CULTURE | On the shoulders of giants

Joining the Downtown First Fridays lineup is the Illinois State Museum. Nov. 1, Springfield’s unsung gem will stay open past hours and present an array of activities. In the lobby, you can watch the assembly of a huge sculpture by Michael Ferris Jr. named Rusty Finnegan. Staff will begin putting together at 5:30 p.m. the gentle giant, who wears size 15 sneakers and stands more than nine feet tall. Musical group Finnegans Wake, featuring Bill Furry, John Van Orman and Bill Rintz, will play traditional Irish, English, Scottish and American folk music at 6:30 p.m. in the museum’s Thorne Deuel Auditorium, lower level. The museum store, featuring a Maria Burk jewelry trunk show, and museum galleries, including the recently opened exhibit Figurism, will be open as well. Parking is free.