Arts Fair on the Square showcases international work

Although the stifling morning heat may have kept some locals in the shade, the 33rd annual Arts Fair on the Square participants bore the high temperatures to showcase their craftsmanship to the community.

The annual Arts Fair on the Square, co-sponsored by the Bloomington Playwrights Project and WFIU, took place between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Saturday on the Monroe County Courthouse Square and lawn.

More than 75 local vendors and visual artists gathered to showcase their abilities to Bloomington’s art enthusiasts.

Artist Olga Yevseyeva sold her hand-painted pottery from a booth on the corner of Kirkwood and Walnut streets.

Yevseyeva, a native of Turkmenistan, said she moved to Bloomington when she came to America in 1995, and it was then that she began to make pottery.

“I never left,” she said. “I love the town and I love the people.”

Yevseyeva learned to paint and create pottery from a teacher she found locally, a mentor she could not find while living in Russia.

Her hand-painted pottery designs featured ornate, repeating patterns and flowers painted in bright, primary colors.

She said she always makes each piece food-safe and encourages her buyers to use her items in daily life, instead of putting them on a shelf to admire from afar.

Her pottery is called “maiolica,” the Italian name for the style of pottery she creates.

Yevseyeva finds inspiration for her designs in traditional European and Russian pottery, but she uses her own original twist to make each piece special.

“For me, it’s about enjoying the interaction with people and sharing a passion for what I do with them, and seeing people who appreciate and understand what I do,” she said. “It’s all really about enjoyment.”

A second vendor at the Arts Fair on the Square was Kim Ransdell of The Collective Press, a local printmaking studio located on West Fourth Street.

Ransdell sold bookmarks, postcards, greeting cards and T-shirts, each printed using presses dating back 70-90 years.

Using quotes from famous artists and thinkers such as Picasso and Einstein, her paper prints spoke to viewers in large, bold letters and vivid, deliberately swiped colors.

Ransdell’s prints sat under rocks on tables alongside the T-shirts, which promoted Bloomington’s bike-friendliness.

At 1 p.m. the festival crowd turned its attention to the belly dancing troupe Dark
Side Tribal.

The local group of six women performed three choreographed dance routines, in American Tribal Style belly dance, a multicultural style inspired by traditional belly dances of the Middle East, North Africa and India.

Each dancer wore a traditional headdress ornamented with flowers and colorful fabric, a multi-layered skirt and finger cymbals on both hands.

Adorned with mirrored tiles, sequins and fishnet fabric, each dancer’s skirt and headdress was unique to its wearer.

Two dancers at a time, the Dark Side Tribal troupe wowed the crowd with its fluid motions and intricate hand movements. As the women danced, bells shook at their hips and created a beat for the featured performers of each dance.

Alice Dobie, a 10-year veteran of the troupe who also teaches classes at the Dark Side Tribal studio, said the group typically performs at international festivals throughout Indiana and surrounding states.

Sarah Akemon, a three-year Dark Side Tribal performer, was featured as the first soloist in the troupe’s final dance.

Akemon’s part included balancing a scimitar on her head while performing tricky belly dance movements.

The Dark Side Tribal belly dancers were the first in a two-part belly dancing set Saturday afternoon, culminating with the Different Drummer Belly Dancers at 3 p.m.

Locals gathered around the square’s Entertainment Tree to watch the second round of belly dancing performers before traveling to the Showers Commons at City Hall to taste the creations of local restaurants at the 31st annual Taste of Bloomington food festival.