We seriously HEART Fresh Arts Coalition and McCormick & Schmick’s, so if you are able to, you need to go check out the benefit dinner before they open to the public at the newest gem downtown, Houston Pavilions, on Thursday, October 30.

The evening will feature select items for M&S’s signature menu at a donation of $35 per person with all proceeds benefiting Fresh Arts Coalition.

Reservations are required so call 713.970.2101 to make them.  Dinner seatings are from 5:30 to 8:30 pm and alcohol & gratuity not included.

Friday, October 24

-Friday, October 24
Fresh Arts: Made from Ike Benefit, Caroline Collective, 6 pm to 8 pm
Join the Houston community in a celebration of art and perseverance as we honor the winners and hold a silent auction with all the art you have submitted to the MADE FROM IKE art contest.  All proceeds from the auction will go to Americans for the Arts Emergency Relief fund that helps local arts service organizations rebuild the arts in their communities.  Free.  4820 Caroline.  www.fresharts.org.  

Friday, October 24
Philip Durbin: A Coarse Portal @ ArtStorm, 7 pm to 10 pm
Philip Durbin unveils his largest compilation to date of psychedelic paintings, prints and wearable art this October at ArtStorm, transporting visitors through A Coarse Portal of dynamic and provocative imagery, all-at-once playful and humorous while also brooding and dark. Prolific painter and screen printer Philip Durbin presents new work, ranging from clean, colorful graphic-inspired paintings to textured panoramic narrative prints. A Coarse Portal will feature multi-media work on paper, canvas and vellum, as well as limited-edition prints and wearable art available for purchase in the ArtStorm store, which will open its doors for the first time during the inaugural night of this exhibition.  Evening feat. spun gold by DJ Ceeplus Bad Knives and KTRU alum PRKL8R.  Free.  4828 Caroline Street.  www.artstormhouston.com

-Great article about ArtStorm in the Houston Chronicle today by Douglas Britt (so glad this writer is here promoting the arts!!!) and coincides with what sounds like a great art opening featuring Philip Durbin’s A Coarse Portal. 

Friday, October 24, 8 pm, After the Last Sky: A Tribute to Palestinian Poet Mahmud Darwish
Café Flores, 6606 Lawndale St., Houston 77023
Voices Breaking Boundaries will join with the Houston Palestine Film Festival and Pala Pala magazine to present After the Last Sky: A Tribute to Palestinian Poet Mahmud Darwish, who passed away on August 9, 2008, right here in Houston. Bring a favorite Darwish poem to share. For more information call 713-294-7168 or 832-212-4728.  Free.  www.vbbarts.org.

Friday, October 24, 7:30 pm - African Footprints @ Miller Outdoor Theatre - makes its Texas premiere at Miller Theatre.  The most successful show ever produced in South Africa, this incredible explosion of music and dance explores the multi-cultural influences in that country in an exciting, highly theatrical style. The company is most often described as the South African Riverdance!  Free.  100 Concert Drive.  www.milleroutdoortheatre.com.

Saturday, October 25

Dead Celebrity Costume Gala
benefiting Mildred’s Umbrella Theater Company
When:  Saturday, October 25, 7:30 pm to midnight
Where: Gremillion and Company Gallery,  2501 Sunset
What:  Channel your favorite deceased celebrity and join everyone on the red carpet for fine food, wine and beer while grooving to the sounds of Kevin Bakos.  Silent auction and a live auction emceed by The Art Guys.  And any dress up party wouldn’t be complete without a dead celebrity costume contest.
Donation:  $50 single ticket in advance / $75 at the door.
www.mildredsumbrella.com

Saturday, October 25, 2:30 pm:  Preview of Alley Theatre’s Secret Order - Fueled by pharmaceutical money, personal ambition and media frenzy, the plot of Bob Clyman’s provocative Secret Order will have special appeal for anyone with a secret love of science.  A brilliant young research biologist working in an obscure university lab discovers a possible cure for cancer.  When the dynamic director of New York’s leading cancer institute becomes his mentor and champion, he is set on a path of acclaim and prestige that could lead directly to the Nobel Prize.  But the halls of science twist and turn in surprising ways, and the young Doctor is suddenly thrust into the high-stakes world of medicine, money and power. Preview tickets for this matinee are $21.  Prices subject to change.  www.alleytheatre.org.
 

