ART

NOTHING LASTS FOREVER “Let Everything Be Temporary, or When Is The Exhibition?” opens tomorrow at apexart. Curated by Elena Filipovic, the group show features pieces that explore the temporariness or the possibility of instability, whether motivated by political, aesthetic, economic, or intimate forces. Featured artists include Joëlle Tuerlinckx, Felix Gonzalez-Torres, and Tomo Savic-Gecan. Tomorrow, 6 p.m., exhibit through, Friday, February 17, Tuesday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-6 p.m., apexart, 291 Church St., between Walker and White streets, 212-431-5270, free.

AMERICAN ART DEBUT Mitchell-Innes & Nash presents the opening of an exhibit of works by Veron Urdarianu. The Romanianborn artist’s works explore the relationships between sculpture, architecture, and painting, using such materials as wood, plastic, and metal. Thursday, 6 p.m., exhibit through Friday, February 17, Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m., Mitchell-Innes & Nash Chelsea, 534 W. 26th St., between Tenth and Eleventh avenues, 212-744-7400, free.

FESTIVALS

WARMING UP The nonprofit organization New York Cares presents its annual Skatea-Thon, an 11-hour event featuring a performance by Olympic ice skater Sasha Cohen. The organization encourages New Yorkers to bring new or lightly used coats to the drive. Today, 8 a.m.–7 p.m., performance 7:45 p.m., the Pond at Bryant Park, 25 W. 40th St., between Fifth and Sixth avenues, 212-228-5000, free.

LET’S GO FLY A KITE Makar Sankranti, known as Pongal in southern India and Lohri or Maghi in the Punjab region, is a celebration of the passing of the sun over the astrological sign Capricorn. The Rajasthani folk singer guitarist Deepak Kumar Pareek performs devotional and classic Hindi film songs to honor the auspicious day. In India, the holiday is celebrated with the flying of colorful kites that honor the sun god, Surya. Saturday, 7 p.m., ARCH Arts Center, 66 W. 39th St., between Fifth and Sixth avenues, 212-924-0718, $20 general, $10 students.

FILM

WE ARE FROM SWEDEN The 2006 Nordic Oscar Contenders series features films with a northern touch that have received a Best Foreign Film Oscar nomination this year. The series kicks off tonight with a screening of Jesper Ganslandt’s “Farväl Falkenberg” (“Falkenberg Farewell”) (2006), about a group of young men who spend their last summer in the town of Falkenberg before heading for adulthood. Tonight, 6:30 p.m., Scandinavia House, 58 Park Ave., between 37th and 38th streets, 212-879-9779, $8 general, $6 members.

FOR THE WARM NIGHTS The BillDance series features screenings of films with pop music and dance. The series continues with a screening of Marta Renzi’s art film “Porch Stories,” which tells the story of a small neighborhood through music and dance. Tonight, 8 p.m., Karl’s Klipper, 40 Bay St. at Hyatt Street, Staten Island, free.

BRENT GETS ANIMATED The IFC Center and Filmmaker Magazine present “An Evening With Brent Green,” a talk and screening of hand-drawn works by the artist and animator, including “Paulina Hollers,”a 2007 Sundance Film Festival selection. An editor and film producer, Scott Macaulay, is moderator of the event. Special guests are also featured. Tomorrow, 7:30 p.m., IFC Center, 323 Sixth Ave. at West 3rd Street, 212-924-7771, $10.75 general, $7 seniors and ICP members.

FOOD & DRINK

OH, CANADA Chef Lora Kirk and wine sommelier Sara d’Amato, both of the Truffles restaurant of the Four Seasons in Toronto, prepare a dinner to celebrate the riches of Canadian wines, featuring selections from the Mission Hill Winery in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, and the Peninsula Ridge and Cave Spring Cellars wineries of the Niagara section of Ontario. Tonight, 7 p.m., James Beard Foundation, 167 W. 12th St., between Sixth and Seventh avenues, 212-627-2308, $155 general, $125 members.

MUSIC

VIOLIN CONCERTO The New York Philharmonic presents “Pinchas Zukerman Plays Beethoven,” a concert featuring the Israeli violinist and violist. Conductor Zubin Mehta leads the orchestra in a performance of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto and Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring.” Mr. Zukerman is currently the music director of the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Canada. Mr. Mehta is the music director of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. Tonight, 7:30 p.m., Lincoln Center, Avery Fisher Hall, 10 Lincoln Center Plaza., between Broadway and 65th Street, 212-875-5900, $33-$99.

MUSIC IN THE GALLERY The Drawing Center, a gallery that features contemporary works on paper, is the host of the Mid-Winter Music series. The first installment features the Wingdale Community Singers, who perform urban folk music, and folk singer-songwriter John Wesley Harding. Tonight, 7:30 p.m., the Drawing Center, 35 Wooster St., between Broome and Grand streets, 212-219-2166, $10 general, $7.50 members.

A MODERN TAKE “Chamber Music in Any Chamber” is a two-part concert program by the Chiara String Quartet, who focus on progressive interpretations of classical music. In a rare club appearance, the quartet performs pieces announced only during the performance. Tonight, 9 p.m., Rose Live Music, 345 Grand St., between Marcy Avenue and Havemeyer Street, Brooklyn, 718-599-0960, $5.

JAZZ AROUND TOWN The NYC Winter Jazzfest, presented by the International Association for Jazz Education, is an allnight showcase of alternative jazz bands. Performers include the Rudresh Mahanthappa Quartet, Wonderful World with Guillaume de Chassy and Daniel Yvinec, and the Maurice Brown Quartet. Wednesday, 7 p.m., the Knitting Factory, 74 Leonard St., between Church Street and Broadway, 212-219-3006, $25.

