Devour Indy Summerfest, Aug. 19 to Sept. 1, 2019 @devourindy @indianarla

By Sarah Stegmeyer
On behalf of Devour Indy

Devour Indy presented by Faegre Baker Daniels returns Monday, August 19, 2019 and will run until Sunday, September 1. Plan a summer staycation or celebrate a loved one, friend or colleague with a night out during Indy’s premier restaurant week event.

Thanks to Devour’s partnership with Faegre Baker Daniels, Devour Indy raised more than $100,000 for the Riley Children’s Foundation in 2018. With the firm’s support, Devour Indy restaurants will continue to give back to the Riley Children’s Foundation by encouraging diners to donate via the Devour Indy website.

“Faegre Baker Daniels has a long history of commitment to service in the communities where we live and work,” said Kathy Osborn, Indianapolis office leader. “We are proud to once again present Devour Indy and hope it continues to be a time for diners to enjoy delicious food and support an incredibly worthy cause.”

For two weeks, this celebration brings foodies and cocktail connoisseurs together to indulge in three-course meals and seasonal spirits at more than 200 restaurants across the Greater Indianapolis area. Stay tuned for the complete list of participating restaurants and mouthwatering menus coming soon!

To learn more about Indy’s premier dining event, visit DevourIndy.com. Check back from more information including hotel and partner deals available during Devour Indy Summerfest.

Eiteljorg Indian Market & Festival, June 22-23, 2019 @eiteljorgmuseum @whiteriverstprk

Image courtesy Eiteljorg Museum. Used with written permission.

By Bryan Corbin
Eiteljorg Museum

One of the region’s best art and cultural experiences returns to downtown Indianapolis the weekend of June 22-23, 2019: the 27th annual Eiteljorg Museum Indian Market and Festival.

More than 120 Native American and First Nations artists from more than 50 cultures across the U.S. and Canada will show and sell their fine art, including jewelry, pottery, beadwork, basketry, paintings, sculptures and more.

The Indian Market and Festival takes place on the beautiful Eiteljorg grounds from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days, and features artists’ booths both outside and inside the museum.

Seasoned art collectors and first-time market-goers alike will appreciate the personal interactions with artists and wide variety of Native fine art available.

Cultural experiences, food and performances are a big part of the weekend; and this year’s event features contemporary and traditional Native musicians, hoop dancing and storytelling. Thousands of visitors attend the market, held every June the weekend after Father’s Day.

“Visitors often say Indian Market and Festival is a wonderful combination of fun and culturally meaningful experiences because it allows them and their families to see Native American art and meet exceptional artists in person,” Eiteljorg President and CEO John Vanausdall said.

“Art collectors appreciate the opportunity to purchase Native art close to home without traveling great distances. Non-collectors get to savor the memorable market and festival atmosphere, and returning artists enjoy the Hoosier hospitality and the opportunity to get reacquainted with old friends and meet new collectors and fans,” he said.

A lineup of Native American performers will appear on the Indian Market and Festival stage June 22 and 23. Two of the four acts also will perform at separate events in the days leading up to the market:

• World champion hoop dancer and musician Tony Duncan (Apache/Arikara/Hidatsa) and his family of dancers astound crowds with their high-energy moves, and they are returning to the Eiteljorg for performances and hoop-dancing workshops. First, the Duncan family performs at 6 p.m. Thursday, June 20, at River West along the White River as part of A Rising Tide, a free outdoor program with Indy Convergence. Then the Duncan family performs at Indian Market, June 22 and 23, and their appearance is through the support of the Arts Midwest Touring Fund.
• The award-winning band Son of Hwéeldi plays a blend of rock, soul, blues and world music based on Navajo and Apache histories that they describe as “resistance rock.” The band will first perform at the Eiteljorg at 6 p.m. Wednesday, June 19 during the museum’s free Summer Under The Sails concert series, then will be back June 22-23 to play again during Indian Market.

Music and storytelling is a crowd-pleasing part of Indian Market and Festival. In addition to the Tony Duncan Family and Son of Hwéeldi, the Eiteljorg is pleased to present other entertainers June 22 and 23 during market weekend:

• An a capella group, Sisterz in Song, featuring a trio of young women vocalists from Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara cultures who perform traditional songs. They perform at 11 a.m. both days.
• Cultural storyteller Jacque Tahuka Nunez, who performs “Journeys to the Past,” describing the lifestyle of California’s first people, the Acjachemen Nation of Orange County. She performs at noon both days.

