Art House will host an Artists’ Fair on Feb. 7. Organized by Art House Manager Rachel Day ’16 and resident Zachary Scheinfeld ’16, the event will run from 1 to 5 p.m. All proceeds will be donated to the Green Street Teaching and Learning Center in Middletown.

Students are encouraged to contribute their own artistic work to sell and trade. According to the Facebook invitation, pieces that are “for sale” are not necessarily being exchanged for money. Artists will have the opportunity to set their own prices—this can range from selling a drawing for $10 to two dinners provided by the purchaser.

Scheinfeld explained that the decision to organize this event stemmed from a printmaking show he attended last year.

“[At the print show, I noticed] when many of the folks in my class kept getting approached by other students interested in buying or trading work of their own for ours,” Scheinfeld said. “Since then, many conversations with Rachel and a combination of our experiences living in Art House and taking studio classes have heightened our awareness of all the cool things people make on campus…to the point where it felt pretty natural to organize some sort of exchange event.”

Day and Scheinfeld got together in the beginning of this semester to discuss more ideas for the event.

“We wanted to make sure that money wouldn’t be a barrier for anyone who wanted to participate in the fair, so that’s where a lot of the trading and bartering came in,” Day said. “I’ve also been thinking about Wesleyan’s relation to Middletown a lot, and while this is event is intentionally not ‘let’s raise money for a Middletown group,’ I did want Middletown to be at least [a part of] the event.”

Middletown residents are invited to attend the event along with members of the University community. To advertise the event to the community, Day and Scheinfeld posted on Wesleying, made a Facebook event, and placed fliers throughout campus.

“I’ve also been contacting a lot of artists directly,” Day said.

As of now, approximately 25 contributions have been submitted. Day expects more submissions to come in as the event gets closer.

Art House resident Alexandra Stovicek ’17 said that as a member of the program house, she has the responsibility to work with students who will sell their crafts at the fair.

“If they need to leave I can help handle their sales,” Stovicek said. “Art House residents will be walking around, making sure everything is organized and the bartering is going smoothly.”

She added that she is excited to see members of the community convene at her own residence.

“It’s a great space for collaboration and creativity, and I love when it is used for these purposes,” she said. “Hopefully everyone will get to meet students they didn’t know, show off their hidden talents, and snag something to take home. I am excited to look at the eclectic mix of items that students will be sharing, from art to bracelets to knitting to zines.”

Scheinfeld added that the event is quite meaningful to him.

“What has been really special about the event so far is that it has…taken on a life of its own due to all the artists who have submitted their crafts and ideas,” Scheinfeld said. “We are going to showcase work way beyond the scope of what we originally anticipated, including on-site portraits, handmade booklets, henna, jewelry, oil paintings, drawings, prints, face painting, baked goods, and much, much more.”

Art House will have a table at the fair where members of the house will contribute their own work.

“I hope to make some posters with poetry on them for dorm room walls,” Stovicek said. “I will definitely be trying to buy some zines to add to the walls of my room.”

Full House and Music House will assist in the organization of the event.  Full House will be providing refreshments and Music House, which shares the building with Art House, will host live music.

“I really can’t wait to see everything unfold on Saturday, and to encourage folks to stop by with friends and a couple of bucks to help us celebrate all of the art on campus and the hardworking people who make it,” Scheinfeld said.