It’s Thanksgiving weekend and absolutely beautiful outside. Before you hit up some of this week’s recommendations, be sure to breathe some fresh air. Take a walk where you might have taken a drive. Discover some secrets in our river valley. And don’t forget to give thanks.
The Leader
Iceland Calling
My first flight on IcelandAir made one thing abundantly clear–Iceland has great music. You can experience that music at All Saints Cathedral this Saturday night, as Icelanding musicians are paired with local musicians for Iceland Calling.
Get the lineup and details at icelandcalling.ca
The Attitude
UP+Downtown Music Festival
264 artists in 10 venues over 25 shows. You can experience all this this weekend during UP+DT–the indie music and arts fest taking over our downtown for the fall.
With such beautiful weather upon us, why should our fall festival season be over?
Get the full lineup online at http://updt.ca
The Faithful
Found Wanting at King’s University
From ound Wanting by Betty Spackman. Photo by Dave Von Bieker.
Betty Spackman’s multimedia exploration of ‘grief and gratitude’ is not to be missed. Especially as we approach Thanksgiving weekend and consume chickens-stuffed-into-ducks-stuffed-into-turkeys (yep - it’s called a turducken), we need to take a moment and acknowledge the sacrifice upon our tables. I can think of no better Thanksgiving art experience than this incredible installation.
Here’s my challenge. Go. Give yourself a half hour of quiet and contemplation. Experience the work. Breathe in deep.
Found Wanting closes October 15, so please PLEASE don’t miss it.
It’s a little hard to find on campus, in the business school area, so you may have to ask at the front desk. But I promise it is SO worth the trip.
Visit the Arts Faculty website at https://www.kingsu.ca/faculties/arts/art, where you’ll also find out about the Hannah Gelderman show that opens tonight.
The Outlier
Devon Turkey Chase
OK - not exactly an arts event, I know. But we got to watch sheep run down the streets of Fort Saskakatchewan a few weeks back, so why not chase some Turkeys out in Devon? There’s a pumpkin carving contest, too, which is indeed an artform on it’s own.
The Chase is actually a fundraising race, with proceeds going to the Merriott Youth Athletic Foundation and the Stollery Children's Hospital.
From their website:
"A signature running event held in the scenic Devon river valley trails. A great opportunity for families to come out for some fun and chase a few turkeys! If the kids catch a turkey and grab a flag from their belts they are eligible to win a great prize and each flag will represent a dollar value towards the event charities."
Get details on Monday’s event at devonturkeychase.com
The Unsung Hero
LookingCloser.org Reboot
From Lookingcloser.org
Once upon a time, I got to design a blog for film and culture critic Jeffrey Overstreet. It was a great honour, did some good for a while, and now, thankfully, has been replaced by the loving care of another volunteer. This is the site Overstreet’s work deserves so well.
Jeffrey Overstreet re-launches his work into the interwebs today–on his birthday! New reviews and musings meet a decade of thinking critically about art, faith, hope and love.
Take some time this long weekend and curl up with an article or two, paired with a recommendation from this treasure trove of reviews and essays.
Oh - and you may want to start here. Jeffrey’s introductory post is an exhilarating burst of inspiration. Here I read a manifesto that I hope to aspire to in my own life.