There will be a variety of activities throughout the evening which you can join either independently or via caravan/carpool from MOCA.

5:30 p.m. – Leave MOCA GA. (Be on time; they aren’t waiting.)
6:00 p.m. – Meet at the sign in the Goat Farm parking lot.
6:15 p.m. – 7:15 p.m. – Tour begins at the Rodriguez Room and continues through the artist open studios.
7:15 p.m. – Blacksmithing demo by Corrina Sephora Mensoff.
7:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. – Shop in the Artist Market and revisit artist studios.
8:00 p.m. – Leave for MOCA GA. Independent travelers may stay as long as they wish. There are lots of places to eat on the Westside.

The tour will be guided by Corrina Sephora Mensoff, a Goat Farm studio resident. MOCA instructs to meet at the sign in the parking area which says you can’t park beyond this sign if you’d like to join and to dress for the weather with shoes appropriate for gravel trekking.

ArtMERGE will feature: 

• Rodriguez Room - The current exhibition in this gallery is Flowing as Water, a collaborative piece featuring the work of Corrina Sephora Mensoff (sculptural installation and paintings), Matt Gilbert (animations); and Ana Balka (sound).
• Goodson Yard - Tindel Michi/Amandine Drouet installation exhibition entitled “The Second Coming” is in the building and sculptures by Corrina Sephora Mensoff in the adjacent courtyard.
• Café/ Library - Beer, wine, water and soda available - Cash Bar
• Open Studios - Among the artists opening their studios are the following: David Baerwalde, Jane Garver (sculptor), Mark Hopper (metalwork), Tian Justman (fashion design), Ingrid Magnuson, Corrina Sephora Mensoff (metalwork), Dee Naalam (photography and mixed media), John Paul, and Vanessa Vadim (collages and recycled materials.) Also participating will be The Creatives Project “Artists in Studio” as follows:  Justin Rabideau & Nikki Starz (sculpture); Hannah Perner Wilson & Ashley Schick (printmaking and fabric arts); and Brandon Sadler and Marcy Starz (painting).
• Artist Market - Among the participating artists are Robin Canedy, Chelsea Darling, Emily Fisher, Robert Harrison, Tian Justman, Corrina Sephora Mensoff, Dee Naalam, and Vanessa Vadim, and Hannah Perner Wilson.
• Artist Performances will be presented by Neda Abghari, Chelsea Darling (fire performance), Robert Harrison (fire sculptures), Mark Hopper (mini-bronze pour); Corrina Sephora Mensoff (blacksmithing demonstration at 7:15pm) + the Glo Atlanta dancers will be doing a roving dance performance.

I’m not entirely sure why they didn’t chose to leverage the score of local crafty badasses to help curate and would have been more impressed if they tried to rally with the likes of Atlanta’s Indie Craft Experience. Regardless, it should be a fun event and they’re bringing drinks, snacks and tunes!

RSVP to attend on their Facebook event.

One of my long-time favorite events, Castleberry Hill’s monthly neighborhood art stroll, is coming up once again on Friday, July 8!

To sweeten the incentive to head downtown, Castleberry Point Lofts will be hosting a food truck lot in conjunction with the event this month, sponsored by Kwanza Hall, highlighting great art across Castleberry’s many galleries complemented by wine tastings and nomtastic (that’s right) food trucks from 7 to 10 p.m. on Nelson Street in front of Castleberry Point Lofts.

Featured participants include King of Pops, Tex’s Tacos, The Pup Truck, Westside Creamery, wine tasting at The Wine Shoe, Denise Jackson’s Emerging Art Scene Gallery, and ZuCot Gallery’s monthly exhibits.

Park for free in Castleberry Point’s covered lot or take Marta to Garnett Street if you expect to partake to unknown bounds in the wine tastings.

Yesterday kicked off SCAD‘s second deFINE ART program, a showcase of leading artists, art professionals, SCAD students, faculty, alumni and special guests in Savannah and Atlanta, taking place Feb. 22-26, 2011. deFINE ART features lectures by prominent figures in the art world, special exhibitions, commissions, student showcases, performances and other events, which will be viewed at venues throughout the university’s locations in Savannah and Atlanta.

Tonight, check out “Terra Nova: Sinfonia Antarctica” — an acoustic portrait of a rapidly transforming continent made of ice and condensation by conceptual artist, writer and musician Paul D. Miller aka DJ Spooky that Subliminal Kid.

“Terra Nova” explores the realm of fiction and ideas that underlie almost all perceptions of Antarctica. From the interior desert plains to the Transantarctic Mountains that divide the continent, the suite will take samples of the different conditions and transform them into multimedia portraits with music composed from the different geographies that make up the land mass.

With his surrealist aesthetic and eccentric lifestyle, Salvador Dali was never one to fade away unnoticed. Which is why the High Museum’s 31-hour going away party for Dali: The Late Work is perhaps the most apropos way to send the exhibit off in Dali-like grandeur.

Beginning at 10 a.m. this Saturday, “Dali ’til Dawn” not only offers one last chance to see some of the famed Spanish artist’s later works (including the bleak landscape and melting clocks of “The Persistence of Memory,” which was just added to the show in November), but also includes performance artists, DJs, film screenings and other ways to enhance the already enriching subject matter.

Local art advocacy collective WonderRoot will host performances that encourage audience participation and input. The Imperial Opa will perform theatrical sideshow-like feats in keeping with the spirit of Dali. Chamber musicians, art making workshops for kids, a dance party with DJ Heart Disease and an appearance by Melissa Carter from Q100’s The Bert Show will also be part of the phantasmagorical fun.

For the insomniacs arriving for the late-night festivities, admission is only $5 for non-museum members from midnight-9 a.m., and parking is free from midnight to 6 a.m.

