When Renzo Piano met Raymond Nasher 18 years ago, it was at a dinner. Seated together, the two men spent the first half of their evening bonding over the value of family. It wasn’t until later in the night when Nasher volunteered his idea. “I’d like to build a sculpture…

In the fervor of JFK hype, it’s nice to step back for a bit of meditation. You can do that Saturday at the Nasher’s latest installation of Soundings, titled In Memoriam JFK happening at the Dallas City Performance Hall (2520 Flora St.). Yellow Barn presents this program by the Brentano…

Saturday is the season’s final big gallery push, with most of the CADD art spaces filling out one last show before the calendar year flips. It’s always a quick run on opening night, so here are a few you should visit. Circuit 12 (1130 Dragon St. Suite 150) offers a…

Oswald’s arrest during a screening of War is Hell cemented the Texas Theatre’s (231 W. Jefferson Blvd.) role in the those fated events. (It was also a reminder that sneaking into movies is extremely poor form.) Those history buffs at Aviation Cinemas have decided to tell the story in its…

Local photographer and general view-alterer Daniel Kusner brings a multimedia talk to the Dallas Public Library’s Oak Lawn branch (4100 Cedar Springs Road) from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday. That’s where he’ll charmingly punch through his unconventional thesis: “Can drag artists lift the veil of shame surrounding a presidential murder…

Happening at Martin Sheen’s request, there will be a live reading of Noah’s Ark at the Unity Church of Dallas (6525 Forest Lane). Based on James Douglass’ best selling book , and developed into a stage production by Pittsburgh playwright Ginny Cunningham, Ark shuttles an audience through those choppy waters…

I think most of us went to the City Performance Hall last night for the slapstick. I’m not ashamed to say it: I love Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd and Charlie Chaplin. I love big guy/ little guy moments. I love seeing people fall through trap doors and become the jogging…

Hey, you love the arts. Well we do too, and that’s why we throw Artopia, a massive immersive experience celebrating those creative people shaping Dallas’ exciting new era. Also, there’s booze. You’re welcome. One ticket gets you access to runway shows by local designers, food and drink stations, live music…

The Dallas Observer just opened nominations for its annual Masterminds competition. We’re passing out a total of $6,000 in no-strings-attached cash to driven Dallas County residents who are making a difference through film, visual arts, dance, fashion, performance, theater and other non-music avenues of expression. We’re looking for people who…

As a UNT alumn, Denton is dear to me. That magical, distant land is the type of place where you can still find a good cheap breakfast. Plus, UNT recently hired Ruth West, an egghead of thrilling proportions, who’s establishing a shared future for the arts, new media and technology…

Art Con 9 hit a cultural tipping point this year, attracting thousands of Dallas residents to a warehouse on Singleton Boulevard. DJs Sarah Jaffe and emptycylinder kept the collective heart rate up between auctions rounds while headliners Zhora and New Fumes circulated their own energies through the front of the…

On Friday night La Davina Productions celebrated the sexier side of espionage with an all 007-themed stage show. Goldfinger, Dr. No and other characters left their respective lairs to stalk the stage of Kalita Humphreys Theater. We sent photographer Ed Steele deep undercover to gather photographic evidence against those villainous…

This Saturday night Dallas gets more inventive, thanks to a little shindig called Art Con 9. Organized by a legion of do-gooders, the event unites the city’s fringe in an unassuming warehouse at 500 Singleton Blvd. That space has been converted into a fleeting party venue where a few thousand…

Art Con 9 is this Saturday night, so GET EXCITED, PEOPLE! (Sorry to yell. I just love a good auction.) While the Con anchors your weekend plans, pad the rest of your time with this party list. There’s a new Mamet play at Kitchen Dog. Ron Swanson himself, Nick Offerman,…

“We’ve got about five minutes, then we gotta bail,” says photographer Irby Pace, who’s looking over his shoulder as he plans the escape. A white patrol truck just passed by, again. This spot where he’s shooting isn’t public property. It’s an open-air industrial filling site attached to an old grain…

Attention comedians of 2013: I’m not interested in that crazy sexual anecdote you just tweeted. I don’t want your Vine. Also, I won’t download your podcast. My comedic demands are simple and finite: Be as funny as Buster Keaton. Whether he’s riding a horse backward into a lake or diving…

He’s played with Miles Davis and Dizzy Gillespie. Edited and posthumously released Charles Mingus’ final work, Epitaph. He won the freaking Pulitzer Prize for Of Reminiscences and Reflections, is a celebrated author and even snatched up the 1991 MacArthur Foundation Genius Award — the last of those due solely to…

Garrison Keillor’s longevity is an interesting play. Broadcasting live from St. Paul for nearly 40 years, his throwback production honors that relatable, wholesome, oh-so-NPR Middle-Americana. But what’s kept him fascinating is the peculiar subversive undercurrent seeping up between the Powdermilk Biscuits commercials. Keillor isn’t as spit-shined as the Lake Wobegon…

What do you suppose an evening with Nick Offerman consists of? Hand-sharpening straight razors, then fine-tuning our collective facial-hair growth? Possibly. Sipping scotch while minimally discussing ex-wives? Could be. “Building a Respectable Table: A Tutorial”? Also a feasible option. What we do know is that Offerman is at House of…

The DMA’s monthly Late Night series is more than just a free date night, it’s a fascinating exploration of local talents — so cheers to the Dallas Museum of Art (1717 N. Harwoood St.) for bolstering the emerging folks doing good work, right now. This month’s edition is all things…