Young Turks of Art Brad Slaugh Director of Poor Yorick Studios Looking for studio space in SLC when he came home from grad school, painter Slaugh was discouraged to find he was 211 on the list at ArtSpace, one of the only viable places. Burned by a disastrous sublease, Slaugh took things into his own hands and created Poor Yorick - the studio spaces were rented as fast as he could finish them. Now they're the nucleus of a Salt Lake art scene thriving in spite of itself. 126 W. 2590 South, SLC, 801-759-8681, pooryorickstudios.com

Micol Hebron Senior Curator of Salt Lake Art Center SLAC got a new lease on life when Adam Price took the helm. His first act was to hire artist Micol Hebron, from Los Angeles, who helped Price manage the successful and unconventional Contemporary Masters: Artist-Designed Miniature Golf. That got our attention. She's followed up with a citywide yard art contest, Lawn Gnomes Eat Your Heart Out. Wake up, Salt Lake City. 20 S. West Temple, SLC, 801-328-4201, slartcenter.org

Adam Bateman President of the board of Central Utah Art Center Once a sleepy space for exhibits by local watercolorists and landscape painters, CUAC under the direction of Adam Bateman has reinvented itself as a hotbed of contemporary art. Well, Bateman is a well-known artist, and that helps. A native of Ephraim, he has established an artist residency there to tempt artists to experience Utah. Once a month, the Art Bus leaves from SLC to Ephraim. 86 S. Main St., Ephraim, 435-283-5110, cuartcenter.org

Jill Dawsey The first-ever curator of modern and contemporary art at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts She was previously assistant curator of painting and sculpture at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, but the proof of Dawsey's fresh approach is The Smithson Effect, an exhibition exploring Robert Smithson's influence on artists. Smithson created the Spiral Jetty on the Great Salt Lake, a major masterpiece of 20th-century modernism that is unknown to many Utahns. This exhibit should help Utahns come face to face with their own modern art heritage. 410 Campus Center Drive, SLC, 801-581-7332, umfa.utah.edu

Jeff Lambson Curator of contemporary art at BYU's Museum of Art Lambson can hardly be called a newcomer. He's been here more than two years, but BYU's MOA had never had a contemporary art curator before. And his creds were impressive: He worked at The Hirshhorn Museum in the Smith-sonian's Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Washington, D.C., before moving to Utah. And he continues to raise the bar: Don't miss the current exhibit, The Matter of Words: Adam Bateman, Harrell Fletcher, and John Fraser. That's what we're talking about. Campus Drive, Provo, 801-422-8287, moa.byu.edu

 

The Perfect Bar Okay, there is no perfect bar. Like the perfect Mexican combination plate, bars tend to have several of the features you'd like to see, but not all. If you could put together the perfect bar, these are the elements you'd include.

Best Jukebox Twilite Lounge A bar's music defines its clientele even more than its drinks do - we love Twilite because its juke features equal-opportunity tunes, meaning all kinds are welcome. 347 E. 200 South, SLC, 801-532-9400, twilitelounge.com

Best Comfy Seating Sky Bar at Sky Lodge A view of PC Main Street and the stars and mountains from stylish indoor couches or outdoor cushy lounge chairs made seasonally comfortable with a firepit or a fountain. You not only want to linger here, you want to live here. 201 Heber Ave. Park City, 435-658-2500, theskylodge.com

Best Bartenders Republican This is a no-nonsense bar, and its tenders are equally serious. Attentive and alert, the guys (and a gal) behind this bar pour the best pint of Guinness in town and make sure your glass is full. 917 S. State Street, SLC, 801-595-1916

Best Brews Beer Hive A vast range of brews on tap and in bottle, kept chilled by the ice shelf that runs the length of the bar. 128 S. Main Street, SLC, 801-364-4268

Best Wine List St. Regis Besides a staggering number of bottles in their famous cellar, St. Regis provides an entire bar, separate from the regular bar, in which to imbibe the fruits of the vine. 2300 Deer Valley Road, Park City, 435- 940-5700, stregisdeervalley.com

Best Food Metropolitan Bar food at the Metropolitan is better than most restaurants' main menus: sliders, bacon jam, ahi crudo, plus specials - all elegantly presented. 173 W. 300 South, SLC, 801-364-3472, themetropolitan.com

Best Karaoke The Woodshed A big room with a prominent stage makes the Woodshed one of the best places in town to show off your singing skills, or to make a total ass of yourself. Either way, the friendly crowd makes it a night to remember (or forget). 60 E. 800 South, SLC, 801-364-0805

Best Cocktails Bar X The venerable Bar X has given itself a makeover and contrived a whole list of extremely sophisticated artisanal cocktails. Not that you can't get beer, too. 155 E. 200 South, SLC, 801-532-9114

Best Patio Hog Wallow Best shade, best sun, best history, best place to reflect on how great it is just to sit outside in a Utah summer and sip a beer. 3200 Big Cottonwood Canyon Road, SLC, 801-733-5567, thehogwallow.com

Best Place for a Beer and a Book Nostalgia Trade in the coffee and laptop for a beer and a book at Nostalgia, a coffee shop that's not all about caffeine. 248 E. 100 South, SLC, 801-532-3225, nostalgiacoffee.com

