Santa Monica Civic Auditorium

All that glitters is sold at the International Gem & Jewelry Show , a traveling expo featuring nearly 250 exhibitors from around the world. Wares on display include gemstones, jewelry, beads, crystals, minerals and more. Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, 1855 Main St., Santa Monica. $8 (good for all three days). Noon-6 p.m. Fri., 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sat., 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sun. (301) 294-1640. www.intergem.com.

More than 300 galleries and dealers have convened at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium for Photo L.A., the 22nd annual photography-based art fair that is running through Monday. Photo L.A. is more than exhibits. The schedule includes lectures on collecting, technology, "iPhoneography" and fashion photography as well as seminars devoted to architectural photography. On Sunday, Gordon Baldwin, former curator of the photography department at the J. Paul Getty Museum , moderates a panel titled "The Architectural Photograph.

ART The longest-running art fair in Los Angeles, Photo L.A. is also the largest photography-based art fair in the country, drawing more than 10,000 attendees. The show is now combined with artLA projects, an ongoing citywide program of exhibitions, seminars and installations across all media, and the resulting art fair features four days of programming, including panels with local artists and writers Christina Caputo, Stacy Allen and Alex Klein, as well as an opening reception with William Eggleston and Stephen Shore.

Outside the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium on Friday, just before the Swedish producer/DJ Aviciiperformed the first of his three concerts this weekend, a guy passed out on the lawn.  The fellow looked to be in his mid-20s, buffed with protein-supplement shakes and so annihilated that he flitted around the front yard like a little fratty hummingbird searching for sugar water (or tequila). Three police officers chased him before he finally collapsed in a leaden pile right in front of several thousand people waiting in the ticketing line.  This obviously had nothing to do with Avicii or the venue (which wasn't even serving alcohol - go figure)

Former World Boxing Assn. heavyweight champion Tony Tubbs won his fourth consecutive fight by winning a close, but unanimous, decision over Orlin Norris Tuesday night at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. Tubbs, who earned $12,000--compared to the $800,000 he earned against Mike Tyson when he was knocked out five fights ago--won Norris' North American Boxing Federation heavyweight title.

More than 300 galleries and dealers have convened at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium for Photo L.A., the 22nd annual photography-based art fair that is running through Monday. Photo L.A. is more than exhibits. The schedule includes lectures on collecting, technology, "iPhoneography" and fashion photography as well as seminars devoted to architectural photography. On Sunday, Gordon Baldwin, former curator of the photography department at the J. Paul Getty Museum , moderates a panel titled "The Architectural Photograph.

Pro Nominees: Guns N' Roses and Natalie Cole led the field with eight nominations each in the first Pro Set L.A. Music Awards, which were announced Tuesday. The awards are designed to recognize Los Angeles-based artists in 48 categories. The awards will be presented in a show on Feb. 19 at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium.

The Santa Monica Symphony Orchestra, in its 50th anniversary season, is celebrating the monumental event on a high note. The orchestra will perform Beethoven's Ninth Symphony at 7:30 p.m. Sunday during a free concert at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. The concert will also feature four vocal soloists. The city of Santa Monica and Los Angeles County subsidize the orchestra, which performs four concerts a year at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium.

East meets West at today's Arts of Pacific Asia Show at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. Shoppers will discover numerous rare and valuable pre-1950 art and artifacts, including shadow puppets and temple carvings; 11th-Century sculpture from Tibet, Burma, China, Korea and Japan; Chinese ink paintings; Indonesian textiles; jade carvings, and Ming furniture. Dealers from across the country are scheduled to participate.

* Adventure Character Convention--"Hercules: The Legendary Journeys" and "Xena: Warrior Princess," above, are the themes of the weekend event at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. * "Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Celebration"--The event includes speeches, a jazz quartet and the USC Gospel Choir. Today at noon. Bovard Auditorium, USC campus. Free.

EVENTS The coolest green cars since Steve McQueen's Mustang will be on display at the sixth annual AltCar Expo, where attendees can ride in, test-drive and purchase alternative-fuel vehicles. Highlights include the Nissan Leaf, Toyota's plug-in Prius, the Chevy Volt and the Mercedes B-Class F-Cell. Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, 1855 Main St., Santa Monica. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Fri.-Sat. Free. (310) 390-2930. http://www.altcarexpo.com.

ART The longest-running art fair in Los Angeles, Photo L.A. is also the largest photography-based art fair in the country, drawing more than 10,000 attendees. The show is now combined with artLA projects, an ongoing citywide program of exhibitions, seminars and installations across all media, and the resulting art fair features four days of programming, including panels with local artists and writers Christina Caputo, Stacy Allen and Alex Klein, as well as an opening reception with William Eggleston and Stephen Shore.

EVENTS International Gem and Jewelry Show All that glitters might not be gold, but it wouldn't be out of place in Santa Monica this weekend at the International Gem and Jewelry Show. Since the show's modest beginnings in 1967 as the first of its kind to sell directly to the public, the roving bazaar has personal adornments for seemingly everyone. Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, 1855 Main St., Santa Monica. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. $8 weekend pass (cash only on-site)

All that glitters might not be gold, but it wouldn't be out of place in Santa Monica this weekend at the International Gem and Jewelry Show. Since the show's modest beginnings in 1967 as the first of its kind to sell directly to the public, the roving bazaar has personal adornments for everyone. Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, 1855 Main St., Santa Monica. Noon-6 p.m. Fri., 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sat., 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sun. $8 weekend pass (cash only on-site). http://www.intergem.com

All that glitters is sold at the International Gem & Jewelry Show , a traveling expo featuring nearly 250 exhibitors from around the world. Wares on display include gemstones, jewelry, beads, crystals, minerals and more. Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, 1855 Main St., Santa Monica. $8 (good for all three days). Noon-6 p.m. Fri., 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sat., 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sun. (301) 294-1640. www.intergem.com.

As home shows go, AltBuild is different in many ways, not the least of which is the price of admission. It's free. Workshops and panel discussions will cover sustainable design, including landscaping, solar power and environmentally friendly remodeling. More than 150 exhibitors will showcase new products.

At $20,000, you may not want to wire it for light. Pae White's 2007 paper and steel chandelier shown here is part of the Los Angeles sculptor's deceptively beautiful explorations of household items that also include blown glass, bricks and barbecue grills shaped like animals. White's work is on display this weekend at the 1301PE booth at Art LA 2008, an exhibition dedicated to international, contemporary art and composed of 60 galleries, half of which are local.