Saturday, October 25, 3 pm:  Houston Arts Alliance Showcase feat. Brazilian Arts Foundation and Dance of Asian America @ Discovery Green.  Free. www.discoverygreen.com.

Saturday, October 25, 6-8 pm: John Cleary Gallery - Reception and booksigning for Elliott Erwitt’s exhibition “Personal Best”.  He will be in attendance and signing his three publications.  Free.  2635 Colquitt.  www.johnclearygallery.com.

Saturday, October 25, 6-8 pm:  Opening Reception - Apama Mackey:  Exquisite Corpse

Apama Mackey Gallery invited area artists of all disciplines and backgrounds to participate in The Parlour Game: Apama Mackey Gallery’s 1st Exquisite Corpse Afternoon on September 21, 2008.  Based upon the Surrealist parlour game popularized by Andre Breton, in which each player draws a different part of the body, without seeing what the others have done, participating artist will be asked to work collaboratively to create drawings. Check out the, um, interesting results…Free.  628 E. 11th Street.  www.mackeygallery.com.

Saturday, October 25, 6-9 pm: Opening Reception - Dia de los Muertos - Day of the Dead Exhibit of Personal Ofrendas @ Casa Ramirez

Casa Ramírez is located in Houston’s Historic Heights section. With its warm atmosphere and special color, Casa Ramirez attracts all visitors. The gallery exhibits and sells all kinds of Mexican craftwork, from portraits, antiques and ceramic, clay, metal and wood artifacts and figures, to the most varied artistic elements. You can admire the creation of artists and artisans.  Procession at dusk, Saturday, November 1, 2008 for Dia de los Muertos from Heights Blvd to Casa Ramirez, 241 West 19th with participants carrying photos, marigolds (la flor de los Muertos) and candles.  Free.  241 West 19th Street.  www.casaramirez.com

Saturday, October 25, 7 pm:  Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex - Slammed! - Sophocles in the park. Prairie View A & M’s acclaimed troupe of Charles Gilpin Players bring this Greek tragedy alive in the spoken word style. The nationally recognized and award winning Charles Gilpin Players, founded in 1929, were named after Charles Gilpin, a black actor who was famous for his portrayal of Emperor Jones and Othello. The group is comprised of students who participate in theater productions and acting. The Gilpin Players have won the American Theater Festival Award and have performed at the Kennedy Center and the New Orleans World’s Fair.  Free.  1500 McKinney.   www.discoverygreen.com.

Saturday, October 25, 6-9 pm: Winter Street Studios - Opening Reception for 4th Annual Artists Exhibition and Open Studio (see below for description.)

Through Sunday, October 26

Through Sunday, October 26, 2-6 pm, Fourth Annual Winter Street Studios Artists Exhibition and Open Studio

The works of over sixty artists representing all types of media including ceramic and mosaic art, glass, jewelry, fabric, sculpture, prints, digital images, paintings and drawings in a range of styles using influences from abstraction to realism.  Free.  2101 Winter Street.   www.winterstreetstudios.net

Sunday, October 26, 3 pm to 5 pm, Sundays in the Park @ Discovery Green - Two Star Symphony

Houston’s most unusual string ensemble performing all original music with elegance, passion and edge.  Free.  1500 McKinney.  www.discoverygreen.com.

Today and Sunday! From 10 am to 6 pm

Bayou City Art Festival

The award-winning Bayou City Art Festival Downtown, transforming the streets in and around City Hall into an outdoor art gallery.