The Art Will Be Hazel and All The Other Colors
In case a previous column and numerous postings on various social networks didn't get the message across, let's remind you that Hazel Park has an art fair scheduled on 9/22. That means you have a golden opportunity to catch another community-wide explosion of color, music, and creativity. Julie Fournier, the dynamic powerhouse behind the event, is already pleased that the event promises to be the biggest free-to-artists festival ever held and one that will benefit The Promise Fund. 80 artists are participating (including last minute addition Carl Lundgren) and the musical lineup will be lit up by the likes of Audra Kubat, Rusty Reid, and Mark Barrett. Check out the array at Green Acres Park at 620 W. Woodward Heights Blvd.

We Saw No Porcelain
Shortly after we wished George R. N'Namdi a happy birthday came the welcome news that the talented Detroit crooner Ben Sharkey is slated to have an art show at the N'Namdi Gallery starting 9/22. It's called Doll Face and could very well be the most colorful anatomy lesson you'll ever attend. As skillful with the brush as he is with jazz standards, Sharkey created nine 6' x 4' canvases blending the eyes, nose and lips of lovely women from various ethnicities. For example, in "Figure 1. Caucasian", the artist incorporated or interpreted the aforementioned features of Kate Moss, Angelina Jolie, and Keira Knightley. The result is not a physical pastiche or collage of three elements, but an almost half-finished image of classic beauty that the viewer must complete within his or her mind. Sharkey, who claims he first came up with the design notion in a sketchbook, was intrigued by the subtlety of the completed examples and by the equally beguiling surmise that each figure looked "as if the beauty in each painting was manufactured." Is that Pygmalion meets Frankenstein? Regardless, the pieces on display are wonderful and provide a sound basis for a debate or discussion about the representation of reality in art, media and contemporary culture. We hasten to add here that the public reception will have music provided by DJ Jenny LaFemme and will also benefit the Carr Center. Check grnnamdi.com for more info.

Let's All Go To The Lobby...
Photographer Karpov the Wrecked Train and visual animator Alyssa Baron-Klask have found a dignified Detroit Design Festival niche for themselves inside The Park Shelton. Tentatively titled AB-K vs Karpov, this title match will have (for the first time) color photos by the capable lensman and a long awaited array of stills, prints and shadowboxes by the hyper-talented woman with the hyphenated name. Added bonus! The soprano Mary Cloud will sing operatic numbers at the opening reception on 9/19. 7 to 11 and there is a very good chance at this time that the show will be extended beyond the festival.

Not At All Cheesy
Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap still holds the singular distinction of running continuously as a West End stage play since 1952. In case you don't want to do the math, that's six consecutive decades and something like 24,500 performances. It's also unique in that critics and patrons over the years agreed to never divulge the surprise ending – a rare example of polite solidarity that was (of course) breached when Wikipedia decided to spill the beans in an online article. We have no intention of being as impolite as wiki, so here are the choice morsels: On a snow-driven night, the assorted guests at an establishment called Monkswell Manor learn of a shocking murder in London. As the play progresses, it's revealed that every one of them has some slight or startling connection to the crime – a plot device heightened by the fact that they were already annoyed with one another before news of the murder was revealed. Mutual suspicion is elevated even further when a police detective arrives on skis (!) to inform the motley Monkswell mob that the killer might very well be headed their way. That's all you're going to get, kids – that and the very happy news that this thoroughly enjoyable whodunit is going to be staged at the Hilberry starting 9/21. You can buy a ticket for the show or stay home and play Clue. (Take our advice and buy a ticket.) More: hilberry.com

Another Emergence
On 9/20 the Scarab Club will showcase Kevin McCoy as part of the Emerging Artists series at that distinguished Detroit arts enclave. "My current body of work," McCoy recently explained, "deals with everyday issues such as information bombardment, confusion and language. My abstract and representational work is a literal translation between written language and visual language taking away the normal function of letters and making it an art object while maintaining a sense of humanity in how we see ourselves and our peers." 217 Farnsworth at 6 p.m.

The Next Voices You Hear
You can only imagine the smile that crossed our lips when a reader sent in a hymn of praise for Ask the Professor, a radio quiz program that the University of Detroit aired as a syndicated delight for decades. We've always been a fan of the show, so needless to say we want you to enjoy it as well. U of D is now UDMercy, of course, and this academic round table is presently offered up as a podcast at udmercy.edu/atp/files. The questions are sent in by listeners, so have a go at stumping the profs yourself. Think of it as BYOB pub trivia. | RDW