Paper Wing puts its stage where its indie mouth is for its upcoming annual play reading exhibition. You can submit your play for consideration of getting it read by Paper Wing actors in front of a live audience during a seven-Sunday series of such, running June 28 to Aug. 9. One play of the lot will be chosen by the company for a full production in 2016. It’s the battle of the plays. It’s also billed as a good workshop and critique forum. Send submissions to ThePaperWingCo@yahoo.com by May 30. Get on it.

• The Sunset Center has just announced its 2015-16 season. Here are some highlights. See Jane Sing! with Jane Lynch opens the new season Sept. 26. The Soweto Gospel Choir brings their heavenly voices Dec. 17. Way back when, I used to get The Smithereens mixed up with The Smiths; well it’s the former who are coming Jan. 22. And just a few more names to expect in 2016: Pete Seeger, Metropolitan Opera singers, Jake Shimabukuro and David Sedaris. A big name that’s missing from the marquee this year: Philip Glass. Check out SunsetCenter.org for more.