Art, chocolate combine at Week of Chocolate event

Each February, Bloomington is host to a week of events dedicated to chocolate and used to benefit local non-profit organizations.

The 8th annual Week of Chocolate kicked off Sunday night with the Art of Chocolate, featuring sample savories, cocktails and local art at the IU Art Museum.

Community members collected sweets at the elegant fair as live music from the Mahluli McCutcheon Jazz Quartet filled the museum’s atrium.

Ticket sales benefitted LIFEDesigns, formerly Options, which provides vital services for people with disabilities.

LIFEDesigns normally uses nature, art and music as therapy for its clients but, this Sunday, the group added another element of support to their list: chocolate.

“People love chocolate,” said Karen Scherer, community development officer of LIFEDesigns. “We realized we could use that to raise money for the organization.”

After the success of LIFEDesigns’ first event celebrating the joy of chocolate 8 years ago, the organizers approached other non-profit agencies to sponsor their own events.

The result was the Week of Chocolate.

“We like to collaborate,” Scherer said. “We wanted to support other services too.”

The Art of Chocolate featured desserts and hors d’oeuvres created by local chefs for the event.

It also represented well-known restaurants, such as BLU Boy Chocolate Cafe and Bakery and Feast Bakery Café.

All fine cuisine, cocktails and wine were donated to benefit LIFEDesigns.

“We like getting out in the community, and we love chocolate,” said Mark Brethauer, chef of Angel B’s A Galleria of Cakes.

He featured chocolate pecan, coconut rum and strawberry truffle cakes for the celebration and chatted with guests as they approached his table.

Also featured was a Juried Art Show benefitting both the artists and the non-profit agency.

Guests looked at an eclectic mix of art, including one portrait made from candy, as they mingled with one another.

Artist and LIFEDesigns staffer Dan Alexander created the original painting.

The portrait was of Martin Luther King Jr. and was made from melted Nestlé chocolate dyed different colors with cake dye.

Alexander worked on the chocolate portrait throughout the evening, starting with a messy array of reds and whites and ending with one realistic chocolate design.

This year’s portrait follows last year’s project of Miles Davis.

“Black history month is coming up,” Alexander said during last year’s event. “The event has really decadent music and food to go with it.”

Scherer said many attendees were supporters of either LIFEDesigns or the Bloomington art community.

“I see a lot of new people here,” she said. “The Juried Art Show has brought a lot of positive attention.”

Bedford resident Laura Henley said she enjoyed the benefit’s focus on art and food.

“I enjoy the complement of sweet and savory,” Henley said. “Obviously the chocolate is great, but I just had a great heirloom tomato with mozzarella.”

She said she looks forward to attending some of the other events the Week of Chocolate will offer, including a chocolate murder mystery and “Sundaes on Saturday.”