For the entertainers’ onstage performance schedule, visit www.eiteljorg.org/indianmarketandfestival/

Adult tickets to the Eiteljorg Indian Market and Festival are $15 at the gate either day. Advance discount tickets are $13 and can be purchased online at www.eiteljorg.org or by calling 317.636.WEST (9378). Youth ages 17 and under are free at Indian Market and Festival. For Eiteljorg Museum members, free admission to the market is available for the individual named on the membership card, but the admission fee will apply for their non-member adult guests.

Tickets to Indian Market and Festival also include museum admission, so plan to experience the museum galleries featuring special exhibitions: A Sense of Beauty: Showcasing the Power and Beauty in Native Art, and Bringing Friends Together: Contemporary Hopi Carvings from the Eagle, Perelman and Rader Collections. Also, see a new traveling exhibition from the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian, For a Love of His People: The Photography of Horace Poolaw, now open at the Eiteljorg.

After a modest start in 1993, the Eiteljorg Indian Market and Festival now is considered one of the nation’s top Native American art markets. Artists are invited to participate through a juried selection and must be members of a federally or state recognized tribe. Many of the artists also submit their artwork for judging as part of the weekend’s juried art competition. Ribbons and cash prizes are awarded to top artists in multiple divisions. Last year, nearly $25,000 in prize money was awarded to artists.

This year’s Indian Market and Festival will be of special interest to the participating artists because for the first time it will feature a $5,000 cash prize for the artist whose art work wins the Margot L. Eccles Best of Show Award in the juried art competition. The prize is supported by The Margot L. Eccles Arts & Culture Fund, a fund of the Central Indiana Community Foundation. The award is named for the late Margot Eccles, a civic leader, philanthropist, art collector, Eiteljorg board member and past chair of Indian Market and Festival, who brought passion, vision and generosity to the annual event.

For the second year in a row, the Eiteljorg will host the Market Morning Breakfast on Saturday morning June 22, for early-bird art collectors who want to meet the artists in a more relaxed setting before the big crowds arrive. Reservations are required to attend the Saturday breakfast; contact csanborn@eiteljorg.com or 317.275.1360 for details.

Popular food vendors will return to the museum grounds during market weekend, including Platero Frybread & Navajo Tacos from New Mexico, as well as Roasted, Toasted and Baked (RTB), Lucky Louie’s Street Food, Bee Coffee Roasters, Menefee Lemonade and Wyliepalooza Ice Cream Emporium’s Wylie Truck. Market-goers also can enjoy the Museum Café and Museum Store. A commemorative Indian Market and Festival T-shirt will be available featuring beautiful art by Gilmore Scott (Diné), Desert Monsoons.

The 27th annual Indian Market & Festival is sponsored by Ice Miller LLP, Arts Midwest, The Margot L. Eccles Arts & Culture Fund and the Cripe Charitable Foundation (which are both funds of the Central Indiana Community Foundation) and Mel and Joan Perelman. The entertainment stage sponsor is the Christel DeHaan Family Foundation. Additional support is provided by the museum’s Mrs. Robert S. Eccles Fund.

12th Annual Asian Fest, June 23, 2019 @indianamuseum

Image courtesy Asian American Alliance, Inc. Used with written permission.

By Young-Hee Yedinak
Asian American Alliance, Inc.

What are the top two most populous countries in the world? Can you name the hugely popular K-Pop band that topped the U.S. Billboard 200 and U.S. charts to become the first group since The Beatles to earn three No.1 albums in less than a year? (Answers below)

Get answers to these and more at the 12th annual Asian Fest on Sunday, June 23, 2019, 12-5 pm at the Indiana State Museum in downtown Indianapolis. ADMISSION IS FREE. This family-friendly festival celebrates the rich and diverse Asian cultures and traditions that can be found right here in Central Indiana.

Each year, Asian Fest spotlights one Asian country, and this year, South Korea will take the center stage. This fascinating country rose from the ashes of the Korean War to become a world economic powerhouse. More than 20,000 Korean Americans call Indiana home.

