Fall Gallery Night: There’s been a yarn bombing downtown

When we heard that the UW Design Gallery was planning a “Cozy Shelter” yarn bombing for the bus stop on State Street across from the Madison Museum Of Contemporary Art, we envisioned one of those knitted cozies our grandma put over the toaster when she wasn’t using it. Turns out the Design Gallery didn’t knit a gigantic version of that and then lower it from a helicopter over the top of the bus stop, but it did manage to make the futuristic shelter look like a cross between a comfy blanket and a piñata. Except when you hit this piñata, all that comes out are dead bugs and the occasional mass transit passenger.

The well-orchestrated knitting attack leveled against that bus stop is but one of the whopping 65 events planned for this year’s Fall Gallery Night, organized by MMoCA. Here are a few more of the events planned this year that tripped our trigger.

Taylor Winder at Macha Teahouse (1934 Monroe St., 608-442-0500)

Despite the venue sharing its name with one of our least favorite Milwaukee Brewers managers, reading the description of Winder’s exhibit—which describes paintings inspired by “Hannah Barbara [sic], Underoos, the WWF, and low-budget British science fiction television shows”—has us notably psyched. Winder’s hazy visions of creepy, old-timey diving masks and schlubby superheroes in Jockey shorts take a delightfully eschew look at the source material and convey a longtime fascination with the stuff.

Blair Lawn & Landscape (3030 Gateway Place, 608-255-1920)

Sure it’s fall, but that’s when things start getting good around here, and we’re not ready to pack up our folding chairs and can coolies just yet. Blair’s intricate garden setups may make it a little difficult to navigate a game of washer toss, but its intuitive designs incorporating plenty of fauna, water features, and whimsy make it feel like summer again. Plus, they’ll be roasting marshmallows over an outdoor fire pit.

Gary Knowles at MMoCA (227 State St., 608-257-0158)

Cavemen did it with cave paintings. Egyptians did it with hieroglyphics. Seeing a representation of a period of time just feels better when viewing it through a medium so quintessential to that era. So checking out the slightly discolored, completely recognizable, square-shaped Polaroids Gary Knowles took of Madison in the ’70s not only caught the action, but also seemed to preserve it in little artifacts. He’ll be discussing the 26 photos on display at MMoCA tonight at 6:30 p.m.