Welcome to the Wednesday feature here at the ReadyMade blog. Each week, I will provide a list of upcoming events, releases and happenings for the following Thursday through Wednesday. If you have (or know of) an event that you would like to be included, please shoot me an email, and I will do my best to make it happen. Pygmalion Music Festival Wednesday, September 16 through Saturday, September 19 Champaign-Urbana, Illinois Over 100 performers will take the stage during the fifth year of the Pygmalion Music Festival in the unassuming midwestern college town of Champaign-Urbana. Favorites like Iron and Wine and Ra Ra Riot play next to up-and-comers So Many Dynamos and Decibully. Even though passes are sold out, check here for tickets to individual shows. Conflux Festival Thursday, September 17 through Sunday, September 20 New York City, New York What exactly is a festival of psychogeography you ask? Well, Conflux aims to investigate urban life through the varied practices of the arts, society and technology, and bring together folks from all walks of life to explore it together. For four days, you can reimagine the city as a playground, a place for positive change and even a source of profound delight. Produced by Glowlab, the festival will host over 100 artists from all around the world. SPARKcon Thursday, September 17 through Sunday, September 20 The Triangle, North Carolina SPARKcon is a self-described “creative potluck” of everything from gourmet cooking to fashion to dance. The four-day grassroots event is in its fourth year and NC locals elbows deep in each specific area source the programs—or sparks. With hundreds of local people showcasing their talent, you can be one of the thousands in attendance that discovers exactly what lights their fire. Roman de Salvo: Split, Splice, Splay, Display Thursday, September 17 through Saturday, October 17 La Jolla, California The Quint Gallery hosts Roman de Salvo’s fifth solo showing at the space, and Split, Splice, Splay, Display consists of his witty sculptural installations that riff on the natural patterns found in wood. The latest series continues his exploration with maze forms, and De Salvo painstakingly fit each piece together based on the sticks’ individual shapes. Kind of like grownup Tinkertoys, but without any of the holes to help guide the process. Park(ing) Day Friday, September 18 San Francisco, California, Global An annual, one-day-only happening that transforms metered parking spots into temporary public parks, Park(ing) Day is a joint effort between citizens, activists and artists. Created by Rebar, the event facilitates social interactions, playfulness and civic engagement. Bizarre Market Sunday, September 20 Richmond, Virginia Hosted by the Visual Arts Center, the Bizarre Market is from 1-4pm and even includes a bike parade! Vendors will be set up outside, and inside the commons will host sellers affiliated with the Center. Bicycle Diaries Book Release Thursday, September 17 Everywhere David Byrne tells a tale of life on a folding bicycle, one that has been in the making for a couple of decades. The Talking Heads frontman divides Bicycle Diaries based on world cities he took in from the vantage point of a bike seat, and proceeds to describe humanity exactly as he sees it. Sometimes praising, sometimes questioning, Byrne describes streets, people and animals in a way that is always interesting. A touch of whimsy rounds out the printed book, in the form of an animated bicycle making its way across each page. A nice addition to an already lovely read. --Call for Artists-- Sock It To Me Design Contest Now through Friday, September 25 Portland, Oregon The locals-only contest is in its third year, and the Portland-based Sock It To Me is gearing up for some difficult selections.  You can submit up to five original (never published) designs based on the template, and possibly win $500 and a revamped sock wardrobe while you’re at it. Sketchbook Project Ongoing Everywhere The Atlanta-based Art House Co-op unleashed a project to become the curators of the Sketchbook Library. With a goal to archive artist sketchbooks from around the world, once you sign up, the Co-op will send you a coded Moleskine notebook. Once you send it back, it will become part of the permanent collection. The barcode allows future patrons to browse books based on location, name, theme, etc. --Album Releases-- Tuesday, September 22 Everywhere Monsters of Folk, Monsters of Folk Conor Oberst, Mike Mogis, Jim James and M. Ward are the monsters of this folk band. The album, Monsters of Folk, came about after a joint tour in 2004. We’ve been waiting five years for this record, and it’s finally arrived. Volcano Choir, Unmap These fine gentlemen from Wisconsin hunkered down for a weekend in 2008 to finish a project that started back in 2005. The guys behind Bon Iver and Collections of Colonies of Bees become Volcano Choir and provide listeners with some necessary gospel on Unmap for the fall season.

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