The Essentials | City Weekly's Entertainment Picks Jan. 1-7 

Almost an entire wall of Pat Bagley “cartoon paintings” is a spectacle in and of itself, and his political commentary is no less pointed using a brush instead of the business end of a pencil. “This Is the Way the World Ends: It Blows”—with W. blowing the seeds from a dandelion-as-Earth—is vividly tragic; Bagley’s cockeyed “Sarah” Palin demands to be seen in color.

Former Utah Arts Council Director Frank McEntire’s mixed-media “Dharma Mouse” mixes metaphors with a Mickey Mouse figure atop an Asian pendulum. Pat Eddington and Susan Makov make good use of printmaking—Eddington’s illustrations with a hint of Edward Gorey, and Makov’s “School Prayer” showing the impression of text.

Plenty of Leia Bell works abound, as though she emits them with every breath. Still, amid the whimsical animals, her framed Black Angels show poster in gold leaf stands out. Marcee Blackerby’s mixed-media boxes are as inventive as an artist who has shown at the State Wine Store must be to capture attention. Liberty Blake’s still-life “Tea” could be served to her mother Jann Haworth’s cloth “Grannie” in rocking chair (pictured), looking as at home in the bookstore as anyone.

Joint Artist Show @ Ken Sanders Rare Books, 268 S. 200 East, 521-3819, through Jan. 15. KenSandersRareBooks.com

FILM
nBy Scott Renshaw
nThe repertory movie house feels like a dinosaur of a concept, a relic from before the age of home video. Why go out to watch the same movie you can catch at home?

Because in an era when we do so much in isolation, the communal movie-going experience still matters, maybe. Brewvies Cinema Pub has made a point of complementing its regular schedule of second-run current releases with a wide variety of vintage fare, from grindhouse exploitation “classics” to the kind of “classics” endorsed by City Weekly’s own monthly free movie nights (that’s right, The Breakfast Club still rocks).

But the really big guns come out on Saturdays, when the Film Buff series presents some of the finest cinematic gems, generally focusing on a specific director or actor for a few weeks in a row. The current Jimmy Stewart showcase follows up last week’s screening of Rear Window with Alfred Hitchcock’s 1958 psychological thriller VERTIGO. Will acrophobic San Francisco detective Scottie Ferguson (Stewart) learn the secrets of a possibly suicidal woman (Kim Novak), and those of the woman who looks just like her? You may already know the answer—but maybe you’ve never shared the brilliant twists and turns with an audience transfixed by a big screen.

Enjoy your weekend lunch—or midnight snack—along with one of Hollywood’s all-time greats. Give old-fashioned repertory a shot. You may find yourself—wait for the Vertigo pun—falling for it.

Vertigo @ Brewvies Cinema Pub, 677 S. 200 West, 355-5500, Saturday, Jan. 3, 12 p.m. & midnight. Brewvies.com

VISUAL ART
nBy Brian Staker
nPrintmaking suffers a PR deficit in comparison with its more elevated relative: painting. After all, if you can create multiple versions of the same image, they couldn’t have the same value as an original oil or acrylic, could they? Prints also bear the same stigma as photographs, created by mechanical means rather than the impressionistic brush in the artist's hand. The University of Utah’s art department has a dearth of printmaking equipment in comparison with its other programs.

Saltgrass Printmakers was founded five years ago by Sandy Brunvand and Stefanie Dykes to address that lack of local resources. During that time, in addition to printmaking classes and exhibits, they have hosted guest residencies from people like Fulbright scholar Bill Hosterman demonstrating his groundbreaking techniques. This summer, Saltgrass created innovative prints using a steamroller.

The CINCO DE SALTGRASS benefit show highlights 20 notable Salt Lake City artists in the medium and runs the gamut of what this incredibly diverse art form is capable of. Edward Bateman has been creating his archaic yet tech-intensive images that might have been termed “steampunk” years before the term gained widespread currency. Joey Behrens’ street scenes (pictured) detail cosmopolitan environments with almost cartographical detail. Brian Hoover’s mythical creatures, appearing like illustrations from some fantastical novel, never fail to startle. And Brunvand’s own work subjects organisms in nature to a microscopic perspective. All these artists show that the impression created by fine-art prints goes much deeper than just the surface.

Cinco de Saltgrass Fifth Anniversary Fund-raiser Group Show @ Saltgrass Printmakers, 2126 S. 1000 East, 467-1080 through Jan. 31.

here&now Other New Happenings This Week

ROOM SERVICE The classic stage comedy (popularized by the Marx Brothers) about a theater producer trying to raise money for his latest show. Hale Center Theater, 225 W. 400 North, Orem, 801-226-8600, Dec. 31–Feb. 7. HaleTheater.org

DANCE ALL DAY Repertory Dance Theatre invites the public for a free sampler platter of Community School classes, including Brazilian, ballroom and contemporary jazz. Rose Wagner Center, 138 W. 300 South, 534-1000, Saturday, Jan. 3, 9 a.m.–2 p.m. RDTUtah.org

JEREMY HORN’S ELITE FIGHT NIGHT A 10-bout card of mixed martial arts action, including Court McGee vs. Nick Rossborough. Davis Conference Center, 1651 N. 700 West, Layton, 801-908-5355, Saturday, Jan. 3, 7 p.m. HornsElite.com

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE COLLECTION TOUR An introduction to some of the finest works at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts, no preregistration required. Utah Museum of Fine Arts, 410 Campus Center Dr., 581-7332, Jan. 3-4, 1:30 p.m. UMFA.Utah.edu

UNDER OUR SKIN Salt Lake Film Center presents a documentary about the challenges of diagnosing and living with Lyme disease. The Leonardo, 200 E. 500 South, Sunday, Jan. 4, 7 p.m. SLCFilmCenter.org

FREE TAX WORKSHOPS Time to start gathering those 2008 financial records, and learn about 2009 tax-code changes to get a jump-start on April 15. Main Library, 210 E. 400 South, 524-8200, Monday, Jan. 5, 7 p.m. SLCPL.org

MARGARET STEVENS The local author introduces the innovative parenting concepts and “kid rehabilitation” book ParentFix. The King’s English Bookshop, 1511 S. 1500 East, 484-9100, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 7 p.m. KingsEnglish.Booksense.com

UTAH JAZZ VS. NEW ORLEANS HORNETS Chris Paul vs. Deron Williams—the Great Point Guard Debate continues tonight. EnergySolutions Arena, 301 W. South Temple, 355-SEAT, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 7 p.m. UtahJazz.com tttt