Description

A festival to honor legendary artists Isabel and John Bloom will be held in the Village of East Davenport Sat. May 3, 10-4. “Village in Bloom: A Festival of the Arts” will feature the fine art andperformance art of area school children, performances by the Eulenspiegel Puppets among other groups, arts activities for children and exhibits of Isabel and John Bloom’s artwork. Area school children will exhibit nature sculptures that reflect the foundational principle of the regionalist movement that Isabel and John represented. That principle – making art based on what’s in your ownbackyard – will feature bugs and blooms and will be primarily composed of locally available recycled materials. Performance groups will showcase their talents as singers, instrumentalists, puppeteers, dancers and actors. In addition to area children, performers include the Eulenspiegel Puppets, Toto Johnson the Stilt-walker Clown, Rick Eugene the Magician Clown and Balloon Artist, Junior Theatre’s Pinocchio, the Moline Boys’ Choir, QCS Youth Ensemble, Ballet Folklorico, the Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist All-Male Choir and many more. “Isabel and John lived, raised their family and created their art in the East Village,” festival organizer and Isabel Bloom sculptor Donna Youngsays. “We are thrilled to host this festival in celebration of all they brought to our area. Andwe’re thrilled to be able to encourage young people to get involved in the arts. Isabel loved children and mentored the artist in them. We are grateful to be able to continue both Isabel’s and John’s work.” In addition to the students’ performance and fine arts exhibits, the festival will feature exhibits of Isabel and John Bloom’s art, children’s art-making activities featuringthe Eulenspiegel Puppeteers, Figge artists, Reusable Useables of Le Claire, Jr. Theater’s Face Painting and other activities.