 JULY 30 • 2020 | 31

Arts&Life

section

Canceled!
West Bloomfi
 eld revokes permit for 
Orchard Lake Fine Art Show.
M

arried couple jew-
elry designers Joan 
Michlin and Skip 
Ennis are among some 100 
disappointed artists who had 
planned to exhibit their latest 
works at this year’
s Orchard 
Lake Fine Art Show, which had 
been scheduled July 25-26 in 
West Bloomfield Township. 
It would have been the show’
s 
18th year, offering everything 
from paintings to glass sculp-
tures, but confusion in carrying 
out Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’
s 
executive orders led to its cancel-
lation, announced July 16.
“This is one of the worst 
emails I have to send,
” show 
producer Patty Narozny wrote 
to participants, including food 
vendors and entertainers. “With 
deep regret, the permit got 
pulled.
”
The cancellation came after 
the Oakland County Health 
Division learned of the fair and 
called attention to Executive 
Order 2020-110, which limits 
outdoor gatherings to 100 peo-
ple. 
“The permit for the fair was 
granted before the executive 
order was issued,
” said Steven 
Kaplan, township supervisor. 
“Permits require that holders are 
responsible for following state 
law, and so we were forced to 
revoke the permit. As much as 
we wanted the event, we could 
not have it.
”
Narozny, whose Hot Works 
organization runs outdoor fairs 
in Florida that were also can-

celed because of the pandemic, 
believes she got faulty advice 
from West Bloomfield Township 
and Oakland County. Although 
Narozny tried to remap the 
event into sections, that 
approach did not get approval. 
“I feel we were discriminated 
against with this outdoor show 
when the Detroit Zoo, flea mar-
kets, big-box stores and malls are 
open,
” Narozny said. “We had 
many safety measures in place, 
and I felt comfortable about pro-
tecting the vulnerable.
“
As we were planning the 
event, with executive orders 
provided to me, we spoke with 
representatives from Oakland 
County and West Bloomfield 
Township. The cancellation is a 
big hit on my small business and 
the small businesses of the art-
ists. I’
ve had to refund $45,000.
”
To help her artists, Narozny 
has posted their websites on 
her website (hotworks.org) so 
that potential customers can do 
online shopping. She also will 
be awarding prizes in the Bath 
Planet Youth Art Competition. 
“Patty did her utmost to make 
the show happen,
” said Michlin, 
who grew up in Michigan, was 
active in Congregation Shaarey 
Zedek and now lives in Sarasota. 
“The world is a bit strange right 
now, and it’
s a bit jarring.
”
As Narozny takes care of 
closing out the event, she is try-
ing to think ahead to next year. 
She hopes to bring happy times 
through the local show sched-
uled July 23-24, 2021. 

SUZANNE CHESSLER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

JOAN MICHLIN

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