Summer art and the rest of our picks of this week's San Diego events

“endless summer, my ass (an (un)original vision. from the wintry depths of new york city to the sunny shores of san diego)” by Matthew Bradley

PARK BEFORE DARK

There’s little more adorable than that area in front of an outdoor stage where little children bounce, run in circles and gyrate uncontrollably with joy. Some of San Diego’s greatest kiddie mosh pits are to be found at the Bird Park Summer Concerts, the music series that the North Park Community Association sponsors annually at Morley Field (28th and Thorn streets). The second of this year’s five concerts is from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 26, with the 7th Day Buskers, a local bluegrass group familiar to Hillcrest Farmers Market shoppers and hipsters who obey CityBeat’s LastBlogOnEarth.com music recommendations. The park is perfect for picnics, but you can also pick up gourmet street food from the MIHO Gastrotruck. northparksd.org

CHILI BY THE SEA

If you’re a fan of homemade chili, you’d better come with your stomach prepared to the 31st Annual Ocean Beach Street Fair & Chili Cook-off, held from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, June 26, on and around Newport Avenue. One of the main events is the Chili Cookout Festival (held on the grassy area at the foot of Newport), where more than 30 amateur cooks will square off with their secret recipes. If you feel ambitious, you can purchase a pass to sample the creations of every single contestant. But there’s more. There is also a Skate- Jam, an artist alley, and bands playing five stages. Thirsty adults can head to Liquorland, a beachside beer garden, and kids can scream with glee at Wonderland Children’s area. You can even leave your mark in O.B. history by painting a square in this year’s street mural. obstreetfair.com

FUN IN THE SUMMER SUN

For some, San Diego’s mostly sunny weather can be uninspiring. Sure, it’s pretty darn sunny here, but that doesn’t mean good art can’t come of it. The Southern California summertime aesthetic inspired 11 local visual artists, whose work will be on display in Endless Summer, a show featuring original installations, photographic prints and other mediums. Some of San Diego’s most promising young artists (including Lindsay Preston, Cara Heslip and John Zappas, all of whom have been accepted into the Cranbrook Academy of Art this fall) will have work in the show. As for the imagery, think classic summertime sights (hoses, American flags, cheap fans, beach balls) put together in unusual ways. The show starts at 7 p.m. Saturday, June 26, at Suture (655 10th Ave. in East Village), with music by DJs JUDY and Jules Le Baron. $5 suggested donation.

They built it: Two years ago, more than 100 citizens got together and expressed concern about the lack of affordable live/work space for artists in San Diego. A group called Space 4 Art eventually formed and, a year ago, signed a lease in the East Village. At the start of this year, Space 4 Art started work on the warehouse location. And now, after a lot of hard work and determination, the group is celebrating the Space 4 Art Grand Opening from 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday, June 26, with an art show by resident artists, live music on multiple stages and what they’re calling “a giant puppet army.” Space 4 Art is located at 325 15th St. in East Village. sdspace4art.org

GIRLS ON BIKES

The modern bicycle was introduced to the world in the early 1800s. It took almost another 100 years, though, before women could enjoy the pleasures of the new, two-wheeled mode of transportation. On Saturday, June 26, the Coronado Museum of History & Art (1100 Orange Ave.) will open Bicycles & Bloomers: Women’s Emancipation and the Bicycle, a first-of-its-kind look at how western women’s restrictive garments in the 1800s eventually evolved and became more utilitarian, in part because of bikes. Vintage bloomers, posters, lithographs, trading cards and historical photographs featuring women and children discovering the benefits of the bicycle will be on view. coronadohistory.org

CASUALTIES OF WAR

Few issues facing the United States are more vexing than the northbound flow of illegal drugs across the U.S.-Mexico border. Ken Roth, for one, has been thinking a lot about the impact that the Merida Initiativein which the U.S. provides funding for the Mexican government’s war against drug cartelshas on human rights south of the border and the links between the drug war and international security. Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch, will give a talk, How Not to Fight Mexico’s Drug War, the latest in the Institute of the Americas’ Tequila Talk series, from 6:30 to 7:45 p.m. Monday, June 28, at Hojel Auditorium on the UCSD campus. Buy your $10 ticket at iamericas.org or pay at the door.

BANG YOUR HEAD

You depend on CityBeat for so muchwhy not let us control your movie-watching, too? At 7 p.m. Monday, June 28, we’re teaming up with North Park’s West Coast Tavern for the first installment of CityBeat Movie Night, a series of films curated by CityBeat film editor Anders Wright that never see the big screen. First up: the animated freak show Heavy Metal, paired with the legendary bootleg documentary Heavy Metal Parking Lot. Consider this a huge cinematic event, complete with sex, drugs, rock ’n’ roll and drink specials. A mere $7 will get you through the door of the Birch North Park Theater, and another $3 will get you a beverage. Bring your friends. Do some shots. birchnorthparktheatre.net

BEAUTIFUL MINDS

What do you get when you gather some of San Diego’s most exciting architects and designers and stick ’em all in a gallery space? Get your open mind over to the creative feast that is Coffee & Donutshappening from 5 to 9 p.m. Saturday, June 26, at The Bakery (1791 National Ave., Barrio Logan)and find out. Miki Iwasaki, whose gorgeous woodwork makes us drool, has brought together award-winning folks like Christopher Puzio, Rene Peralta, Catherine Herbst, Todd Rinehart, Adriana Cuéllar and Ted Smith. In all, more than two-dozen talented people will showcase current work via sketches, models and “digital fabrications.” Expect utopias, dystopias and everything in between. miworkshop.com