Picasso Looks at Degas

This weekend the Clark Art Institute opens one of the most anticipated exhibitions of the summer. Named one of 2010’s hottest exhibitions by Harper’s Bazzar, Picasso Looks at Degas focuses on two of the modern period’s greatest artists by exploring one artists’s work through the eyes of another.

Picasso and Degas shared an intense fascination with women, from ballet dancers to prostitutes; though renowned as painters, both worked in a broad array of media. This groundbreaking exhibition considers the art of these modern masters in a new perspective. Their paintings, prints, sculptures and drawings are presented to examine “Picasso’s reaction to the challenge of Degas . . . from emulation to confrontation and parody to homage.”

Picasso Looks at Degas opens at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute with an opening gala featuring art, opera, flamenco dancing and Spanish cuisine at 6 PM on Saturday (June 12). The exhibition opens to the public on Sunday (June 13), with an opening lecture with the curators at 3 PM, and runs through Sept. 10. As always, the Clark has scheduled an impressive lineup of programming around the exhibition. For more info, or a complete listing of events, call (413) 458-2303 or visit clarkart.edu.

World Cup Block Party

They don’t just close off Broadway for nothing. Every four years, the world’s finest international football squads and legions of rowdy supporters descend on one lucky country for “the beautiful game,” and the world’s most popular sporting event—the FIFA World Cup.

On Friday, the monthlong tournament gets started when host country South Africa squares off with Mexico. On Saturday (June 12), the U.S. team plays its first match against formidable opponent England. In order to celebrate and cheer on the homeland, Wolff’s Biergarten, our local hub for football revelry, has convinced the city of Albany to close off Broadway for a block-party blowout. At 11 AM, two beer trucks will set up shop and the first 1,000 people to lineup for frothy libations will get a one-liter commemorative beer stein. At 2:30 PM, the game gets under way and will be shown in giant tents on a bunch of 60-inch HD TVs. Admission is $5 (12-and-under are free), and there will be plenty of food, raffles, and prizes. Oh, and get this: They’re carting in a full-size net and real grass sod to a set up a penalty-kick shootout for kids.

The event marks the start of a month’s worth of World Cup festivities at Wolff’s Biergarten (895 Broadway, Albany), where national flags will be removed as the pack is thinned, and there will ongoing drink specials for jersey-sporting fans. Let the matches begin!

Sugarland

Who is more beloved in country music these days than the duo of Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush, better known to their legion of fans as Sugarland?

OK, maybe Carrie Underwood. But still. Life is sweet for this duo, who will be performing Friday night at SPAC. They’ve had multiple No. 1 records (albums and singles), and have won a boatload of Grammys and CMA and CMT awards.

Sugarland will perform tomorrow (Friday, June 11) at 7 PM at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center (Saratoga Spa State Park, Saratoga Springs). Luke Bryan and Danny Gokey will open. Call 587-3330 for ticket prices, information and reservations.