TONIGHT

ROCK AUCTION

The fourth annual Pittsburgh Rock-N-Roll Auction is a chance to bid on memorabilia from the likes of Bon Jovi, Cher, George Strait and Fall Out Boy.

It takes place at the Hard Rock Cafe at Station Square at 5:30 p.m. and will feature live acoustic performances by The Delaneys, Liz Berlin and Joe Grushecky.

	Amy Lee and her band, Evanescence, are part of the Family Values Tour Saturday. Click photo for larger image.

Admission is a $10 donation to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Pennsylvania and Southern West Virginia. For more details, call 412-481-7625.

FRIDAY

PHOTOS AT FILMMAKERS

An opening reception for two photography exhibitions will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. Friday at Pittsburgh Filmmakers, 477 Melwood Ave., North Oakland. Armand Wright -- a Hill District native who was an in-house photographer for the IBM Design Center in San Jose, Calif., before moving back to Pittsburgh -- made portraits of the 36 honorees at the Lemington Community Services Senior Center's spring luncheon in 2006. Wright will introduce a 20-minute video featuring interviews with seven of the elders. David Grim's "We Will Dance Again" features images taken in Asbury Park, N.J. (free; 412-681-5449 or pghfilmmakers.org.)

FRIDAY-SATURDAY

ART SQUARED

The August edition of "Art Squared," a summer collaboration of the Penn Avenue Initiative's Unblurred and the Lawrenceville Artists' Studio Tour that drew crowds in July, will be held this weekend.

"Unblurred" will take place from 7 until 10 p.m. Friday (with some venues open later) in the Penn Avenue Arts District, 4800-5500 Penn Avenue, and will feature both visual and performing arts. Participants include Dance Alloy Theater, the Union Project, The Clay Penn, Attack Theatre and Pittsburgh Glass Center.

The "Studio Tour" will be held from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday when 20 artists, working in media that ranges from oil paintings and figurative sculpture to ceramics and new media, will open their studios and be on hand to discuss their artwork and processes. Ron Donoughe, an event organizer and Lawrencevile artist well known for his cityscapes, says "Artists are drawn to this community for its creative spirit, and we want everyone to experience the artistic atmosphere here." Maps will be available Saturday in coffeehouses on Butler Street.

For information, call 412-441-6147, ext. 7, or visit artsquared.org.

JAMMIN'

The Mountain Music and Jam Festival at the motor speedway in Pennsboro, W.Va., features 26 bands Friday and Saturday. On the mainstage at 10:30 p.m. Saturday, Morgantown's The Recipe will play in what is billed as its last hometown show. Also that night: Jenn Wertz (formerly of Rusted Root) and The Clarks. Admission: $30 in advance at mtmusicandjam.com; $40 at the gate.

SATURDAY

KORN FEST

In the past, the Family Values Tour has mixed nu metal with hip-hop, but there's no sign of an Ice Cube or Mobb Deep this year.

The Post-Gazette Pavilion show will be a heavy affair, but with a female touch. Pop-goth band Evanescence, fronted by the angelic-voiced Amy Lee, will headline along with Korn, back with a new untitled record and still carrying the torch for nu metal.

Rounding out the bill are Ozzfest veterans Atreyu, Christian rockers Flyleaf, Trivium and HellYeah, a new metal supergroup featuring Chad Gray and Greg Tribbett of Mudvayne, Tom Maxwell of Nothingface, Bob Zilla of Damageplan, and Vinnie Paul Abbott of Pantera.

It begins at 3 p.m. For more on Korn, see Music Preview: Nu metal band Korn is back with a big tour, no-name album.

-- Scott Mervis

NATURE DAY

Don't like spiders and snakes? Well, you can still go to the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania's Nature Fest at the Todd Nature Reserve in Sarver, Butler County, and stick to the birds.

Nature Fest begins at the Reserve's Cabin with a bird hike at 8 a.m. and ends with a Night Hike starting at 8:30 p.m.

Here is the schedule:

8-9:30 a.m.: Bird Hike.

10-11 a.m.: Discussion of Ferns

11-12 a.m. Birds of Prey: With live hawks and owls.

Noon-1 p.m.: Lunch.

2-3:30 p.m.: Reptiles and amphibians encounter.

3:30-4:30: Close look at Aquatic Macro-invertebrates.

5-6 p.m.: Introduction to spiders.

6:30-8 p.m.: Bring your own food for campfire cooking.

8-8:30 p.m.: Campfire storytelling.