Best Billy Joel Impression Keys on Main We're not saying the city needs a good piano man imitator; we're just saying we have one in George Kelly. Sing along at Keys on Main. 242 S. Main Street, SLC, 801-363-3638, keysonmain.com

Best "Meet" Market Gracie's Bar Sit in or out, up or down. Play pool or footsie, watch sports or a sunset, eat, drink and meet all the other people your age that are doing the same thing. 326 S. West Temple, SLC, 801-819-7565, graciesslc.com

Best Place to Get Your Bowl On Bonwood Bowling Alley The Dude, Donny and Walter once again made bowling the game of hipsters, and Bonwood - complete with restaurant and lounge - is the place to roll yours. 2500 S. Main St. SLC, 801-487-7758, bonwoodbowl.com

Best Venue Upgrade Twilight Concert Series The series moved to Pioneer because of necessity; it's staying because it's a thousand times better place for a big, outdoor summertime concert with kids, dogs, food, picnickers and everything. For Gallivan lovers, United Concerts is presenting concerts there this summer. Pioneer Park/Salt Lake Arts Council, 54 Finch Lane, SLC, 801-596-5000, arts@slcgov.com

The Great Walls

Hail Mary The image of the Virgin Mary, surrounded by the Latin words of the Ave Maria, was painted by El Mac and Retna near Fice Gallery and Urban Boutique, at 160 E. 200 South, SLC

Our Lady In the great tradition of Mexican epic mural painting, artist and community activist Ruby Chacon painted this inspirational mural, commissioned by Zions Bank for Catholic Community Services, 300 S. 746 East, SLC.

Flashy Feet Neighborhood kids helped local artists Dave Habben, Trent Call, Dan Christofferson, Chuck Landvatter, Ben Wiemever and Gailon Justus create a mural on the wall of Salt Lake Running Company at 2454 S. 700 East, SLC

Did He, or Didn't He Supposedly, this was done by the great U.K. street artist Banksy when he was in Park City for the Sundance showing of Exit Through the Gift Shop. But no one can say for sure. See it for yourself on PC's Main Street.

 

Boys Night

Fuel up Lucky 13 135 W. 1300 South, SLC, 801-487-4418, lucky13slc.com Lay a good foundation in your gut for a full-on night out: Order a Luckyburger and a pint, and, just to be on the safe side, better have some fries, too.

Watch Ball Spring Mobile Ball Park 77 W. 1300 South, SLC, 801-350-6900, slbees.com Watching someone else compete with a ball is even more of a guy thing than playing ball yourself, and there's no better place to polish your commentator prose and coach from the sidelines than a Bees game at the ball park. Not only is the view beautiful, but chances are the team will provide plenty of opportunity for colorful language.

Play Ball Fats 2182 Highland Drive, SLC, 801-484-9467, fatsgrillslc.com Full of righteous indignation at other people's mistakes and the beer-fueled conviction that you can do better yourself, head on over to Fats in Sugar House for a round of bar pool. And if you're already feeling peckish, the kitchen here does a good job, too.

Take in a Show Urban Lounge 241 S. 500 East, SLC, 801-746-0557 Shows start late, and the lineup is dependably good, meaning you can stop by the Urban Lounge any late night and the scene will be interesting.

Cap the Night Pie Hole 344 S. State Street, SLC, 801-359-4653, pieholeutah.com There's really only one place to go when it's 1 in the morning and you need food. And we're not talking Village Inn. Thank the lord the Pie Hole opened up in SLC, finally bringing us a suitable midnight meal in a comfortably boisterous atmosphere. With beer.

Girls Night Pretty Up Nailed! 875 E. 700 South, SLC, 801-532-6245,nailedboutique.com Nothing makes a girl feel prettier than primped toes. Get yours at Nailed!, where you can all sit next to each and talk philosophy (Is Brad really right for Angelina?) while your piggies are polished, sparkled and made strappy sandal-ready.

Buy Some Bling Silver Loft 62 S. Rio Grande Street, SLC, 801-456-4600 Display your newly dolled up digits at their best - stop by Silver Loft in Gateway and get a silver toe ring. Or some dazzly ear dangles. Or both. On the upper level of the Gateway Mall.

Sips and Nibbles Meditrina 1394 S. West Temple, SLC, 801-503-0362, meditrinaslc.com The talented women who own Meditrina know exactly what ladies who aren't lunching want: a taste of everything. Great wines by the glass and small plates with big flavor are the cool rule.

Go Dancing W Lounge 358 S. West Temple, SLC, 801-359-0637 By now you should be looking lovely and lightly lit - time to put the twinkly toes into action. We like to hustle (bump, vogue, twist, shimmy) our butts off at W Lounge.

Refuel Pie Hole 344 S. State Street, SLC, 801-359-4653, pieholeutah.com Dancing is aerobic - you probably need some carbs, or at least a place to take a load off and unwind. There's only one place to get the right stuff this time of night - the Pie Hole. Hey, who are those guys at the next table? Yes, gentlemen, we will have a beer.