Event Round-Up: Mar. 14, 2020

Spring has nearly sprung around Walnut Creek, and though I’m so excited for the Open Space to bloom, I am hoping we have a good amount of rain in March! This can be a great time of year to go exploring – here are some fun events to check out for the next few weeks in and around Walnut Creek.

The Real Irish Comedy Fest at the Lesher Center – Mar. 15 (Walnut Creek)

Join comedians and performers at the Lesher Center for a gut-busting Irish-themed comedy show before the official St. Patty’s Day celebrations take shape. Tickets as low as $25.

St. Patrick’s Day Bands and Corned Beef at Norm’s Place – Mar. 17 (Danville)

Live bands. Green beer. Guinness. And hundreds of pounds of corned beef and cabbage! It may not smell great, but that’s going to be a darn good, tasty time at Norm’s Place in Danville! More info here.

Belgian Beer Tasting at Bierhause – Mar. 18 (Walnut Creek)

Bierhaus’ first tasting was a sold-out success! Join them on Mar. 18 to learn about the world of Belgian beer. A $20 tasting fee gets you a free drink and huge discounts. The event takes place from 6-7:30 p.m.

Sports Basement BrewFest at the Presidio – Mar. 28 (San Francisco)

Speaking of beer, you don’t want to miss this huge brewery blow-out at the Sports Basement in the Presidio. You can’t beat the locale, and you get to try beers from a ton of great craft breweries! Get more info here.

Easter at the Garden – Apr. 12 (Walnut Creek)

Bring the kids to the Ruth Bancroft Gardens for Easter activities! This will include an easter egg scavenger hunt and other festivities! Tickets are only $8-10 right now.

There’s a new Bedford Gallery exhibit!

I love going to see local art in Walnut Creek, and the Bedford Gallery in the Lesher Center is one of the best spots. They rotate their exhibits seasonally, and their latest one (which unfortunately just ended), was called “Tradition Interrupted.”

From the Bedford Gallery website: “‘Tradition Interrupted'” explores the methods used by artists to conflate contemporary ideas with traditional art and craft in a range of media, from prayer rugs on skate board tops and quilts to metal and ceramic. After hundreds, sometimes thousands of years of crafting and creating, many traditional practices continue to visually define a culture. Merging age-old customs with innovation, the artists in this show redefine or reclaim culturally historic ideas to create hybrid works for our contemporary world.

That pretty much hits the nail on the head! I found all of the work from interesting and out of the box from artists around the world, including Azerbaijan, Morocco, and India in works seen in these photos. Up next, the Gallery is doing inflatable contemporary art starting July 14th. They have free admission every first Tuesday of each month. I highly recommend visiting!

Event Round-Up: Jan. 19

There’s usually a bit of a lull after the holiday season where the events fizzle out and everyone recovers at the beginning of the year. However, I was able to dig up a few awesome ones in and around Walnut Creek to keep you satisfied. Enjoy the end of January and early February events before we head into the big Valentine’s week and let me know if you go to any!

Napa Valley Restaurant Week: Jan. 20-27 (Napa)

Everyone knows the cuisine in Napa is just as good – if not better – than its wine. Now is your chance to gobble up some of that delicious fare for a fraction of the normal cost. Napa Valley Restaurant Week is the perfect excuse to visit the wine haven in its off-season.

Exploratorium After Dark: Radioactive: Jan. 24th (San Francisco)

This is a weekly event in The City at “After Dark” at the Exploratorium in San Francisco. Go down to Pier 15 and enjoy the adults-only event in the incredibly cool museum. It costs about $20 at the door and is free for members. You can go to this from 6-10 p.m. on Jan. 24th.

San Francisco Beer Week Opening Gala: Feb. 1st (San Francisco)

You can’t beat a fancy night out in San Francisco for the most anticipated craft beer event of the year in Northern California. It’s not a cheap ticket, but the kickoff for SF Beer Week takes place from 6-10:30 p.m. at Pier 35. More than 120 NorCal breweries will be pouring their newest, most specialized beers. Check it out!

Pink Floyd Concert Experience with House of Floyd: Feb. 1st (Walnut Creek)

At 8:00 p.m. at the Lesher Center on Feb. 1st, you can go to see the Pink Floyd experience in concert right downtown! It’s a live musical tribute that pays homage to Pink Floyd’s famous shows, with sound effects, lights, lasers, video projection, and more. More info here!

Free First Tuesday: Feb. 5th (Walnut Creek)

As you’re probably well aware by now, there is a Free First Tuesday in downtown Walnut Creek at the Bedford Gallery. From 12-5 p.m., you can get free admission to the coolest art gallery in town and check out all the new exhibits. If you haven’t been, it’s definitely a hidden gem in Walnut Creek. With a new exhibit that just launched on Sunday the 13th, going through March 24th, “Altered States” features artists across generations living and working along the California coast who harness natural elements of the environment to create their artwork. I think that will be a future blog!

