Some organizations are canceling or scaling back events in response to community safety concerns, but others are going bigger than ever.

A wooden garden appears to be growing inside Davis’ Third Space Art Collective at “Forming, Here, Again,” a solo exhibition by Luka Vergoz open until Nov. 3. The organic, seemingly random shapes in Vergoz’ art are born out of his choice of materials: the scraps left behind on a woodshop floor.

Across the country, arts funding models are shifting. Where once large institutions absorbed the majority of public and philanthropic support, new approaches are emphasizing direct investment in artists themselves.

Sacramento’s Office of Arts and Culture, which traditionally funded arts institutions such as theaters and museums, took advantage of a windfall during the pandemic to help grow the creative economy more broadly. Can the support last?

Once ubiquitous in the Capital Region, the Sacramento News & Review ceased printing in 2020, eliminated most jobs and sold the office. But the SNR persists as a digital news outlet aided by a local journalism collective.

From restaurants to road signs, giant sculptures and colorful houses, the “Unlikely Gems” series captures snippets of life, creativity and local flavor across the region — all with a sort of Lynchian charm that has attracted over 9,000 followers on TikTok and 34,000 on Instagram.

The owners of events for nerds, geeks and other pop culture fans aren’t worried about competing with each other, but with everything else. 

Ashley Zavala, the Capitol correspondent for KCRA-TV, is well known around the corridors of the state Capitol. You can even say she’s feared. The Capital Weekly dubbed her the “Oh, s**t” reporter because that’s what some lawmakers say when they see her coming. 

In general, players know to watch out for the younger players, who can be child prodigies who rapidly increase their ratings. “They say when his feet don’t touch the floor, you’re in trouble,” local player Paul Taylor said.