• Location Various Venues 
• Price Free

It has been a busy start to the year and there are no signs of it slowing down as the calendar flips to February. Make the most of it and get out of the house—there’s always awesome stuff to do including the launch of Black History Month and an artist talk for Bell Let’s Talk Day.

Recognition… Validation… Reassurance…

January 29, 2020, 10:00am – 1:30pm
See website for details
Free admission, registration required

For Bell Let’s Talk Day, The City of Calgary Public Art Program invites you to an artist talk and video launch marking the conclusion of Recognition…Validation…Reassurance… Art + Mental Wellness. Presented by lead artist Dick Averns, this free public program takes place on a Calgary Transit bus where drawings, collage, and text-based art fill the overhead interior panels, each exploring how to create a framework for mental wellness.
eventbrite.ca

ProArts Presents Calgary Opera Emerging Artist Program Ensemble

January 29, 2020, 12:10 – 12:50pm
Cathedral Church of the Redeemer (604 1st St. SE)
Free admission

Each season, Calgary Opera provides young singers with the opportunity to study and perform under a professional staff of teachers and performers. Enjoy the talents of these up-and-coming performers over your lunch hour!
proartssociety.ca

Opening Receptions

January 30, 2020, 4:00 – 9:00pm
Nickle Galleries, University of Calgary (410 University Ct. NW)
Free admission

Black Forest (dark waters) brings together three interconnected bodies of work by Diana Thorneycroft while Everywhere We Are explores boundaries in art. See both shows at this upcoming opening reception.
nickle.ucalgary.ca

akunnirun kuupak Opening Reception

January 30, 2020, 6:00 – 8:00pm
Jarvis Hall Gallery (333B 36th Ave. SE)
Free admission

This exhibition of photographs quintessentially shows Kablusiak’s use of humour as a coping mechanism to address cultural displacement. Kablusiak reconnects to an important part of their being while simultaneously creating a presence for Inuit wherever they may be.
jarvishallgallery.com

Process in Process

January 30, 2020, 6:30 – 9:30pm
Loft 112 (112, 535 8th Ave. SE)
Free admission

Artists Adrienne Adams, Kit Dobson, Kyle Flemmer, Lisa Murphy-Lamb, Kevin Stebner, and Stacey Walyuchow talk about how their creative practice fits into their lives, and the challenges and rewards of the creative process. There are even visual works in progress by Helen Hajnoczky to explore.
facebook.com

Le Salon des Refusés #4

January 30, 2020, 8:00pm
Koi (100, 1011 1st St. SW)
Free admission

Dancing Monkey is pleased to present a series of staged readings featuring ridiculous plays and screenplays by Mike Czuba, all of which have been refused! Performed by the Dancing Monkey Players, this time out you can enjoy Play Dead, a lost gem from the early 2000s.
dancingmonkeylab.com

Open Studio

January 30, 2020, 6:00 – 8:00pm
Calgary Allied Arts Foundation, cSPACE King Edward (1721 29th Ave. SW)
Free admission

Join current resident artist, Cassie Suche, to see the drawings she has been working on throughout the month of January. She has been developing a body of experimental, process-based work, aiming to develop a series of large-scale abstract illustrations.
facebook.com

Black History Month Kick Off

February 1, 2020, 12:00 – 3:00pm
Central Library (800 3rd St. SE)
Free admission, registration required

An afternoon of live African and Caribbean performances, art displays, and food, connect with other artists and the event planners for Black History month at this fantastic celebration.
eventbrite.ca

Rurban Landscapes Opening Reception

February 1, 2020, 1:00 – 4:00pm
Edge Gallery (1416 9th Ave. SE)
Free admission

Chris Malloy is a photographer who documents vignettes of the past found within the context of today’s landscape. His anachronistic scenes present human elements which are chronologically out of place in their environment.  Explore the show at its opening reception.
edgegallery.ca

Rope & Knot Making Workshop

February 1, 2020, 2:00 – 4:00pm
Stride Gallery (1006 Macleod Tr. SE)
Free admission

Participate in a free workshop with Jolie Bird in concert with her exhibition, The discipline of constructing. Bird facilitates a rope and knot making sessions, creating a space for participants to experience the tactile act of making both practical and decorative objects with their own hands.
stride.ab.ca

Toni Onley Opening Reception

February 1, 2020, 2:00 – 5:00pm
Wallace Galleries (500 5th Ave. SW)
Free admission

This exhibition spans and exhibits works over the extensive and prolific career of Toni Onley. Almost a retrospective, this collection of works shown range from the early 1960s to the early 2000s.
wallacegalleries.com

Open Studios

February 1, 2020, 3:00 – 6:00pm
Centennial Planetarium, Contemporary Calgary (701 11th St. SW)
Free admission, registration required

Indefinite Arts Centre and Contemporary Calgary present Composition Collider, an evening of art, karaoke, and dancing! Watch as 85 artists from Canada’s oldest and largest disability arts program share their artistic responses to the Collider Residency at the Centennial Planetarium.
eventbrite.ca

Crescent Moon Party & Lantern Parade

February 1, 2020, 7:00 – 9:00pm
Tigerstedt Block Parking Lot (9th Ave. & Centre Street)
Free admission

Celebrating the light at the end of a dark winter with a party and a parade! Warm-up with music, fire pits, hot chocolate, and your neighbours, and see lanterns made by local organizations in the community.
facebook.com

PARTICLE + WAVE: Afterparty

February 1, 2020, 10:00pm
Cold Garden (1100 11th St. SE)
Free admission

Celebrate the last night of PARTICLE + WAVE and enjoy a live media art performance while mingling with the festival artists! Featuring performances by Notfortheireyes, Corinthian, and HomeSick, this party is not to be missed!
emmedia.ca

Black Intersections

February 4, 2020, 5:30 – 9:00pm
Action Dignity (915 33rd St. NE)
Free admission

A Black History Month conversation on Black intersectionality, this evening builds on the conversations from last year’s panel to include more topics that aren’t discussed enough within Calgary. Participants can choose to attend the breakout sessions that interest them and more from each group as freely as they wish.
facebook.com

Fabricating Fictions & Cranky and Resistant

February 4, 2020, 6:00 – 8:00pm
Arts Learning Centre, Arts Commons (225 8th Ave. SE)
Free admission, registration required

Arts Commons and the Exposure Photography Festival present this conversation with Dr. Philip Harris and Gemma Marmalade. Space is limited and registration is required before February 2.
facebook.com

Can You Hear Me Now

February 4, 2020, 6:30 – 8:30pm
Shelf Life Books (1302 4th St. SW)
Free admission

Can You Hear Me Now is a monthly open mic and poetry slam event for junior high and high school students. This month’s even includes an all-ages contest as well as a feature set from poet, performer, and teacher Em Williamson.
facebook.com