"Ghost Ranch," by Carolyn Anne Anderson, is on display in Arte De Los Muertos, beginning Oct. 15 and continuing through Nov. 17, at Borealis Arts, 6530 E. Tanque Verde Road, Suite 160.

When I think of the Detroit's Insane Clown Posse (who performed at Tucson's Rialto Theatre last year and frequently appear in the Zia Records top ten published in our music section), I'm thankful for two things: that I don't often have to hear their music and that they've been on a roll lately giving interviews to confused music journalists. This time, the crypto-geniuses behind the song "Miracles" and the Gathering of the Juggalos festival spoke to The Guardian's Jon Ronson about their Christian faith. Seriously.

The entire article is an enjoyable and head-scratching read, if only to try to decipher what on earth these two face-painted guys are talking about at any given moment, but this section (from part of the conversation where the interviewer gets into how a scientist attempted to debunk ICP's perception of what miracles are on YouTube) is music journalism gold:

"No," sighs Violent J. "I figured most people would say, 'Wow, I didn't know Insane Clown Posse could be deep like that.' But instead it's, 'ICP said a giraffe is a miracle. Ha ha ha! What a bunch of idiots.'" He pauses, then adds defiantly, "A giraffe is a fucking miracle. It has a dinosaur-like neck. It's yellow. Yeah, technically an elephant is not a miracle. Technically. They've been here for hundreds of years…"

"Thousands," murmurs Shaggy.

"Have you ever stood next to an elephant, my friend?" asks Violent J. "A fucking elephant is a miracle. If people can't see a fucking miracle in a fucking elephant, then life must suck for them, because an elephant is a fucking miracle. So is a giraffe."

Words to live by.

Sure, their music is ultra-violent on a nearly indefensible level and often wildly misogynist, but they do have a point with the elephants, so here's two minutes of our world's walking, wrinkled miracles playing.

Kenneth Armstrong, experienced maker of fine bicycle art over at BICAS, will have some great pieces of recycled bike furniture shown tonight, Thursday, Oct. 7, at Cafe Luce, 943 E. University Blvd.

It is a part of the First Thursday Art Walk at Main Gate Square. He will be making more pieces for the upcoming BICAS art auction as well.

Artes Sin Fronteras/Arts Without Borders is a monthlong border arts festival coordinated by Borderlands Theater and The Screening Room. Movies, book discussions and art exhibitions are all on the program, along with the Borderlands play, Arizona: No Roosters in the Desert. For Borderlands events, read our preview in this week's issue.

Below is a sampling of other activities. For a complete listing, visit the Borderlands website.

At the Screening Room, 127 E. Congress St.; 882-8607:

The Tijuana Project Kids Photo Show, art exhibition through Nov. 7. $6.

The Invisibles, screening of a movie by British filmmaker Marc Silver and Mexican actor Gael Garcia Bernal, about the migration of Central Americans through Mexico. Silver also introduces his film in progress, Who Is Dayani Cristal?, and leads a panel discussion with Lorenia Ton, the Mexican Consulate staffer responsible for repatriating the dead to Mexico and Robin Reineke, researcher at the Office of the Medical Examiner and anthro grad student. 7 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 14. Free. Read more in our City Week section.

YAMAHA 300, staged reading of play by Mexican playwright Cutberto Lopez, exploring the dangerous world of narcotrafficking in Sinaloa. 7 p.m., Monday, Oct. 18. Free.

Focus on Arizona Youth. Film screenings and discussion of the new Arizona laws. Filmmakers Ari Luis Palos and Eren Isabel McGinnis will show a clip of their film Precious Knowledge, about the ethnic-studies law; Levi Escobar screens his short, No SB 1070! Other panelists include Tucson High Magnet School teacher Curtis Acosta and student activists. 7 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 21. Free.

Art Has No Borders. Winners of the 20th annual Tucson Meet Yourself corrido competition sing their winning songs; Elisea Perea-Hernandez screens her film Nogales, Aqui Es, about the border town’s rich artisan community. 7 p.m., Friday, Oct. 22. Free.

Breaking Down the Border, UA Press panel discussions and book fair. 1 p.m., author Stella Pope Duarte (If I Die in Juarez) talks with Ernesto Portillo Jr. of the Arizona Daily Star; 2:15 p.m., John Annerino (Dead in Their Tracks: Crossing America's Desert Borderlands in the New Era) and Miriam Davidson (Lives on the Line: Dispatches From the U.S.—Mexico Border) speak with Jon Shumaker, a Tucson Weekly contributor; 3:30 p.m., Kathryn Ferguson, Norma Price and Ted Parks read and discuss their book Crossing With the Virgin: Stories from the Migrant Trail. Books available for purchase. 1 to 5 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 23. Free.

The 800 Mile Wall. John Carlos Frey screens his film about the border wall. Afterward, Frey and activist Mike Wilson discuss issues raised by the movie. 7 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 28. Free.

At the galleries...

