Artist reception at Wandering Turtle captivates friends, fans

A red-haired woman attired in a gauzy medieval dress stands against an aquatic backdrop. Her outstretched hand holds a glittering crystal orb to which her eyes are fastened with wonder.

The scene abruptly ends at the rigid confines of a wooden frame. The bottom right corner is signed lightly in pencil: “Yelena Yahontova.”

“I usually don’t buy portraits because I don’t know the people in the photos,” said Kelly Rauch, Bloomington resident and IU Recreational Sports employee. “But this is an illustration. I’d love to have it.”

On Friday, Rauch came to Bloomington’s Wandering Turtle Art Gallery for “The Best of Yelena” artist reception. She stood admiring “Fairy Tale Stories on the Lake,” which was priced at $1,000 unframed and juxtaposed near several other portraits.

“Bellies’ Parade” depicted three pierced and tattooed women wearing traditional belly-dancing apparel, and “Love in a Belarusian village” showed a couple cuddled in an old town setting.

“They tell stories,” she said. “Being photographed by Yelena is an awesome, wonderful experience.”

Rauch said she befriended the photographer at a belly -dancing class and then quickly became her client.

“She really captures personality, and she’s got an eye for the setting you’d look good in,” Rauch said. “She can draw out actual joy and happiness. You know, personality.”

Yahontova, dressed in a green satin dress, greeted Rauch with an embrace early in the evening. She arrived holding a cluster of red, green and blue balloons.

“These are for outside,” she said.

She continued to greet friends and fans who streamed into the gallery more frequently as the evening progressed.  A man with white hair and wire-rimmed glasses approached her and extended his hand.

“I don’t think we’ve met, but I love your work,” he said. She thanked him and kissed both of his cheeks.

She planted more kisses as the crowd continued to grow.

Mari Dagaz, Wandering Turtle employee and multimedia artist, said she was pleased with the turnout of Yahatova’s reception.

“I love the displayed pieces,” she said. “They show the breadth of her work. Her black-and-white photos are timeless.”

She and another employee, IU senior Shana Orlansky, hadn’t been familiar with Yahontova’s portraits prior to the event.

Orlansky, working behind an arrangement of chips, vegetables and lemonade for browsing customers and photography fans, said she loves the Wandering Turtle’s ability to make people aware of new local art.

Yahontova’s exhibit continues until Sept. 19 at the gallery.

“I think Yelena creates beautiful images, and I first saw them in here,” she said. “There’s so much neat local art you just aren’t exposed to unless you get out and explore the galleries.”