In other exciting news, we welcomed Charles Pearce as our very first Executive Director. With his experience and deep connection to the Bloomington arts community, Charles is already making an impact on our mission to strengthen and support the vibrant arts scene in the region. Check out more below!

Looking toward the new year, there are exciting things coming up, so stick along. Be sure to renew your membership for the upcoming season and stay tuned for the great things ahead. Thank you for your continued support, and we can’t wait to share what’s coming next!

Upcoming Events with the Arts Alliance

Bloomington Portrait Group – Arts Alliance Center

The Bloomington Portrait Group continues to enrich the local arts community, offering a unique opportunity for local artists to gather and increase their portraiture skills. Every other week, the group hosts a rotating lineup of models, bringing their personal aesthetic to the Arts Alliance Center. Most recently, Chuck Cristoph joined the group, posing in Civil War-era attire. His costume was complete with period details, providing the perfect setting for artists to explore intricate shading and character in their sketches, and the results were nothing short of stunning.

If you’re an artist or simply someone who enjoys the art of portraiture, join the group every other Thursday from 1:00-3:00 PM at the Arts Alliance Center. It’s a wonderful opportunity to connect with fellow creatives, practice your craft, and experience live portraiture in action. Whether you’re a seasoned artist or a newcomer, there’s always room for another artist at the table!

Speaking of the Holiday Arts & Crafts Festival

Sarah spoke about the fair’s importance to the local arts community and her experience, emphasizing the role of the Arts Alliance in fostering a vibrant creative ecosystem here in Bloomington. The article also touches on how events like the Holiday Arts & Crafts Fair help connect the community to art, culture, and local craftsmanship during the holiday season.

We are incredibly grateful for the coverage and excited about the continued visibility of the Arts Alliance’s work in the community. To read the full article and learn more about the fair and the impact of the Arts Alliance, check out the article here. Thank you to Lauren Kopka and the Indiana Daily Student for supporting the arts in Bloomington!

As an alum of Indiana University, Charles brings a incredible experience as a seasoned creative director and dedicated arts advocate. His background in both the creative and organizational aspects of the arts makes him a perfect fit to lead our organization in an exciting new chapter. We are confident that his leadership and vision will help drive our community forward, ensuring that the arts remain a vital and thriving part of life in Bloomington.

We look forward to the positive impact Charles will have on our organization and initiatives. To learn more about Charles and the future of the Arts Alliance, feel free to reach out to him directly at charles@crpearce.net. Join us in welcoming him to our team!

Arts Alliance Center Artist: Ann Shedlak

For the past seven years, Ann has shared her work by participating in local art shows and showcasing her pieces at the Arts Alliance Center and the Brown County Craft Gallery. She is also dedicated to teaching young weavers and is applying for a grant to purchase small looms for children’s weaving classes. Ann’s work is rooted in her father’s philosophy that “a mistake is what makes it unique and homemade,” and this mindset fuels her endless exploration and learning within her weavings.

RECENT EVENTS

COMMUNITY EVENTS

Sounds From the Black Hole at Orbit Room |

Moth Cock / Learn Not To Lather / Brett Alan Gershon

Sat Dec 28th, 7:00-11:00pm (EDT)

Orbit Room

• Sounds From the Black Hole: a concert series featuring experimental music and explorations of sound. This month spotlights the electronic drones, carnivalesque free-jazz and analog video manipulations of Learn Not To Lather, Brett Alan Gershon, and Moth Cock.
  $10 / ALL-AGES / BUY TICKETS

Arts Mile

Fri Jan 3rd, 5:00-8:00pm (EDT)

Various Local Galleries

• Experience downtown Bloomington’s vibrant Arts Mile as select galleries showcase evolving live and virtual exhibits. EVERY. FIRST. FRIDAY. Experience an exciting night of the arts as fourteen distinct galleries stay open late to host special exhibits and serve refreshments from 5-8pm. Stroll the vibrant arts scene along the sensational art mile and experience amazing art by renowned local, regional, and international artists. Discover delightful surprises, inspiration, festivities, and original works of art for purchase. Explore each distinctive gallery in-person or online all year long at your own pace.
  

The Kingston Trio

Fri Jan 10th, 7:00-9:00pm (EDT)

Buskirk-Chumley Theater

• Don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity to experience the magic of The Kingston Trio live on stage. Grab your friends and family, and get ready for a night filled with laughter, nostalgia, and timeless melodies. Mark your calendars and secure your tickets now! The Kingston Trio was one of the most prominent groups of the era’s pop-folk boom that started in 1958 with the release of their first album and its hit recording of “Tom Dooley”, which sold over three million copies as a single.

