All Weekend
► Weekends at the Audubon Center
Where: Prospect Park
The Audubon Center at the Boathouse in Prospect Park is expanding its hours starting this weekend through December, now opening on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in addition to its usual weekday hours on Thursdays and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The center will offer more nature education programming for families, including a bird-watching workshop for kids.
Saturday, April 18
► Open Studios at Industry City
Where: Industry City, 274 36th St., Sunset Park
More than 100 makers will open their doors for a behind-the-scenes look at their studios, commercial kitchens and industrial spaces in Sunset Park's Industry City. Visitors will get a chance to meet the creators, who include painters, chefs, sculptors, fashion designers, and more. Industry City's first open studios event was held last April and attracted more than 3,000 people to the complex.
Where: Various locations in Brooklyn and Manhattan
Join the preservationist group 596 Acres in a bike ride to six of Brooklyn and Manhattan's community gardens currently in the midst of fights to keep using planted land. The ride will begin at 2 p.m. at Grand Army Plaza and continue to Crown Heights, Prospect-Lefferts Gardens and Bushwick, ending on the Lower East Side at 6 p.m. For a detailed schedule, click here.
► Benefit Concert for "Free Portrait Project"
Where: 641 Classon Ave., Crown Heights
Get down with soul singer Eli "Paperboy" Reed at Friends and Lovers in Crown Heights to benefit the "Free Portrait Project" — an effort by a local artist to paint 200 neighborhood residents for free. Tickets are $15.
Where: Bed-Stuy Restoration, 1368 Fulton St., Multi-Purpose Room, Bed-Stuy
In honor of Jazz Appreciation Month, the Central Brooklyn Jazz Consortium is hosting a forum of women in the music world. Hear from leading female jazz musicians and vocalists as they discuss their experiences.
Sunday, April 19
Where: Carroll Park (Carroll Street between Court and Smith streets), Carroll Gardens
If you've been thinking of adding a little Fido or Fluffy to your family, check out the Bark Avenue Adopt-A-Thon, a free adoption event for New York's shelter dogs and cats. Organizers are planning several activities for grown-ups and kids, and don't forget to watch the pups up for adoption strut down the red carpet!
► 'Take Michelle Obama to Work' Doll-Making Workshop
Where: Brooklyn Sweet Spot, 366 Myrtle Ave., Bed-Stuy
Local artist Aisha Cousins is asking people to "Take Michelle to Work" by creating a series of young Michelle Obama dolls that aim to spark discussion of how women balance their careers and personal goals. Make a free fabric doll and dress up your creation in a customized "career uniform."
Having an event in Brooklyn that we should know about? Email events@dnainfo.com and be sure to put "Get Out and Do This" in the subject line.
