SATURDAY
For its 2012 volunteer biennial, the Soap Factory presents work created and curated by new and established artists from the art center's talented volunteer staff. For "KnownUnKnowns," the artists take inspiration from the future, exploring the often precarious balance of certainty and speculation that comes along with it. The exhibition's 36 artists will showcase media ranging from painting and photography to installation, video and interactive works -- most intriguingly, a "memory-shredding machine" and a "simulated experience of life on another planet." In the apocalyptic year of 2012, with its election year histrionics and natural disasters, "KnownUnKnowns" promises some apt food for thought. (Free opening reception 7-11 p.m. Sat. Through Dec. 21. Soap Factory, 514 SE. 2nd St., Mpls. www.soapfactory.org.)JAHNA PELOQUIN
MMAA Project Space Celebration
The Minnesota Museum of American Art's much ballyhooed Project Space will open at last. Since closing its galleries three years ago, the MMAA has gypsied around the state while director Kristin Makholm raised money, hired new staff and sought a permanent home. Located in St. Paul's historic Pioneer Building, the Project Space is a temporary site that will sample the collection, showcase local art and house educational programs. The inaugural show, "Painting the Place Between," is a landscape-inspired display of quasi-abstract paintings by regional talents Betsy Byers, Jil Evans, Holly Swift and Andrew Wykes. During December it will be open only for special programs on four occasions, all free: the opening celebration from 7:30 to 10 p.m. Saturday; a performance 7 p.m. Dec. 6; a multimedia event 7 p.m. Dec. 7, and an artist talk 7 p.m. Dec. 14. (Pioneer Building, 4th and Robert Sts., St. Paul. 4-9 p.m. Thu.-Fri; noon-5 p.m. Sat.-Sun. Ends Feb. 17. Free. www.mmaa.org.)MARY ABBE
