“Six Rooms” Art Exhibition
At first glance, painter Le Joe’s work in acrylics is all about color and brightness. But look a little deeper, and behind those popping colors there’s more emotional complexity. As Joe puts it in his bio, he uses his art to “individually examine tragedies and highlights with thought-provoking imagery, abstraction, and vibrant colors.” The artist in residence at the Alisal Center for the Fine Arts invites the public into this colorful examination with the opening of a solo exhibition, titled “Six Rooms.” Expect head-on confrontations with of-the-moment issues social justice and community outrage, both their presence and absence, expressed with imagination and, yes, lots of colors. [SR]
5-7pm Friday, Sept. 10. Hartnell College Seminar Gallery, 411 Central Ave., Building J, Salinas. Free. 758-5715, lejoearts.com
PACIFIC BIOLOGICAL Lab Tour
The former Pacific Biological Laboratories on Cannery Row is a small, wooden building that packs an oversized amount of Monterey history. It’s Ed Ricketts’ lab, made famous by his friend John Steinbeck in the 1945 novel Cannery Row and the 1954 sequel Sweet Thursday. At one time it was lined with cages containing creatures of the land like mice and snakes, and glass aquariums filled with specimens from the Great Tidepool on Point Pinos. It also served as a gathering spot for Ricketts, Steinbeck and their circle of friends. In the mid-1950s a group of friends purchased the lab and used it as their meeting place, leading to the birth of the Monterey Jazz Festival. Public tours stopped during the pandemic but they’re back the second Saturday of each month. Small tour groups mean advance registrations get snapped up quickly. Masks are required for everyone age 3 and up, regardless of vaccination status. [PM]
Multiple times Saturday, Sept. 11. 800 Cannery Row, Monterey. montereypl.libcal.com
Art Walk
Carmel’s monthly art walk, which tours visitors through the town’s artist-owned galleries to meet local artists, is back again. The goal of this event is to celebrate and kindle Carmel’s history as a bohemian arts colony – and its contemporary iteration as an arts community of a different sort. Attendees can follow the blue lanterns around town to visit 14 participating galleries and learn more about both the artwork and the artist behind it. Galleries may have special things happening – including demonstrations and snacks. [TCL]
4-7pm Saturday, Sept. 11. Downtown Carmel. Free. carmelartwalk.com
Live Music and White Party
First came an infrastructure revitalization on Seaside’s lower Broadway, then came a new brewery and a series of dispensaries – and then the necessary live music venue to really bring the downtown stretch to life. Deja Blue features a constantly rotating lineup of live music and comedy, all accompanied by a soul food menu, and this weekend is no exception, with music both inside and out. From 3-5pm it’s jazz vocalist Kenny Washington, from 5-7pm it’s reggae on the patio with Tony Miles and then from 7-9pm Al James takes the stage inside. It’s a customer thank you night (read, no cover charge) and don’t forget to wear white. It’s an instant way of boosting the elegance quotient. [SR]
3pm-midnight, Saturday Sept. 11. Deja Blue, 500 Broadway Ave., Seaside. No cover. 383-2553, dejabluelive.com
Tony Miles is one of many musical acts gracing the Deja Blue stage these days, and he returns on Sept. 11 as part of the lineup for the white party.
Dive Deep
If you’re scuba or freedive certified, there’s a whole world just waiting to be discovered off the coast and under the Pacific. Scuba shop Bamboo Reef hosts periodic “fun dives” from a boat. “Entering and exiting the water is typically easier than a beach or shore entry,” organizers say. “Boat diving also allows access to locations that are out of reach from the shore.” Join for a two-tank dive – don’t forget to bring snacks. [TCL]
7:30am-2pm Sunday, Sept. 12. Meet at K Dock, Fisherman’s Wharf. $100, plus any equipment rentals. 372-1685, bambooreef.com/fun-dives.
Sunday Blues and Art
A weekend tradition that’s about community as much as it is about the music returns to Seaside’s Laguna Grande Park. Celebrating its 33rd year, Blues and Art in the Park will run each Sunday beginning Sept. 12 until Oct. 3 offering live music and entertainment, food and local craft vendors. On Sept. 12 to kick things off, saxophonist Terry Hanck plays, with opening act Guidance Band. Dogs, barbecue rigs and alcohol are not permitted – but lots of fun is guaranteed. Face masks and safe social distancing are recommended. [CN]
1:30-4:30pm Sunday, Sept. 12. Laguna Grande Park, 1180 Canyon Del Rey Blvd., Seaside. Free. 899-6800, bit.ly/NEWSBLUESPARK2021.
Zoom on Poetry
Or poetry on Zoom? Join a virtual poetry reading with poets John Dotson and Peter Thabit Jones. Dotson joined the Monterey Bay community in 1974; he taught at Santa Catalina School and for 20 years hosted a poetry program on KAZU public radio. He has published several books of poetry and prose. Welsh poet and dramatist Peter Thabit Jones has authored 14 books. He has participated in festivals and conferences in America and Europe and is an annual writer-in-residence in Big Sur. “Looking forward to this Zoom event next month, a poetry reading, alongside American poet John Dotson, for the Monterey Poetry Consortium, California,” Thabit Jones wrote on Twitter. “I’ll be reading from my latest book, Garden of Clouds, and my next poetry collection, The Boy Who Drew John Lennon – due next year.” [AP]
2pm Sunday, Sept. 12 via Zoom. Email jfellguth@sbcglobal.net by 5pm Saturday, Sept. 11 to receive login information. Free.
Historic Preservation
History is all around us in Monterey County, but how often do you stop and take note? Join the nonprofit Native Daughters of the Golden West’s local chapter – Junipero Parlor 141 – for a walk through Monterey County’s history with James Perry, executive director of the Monterey County Historical Society. In his presentation, Perry will chronicle the history of the society and its preservation work over the decades. He’ll also discuss current projects and the need for local, preservation-oriented organizations to work together on those projects. [TCL]
7-8pm Monday, Sept. 13. House of Four Winds, 540 Calle Principal, Monterey. $10 suggested donation. RSVP to Wendy Brickman at 633-4444 or brickman@brickmanmarketing.com
Ty Segall and the Freedom Band
The California rocker has been one of the hardest working men in show business in recent years with eight full-length albums released since 2018. His latest effort, Harmonizer, is a 10-track psychedelic record released Aug. 3 that slips between guitar riffs and synth melodies. He’s showing off his restlessness with a 34-show U.S. tour that will make a stop at the ever-intimate Henry Miller Memorial Library. Segall is requiring all attendees to show proof of vaccination. (Negative Covid tests will not be enough for entry.) [CN]
Doors at 5:30pm, show starts at 7pm Wednesday Sept. 15. Henry Miller Memorial Library, 48603 Highway 1, Big Sur. Tickets come in packages of two for a total of $299. bit.ly/TySegallBand
Get Puzzled
For locals or tourists down in Cannery Row looking for something a little different, Puzzling Adventures just might have the answer: An online scavenger-type hunt where you answer questions about your surroundings, and where points are earned for answering them quickly, and proving it with photos (which will remain private if the user wishes). It’s something the whole family can enjoy – like an escape room, except the riddle-solving happens out in the open, and not in an enclosed space. Just make sure you’ve got your smartphones charged. [DS]
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