Happenings January 4th - 11th, 2026

                                                             

It’s a New Year and this year the sky is the focus with a parade of astronomical events taking place throughout 2026. 2025 ended with the moon sitting next to The Seven Sisters and began with a Supermoon and Quadrantid Meteor Shower on January 3^rd - 4th. So, if you’re outside, look up.

                                           

The second week of January starts off with photographer Jamel Shabazz hitting the streets of Richmond, Va and then NYC later this month. Shabazz’s work is featured in the Giants: Art from the Dean Collection of Swizz Beats and Alicia Keys currently on view at Virginia museum of Fine Art. On January 9^th at 6:30 pm at VMFA, Shabazz will be in conversation with Dr. LaCharles Ward, Supervisory Museum Curator of Photography and Film and Director of the Earl W. and Amanda Stafford Center for African American Media Art at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History & Culture. For more information go to VMFA.museum. Then on Saturday, January 10^th, from 10am- 12pm The Black History Museum & Cultural Center with host Shabazz in casual conversation with Actor and Director Tim Reid, and Producer Q of The Carter Magazine. For more information go to and to reserve a spot go to Eventbrite.com.

                                                            

A few hours north in NYC on Angelika Film NY is hosting early access Q&As with the All That’s Left of You writer and director Cherien Dabis on Monday January 5^th and Tuesday, January 6^th. The film follows seven decades of a Palestinian family as the matriarch recounts the events that led to violent protest that rocks the family. The first Q&A takes place on Monday after the 7pm show and will be moderated by actress Cynthia Nixon. The Q&A after the 7:30pm show will be moderated by Elliot Page. On Tuesday following the 7pm show the Q&A will be moderated by actress Susan Sarandon. For more information go to @angelikafilmny.
 
Don’t miss the deep dive into the making of the film The Voice of Hind Rajab with The Sundance Collab on Tuesday, January 6^th from 6-7pm EST. The film follows to the killing of Hind Rajab, a five-year-old Palestinian girl, by the Israel Defense Forces during the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip. Written By Tunisian director Kaouther Ben Hania, the film incorporates real life audio recordings into the scripted feature. The film won a Grand Jury prize at the 2025 Venice International Film Festival and was nominated for Best non-English film at the 83^rd Golden Globe Awards.  RSVP for the online event is free. For more information go to collab.sundance.org.

Union Station in Washington, DC will host January Jazz Jam every Tuesday and Wednesday from 4pm-6pm with live jazz performances during the evening rush hour. Performers include the Herb Scott Trio, Miles Devon Music, the Duke Ellington School Jazz Combo, and the Wesley Biles Trio. For more information go to UnionStationdc.com.

                                     

Milan has a new ice skating rink courtesy of the Ferragamo family. Housed in the family’s Portrait Hotel in the Piazza del Quadrilatero, the rink is part of an activation of the location called “The Gift: Portrait of a Winter’s Tale.” The project includes festive celebrations, shopping, culinary experiences, and ice skating sessions and runs through January 6^th,2025. For more information go to The Portrait Milan

On January 8th at 7pm join Atlanta based artist Dr. Fahamu Pecou at ADAMA for a discussion about Brother, Brother, the latest exhibition exploring the interior lives of Black men. Pecou will be in conversation with actress and collector CCH Pounder. For more information and to register for the event go to adamaatl.org.

On January 9^th from 6pm-9pm The Music Center’s Innovation Social is honoring the one-year anniversary of the Los Angeles wildfires with an immersive event that centers storytelling and healing. The free event features work from ASU’s Narrative and Emerging Media program and explores how immersive media can help us hold memories, process loss and imagine renewal. Attendees can wander through VR stories, AR moments and interactive spaces shaped by the voices of Angelenos rebuilding together. For more information go to @themusiccenterla.

               

The Smithsonian National Museum of American History is showing Cali love with the new Corazon y Vida: Lowriding Culture exhibit. The traveling exhibit opened at the Muzeo Museum and Cultural Center with its next stop at the US Navy Seabee Museum in Port Hueneme, Ca. The exhibit documents 80 years of lowrider culture that began with Mexican Americans in the 1940s and how it evolved to be a source of creativity, entrepreneurship and identity. The traveling exhibition features photographs highlighting lowrider culture and objects from lowrider art and trade. For more information and to view the tour schedule  go to www.si.edu.

Join The Oak Cliff Cultural Center in Dallas for The Zora Neale Hurston Festival on January 10^th from noon - 6pm. Zora Neale Hurston who wrote Their Eyes Were Watching God examines the mechanism of control used in the Black community to infantilize Black women and keep them stagnant. The long overdue homage to the Black American writer anthropologist features books, workshops, live performances and more. For more information go to occc.dallasculture.org.

                                     

Jupiter, the largest planet in our solar system, will reach its opposition on January 10^th.  The planet will be directly between the Sun and Earth making it appear the biggest and brightest in the night sky. Jupiter will rise in the east around sunset and reach its highest point in the south around midnight. You won’t need any special equipment to view the planet, but a telescope or binoculars will allow you to see its four moons. Jupiter which rules the astrological sign Sagittarius, is also known for luck and abundance, so look up. For more information go to EarthSky.org.

Starting the new year by releasing the past before charging forward has been the advice of many therapists going into 2026. On January 11^th at 11am, honor your emotions, grief and joy at Teas and Tears. The ritual space invites vulnerability and connection. It’s a call to the ancestors without fixing, but to remember. The event takes place at 444 South Fair Oaks Ave, Pasadena, CA. For more information and to RSVP go to @medicinewoman_floraina