Although it's hard to compete with northeast Minneapolis' Art-A-Whirl in May, the semi-annual St. Paul Art Crawl is getting closer. Strengthened by the flourishing Lowertown arts and entertainment district, the event has hundreds of artists opening their studios in more than 20 buildings to showcase their latest creations. AZ Gallery will host a group show with Amy Clark, D.C. Ice, Todd Peterson and others alongside guest artists, with live music all weekend. (Free opening receptions 6-10 p.m. Fri. Noon-8 p.m. Sat. Noon-5 p.m. Sun. AZ Gallery, Northern Warehouse, 308 Prince St., No. 130, St. Paul.) Also opening is "Transfigurations," a joint show from Talissa Mehringer and Laekun Foto that is loosely based on the pagan traditions of All Hallow's Eve. Works include sound, installation, photography, video and paintings. Other major sites hosting open galleries and studios include Lowertown Lofts Artists Cooperative, Northern Warehouse, Tilsner Artists Cooperative, Jax Building and Northwestern Building.

It's easy to pick out a Nick Howard piece. Rendered in black ink on paper, his distinctive drawings populated with cloaked figures and prickly tubes have a haunting, psychological mystique in the vein of Edward Gorey. For Howard's first solo show, he departs somewhat from his toothy, multiple-mouthed characters and toward large armies of masked, abstract figures. His work becomes a study of "pattern and proliferation," in which figures form mountainous, looming shapes and temporary environments. The show introduces Rosalux Gallery's new, larger exhibition space in the Van Buren Building. Free opening reception 7-11 p.m. Fri. 10/7.