ANIMAL KINGDOM The summer group show “Animal Tales” features paintings, drawings, and photographs of the furry and feathered among us. Many works are infused with humor: Robert Selwyn’s “How to Tell If Your Pet Is Gay” (2002) is a dapper portrait of a dog sporting a cap and bandana, and in Saul Steinberg’s lithograph “Untitled (Animals)” (1971), a smiling crocodile wears a crown as a peacock, rabbit, and other creatures look on. John Nickle curated the show. Through Friday, September 2, Monday-Friday, 11 a.m.-7 p.m., DFN Gallery, 176 Franklin St., between Greenwich and Hudson streets, 212-334-3400, free.

BEE’S KNEES Performance and video artist Vanessa Beecrof t signs copies of “VB53” (Charta/Fondazione Pitti Immagine Discovery). The book catalogs her recent performance in Florence’s Horticultural Garden, in which she “planted” 21 nearly naked models in a plot of dirt. The signing takes place at a temporary bookstore run by Distributed Art Publishers, which will be open through the end of September at Visionaire Gallery. Tonight, 6-8 p.m., Artbook at Visionaire, 11 Mercer St., between Canal and Grand streets, 212-274-8959, free.

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