The to-do list

Art

Digging the girly man

When we saw the promotional artwork for Junc Boutique & Gallery’s new show, Macho Sissy, we knew we had to promote it: John Wayne wearing his signature cowboy hat and smirk but also a pink dress, debutante gloves and a string of pearls. And he’s holding one of those rainbow lollipops. And he’s got boobs. Offended? Then you best stay away from 2205 Fern St. in South Park (Junc’s locale) on the evening of Saturday, July 25. But if you’re intrigued by the notion of gender bending, cross-dressing and mixing up your Xs and Ys, then stop by to see work by folks like David Russell Talbott, Bret Barrett, Jasmine Worth, dark vomit, Jeffrey Parish, Kim Schwenk and others. (www.shopjuncboutique.com). The opening coincides with the tri-annual South Park walkabout, when neighborhood shops stay open late to show off their stuff. www.southparkscene.com.

Worth the drive: Note to out-of-town Comic-Conners: Arrange transportation up to Escondido on Saturday, July 25, when Distinction Gallery holds a reception (its second) for Mind Machine. The exhibit explores the man-versus-technology trope in some unexpected ways through the work of seven artists whose day jobs include Pixar production designer (Nate Wragg), Sony concept artist (Edwin Rossell and Roel Jovellanos) and “digital art evangelist” (Android Jones). Trust us: You’ll leave this gallery feeling equal parts enchanted and intellectually challenged (consider it a right brain / left brain massage). The reception happens from 7 to 10 p.m. at 317 East Grand Ave. in Escondido www.distinctionart.com.

Seeing memories: About 40 years ago, Sonabai Rajawar’s husband finally released her from involuntary isolation from the world outside her central India home. As a consequence, the outside world became aware of the remarkable things she’d been doing while imprisoned for 15 years—namely, creating unique clay sculptures representing surroundings that she could see only in her memory. Anthropologist Stephen P. Huyler has become quite a fan of Rajawar’s art and has curated an exhibition of it—along with works by artists influenced by Rajawar—at the Mingei International Museum in Balboa Park. The exhibition, Another Way of Seeing, opens Sunday, July 26, and runs through Sept. 5, 2010 (admission is $7). It includes video footage created by Huyler, who’ll also give a lecture, Sonabai Rajawar: Visionary Artist from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 29. The lecture costs $10. www.mingei.org.

Sports

Full of bull

Mention the acronym P.B.R. in certain social circles and visions of tall boys and hipsters galore will likely pop up. But if you’re the truck-driving, big-belt-buckle-wearing type, then it means just one thing: Professional Bull Riding. But the Del Mar Invitational, held at 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, July 25 and 26, at the Del Mar Fairgrounds Arena (2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd.), isn’t just for cowboys. The sport has been steadily gaining in popularity for being one of the toughest and most dangerous, and competitors from all around the world (the Brazilians, not satisfied that their country kicks our ass all over the soccer field, are good riders) compete every season for not much more than the glory of being able to stay on some freakishly large bull for more than eight seconds. And, yes, they wear cups. www.sdfair.com.

Books

Local author reading marathon

San Diego is loaded with writing talent, so much so that North County Artists & Poets can host its Fifth Annual Books Extravaganza on Saturday, July 25, at the Escondido Public Library. Authors will read from their own works and make short presentations, with a new author every 15 minutes. Show up any time between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. to hear local luminaries like Barbara Deming (Growing up Bare Foot in the South) and Roger Conlee (Counterclockwise). This year’s event will also honor our nation’s veterans. Free. www.library.escondido.org.

Photography

Au natural

Seeing the images on display at the Ordover Gallery’s new exhibition, Contemporary Masters of Fine Art Photography, in the pages of publications like National Geographic and the like is one thing, but seeing them in person is quite another. Some of the best of the best in the field, such as Frans Lanting and Art Wolfe, will be on view at the Solana Beach gallery (410 S. Cedros Ave.). Both Lanting and Wolfe are award-winning pioneers in nature photography with more than 40 years of experience traveling to everywhere from the Amazon rainforest to Antarctica. The show opens on Thursday, July 23 with an opening reception from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Saturday, July 25. 858-720-1121, www.ordovergallery.com.

Music

The sound of video

Here it is. Finally. That excuse for some of you—and you know who you are—to attend a symphony concert. At 7:30 p.m. Thursday, July 23, at Embarcadero Marina Park South (behind the Convention Center), San Diego Symphony Summer Pops will perform Video Games Live, a show featuring, we’re told, music from “the greatest video games of all time.” And don’t worry: The producers of the concert, which has already been performed on five different continents, know their target audience needs visual, as well as aural, stimulation, so there’s lots of big video, special effects, cool lighting and whatnot. And to raise the dork factor to an appropriate level, they’ve planned a pre-show video-game-character costume contest. www.sandiegosymphony.com.

Guitar god: Now that the electric guitar has become a standard instrument for young men with overblown egos around the world, we tend to take it for granted. After all, how many of us really know how the thing was conceived in the first place? At 2 p.m. Saturday, July 25, music historian and author Roger Siminoff examines the accomplishments of Lloyd A. Loar in a lecture, The Lore of Loar, part of the ON! series at the Museum of Making Music (5790 Armada Drive, Carlsbad). Loar was an acoustics engineer and instrument designer who was pivotal in developing the arch-top F-hole guitar, as well as a series of other amplified instruments from the 1920s through the 1950s. Siminoff will discuss Loar’s career at the Vivi-Tone and Gibson instrument companies, as well as how his work has had an effect on today’s technology. $10. www.museumofmakingmusic.org.