SFR Picks

If One Says a Thousand Words…

Since 1994, Santa Fe nonprofit CENTER has been ground zero for talented photographers on the cusp of greatness. This is achieved through numerous events and opportunities throughout the year, but none more prestigious than the Review Santa Fe Photo Festival—a massive juried gathering of 100 photographers who have the chance to exhibit, interact with the public and possibly gain the attention of photo world bigwigs from the likes of The New Yorker, National Geographic, The Huffington Post, the J. Paul Getty Museum and many others.

"It's our flagship event," Executive Director Laura Presley tells SFR, "and it creates this really amazing energy around storytelling." This year, that means photogs from 11 countries (not to mention across the US and a number from New Mexico), workshops, artist talks and the crown jewel portfolio viewing at the Santa Fe Farmers Market Pavilion on Friday, Oct. 27.

"Most of the people who are here for this event are mission-driven photographers, meaning they're doing work with technical mastery, interesting aesthetics and layered concepts," Presley says. "Civil wars, the plight of the refugee, folklore … each year we see the response to what's happening on a global level, and that is so exciting." In addition to events for holders of pricey all-festival tickets, this year also boasts the highest number of public events in Review history. Says Presley, "It's expanding in that we have more public programs; it's bigger in terms of the amount of the public coming in—we want this to be for locals as much as possible."

Added bonus: Former Center for Contemporary Arts curator Angie Rizzo has joined CENTER and curated the selections for the Review exhibition. "Since we all have access to the tools, we hope this is inspirational to everyone," Presley adds, referring to that handy kickass camera sitting in your pocket as we speak. "This is the most democratic medium—photography is for everyone." (Alex De Vore)

Review Santa Fe Photo Festival

Editorial Panel: 2:30 pm Thursday Oct. 26. $35.
Drury Plaza Hotel,
828 Paseo de Peralta,
424-2175

Artist Presentations: 12:30-4 pm Friday Oct. 27
and 11 am-4:30 pm Saturday Oct. 28. Free.
Drury Plaza Hotel,
828 Paseo de Peralta,
424-2175

Portfolio Viewing: 6-8 pm Friday Oct. 27. Free.
Farmers Market Pavilion,
1607 Paseo de Peralta,
Registration and info: visitcenter.org

Death!

It's possible that Dia de los Muertos is even cooler than Halloween, and nobody knows this better than artists (y'know, because the imagery of sugar skulls and corpses is all rad). As such, local heavy-hitters such as Angel Wynn, Holly Goldstein, Cheri O'Brien and more come together to be inspired and made creative by the annual dead-centric holiday. Find recycled pieces, metal works, paintings, sculpture and beyond while reminiscing about those we've lost, appreciating the iconography of saints and spirits and culturing yourself the heck up. (ADV)

Day of the Dead
5 pm Friday Oct. 27. Free.
Cheri O'Brien Fine Art,
618 Canyon Road,
425-308-2061

The Shopping Dead

Local arts group Strangers Collective are no strangers (sorry) to curating and organizing offbeat artistic events, and when they collaborate with other locals, sparks can fly. Enter Creature Feature, a fantastically spooky season-appropriate gift market and the brainchild of the Dandelion Guild. Handmade and artistic options abound from the likes of illustrator Lindsay Payton, Afterlife Alchemy Jewelry and other such artisans and, if promises that the event shall be "unapologetically weird" can be believed, we should all pop by and drop some cash. Excelsior! (ADV)

Creature Feature
11 am-5 pm Saturday and Sunday Oct. 28 and 29. Free.
NO LAND,
54 1/2 E San Francisco St. #7

Wintertime Sad-sies

Yeah, ain't nobody really feeling super-happy songs. How the hell can we relate to that shit? We can't, so thank goodness for Austin's Beth Lee and the Breakups. Part honky-tonk, part jazz, part country-Western sad-out jams, Lee's bringing emo to the doo-woppy world of classic country (and rockabilly) with gorgeous guitar solos, catchy bass walks and, if possible, the most beautiful damn voice we've heard in ages. It's a tad raw, though, which we offer up as being a good thing, and her just-right-for-the-Cowgirl sound oughta drop a few jaws, win a few fans and remind us that even when we're pretty majorly bummed out, musicians feel it harder. Oh, and this is also Halloween night, so that's cool, too. (ADV)

Beth Lee and the Breakups
8 pm Tuesday Oct. 31. Free.
Cowgirl,
319 S Guadalupe St.,
982-2565