SINGING IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT A sixmember ensemble, Eighth Blackbird, performs selections from their often harmonically dissonant repertoire. Group members include flutist Tim Munro, violinist Matt Albert, and pianist Lisa Kaplan. Thursday and Friday, 8 p.m., the Kitchen, 512 W. 19th St., between Tenth and Eleventh avenues, 212-255-5793, $10.

BRIGHT LIGHTS Saxophonist Claire Daly and the Bright Moments perform a tribute to the music and spirit of Rahsaan Roland Kirk, a blind, multi-instrumentalist whose work was rooted in hard bop and soul jazz. Band members include human beat box artist Napoleon Maddox and pianist Eli Yamin. A spoken word artist, Kirpal Gordon, is a featured performer. Thursday and Thursday, January 25, 8 p.m., Bowery Poetry Club, 308 Bowery, between Bleecker and Houston streets, 212-614-0505, $10 general.

POETRY

LIFE’S FRUSTRATIONS The group performance “Mortified” features spoken word poetry by various presenters on topics such as their first kiss and fights with their parents during adolescence. Wednesday, 8 p.m., Makor, 35 W. 67th St., between Columbus and Central Park West, 212-601-1000, $10 in advance, $12 at the doors.

READINGS

SISTERLY DISPUTES Two novelists read from their respective works: Galt Niederhoffer reads from and discusses “A Taxonomy of Barnacles” (St. Martin’s Press), which follows the plight of six sisters as they fight for their father’s fortune; and N.S. Köenings reads from “The Blue Taxi” (Little, Brown), about a Belgian housewife who seeks to reunite a boy with his family in Africa after a near fatal accident. Tonight, 7 p.m., Housing Works Bookstore Café, 126 Crosby St., between Houston and Prince streets, 212-334-3324, free, donations of books appreciated.

MOVING ON “Young Writers Write the Immigrant Experience” is a reading presented by the New York Book Club, featuring a discussion between authors Gary Shteyngart and Sigrid Nuñez, both of whom are known for their perspectives on American culture through the eyes of immigrants. Tomorrow, 6 p.m., the Lower East Side Tenement Museum, 108 Orchard St. at Delancey Street, free. RSVP e-mail required to agarrett@tenement.org.

HAPPILY EVER AFTER “Just Married,” a reading by Tom Hopkins and Emily Barton, is featured as part of the One Story Cocktail Hour and Reading Series. Mr. Hopkins is a contributor to Daphne Gottlieb’s “Homewrecker: An Adultery Anthology” (Soft Skull Press). Ms. Barton is the author of “Brookland: A Novel” (Farrar, Straus and Giroux), about sisters who run a gin distillery in late 18th-century Brooklyn. An editor of the journal, Hannah Tinti, is host of the event. Friday, 7 p.m., Pianos, 158 Ludlow St., between Rivington and Stanton streets, 212-505-3733, free.

WRITING BY A FLICKERING LIGHT As part of its “Voice Visiting Author Series,” the Writer’s Voice presents Stanley Ely and contributors to his book “Living Alone Creatively: How Twelve People Do It” (iUniverse), who discuss the writer’s hermetic existence. Friday 7:30 p.m., West Side YMCA, 5 W. 63rd St., between Central Park West and Broadway, 212-875-4124, free.

TALKS

ART OF THE HOLOCAUST The Yeshiva University Museum presents “Valentin Lustig and Art After Auschwitz,” a talk with the artist about his work in the current exhibit, “The Holocaust in the Paintings of Valentin Lustig.” Mr. Lustig portrays pre–World War II landscapes of his native Romania haunted by victims of the Holocaust. An assistant professor of art history at the Fashion Institute of Technology, Andrew Weinstein, discusses Mr. Lustig’s place in post-Holocaust and postmodern art. Selections from the exhibit include “Cautious Approach to the Monuments” (1997). Tonight, 6 p.m., exhibit through Sunday, January 28, Tuesday–Thursday and Sunday, 11 a.m.–5 p.m., Center for Jewish History, Yeshiva University Museum, Winnick Gallery, 15 W. 16th St, between Fifth and Sixth avenues, 212-294-8330, $8 general, $6 students and seniors, free for members.

SLAVE TRADE The Women’s City Club presents a discussion on “The Tragedy of Human Trafficking: Slave Trade in the 21st Century,” which focuses on the city’s existence as a major portal for trafficking and how laws and strategies can be formed to stop it. Featured speakers include a representative of Equality Now, Jane Manning. Today, 12:30 p.m., Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies, 281 Park Ave. South at 22nd Street, 212-353-8070, $10 general, free for members and students.

THEATER

PROTEST VOICES The Rude Mechanicals theater group present Kirk Lynn’s “Get Your War On,” based on David Rees’s Internet comic of the same name. The comic is focused on Americans’ varying reactions to the war in Iraq. Featured actors include Jason Liebrecht and Ron Berry. Tonight through Sunday, January 28, Tuesday-Thursday, 8:15 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 8:15 and 10:30 p.m., Sunday, 3:15 p.m., 59E59 Theaters, 59 E. 59th St., between Park and Madison avenues, 212-279-4200, $25 general, $15 students.

SECRET LIVES Norman Beim’s “On a Darkling Plain” recounts the first day when accusations began flying about communists among the ranks of Broadway’s elite during the McCarthy era. The play follows the plight of one actor who struggles to support his family while deciding to act in a play directed by a whistle-blower. “Darkling” is directed by John Cooper. Tomorrow through Saturday, January 27, Wednesday-Friday, 8 p.m., Saturday, 2 and 8 p.m., Turtle Shell Theater, 300 W. 43rd St. at Eighth Avenue, 212-868-4444, $18.

To submit an event for consideration for the Calendar, please wire the particulars to calendar@nysun.com, placing the date of the event in the subject line.