FLOW

Sun Jan 12th, 6:00-7:00pm (EDT)

First United Church Bloomington

• Flow is a stunning, totally dialogue free, superbly entrancing movie about a group of animals trying to survive a world that is flooding. A wondrous journey, through realms natural and mystical, Flow follows a courageous cat after his home is devastated by a great flood. Teaming up with a capybara, a lemur, a bird, and a dog to navigate a boat in search of dry land, they must rely on trust, courage, and wits to survive the perils of a newly aquatic planet. From the boundless imagination of the award-winning Gints Zilbalodis (Away) comes a thrilling animated spectacle as well as a profound meditation on the fragility of the environment and the spirit of friendship and community. Steeped in the soaring possibilities of visual storytelling, Flow is a feast for the senses and a treasure for the heart.

Sir Eltom John

Thurs Jan 16th, 7:30-9:30pm (EDT)

Buskirk-Chumley Theater

• The world’s number one Elton John tribute are coming to play All The Hits by Elton John. The spectacular show includes Bennie and the Jets, Tiny Dancer, Rocket Man, Candle In The Wind, Don’t Let TheSun Go Down On Me,I’m Still Standing, Crocodile Rock and Your Song. They will also be performing classic album tracks like Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding from Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, the multi-platinum double LP released in 1973.

Spirited Away

Fri Jan 17th, 7:00-9:30pm (EDT)

Buskirk-Chumley Theater

• Celebrate the wondrous films of Hayao Miyazaki in a 4-film series at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater! 10-year-old Chihiro moves with her parents to a new home in the Japanese countryside. After taking a wrong turn down a wooded path, Chihiro and her parents discover an amusement park with a stall containing an assortment of food. To her surprise, Chihiro’s parents begin eating and then transform into pigs. In this supernatural realm, Chihiro encounters a host of characters and endures labor in a bathhouse for spirits, awaiting a reunion with her parents.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Celebration

Mon Jan 20th, 6:00-8:30pm (EDT)

Buskirk-Chumley Theater

• This event is a free, general admission event. No tickets are required. The City of Bloomington invites the community to attend the 2025 City of Bloomington Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Celebration, Monday, Jan. 20 at 6pm. The celebration begins at 6 p.m. This year’s theme is “A Necessary Renaissance in Social Justice: Telling the Stories to Ignite Change.” featuring keynote speaker Keith A. Beauchamp. The Birthday Celebration will also feature inspirational messages from local government and community leaders, musical performances, the Legacy Award presentation, and more. Learn more at Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Celebration. (https://bloomington.in.gov/mlk-day/birthday-celebration)

The Shitthropocene

Thurs Jan 23rd, 7:00-8:00pm (EDT)

Buskirk-Chumley Theater

• FREE FILM ALERT! Patagonia Films takes its shot at fast fashion in “The Shitthropocene.” The Shitthropocene is a 45 minute journey from the cellular-level origins of our lack of impulse control to the ways our central nervous systems have been hacked in the name of capitalism. It’s also about how we might begin to save ourselves from ourselves. Plus, there are dancing cave people. You might have noticed that a lot of things seem to suck right now. This film isn’t about all the things that suck—that would be a really, really long film. But it is about consumption, which is both a cause and a symptom of the suckiness. For a bunch of reasons, pretty much everyone is making and buying too much stuff, and we’re evolutionarily programmed to want it. What was once an advantage (more! = better!) is now contributing to the destruction of the planet.

Howl’s Moving Castle

Fri Jan 24th, 7:00-9:00pm (EDT)

Buskirk-Chumley Theater

• Celebrate the wondrous films of Hayao Miyazaki in a 4-film series at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater! Sophie has an uneventful life at her late father’s hat shop, but all that changes when she befriends wizard Howl, who lives in a magical flying castle. However, the evil Witch of Waste takes issue with their budding relationship and casts a spell on young Sophie, which ages her prematurely. Now Howl must use all his magical talents to battle the jealous hag and return Sophie to her former youth and beauty. Rated PG.

Misery

Thurs Jan 30th, 7:30 – Sun Feb 16th, 2:00pm (EDT)

Waldron Auditorium

• Paul Sheldon used to write for a living. Now he’s writing to stay alive. Following a near-fatal car accident, a world-famous novelist finds himself in a strange house being nursed back to health by his “Number One Fan.” But as her love for his work turns to dangerous obsession, he realizes he must plot his greatest story yet: how to escape with his life. This spine-tingling Stephen King classic, adapted for the stage by two-time Academy Award-winner William Goldman, will grip you until the very end!

Kiki’s Delivery Service

Fri Jan 31st, 7:00-9:00pm (EDT)

Buskirk-Chumley Theater

• Celebrate the wondrous films of Hayao Miyazaki in a 4-film series at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater! 13-year-old Kiki moves to a seaside town with her talking cat, Jiji, to spend a year alone, in accordance with her village’s tradition for witches in training. After learning to control her broomstick, Kiki sets up a flying courier service and soon becomes a fixture in the community. But when the insecure young witch begins questioning herself and loses her magic abilities, she must overcome her self-doubt to get her powers back. Rated G.