Not many artists feel at ease mixing medieval rituals with cutting-edge concepts. But George Sanchez-Calderon, known for his public works critiquing shoddy urbanism, believes that splashing gasoline on a theoretical bonfire is the best way to stoke a heated debate.
This Friday at 7 p.m., Sanchez-Calderon will present his solo show "In God We Trust," at Westchester's Farside Gallery, a predominantly Cuban enclave notorious for its code enforcement scofflaws. He'll ignite a Spanish falla, a blaze outlined in the shape of a swimming pool, in the yard behind the gallery, which is actually a 1959 tract home. The tradition of las fallas comes from 16th-century Spain when carpenters set their workshops on fire as a kind of a spring cleaning.
In addition to witnessing pyrotechnics, bibliophiles are invited to bring their dog-eared tomes to exchange with strangers, commemorating the death of two literary giants Cervantes and Shakespeare who both died April 23, 1616. It's all part of UNESCO's International Day of the Book celebration.
April 23-May 1, 7 p.m., 2010