New mural at the Lesher Center

Did you know that any 25,000-plus square foot buildings in Walnut Creek are now required to spend at least 1% of their funding on a public art project on their property? There is a new initiative in Walnut Creek to make more publicly visible walls and surfaces into works of art. And the new mural at the Lesher Center certainly express this well!

Artist Kristin Farr did a wonderful job hand-painting this beautiful mural with no guidelines whatsoever! She is inspired by the meshing of colors and folk art, and that is definitely reflected in her work. This specific mural is entitled “West Coast Prism Sign,” and is done with acrylic paint on Dibond panels. I love that this contemporary geometric painting now occupies a formerly bland piece of concrete in a highly-trafficked area of downtown Walnut Creek.

If this mural looks somewhat familiar to you, it may be because Kristin has painted a couple utility boxes in Walnut Creek, too! As the public art projects move from minor to major canvasses, keep an eye out for other familiar paintings going up. I’ve featured her utility boxes on this blog before, in fact. They are located across the street from this mural, and are two of the more colorful utility boxes we’ve seen painted downtown!

Kristin Farr has painted her awesome works all across the country (and even the world – she has a piece in the Philippines!), and has been hired by Pinterest and Facebook headquarters to paint on their walls (no pun intended). You’ll see her work all around the Bay Area, or if you head to Bonnaroo or Outside Lands music festivals.

I applaud Walnut Creek City Council and their quest to make Walnut Creek and more interesting town by supporting and displaying art throughout the city! I will end this blog with a few quotes about art!

Art, Freedom & Creativity will change society faster than politics ~ Victor Pinchuk

Art is the highest form of hope ~ unknown

“Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.” ~ Pablo Picasso

Event Round-Up: Oct. 13, 2018

It’s finally that time of year, when the summer heat melts away and the brisk Fall air rides in on the San Francisco fog. Everything turns orange with Halloween and Thanksgiving on the horizon, and schools are in full force again. There are still heaps of fun activities to do this season, and I’ve chosen a few of the best:

East Bay Walk to End Alzheimer’s: Walnut Creek (Sat. 10/20)

The Walk to End Alzheimer’s is the world’s largest event for fundraising for the disease, and supports the care and research of it. The East Bay chapter will do their run from 8-11 a.m. next Saturday, Oct. 20th at Heather Farm’s Park. Check out their Facebook event here.

Beach Blanket Babylon: San Francisco (Sat. 10/27 and more)

If you’ve never experienced the hilarity of Beach Blanket Babylon, now is the time. Tickets are still available for the Sat. 10/27 show, and you don’t want to miss the artful, gut-busting show that pokes fun at politicians, celebrities, athletes and more. A fun family outing, especially if you have older kids.

Boo at the Zoo: Oakland (Sat. 10/27 & Sun. 10/28)

From 10 am to 3 pm on these days, bring the kiddos out for a fun pre-Halloween stroll through the Oakland Zoo! Costumes are encouraged, and the kids can trick-or-treat, ride a train, join a dance party, get their face painted, and more. Not to mention, you’re at the zoo watching the animals play! More info here.

Warren Miller’s “Face of Winter”: Walnut Creek (Tue. 11/6)

There is truly no better way to get fired up for the skiing and snowboarding season than watching the latest Warren Miller film. It’s an annual tradition for serious snow-goers, and this year’s version is bound to be just as awesome! Check it out at The Lesher Center downtown.

Her Room/Her World: Walnut Creek (thru 12/30)

Her Room/Her World is an exhibit at the Bedford Gallery that showcases prints, video, paintings, and installations by New York artist Portia Munson, who does feminist art. The key attraction is an installation called Pink Room that specifically appeals to women and girls. Check it out!

Another La Nina this year? Start with Warren Miller …

According to multiple weather reports, La Nina is expected to strike certain parts of the U.S. this winter – the Rockies are on the path. Though after a big season for snowfall in Northern California last year, they are predicting it to be less wet and snowy in the upcoming months, without so much that it’ll be difficult to get to like last year!

With the season turning and snow on the mind, let me recommend a really cool annual event coming up tomorrow. Warren Miller’s “Line of Descent” is the latest in a series of snow documentaries that brings a traveling event to towns across the world. Last year I watched it at Squaw with Johnny Moseley as MC.

This year? Walnut Creek! You can see the show at the Lesher Center’s Hofmann Theater at 8 p.m. tomorrow night. There were a few balcony tickets left last I checked, but they will go fast. Tickets are about $23 right now, but it’s well worth it. The movie itself is always really awesome, and you can win free snow swag at the show!

If you love to ski or ride like me, make sure to check out this year’s trailer above. Then, once you’re thoroughly pumped up for snow season, go buy a ticket and meet me at the Warren Miller show! As you can see in the trailer, they’re featuring Squaw Valley in part of this year’s movie. How cool is that?