New Year’s Bash

Those who want to get their festivities started a little early can go to Fado Irish Pub, where there will be a toast at 7 p.m. (Irish New Year) and midnight. Early arrival also means no cover, but for those who show up later (or are still there) there will be DJs spinning at 10 p.m. and complimentary party favors.

Platinum Championship Wrestling’s Knockout New Year’s Eve

Though the show will be over well before midnight, the epic battles and drama that will take place at this New Year’s Eve show will rival any fireworks display that will take place later in the night. Plus, the comedy, tragedy and athleticism on display here will help get you pumped about the rest of the evening’s festivities.

Cyberaver

Some of the Southeast’s top techno, industrial, drum and bass and aggro electro DJs converge on four rooms and two levels for cyber dance mayhem. Among the 16 DJs performing are masters of digital hardcore Jakal & Hyde, breakbeat favorite Omar Santana, Threv, Evil-Z, Jennocide and others. Go-go dancers and freakish performers like Defenzmechanizm, Spacekitty and others will add to the show.

Heaven ’11

For New Year’s revelers with slightly more lavish tastes, Heaven ’11 features energetic dance music spun by MTV’s DJ X, visual manipulations by Ryan Noize, a photo booth and a dessert spread. There will also be a champagne toast at midnight, and burlesque performances by Baby Blitzkrieg, Darcy Lemmonier and Baroness VONschmalhausen of Minette Magnifique.

Death Kiss

Preston Craig and Decatur Social Club return from New York for a special New Year’s party at Graveyard Tavern with help from electro hardcore duo Street Lurkin and Free Magic. The party also includes a performance by experimental rock band Snowden, photos by Oh Snap! Kid and a balloon drop, complimentary champagne toast and strip down countdown at midnight.

Glitter & Fur

Perhaps the most glam and gay New Year’s party in town, Glitter & Fur features performances by dance pop DJ Barry Brandon, Shane V and a post-midnight set by local electro pop duo Sex Drugs & Roses. There will also be free beer and other visual stimulation.

New Year’s Eve with Sealions, Sonen

Though it’s not officially labeled as Laserbeam Kitty, this New Year’s party looks and sounds like the monthly indie dance event. Local electro rock bands Sealions and Sonen are performing, with DJ sets by Sonen’s Keith Evans and DJ and the Bear. LBK regular Rob Hare will provide videography, with party photography, a midnight champagne toast and other festivities.

New Year’s Eve at East Side Lounge

Perhaps the most inexpensive option in town, East Side Lounge’s New Year’s party offers plenty of bang for your buck. In addition to the traditional balloon drop and midnight champagne toast, Vyolet Venom, Mimi de Milo and Madam Willey of Minette Magnifique will put on a vivacious burlesque show. DJs Kamal, Kwasi and Mike Swift will also be spinning all night, with go-go dancers on the bar and a striptease countdown.

Nude Year’s Eve

Two of Atlanta’s sexiest electro acts team up for a raunchier way to ring in the New Year. Husband-and-wife dance pop duo La Chansons opens with an amorously absurd set of party songs. Le Sexoflex, with its electroclash-y potty humor, sets the stage for the New Year’s explosion.

In addition to works by Mack and Sienkiewicz, many of Atlanta’s top artists – including Danny Simanjaya, Meg Golding, RyShu, Jean Baugnon, Chris Hamer and Kris Pilcher – will have work up for grabs. Linda Costa will be photographically documenting the creative festivities, which will also include hoop dancing by Rebecca DeShon and Sarah Radtke.

Stephanie Anderson and Erick Jara of Neon Armour will be painting willing bodies to look like characters from the comic books Mack and Sienkiewicz have illustrated, and drinks are included with the price of admission.

It’s time to start your holiday shopping with December less than two weeks away! Shop from 100 of the best indie crafters from the Southeast and beyond at the Indie Craft Experience this weekend for great one-of-a-kind gifts. You can scope out the vendors ahead of time to get a feel for what’s on your list.

A few items on Drive A Faster Car’s list:

lovelane

Bella Bee

One of my all-time favorite blogs is swinging through Atlanta tonight. Well, it’s Co-Founder/CEO is.

Maxwell of Apartment Therapy will be at Switch on Howell Mill tonight from 6-8pm signing his new book, Apartment Therapy’s Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces.

RSVP here: Maxwell’s in Atlanta

There’s a great WTWTA site created by Vice Magazine for the release featuring 24 artists inspired by Where The Wild Things Are including Ben Jones, Benjamin Marra, Dan Zettwoch, Esther Pearl Watson, Frédéric Fleury, Hellen Jo, Jordan Crane, Josh Simmons, Le Merde, Lisa Hanawalt, Mark Todd, Martin Ontiveros, Matt Furie, Matthew Thurber, Nick Gazin, Ray Sohn, Ron Rege, Jr., Imiri Sakabashira, Sammy Harkham, Shintaro Kago, Skinner, Ted May, Tony Millionaire, and Vanessa Davis.

In addition, the site offers up buddy icons and iPhone wallpaper for those of you interested in flaunting some of the pieces and your adoration of the book or film.

We’re giving away three awesome mini-mags and a copy of Where The Wild Things Are soundtrack featuring original songs by Karen O And The Kids (of Yeah Yeah Yeahs), courtesy of Vice Magazine!

To win a mini-mag or copy of the Where The Wild Things Are soundtrack featuring Karen O And The Kids, enter via email with your full name, mailing address and tell me why you should win. Each of the winners will be chosen at random from the rule abiding contestants and notified via email by 3PM on Monday.

Vice is also throwing a little art contest of their own around the release of Where The Wild Things Are.

[mp3] Karen O And The Kids – All Is Love