Drink the Pond Water Punch and enjoy the show

It’s time to party with lizards, snakes, alligators, frogs and turtles July 28 at the Graduate Hotel. They take center stage for the opening night for The Reptilian Cotillion: An art show celebrating the slithery and scaled. “It’s a very quirky show,” says artist Rae Matagora, who is curating her first solo exhibit, and she promises that you will be immersed in a whimsical realm where reptiles epitomize grace and elegance. Matagora encourages everyone to wear bow ties, gloves or any reptile-themed attire. “At the core of it, it’s dumb fun,” Matagora says. The Eugene artist is a screen printer, illustrator and designer, and the exhibit, she says, reflects that. “I’m really playing with large-scale art.” In addition to the art, The Reptilian Cotillion show features refreshments (non-alcoholic “Pond Water Punch”) and gummy bugs to snack on. Also, there will be a photo booth with Eugene photographer Athena Delene.