I Spy ATL is a handpicked guide to the best things happening around Atlanta. Instead of overwhelming calendars and endless listings, each event is thoughtfully selected for its creativity, community, and local character—making it easier to discover experiences that are actually worth leaving the house for.
Broad Street Thursdays returns for its second September market on the 17th — vintage, jewelry, local art, and makers on the Broad Street Boardwalk in downtown Atlanta, free to browse from 11am to 2:30pm.
Pearl & the Oysters, the genre-crashing international pop duo, land at The EARL with Atlanta's own Rujen opening. Expect something that defies easy categorization — classic pop songcraft filtered through a very particular cosmic lens.
Make your own lantern and join the parade along the Atlanta Beltline Southwest Trail for this annual after-dark celebration. Thousands of glowing lanterns moving through West End and Westview is one of Atlanta's most genuinely magical recurring evenings.
Concrete Jungle is heading to Adam's Vineyard in Norcross for muscadine picking — a hands-on morning of harvesting Georgia's native grapes to distribute to people experiencing food insecurity. Sign up to volunteer.
Burnaway launches Open Book, their editorial book club, with a gathering at Larakin to discuss 'Hothouse Bloom' by Austyn Wohlers, led by Burnaway's Editor and Artistic Director Courtney McClellan. Come for the book, stay for the conversation — and the oysters.
The Bakery Atlanta opens 'Home Grown,' a group exhibition showcasing artists who work in the service and hospitality industries. Opening reception is September 23rd at The Supermarket in Poncey-Highland, with the show running through October 11.
ATL Craft Club hosts an Autumn Clay Magnets workshop at the studio — a two-hour Wednesday night session to make seasonal clay decorations to take home. All materials provided, beginner-friendly, and a nice way to spend a fall evening.
Historic Oakland Foundation celebrates 50 years with a milestone dinner at Bell Tower Ridge inside Oakland Cemetery. A genuinely once-in-a-lifetime setting for a landmark anniversary — check the ticket price before committing, as this is a fundraiser event that may exceed the usual range.
The Atlanta Collage Society's group show 'The Nature of Collage,' featuring over 70 works by members, is on view at Callanwolde Fine Arts Center through September 24. Free to visit, and a chance to see some of the city's most inventive artists working in cut paper and found imagery.
Concrete Jungle heads to a North Georgia orchard to pick pears for neighbors in need. It's a beautiful fall road trip with a good reason behind it — show up, help harvest, and enjoy a picturesque Georgia orchard day.
Atlanta Photography Group hosts two events on the same Saturday — a Photo Book Saturday (10am-12pm) where members swap favorites, and an all-day Photography Gear Swap & Sell (10am-4pm) for used equipment and accessories. Free and open to the public.
Atlanta's liveliest cemetery festival returns for its 48th year, filling historic Oakland Cemetery with live music on the main stage and in the mausoleums, a curated market, costume contest, food trucks, ghost tours, and all-day good energy. Genuinely one of the most unique recurring events in the South.
Ghanaian musical legend Gyedu Blay Ambolley — 29 albums deep and one of West Africa's most revered artists — plays Aisle 5 on September 27. If you've been waiting for a genuinely once-in-a-decade booking in Atlanta, this might be it.
Videodrome and Deadly Prey Gallery co-present over 200 original life-size hand-painted Ghanaian movie posters in a one-night-only pop-up exhibition and print sale at The Supermarket ATL. These are extraordinary objects — painted by hand, huge in scale, and deeply weird. Free to attend, September 27, 5-9pm.
SITE takes over the entire 12-acre Goat Farm for a single night of contemporary art, performance, and site-specific installations across the old industrial campus. Think art festival meets architectural activation — one of the most ambitious one-night events in Atlanta's calendar.
One of Nepal's pioneering rock bands, Mukti & Revival, plays The Garden Club for a benefit concert with 100% of net proceeds going to Nepal Flood Relief. A rare Atlanta visit from a band that helped define Nepali rock, and a genuinely good reason to show up.
Burnaway — Atlanta's leading arts criticism platform — is launching Open Book, a literary book club for readers interested in stories touching on art and the American South. In-person and virtual options. Check burnaway.org for dates.
