In July, Indian classical dancer Sujatha Srinivasan from Cleveland and functional pottery maker Susan Abramovitz from Shade were named this year's Ohio Heritage Fellows.
Cristina Benedetti, the OAC's folk and traditional arts contractor, recently had a chance to chat with them about their work. Read each of their conversations below.
Sujatha Srinivasan
Sujatha Srinivasan is a master artist in Bharatanatyam, an Indian classical dance estimated to be 2,500 years old. She began dancing at six years old in Chennai, India, and later studied with several gurus while performing extensively across India and Europe.
After moving to Cleveland in the early 1990s for her husband’s career, Srinivasan found herself in a city that was far away from the center of the art form she practiced, and in a region of the world where Bharatanatyam was largely unknown and the Indian community too sparse to support regular performances.
Srinivasan reinvented herself as a teacher and has provided foundational study of Indian cultural roots to two generations of American children of Indian origin. More than 400 students have been taught by Srinivasan, and many of her students have gone on to establish their own dance schools. Over the past 30 years, she has created new or collaborated on more than 40 productions, and because of her innovative spirit, she has been invited to share her work at prestigious institutions like the Cleveland Museum of Art, Conservancy for the Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Maltz Performing Arts Center, and Playhouse Square.
In what ways is teaching and performing Bharatanatyam in the U.S. different from in India?
Teaching and performing Bharatanatyam in the U.S. has presented unique challenges compared to my experiences in India. In India, Bharatanatyam is deeply embedded in the culture, with a community that already understands and appreciates the art form. However, when I moved to the U.S., I found that I had to introduce and explain the cultural context of Bharatanatyam to a more diverse audience, including students who had little or no connection to Indian culture. I adapted my teaching methods to make the dance form accessible and relatable to American-born students, ensuring they not only learned the techniques but also connected with its cultural and spiritual significance.
You have taught several generations of students. What do you notice about contemporary students, and what, in your opinion, does the future of Bharatanatyam look like?
You have taught several generations of students. What do you notice about contemporary students, and what, in your opinion, does the future of Bharatanatyam look like?Over the years, I’ve noticed that contemporary students, regardless of their cultural background, approach Bharatanatyam with a mix of curiosity and dedication. Parents of Indian origin value their child learning Bharatanatyam as an important connection to their Indian roots. Many of my students are eager to explore their cultural heritage, while others are drawn to the art form for its expressive and artistic possibilities. I am optimistic about the future of Bharatanatyam because I see many of my former students continue to pursue it through college and also by establishing their own dance schools, which tells me that the tradition will continue to grow and evolve, especially here in the U.S.
You create contemporary work, but also find it important to strictly maintain the traditional forms of the dance. Can you speak about how you view the interaction between the contemporary and the traditional in your work?
I strive to maintain a delicate balance between contemporary creativity and traditional fidelity in my work. My contemporary pieces, such as “Vivarta-Transformations” and “Manas,” are inspired by current events and modern themes but are deeply rooted in the traditional vocabulary of Bharatanatyam. By integrating ancient philosophical concepts with modern narratives, I create works that resonate with both traditionalists and contemporary audiences. This interaction allows me to keep the art form relevant while staying true to its rich heritage.
From your nomination letters, it is clear that you are a strong collaborator. What do you value about artistic collaboration?
I deeply value artistic collaboration because it provides a rich exchange of ideas, styles, and cultures, which is incredibly stimulating for me as an artist. Collaborating with others allows me to learn and grow, exposing me to new perspectives and techniques that I might not encounter otherwise. It also gives me the opportunity to create multi-genre productions, which I find both challenging and exciting. These collaborations enable me to push the boundaries of Bharatanatyam while still honoring its traditional roots, resulting in work that is both innovative and deeply grounded in cultural heritage.
Susan Abramovitz
Susan Abramovitz has spent the last 48 years in the production and marketing of traditional, functional pottery, and has made a living from her craft. She is considered one of the best in her style of pottery in Southeastern Ohio, and shares her work with avid collectors from all over the world who use her functional pottery daily. Abramovitz established her business in 1978, after leaving her position as the head of the ceramics department at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. All along, she has been supportive of fledgling potters, showing them techniques that would help them to navigate their own paths.
Susan uses a stoneware clay body that she developed herself, using raw materials mixed in her studio from ingredients found in the nearby landscape. She has also offered her expertise and knowledge of clay to preserve a stoneware clay called Goldart from extinction. By 1984 Goldart quality had greatly declined due to high sulfur and iron contamination, threatening its removal from the market. Working with ceramic engineer Steven Blankenbeker from Cedar Heights Clay Company in Oak Hill, Ohio, Susan helped to save this staple of stoneware pottery by her painstaking testing and historic knowledge of pottery techniques.
What is appealing to you about making functional art like pottery?
It seemed to have a purpose, and I've always been inclined towards things that have a purpose. Not that sculpture doesn’t, because it does, but these are things that people can live with every day. And I kind of like that. My brain is the kind that form follows function. And, it’s a lot to think about, because more goes into that casserole than you would ever imagine! So, these are like normal, everyday problems that I've gotten the opportunity to work on.
And another totally cool thing—and I think about this every time I do it—is people in my profession have been making cremation jars since people were being buried and clay first got knocked into the fire and got hard. So, I'm part of this tradition that's really thousands of years old. I don't make cremation jars that often, but because I am a potter, I do get asked to do that. And it’s a very sacred thing, because it’s so special and, and it’s a really neat tradition to be part of.
What roles do tradition and innovation play in your work?
The tradition of pottery is thousands of years old, so truly, I'm using the same method of making those materials work that were used 3,000 years ago—but I have gas burners that I can turn on. I have electricity that runs my potter's wheel, but essentially it hasn't changed that much. Fire is what makes it permanent. And my clay that I use right now is 350 million years old. That is amazing. The clay that the Native Americans used here, that they dug out of the creek, it was the same seam that was 350 million years old. So that’s kind of an amazing thing to be dealing with, that kind of a material, and the fact that fire is what's making it permanent. It doesn't matter where the fire comes from, but it needs the fire. It used to be wood, and it still is in a lot of cases, but my kiln is fired with propane gas.
This field never gets boring. Frustrating, sometimes, but I've been doing this for 50 years practically every day, and I feel like I’m just at the tip of the iceberg. It's not a boring job! It can be hard, though.
What is special about being a potter in Southeast Ohio, and what brought you to the area?
What is special about being a potter in Southeast Ohio, and what brought you to the area?The natural resources, and the fact that I was born in Ohio. After college, I lived and worked in Maine for a potter. And when I lived in New England, I realized, if your family hasn't been there for 350 years, you're an out-of-stater.
And I thought, “You know what? I was born in Ohio. I'm going back to Ohio.” And I decided I needed to go to the prettiest part of Ohio, because the visual is a big part of my life. I grew up in Youngstown, I worked and I went to school in Cleveland, and I wanted to be more centered in nature. I also didn’t want to pay an absolute fortune to have my material shipped in, because clay is really heavy, and when you order something, you don't order a little—you order a ton or two tons or three tons. So, it just made a lot of sense, because our tradition of pottery is really long and, so it’s kind of a natural thing for Ohioans.
Images courtesy of the artists
