Calendar for the week

thursday
august 28
"Art of the Matter: Seven Collaborations in Paper Art": Organized by the Dieu Donne Papermill of New York City's Soho district, this installation makes a case that the meticulous, hands-on pursuit of papermaking remains relevant in the Cyberspace Age. Including pieces by artists working in pairs (some of those represented include William Weege, Gail Deery, John Nava, Paul Wong, Virginia Jaramillo, Robbin Ami Silverberg, Margaret Prentice, and John Risseeuw of Arizona State University's Pyracantha Press), the exhibit continues through Friday, September 5, at the Harry Wood Gallery, located in the School of Art Building on the ASU campus in Tempe. Viewing is free; regular hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays (the gallery's closed Monday, September 1). Call 965-3468.

Elvis Herselvis and Her Straight White Males, and the Red Elvises: A double dip of Pelvis-shaking perversity for those who didn't get their fill during the recent commemoration of the King's death. San Francisco's Elvis Herselvis is fronted by impersonatrix and self-proclaimed "atomic-powered lesbian singer" Leigh Crow. Says one Bay Area critic of Crow and her SWMs: "This is queer and it's rock 'n' roll. . . ." The Red Elvi hail from the former Soviet Union and bill themselves as "the legendary legends of Siberian surf music." The L.A.-based act plays tunes like "Elvis and Bears," "Ballad of Elvis and Priscilla" and "Shooba-Doobah (Elvis' Vacation)." Showtime is 9 p.m. Thursday, August 28, at the Rhythm Room, 1019 East Indian School. The cover is $9. For details call 265-4842.

Phoenix Mercury Playoffs: The WNBA franchise hosts the New York Liberty in a semifinal at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, August 28, at America West Arena, First Street and Jefferson. If the Mercury wins, it goes on to the championship game, scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday, August 30, at a site TBA. For details call 252-9622, 379-7800 or 503-5555.

"Places of Peace and Power": Sedona-based mystic/photographer and magical mystery tour guide Martin Gray takes us to a number of the world's "sacred sites"--including Mount Fuji, Machu Pichu, Stonehenge and the pyramids of Giza--in this combination slide show and discussion. The latter includes comments about Gray's "extraordinary mystical experiences" at some of the sites, and "a radical interpretation of the miraculous phenomena that occurs [sic] at them." Just FYI. Showtime is 7 p.m. Thursday, August 28, in the Performing Arts Center at Scottsdale Community College, 9000 East Chaparral. Admission is $15. For details call 423-6359.

Phoenix Firebirds' "Final Flight": The Triple A team ends its 34-year affiliation with the Valley on Thursday, August 28, with a game against the Tucson Toros. Fittingly, it's at the squad's longtime home: Phoenix Municipal Stadium, 5999 East Van Buren. The first pitch is at 7:05 p.m. Call 275-0500 or 503-5555.

friday
august 29
Junior Wells and His Big Band: The Memphis-born, Chicago-based harmonica great (real name: Amos Blackmore) is best known for his collaborations with Muddy Waters and Buddy Guy and his spate of fine solo platters for Delmark in the '60s, but Wells can still rock any roadhouse you can name in these late '90s. The 63-year-old and his eight-piece group are scheduled Friday, August 29, at the Rhythm Room, 1019 East Indian School. Hans Olson opens at 9 p.m. The cover is $12. For details call 265-4842.

"Art of the Matter: Seven Collaborations in Paper Art": See Thursday.

saturday
august 30
John Fogerty: Fogerty's lionized for his days with Creedence Clearwater Revival, noted for the conviction and accessibility of his roots/pop sound, and notorious for his habit of releasing a solo album per decade--a habit that would throttle the career of a lesser mortal. (The unexceptional Eye of the Zombie, John's 1986 follow-up to his triumphant '85 return to form, Centerfield, was the exception that proved the merit of the rule.) Fogerty began preparations for his latest disc, Blue Moon Swamp, way back in 1990 with a series of pilgrimages to his musical Mecca, Mississippi. Though recording began in '92, the album was just released in April; see the story on page 93. Touring for the first time since Zombie, and incorporating Creedence tunes into his live show for the first time since CCR disbanded, Fogerty's scheduled Saturday, August 30, at Union Hall, Sixth Street and Van Buren. Sharing the stage is Missouri's Bottle Rockets, an alt-Americana band par excellence. Showtime is 8 p.m. Tickets are $27 in advance, $29 the day of the show, available at the hall and Dillard's; call 253-7100 or 503-5555.

Open Season: "Drawing Distinctions"; "Virgil Hancock: New Ruins, Old Boneyards"; "From Cairo to Carefree": The fall exhibition season makes its informal debut, along with these installations, on Saturday, August 30. "Drawing Distinctions," at the Arizona State University Art Museum at Nelson Fine Arts Center, 10th Street and Mill in Tempe, is subtitled "Twentieth-Century Drawings and Watercolours From the British Council Collection" and hangs through Sunday, November 30, in conjunction with the upcoming UK/AZ Festival. It includes works by David Hockney, Barbara Hepworth, Michael Craig-Martin, Bridget Riley and others, and explores the evolutionary move of English artists "away from their . . . refined, polite image." Viewing is free; hours are 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays, 1 to 5 p.m. Sundays (call 965-2787). "New Ruins, Old Boneyards" features works by Tucson photographer/psychologist Hancock, who puts the dual vocation to good use in metaphorical, Walker Evans-inspired shots of the developed Southwest. "New Ruins" continues through Sunday, November 2, in the New Directions Gallery at Scottsdale Center for the Arts, 7380 East Second Street. Viewing is free; this week's hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday (call 994-2787). "From Cairo to Carefree," subtitled "Building the Heard Museum," examines the history of the Phoenix institution and its globetrotting, art- and artifact-hoarding founders, Dwight and Maie Heard; the show's up through July '98 at the Heard Museum North, located at el Pedregal at the Boulders, 34505 North Scottsdale Road in Scottsdale. This week's viewing hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday. Admission is $2, $1 for those ages 4 to 12, free for younger kids and Heard members (call 488-9817).