8:30-10 p.m.: Night Hike.

There will also be Arts & Crafts activities, a self-guided tree hike and children's Scavenger Hunt. All events are free. Go to aswp.org for directions or call 412-963-6100.

SUNDAY

BAD TO THE BONE

If you drank a bourbon, a scotch or a beer in the summer of '69, head over to the Post-Gazette Pavilion for the Bryan Adams and George Thorogood show on Sunday.

Thorogood has a loyal following in the area -- fans who know that he sang other songs aside from "Bad to the Bone."

"A guy once said to me, 'How does it feel to be a one-hit wonder?' I said it's better than being a no-hit wonder. So if I'm known as the 'Bad to the Bone' guy ... hey, B.B. King is known as 'The Thrill Is Gone' guy. Not everyone has a catalog as deep as Dylan or The Beatles. I mean, that's rare. So if that's all they know me for, that's great. Lots of people are out there doing what I'm doing and not getting noticed for anything," he told classicrockrevisited.com.

People around here know him for other songs like "Who Do You Love?" and "Move It on Over." Concert-goers will also get the opportunity to see Bryan Adams perform hits like "Cuts Like a Knife" and "Heaven."

Tickets cost $15, $39.50 and $55.

-- Cody McDevitt

BLUES LADIES

Last weekend was a feast for blues fans with the Pittsburgh Blues Festival, but the blues is a weekly enterprise around here.

On Sunday from 2 to 9 p.m., Cefalo's in Carnegie presents Women of the Blues in Pittsburgh with Jill West and Blues Attack, Sweaty Betty Blues Band, Andrea Pearl, Jill Simmons, Angel Blue, Miss Freddie of Blue Faze and Patty Spadoro. Proceeds benefit the Blues Society of Western Pennsylvania. It's at 428 Washington St. Call 412-276-6600.

BUTTERFLIES

Jeff Zablow will present a slideshow and talk about "The Butterflies of Western Pennsylvania" at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Wildflower Reserve of Raccoon Creek State Park (on Route 30 about 2 miles north of Janoski's Farm Market).

Zablow will speak about the life histories of the butterflies, when and how to see them, and projections for their future. The retired biology teacher has been photographing butterflies and wildflowers for a number of years and 14 of his photographs are currently exhibited at the park's office on Route 18. For information, call 724-899-2200.

-- Mary Thomas

RESERVOIR OF JAZZ

The popular "Reservoir of Jazz" concert series returns to Highland Park on Sunday. For the next five weekends, the series will present music as diverse as Carnegie Mellon University's pre-college jazz ensemble to the Opek Big Band.

There will also be a tributes to Walt Harper, the iconic pianist and club owner, and Art Blakey, a powerful drummer who formed the seminal group Jazz Messengers. Concerts are from 5 to 7 p.m. Here are the dates:

CMU School of Music pre-college jazz ensemble and jazz choir plus Center of Life jazz group. (Sunday)

Walt Harper Tribute (Aug. 12)

Opek Big Band (Aug. 19)

Art Blakey Tribute featuring Roger Humphries and special guest (Aug. 26)

Spirit on the Hill (Sept. 2)

-- Nate Guidry

NEED TO KNOW

Station Square celebrates the fifth anniversary of Bessemer Court with a special edition of the Station Square Street Jam featuring seven on two stages: Bill Deasy, Kelsey Friday, The Dick Clarks (acoustic version of the Clarks), Good Brother Earl, Strangeway and The Yards. It begins at 5:30 p.m. Admission is free.

After a Blues Festival and a Blues Traveler, Hartwood Acres goes back to free Sunday at 7:30 p.m. with rangy New Orleans jazz singer John Boutte and Carolyn Wonderland.

The Fort Armstrong Folk Festival in Kittanning features historical re-enactors, an artist market, food booths and music that ranges from Polynesian to polka. It's in Riverfront Park from 5 to 10 p.m. Thursday; 5 to 11 p.m. Friday; noon to 10 p.m. Saturday; and noon to 9 p.m. Sunday. Go to armstrongfestival.com.

SAVORING SUMMER

Uh-oh, those dreaded words "back to school" are inching closer to reality.

Not so fast, though. There's still time to squeeze in plenty of summer fun. We thought you, dear reader, could help.

Tell us what you've done this summer in Pittsburgh that's been really cool -- something your fellow readers can still do.

Send an entry of 250 words or less to smervis@post-gazette.com and we might publish it next week. Include your name and neighborhood. We'll look for your responses through Monday.