GOINGS ON : St. Petersburg Orchestra to Open Concert Season : The world-acclaimed Valery Gergiev will conduct an all-Russian program for the Arts Music Assn. in Santa Barbara.

Santa Barbara’s Community Arts Music Assn. will open its 76th season Friday night at the Arlington Theatre by presenting the Kirov Orchestra of St. Petersburg.

Conductor Valery Gergiev, named “1993 Conductor of the Year” by the jury of the International Classical Music Awards, will lead the ensemble in an all-Russian program featuring Mussorgsky’s “Dawn at Moscow River” and Preludes, Acts I and IV from “Khovanshchina,” Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2” and Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 1 with violinist Viktor Tretyakov.

The concert begins at 8 p.m. Tickets are $19, $25, $37 and $49. Call 966-4324. The Arlington is at 1317 State St. A free lecture on the music to be performed will be presented at 6:45 p.m. at the American Savings Bank, 1130 State St.

*

Got a piece of metal you’re looking to turn into art? We thought so. And so does the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History’s Ridley-Tree Education Center.

On Saturday, from 10:30 a.m. to noon, artist Alice Hutchins will lead the public in the creation of a collective magnetized piece of art. Hutchins, who was associated with the Fluxus art movement of the 1960s, will also discuss her use of magnetism in her artwork.

The cost to participate in the workshop is $5. Call 962-1661 for more information. The Ridley-Tree Center is located at 1600 Santa Barbara St.

*

The 21st Annual Masters’ Track & Field Event, co-sponsored by Santa Barbara’s Park and Recreation Department, will be held Saturday at Santa Barbara City College’s Nick Carter Track and La Playa Field. The events are being held in combination with the South Coast Senior Olympics.

Look for athletes age 30 and older to compete in running and walking, high jump, long jump, triple jump, shotput, discus, pole vault, javelin, and other events.

The oldest competitor this year will be Santa Barbara resident John Whittemore, 94, who holds four world records and seven national records in various masters age divisions. His most recent world record was set last year with a hammer throw of 44 feet, 2 3/4 inches.

Beverly Lewis, a former bronze medal winner in the Commonwealth Games, who at one time was ranked among the 10 fastest women in the world, will serve as the official starter for the events.

The action will begin at 9 a.m. and conclude about 3:15 p.m. There is no fee to watch the events. City College is located at the corner of Cabrillo Boulevard and Loma Alta Street. Call 965-3813 for more information.

*

Holy creative duo, Batman!

On Saturday, fans of Batman in the animated and comic magazine form will have a chance to meet two men closely tied to their favorite super hero, when Paul Dini and Bruce Timm drop by Santa Barbara’s Metro Comics.

The creative team wrote and directed “Batman: The Animated Series” for the Fox Television network, and collaborated on the popular comic “Batman: Mad Love.” Dini and Timm will be on hand from 2 to 4 p.m. to autograph their new work, “Batman Adventures Annual 1.” Metro Comics is located at 15 W. Anapamu St. Call 963-2168 for more information.

*

The Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History Sunday will present “Lindbergh’s Historic Flight to Paris.” The travel film will take the audience along the route traveled by Charles Lindbergh and the “Spirit of St. Louis” during the historic New York-to-Paris flight in 1927.

Tea will be served at 2 p.m. with the movie beginning at 3. General admission is $5. Call 682-4711. The museum is located at 2559 Puesta del Sol Road.

*

School is back in session, and that means another exciting, eclectic season of entertainment from UC Santa Barbara’s arts and lectures division.

The 1994-1995 calendar will kick off Tuesday night with a concert by Mexico City’s Cuarteto Latinoamericano, at the university’s Campbell Hall.

This highly acclaimed chamber ensemble, formed in 1981, is recognized for bringing classical works of Latin composers to audiences around the world.

The program will include Quartet No. 3 by Silvestre Revueltas, “Reflejos de la Noche” by Mario Lavista, “Metro Chabacano” by Javier Alvarez, “Four for Tango” by Astor Piazzolla, and Quartet No. 8 by Heitor Villalobos.

The performance will be at 8 p.m. General admission is $16 and $12. Call 893-3535.

*

Ongoing: Photographer James A. Lichacz’s depictions of Native American rock art from the Southwest continues on display at the DesignARC Gallery in Santa Barbara through Nov. 11.

During four years of traveling throughout California, Utah and Arizona, Lichacz documented the spiritual drawings of Native Americans reaching out toward a higher power. The photographer said he focused on artwork that depicted “shamanistic images”--of spiritual leaders interacting with the metaphysical world.

The gallery is located at 1 N. Salsipuedes St., Suite 210. It is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on weekends by appointment. Call 963-4401 for more information.