Village fair, art fair postponed due to pandemic

Those looking to celebrate Mother's Day weekend with Art Birmingham, or to begin the summer season with the classic Village Fair, will have to wait a while, as the events have been postponed until later in the summer due to the coronavirus crisis and closures. Birmingham officials announced that Art Birmingham, an art fair which typically kicks off the art fair season in Birmingham's Shain Park and its surrounding streets on Mother's Day weekend, will now be held August 22 and 23. As previously planned, this will be Art Birmingham's 39th year, hosted by Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center (BBAC). It will feature about 150 artists. Featured artwork includes painting, ceramics, photography, jewelry, glass work, wood, sculpture, mixed media, fiber, metals and more. In addition, each year, the BBAC hosts an Art Activity Tent throughout the weekend with a free art project for children 12 and under. The Birmingham Village Fair, hosted by the Birmingham Bloomfield Chamber for 57 years, is not cancelling its popular event, originally scheduled for May 28 to May 31, but tentatively postponing it to July 9-12. The four-day event features carnival rides, games and food and benefits several local non-profits. The fair is held on the streets surrounding Shain Park in downtown Birmingham. In Bloomfield Township, the Bloomfield Dream Cruise Event was officially cancelled on Wednesday, April 29. The event, featuring the Bloomfield Classic Car Show, has been held at Mercedes Benz of Bloomfield Hills and the adjacent Comerica Park, to benefit retired Bloomfield Township firefighters, had to be planned out at this time, Bloomfield Township Supervisor Leo Savoie said, and while the Dream Cruise may still continue in mid-August, it was decided to cancel the township event for this year.