Get Out: Porn, Spider-Man & Obama, Lots of Photos
PORN IN PERSON (SORT OF)
What better way to say I Love You on Valentine's Day than by looking at naughty images? It's "All-American Porn: 25 Years of Erotic Photography from Vivid Entertainment," opening tonight at World of Wonder's storefront gallery. See for yourself how XXX-rated films have entered the mainstream with classics from Ginger Lynn to Jenna Jameson and beyond. The show opens tomorrow, but an opening reception party is happening tonight from 7- 11, with an open cocktail bar at which guests will be able to meet Vivid Girls. Note: RSVP for non-media attendees is Thairin Smothers at gallery@worldofwonder.net. Please specify tonight's event as the one you're attending. All guests need to be 18-years-of-age or older.
GET GARY TO TAKE YOUR PICTURE
Gary Leonard's pictures are pretty awesome, so why not let him take your picture? Today is your golden opportunity, as we've been told: "Gary will be at the 860 South Broadway space from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. taking pictures of anyone who wants one. Come on down and let him take your picture." You're a star, baby!
OBAMA & SPIDEY
Talk about a dynamic duo! How about President Obama teamed with Spider-Man? Well, such a comic exists, and its creators, Writer Zeb Wells and artist Todd Nauck, will be at Pulp Fiction in Long Beach to sign your copy of this top comic book. They'll be on hand from Noon to 2 today, so activate your web and crawl down there!
PSYCHEDELIC ART FROM THE OTHER SIDE OF THE POND
"Overgrown" is the new show by London's Will Sweeney, and it's the artist's first American solo exhibition. Head over to the Hope Gallery tonight from 7-10 p.m. to take part in the opening reception and to see the show. Sweeney's art invites one into a psychedelic universe of unknown fauna and flora, where new specimens of fungi grow on every corner, cats in cosmic hats fight ogres in deep forests, and heroic sandwiches battle evil kebabs in a town inhabited by anthropomorphic vegetables.
SEX WORKERS IN MEXICO
For more intriguing art tonight, head to the dkrm gallery to see "Flesh Life: Sex in Mexico City" a show of the work of Joseph RodrÃguez, also having an opening event from 7-10 p.m. This is the first LA exhibit for NY's Rodriguez, who is a documentary photography. The show explores the lives of sex-workers in Mexico; "RodrÃguez’s beautiful and brutally honest images suggest a culture in which spirit and flesh have always been inextricably intertwined."
Other Things to Do: See Amacord during its limited engagement, go on a food-venture, get tanked on V-Day drinks, soak up the booze with Valentine's Day dessert specials, take a hike, indulge your inner Shopaholic, or (if you don't mind garlic breath) have a cheap meal at Zankou Chicken.