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Enjoy spook-tacular events all weekend long!

This weekend, you’ll be sure to see hundreds of little cats, vampires and ghosts running around Walnut Creek and the East Bay. It’s one of the most festive times of the year: Hallo-weekend!

Though the actual holiday is a week from today, there are plenty of events coming up over the weekend to take part in. For example, there’s a cool annual Candlelight Tour at the Winchester Mystery House. You get to tour the 160-room mansion with just a flickering candlelight to guide your way. The entire tour takes about 1 hour and tickets start at $20.

Another cool option is spending the night in a haunted jail cell in an underground dungeon on Halloween. For those of you who are really into scaring yourselves, the Ghosts of Alcatraz event by San Francisco Dungeon might be for you. Enjoy the darkness of an authentically reproduced Alcatraz cell for the night, and try not to faint from the terror.

For a couple more family-friendly, laid-back Halloween options, check out the pumpkin patch at Speer Family Farms in Alameda. It’s close enough to Walnut Creek but also worth the trek to see what they have available for you and the kids!

Lastly, on Friday from 2-5 pm, Walnut Creek Downtown is hosting a trick-or-treat for people of all ages! They ask you to bring your favorite costume and your own candy bag to collect treats from participating downtown businesses. Start at the Lesher Center and wind your way through from there. Broadway Plaza will host a similar event on the actual day of Halloween.

Whatever you do for Halloween weekend, make sure to be clever and creative with those costumes, not eat too much candy, and be safe while walking at night!

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Don’t miss the next Beford Gallery Art Walk this weekend!

If you’ve been following this blog, you know about our recurring Saturday feature “Art Town.” A lot of those cool pieces of art are either related to the Bedford Gallery or found when strolling downtown Walnut Creek.

So, when I tell you that you MUST go on the Bedford Gallery Art Walk this Saturday, you better believe I mean it! I’ve learned a lot of cool stuff about Walnut Creek and its artwork just by writing those blogs every few weeks, and it’s forced me into wandering this town we often take for granted and experiencing some of its hidden beauty and best artwork.

This Saturday, June 17th, Beford Gallery docents will be leading the public art walking tour of Walnut Creek’s greatest works and will give you more interesting, in-depth information about your hometown than you could ever imagine.

Tickets are just $5 (cash only) and include admission to the Gallery itself. You don’t even have to RSVP. Just show up at 11 a.m. outside the Lesher Center and get walkin’ and art watchin’!

Additionally, there is a new self-guided audio tour available for public art in Walnut Creek, featuring 33 stops along the route. Have you seen those pink and orange signs around town designating public art? That’s where you can listen to the history of the piece on the Public Art Walking Tour app! Here’s a good map of all the public art the tour hits.

I’ll be there this weekend, and I hope to see you there too!

Art Town: Wings

The other day, I was grabbing lunch at Vitality Bowl in downtown Walnut Creek when I thought I need to look for another piece of art for my blog. I looked up and noticed – for the first time ever – a cool sculpture across the street by the Lesher Center.

It’s funny how that happens! I’ve lived here for years, and probably walked that sidewalk a hundred times, and only now noticed it! Art is all over Walnut Creek, you just have to look and notice.

The sculpture is called “Wings” and was built in 1986 by Walnut Creek resident Dan Dykes. He grew up on a small Oregon farm on the outskirts of the Siletz Indian Reservation, where his early exposure to natural forms in that rugged environment continues to influence his abstract work.

To me, the sculpture looks like an angel from certain angles, with its wings spread out behind it. Dykes intended for there to be hints of simple birds, plants and trees in the sculpture, and for the durable bronze material to change with weather over the years, as well as with light patterns to reveal tiny, purposeful markings.

“Flux” on display at Bedford

Sometimes you just have to get out of the office. Our Walnut Creek Lifestyle Group decided to take a little outing to the Bedford Gallery for its new exhibit (free to the public each first Tuesday of every month!), which preceded our meeting over beers at ØL around the corner.

The exhibit on display through the end of August is called “Flux” by artist Crystal Wagner.

The colorful art installation was built from chicken wire and disposable tablecloths and takes up almost all of the gallery space.

One of the most interesting things about the artist is that she does not pre-plan her installations; she looks at the space available and creates a twisting shape to fit it.

Wagner, according to the accompanying information at the exhibit, intentionally builds installations where the viewer is overshadowed by an enormous sculpture. She wants the viewer to be surrounded by bright colors and feel as if they are dwarfed by all the surrounding textures.

Her work is anchored in her anxiety about the compromised state of the natural world but is designed to bring joy to her audience. The piece was really quite remarkable.

Check out the timelapse from the Bedford website below, as well as all the pictures my team took.

Also, keep an eye out for that ØL blog next Tuesday!