August is a great time to enjoy the city—there’s enough food (pop-up food events!) and art (group shows!) for everyone to share.

The Cookery: Picnics in the Park
As part of Summer Feasts, “moveable feast and peek-a-boo dining event” organizers The Cookery present Picnics in the Park. This week, the park is Central, tickets are $50, and the exact location will be emailed to picnickers before the event.
Wednesday, August 10, 6:30 p.m.
Central Park; exact location will be emailed to diners the day before the event.

Chinese-American Arts Council Martial Arts Society: From Chinatown with Love
On the ground and in the air, the extraordinary CAAC Martial Arts Society demonstrates the breathtaking virtuosity and explosive athleticism of traditional Chinese sword, spear, and knife fighting.
Friday, August 12 at 6:30 PM
Lincoln Center, Josie Robertson Plaza
Tickets: $Free

Shakeout IV: Life Preservers
This annual open-to-the-public group show organized by local artists and curators at Marina 59 in Far Rockaway will feature site-specific art installations, live music and performances, food, boat rides, and much more. A group of young local artists were asked to create works that encourage visitors to interact with the surrounding environment. The event will also feature artist Constance Hockaday’s “Boggsville Boatels,” which will be sleeping quarters for guests who have reserved them (via ArtCat).
August 13, noon to midnight
5914 Beach Channel Drive, Far Rockaway
Tickets: $Free

Float: Field of Dreams—Socrates Sculpture Park Biennial Series
Initiated in 2003, FLOAT is Socrates Sculpture Park’s biennial series of ephemeral and interactive artworks and performances. The 2011 installment will be guest curated by Cleopatra’s gallery and will feature more than ten artists and collaborators who are creating site-specific work for installation throughout the Park.
August 7-14; check site for scheduled events
Socrates Sculpture Park, 32-01 Vernon Boulevard at Broadway
Long Island City, Queens
Tickets: $Free

Live Music Round-Up
Bigger-than-God singer-sadwriter Bon Iver is coming to the Prospect Park Bandshell—good luck getting tickets; brilliant oddball Laurie Anderson has for decades held down a spot where music and performance art meet—she joins Sxip Shirey and others at Lincoln Center Out of Doors; infectious electronic genii Cut Copy bring their complex minimalist disco to the Prospect Park Bandshell; noise rock godparents Sonic Youth and lovely-haired black sheep Kurt Vile (with the Violators) rock the Williamsburg Waterfront; this week’s PS1 Warm Up is a good one, with Black Dice performing and His Name is Alive spinning.