Artscape is the nation’s largest free arts festival and it happens this weekend in Baltimore. There’s a little bit of everything for everyone, from street performers, fashion shows, dance, music acts, film showings, gallery openings and art vendors. Here are a few of my picks (check artscape.org for complete acts and schedules):

{AVAM‘s Mardi Gras art car}

• FUNKY: American Visionary Art Museum Art Car parade where hunks of junk adorn old cars and parade down the streets of Baltimore Saturday morning.

{BIG}

• LAUGH OUT LOUD: You never know what funny stuff you’re going to get when every show is different and audience participation is key. BIG at Theatre Project Saturday night.
• BEATS: Hearing it is believing it. Shodekeh Bouma rocks to a beat all his own with his human beatboxing – Sunday evening in the Langsdale Auditorium.
• VISUAL: Congratulations to Tony Shore who was this year’s recipient of the Sondheim Award [$25,000 awarded to a local artist] for his amazing paintings on black velvet. [Props to Tony for all his hard work with his non-profit, Access Art, in town too!] See his work along side of the other five finalists at the BMA, and more finalists are on view at MICA‘s Decker Gallery.

{poster by Kevin Sherry of Squidfire. . .who even has published a great children’s book, and check out this feature in Urbanite}

BUT,wait, there’s more! If Artscape isn’t enough, check out Baltimore’s more alternative art scene at WHARTSCAPE and AltsKape.

{image via Load of Fun}

The fun starts tonight [Thursday] at LOAD OF FUN with MakeBakeFakeCake, an edible art exhibition spear-headed by burlesque beauty Trixie Little & Evil Hate Monkey and Duff Goldman (Charm City Cakes aka Food Network’s Ace of Cakes).