Festival highlights include:

• Cultural Discovery and Displays of Featured Country – SOUTH KOREA
• Special appearance by Anita Lerche, Billboard top-5 charting artist and the first non-Asian from the west (she is from Denmark) to release a solo album in Punjabi
• Entertaining cultural performances from S. Korea, China, India, Japan, Philippines and more
• Asian cuisine from local restaurants
• Interactive children’s activities
• Asian communities booths
• Asian American Alliance’s Youth Leadership Awards presentation

Festival goers will receive $5 reduced event parking in the White River State Parks garage.

For more information visit http://aaalliance.org/event/asian-fest-2019/

The 2019 Asian Fest is made possible by these generous sponsors:

Title Sponsors: Barnes and Thornburg, Indianapolis Power & Light, IUPUI, Roche, Tenthpin

Event Sponsors: Morgan Stanley, The International Center, Indianapolis Foundation, Christel DeHaan Family Foundation

Event Partner: Korean American Association of Indiana (KAAI)

In-Kind Sponsors: Indiana State Museum, Indy Korea, Indy Asian American Times

Asian Fest is hosted by Asian American Alliance, Inc., a local, nonprofit, pan-Asian organization whose mission is to empower Asian Americans to serve and lead in businesses and communities.  Visit www.aaalliance.org to learn more.

Answers 

1. The two most populous countries in the world are both in Asia: China (1.42 billion people) and India (1.37 billion)

 2. BTS, also known as the Bangtan Boys, is a 7-member Korean band. They sold over 14 million albums.

Christ Church Cathedral Strawberry Festival, June 13, 2019 @cccathedralindy

“The Works” at the Christ Church Cathedral Strawberry Festival.
AroundIndy.com staff photo, (c) 2016,  all rights reserved.

By Elise Shrock
On behalf of Christ Church Cathedral

The Cathedral Women of Christ Church Cathedral will hold the 54th Annual Strawberry Festival on Thursday, June 13, 2019, on Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana. Traditional strawberry shortcakes will be offered for sale from 9 a.m. until 4:00 p.m., or until supplies run out. Carryout opens in the church basement at 8:30 a.m.

The “Works” costs $7 for a treat of homemade shortcake, strawberries, ice cream and whipped topping. Single items are available á la carte for $2 each. Cash only.

More than 95% of all proceeds go directly to charity. In 2018, the Cathedral Women donated over $70,000 to non-profit organizations.

“Extending the hospitality of our parish outside of the cathedral walls and into our community hits right at the heart of our work at Christ Church Cathedral.” explains the Rev. Lauren Grubaugh of Christ Church Cathedral. “The Strawberry Festival is a big party and a treat for the whole city. But the true heart of the festival is the fundraising component. Nearly all proceeds go to organizations providing real human needs.”

Strawberry Festival Chair Jennifer Manterfield echoes this sentiment, saying, “The volunteer efforts led by the Cathedral Women are nothing short of miraculous each year. Seeing our church and community members come together and work side by side to put this on strengthens my faith in many ways. And our organization is always thrilled to award the proceeds of the day in community grants. That’s what our mission is truly about and it’s an honor to be able to do that for area organizations.”

In addition to the sale, other Strawberry Festival activities will include:

• Entertainment on Monument Circle starting at 10:00am. Acts include: Children’s Choir of Christ Church Cathedral, Heather Michelle Chapman, CCC Guitar Trio, Bells Ringers, Trio Compas, Mariachi Sol Jaliciense, and Meztli Cultural

• An Indiana Blood Center bloodmobile will be on the Circle offering free “The Works” tickets to blood donors starting at 9 am.

• Noonday Holy Eucharist will be offered inside the church at 12:05 pm.

• Free walking tour brochures of the Cathedral offer details on the history and beauty of our church building.

The First inaugural Strawberry Festival was held on Thursday, June 10, 1965. The festival was the idea of parishioner Pat Harding, who suggested the church host a strawberry festival, such as they had back in her hometown of Lymington, England. With Nate Gore, Church Sexton, the Cathedral Women thought they could both raise funds and have some fun.

The Cathedral Women baked and sold 100 homemade shortcakes on the church lawn for the first festival in 1965. They decided to host it on Thursday night to capitalize on the evening hours of the J.C. Penney department store on Monument Circle. Within two hours, they had sold out of shortcakes. This year, the congregation baked 19,499 homemade shortcakes.