Ojos bien abiertos/Eyes Wide Open: sgrafitto drawings by Alice Leora Briggs, hand-colored gelatin silver prints by Guatemalan photographer Luis Gonzalez Palma and documentary photographs by Mexican photographer Rodrigo Moya are on view at Etherton Gallery, 135 S. Sixth Ave., 624-7370. Through Saturday, Nov. 7. Free.

¡Subasta de Arte!/An Art Auction, benefiting Latino gallery Raices Taller 222 Art Gallery & Workshop. Live music and refreshments. Final bids 8 p.m. Free admission. 6 to 9 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 16. Día de los Muertos opening: ofrendas, paintings, sculpture, potluck. 6 to 9 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 2. Free. Both events at Raices Taller, 218 E. Sixth St., 881-5335.

One thing is certain about life in Tucson 25 years ago: The hair on Daniel Buckley's head and face was brown. Back then, folks also went to Club Congress to what was called the Counter Club to take in an exploding performance art scene, of which Buckley was a part of when he performed as Blind Lemon Pledge, and with the Little Dinks.

Last month, Club Congress celebrated its 25th anniversary with the bands that grew from the space. Buckley has organized another 25-year reunion—of the performance artists who also called Congress home. It happens tonight at Club Congress, 311 E Congress St., Friday, Oct. 1, 7 p.m. Tickets are $10.

Read Buckley's press release for more info and a great perspective on the importance of this reunion. Go to the jump to see the lineup:

Nine months before the first band trod the stage of Tucson’s musical sweet spot — the Club Congress — a series of performance artists blazed the trail at what was then called the Counter Club.

A week before the club officially opened Robert Bray and Milliren rocked downtown with an epic midnight performance spectacular titled “Garments of Elegy and Ecstacy.” On its official opening night, Blind Lemon Pledge (aka Daniel Buckley) would debut a musical performance work called “Nestled in Narcotics,” with The Lovely Miss Pearl Drops (painter Rosemary Geseck) as his partner. That Halloween, Mary Ann Brazil created another large scale extravaganza called Red, and from that point forward a tradition of happenings and performance artist showcases followed that included appearances by Karen Finley, RuPaul (pre-fame), Matt Groening (pre-Simpsons) and such local artists as Dennis Williams, James Mousigian, Imo Baird, Robert Bray, GriffinFish, The Little Dinks, Matt Bevel, the Phoenix Boat People and many more.

On October 1, the Club Congress again becomes ground-zero to Tucson’s performance art world as current and past generations of Arizona performance artists take over the Hotel Congress for an evening easier experienced than described. Participants include Joanna Frueh, Jeff Falk and Annie Lopez, Paul Fisher, Blind Lemon Pledge, Jennifer Urso, Denise Uyehara, Heather Wodrich, the Little Dinks and Laura Milkins.

No discussion of the history of performance art in the earliest days of the Club Congress (or Counter Club as it was known in those days) would be complete without acknowledging the visionary contributions of Gary Patch. Patch was a driving force in the decision to try performance art in the venue and the man who in the earliest days booked acts. Patch’s martini glass logo has become synonymous with the Club Congress. Patch later went on to design the interior of the Rialto Theater. He is one of the unsung greats of Tucson’s art scene.

Worth mentioning as well are the visionary contributions of Mary Ann Brazil and later Danny Vinik who shaped the fledgling Club Congress into the venue for music and art that it is today.

"Off 4th Avenue," by Gary Tenen, is on display in 4th Avenue in Focus, opening Oct. 1 and continuing through Oct. 31, at Café Passe, 415 N. Fourth Ave.

"Nurse Jackie," by Alexander Arshansky, is on display in Alexander Arshansky Is: An Extension of the Russian Avant Garde Movement, opening Oct. 1 and continuing through Oct. 31 at ART Gallery, 1122 N. Stone Ave.

On Saturday, Oct. 2 the 10th annual "The Big Picture" art expo will take place downtown. Celebrating the beginning of the 2010-2011 season, "The Big Picture" is a free, family-friendly event that many galleries will be taking part in. There will be a wide range of media, including paintings, sculptures, drawings, photography, glass art and more.

For more information, call 629-9759, or go to the Central Tucson Gallery Association website.

And be sure to check out Margaret Regan's preview of "The Big Picture" in this week's issue.

Glass Illusions owners Pattie and Mark Johnson talk about sculpting glass and metal into petroglyphs, artistic engravings usually on rock.

Photographed and Produced by Corinne O'Donoghue/JSAC Visual Task Force

Harrod Blank will be touring the Southwest in his Camera Van—along with 10 to 20 other "art cars" and his new documentary Automorphosis. The film is a 77-minute tribute to art cars and the psychology behind what inspires creation.

On Friday, Oct. 8, the tour reaches Tucson, and the film will be played at The Screening Room, followed by an after-party from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. at the Candelabra Gallery.

On Oct 9, the art cars will be on display at Second Saturdays downtown from 5:30 p.m. to midnight, and the film will play again at 7 and 9 p.m. at The Screening Room.