J. Walt Performs “Spontaneous Fantasia”
Jan. 30, 7 p.m.
Free
Utah Museum of Fine Arts Dumke Auditorium
According to the press release: “Winner of a Technical Academy Award, J. Walt creates virtual worlds in real-time and guides the audience through them in a combination of computer-generated imagery and music that the Los Angeles Times described as “indescribably delicious.'”
Walt is a filmmaker, graphic artist, interactive designer and composer and has been at the forefront of designing ways to take computer animation to the next level. He has won several awards for computer-generated puppetry and was instrumental in creating a real-time, pre-visualization system that won him an Academy Award (probably a well-deserved one).
Friday, Walt will be speaking in Room 101 of the Warnock Engineering Building at 3:40 p.m. During this lecture/Q-and-A session, he will present and answer questions on the software he developed and artistic challenges faced in creating “Spontaneous Fantasia.” Attend both of these events and see the future of computer animation. “Spontaneous Fantasia” is sure to be something you’ll regret missing.
Band of Annuals
Jan. 30, 7 p.m.
Price TBD
Kilby Court (738 S. Kilby Court)
Alt-country is already a well-worn genre. The past couple of years have given rise to numerous bands trying to ride the new popularity wave into stardom, and most of them fall very short of succeeding. Band of Annuals, on the other hand, just keeps getting better and better. They’re one of Salt Lake City’s most prominent local bands and have worked hard to garner a lot of national attention, too. They spend a lot of time on the road winning over fans all across the country, but they’re taking a little time off and spending the cold winter months back home giving the locals plenty of opportunities to see them live. The band rarely disappoints, and seeing them live is the only place you’ll be able to pick up their newest EP, “No Depression.” It should tide you over until the new full-length hits sometime later this year.
“An Innermost Journey: The Art of Shauna Cook Clinger”
Feb. 3, 2 p.m.
Free
Utah Museum of Fine Arts
As part of the annual “Interfaith Week” celebrations, local artist Shauna Cook Clinger will host a gallery show of her latest exhibit, “An Innermost Journey” at the UMFA. Cook’s showcase, which has been running since October, is an “evolutionary collection of the artist’s large-scale, life-sized paintings, created over the past 30 years,” according to a press release. Clinger’s work has been exhibited throughout the United States, including the National Museum for Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C., and she will be on hand to comment on her work as well as answer questions.
The gallery show will be followed by a film called “What Do You Believe?”, a documentary on student views on spirituality and God. There will be a discussion afterward, and students are invited to participate.
“An Innermost Journey: The Art of Shauna Cook Clinger” ends Feb. 15 and is accompanied by a full-color exhibition catalogue.