Nels and I have been bantering back and forth about art show reviews (“Art Show Reviews – Just Curious”) and this thought came to me this morning while hiking home from church with one of the dogs. New people to the site want to know “what are the best shows to do”. I think we both agree that newcomers need to do their homework researching shows. Here IMO, is where we differ. I want the ART SHOW REVIWS section of this site improved so that reviews are posted say within a week’s time, not 3-4 weeks after the show. Nels, I believe, says everything you need to know is in blogs. To benefit the new people, who may not have a clue as to how to research show data, let’s start a discussion about how each of us go about this. I will present my technique in an outline from starting with show information in the ART SHOW REVIWS section of this site, noting what I look for, where I go to after that, and what I glean from blogs. I know there are some cranky-curmudgeons-old-timers out there who won’t want to share anything with anyone and they don’t have to. Also, lets keep it factual and on topic. Interested persons can check out contributors’ frames of reference by going to their MY PAGE to find out their geographic location, medium, years in the business, etc., as well as the individuals website. Let’s get the techniques posted by the end of September and then do a spring and fall review of how they worked for individuals in 2013. Nels and I are both experienced in the art show business (over 20 and 38 years respectively), we both have been financially successful, and we have both been recognized nationally for our work. Who better to get the ball rolling. Why help the newcomers? They are the new art that will keep patrons coming to the “good” shows. Without the new people shows get stale pretty quick, even if the old timers present something new IMO.
How about it Nels? How about anyone else who is up to the challenge wanting to participate?
Post under DISCUSSIONS: How Do You Research Shows?
Dick Sherer
www.sherersaddlesinc.com
Replies
After almost 40 years of doing shows-I'm not looking for more new ones anymore. What i can say is that taking to other artists in your medium who did the show is better than any review. Yes when I started out there was no guides then I used the crafts fair guide when Lee got it going but that was the only guide on the west coast. Now the artfair source book is one way. But your art may be a bust at the top rated show-the only way to know that is from folks who do shows with similar work. If you have no friend in your medium then ask around. The other thing is some areas sell some work better than others-my ceramics(functional) has never sold well in the Cal. central valley for example. It took some hard knock show to prove this out to me.
Talking to others has been for me the best research. What I need is lots of attendance and middle age and younger buyers. If its an old folks crowd (say Fountain Hills Az show)I only did ok -As its a two day drive there ok does not cut it. I do half my shows out of state now than in my state (Ca).
Shows have to be either easy to set up or make tons of $ or I move on.
You can build a customer base if your work connects well with the crowd-My best shows are ones I have done now for 20-35 years every year continuous .I'm willing to have gone a long ways to find good shows and when it works you go back every year till you decide to give it up.
After 5 years of doing a Denver show and making great $ I gave it up-3 days drive each way and 4 day show got to be too long for me.Sometimes the money is not enough.
I never did a 1st year show-let others go thru the pain-
As noted long running shows that have that track record are the best bets.
The last point is my work is priced to sell well so that always helps no matter what show so if its a slow show I know its not the price points -but other factors.
Mark
First a caveat - I still have a day job and I knew when I started that I wasn't quite ready for prime time. I didn't want to lose money but making money was a lower priority than learning. So I did a kind of total immersion route. I got the Sunshine Artists book of shows. I did the same as Richard and drew a circle on the map four hours out. And then I did every show I got into within that range within the constraints of 2 weeks of vacation time. The only thing I avoided was Sat. morning setups since I wasn't that good at getting the display up yet. I did some great shows and I did some duds. I talked to artists and they suggested other shows. I dropped the duds and refined my display so i started getting into better shows. I also read everything I could about doing art shows, selling etc. and I observed displays, selling techniques, ways to set up, equipment that people had like RockNRoller dollies. I learned as much from the duds as I did from the good ones. Then I got additional vacation and added more shows. As long as I thought I could break even, I was there. When I moved to Virginia I pretty much did the same thing but by this time I had AFSB and chose by dollars and location.
There are so many things about doing art shows that you cannot learn except by doing.
How I Research Art Shows – Part 1
This discussion is intended for newcomers to the art show business. My method has worked for me. Rather than criticize my approach, post your technique here so others can learn from your experience. I suggest that readers check out the frames of reference for artists posting here by going to their personal pages and websites.
I. Define Geographic Area The first thing I do in selecting an art show is to set a limit on how far I want to travel. On the USA map in my Rand McNally Road Atlas I drew a circle representing a 300 mile radius. From experience I knew that this was an easy eight hour drive from my studio between Colorado Springs and Denver, CO to Gallup, NM to the south, Big Sandy, UT to the west and Buffalo, WY to the north. Your circle of research will likely be different especially if you live farther east. And you may want to use the individual state map. Towns or cities within this geographic perimeter are the ones I would research for art shows. (TIP: If you need to buy an atlas, save the receipt. It is a business expense. Take the atlas with you when you travel. Electronic maps can disappear when you need them. Learn how to read a map.)
II. Identify Shows in Area To find shows in this geographic area You can first go to Art Show Reviews on this site. Next would be Zapplication (ZAPP), and in my case followed by Colorado Artist Tour which list shows exclusively in Colorado. Sites like Juried Art Service and EntryThingy are not that useful to me because of very few listings for the Rocky Mountain area. Other location resources are Sunshine Artist, Harris List, Art Show Reviews, listings published for individual states and internet sites. A few shows don’t bother with these listings and rely on artist’s word of mouth communication.
III. Review Basic Show Data The first pieces of data you can retrieve from a listing are the date and location. I record the shows on a computer print out weekly calendar. On the listings you will find out who is putting on the show. Is it a promoter, arts organization, civic group or town chamber of commerce? Promoters can be a mixed bag and are the first red flag in my research.
A. Research Promoter
Blogs can be a source of information about promoters. Are they just out for the booth fees, do they allow buy/sell into the show, do the provide basics like security , are there amenities like morning coffee for the artists, and etc.? If a promoter has a show in a geographic and demographic area that interests me, I will apply to their show and form my own opinion about them.
B. Show History
Most listings give the year that a show was established. It is a good sign if they have been around for several years. A first year show is the second red flag. I will not apply to first year shows.
C. Estimated Attendance
Inflated attendances can be expected with many listings. Past reviews or blogs that discuss the size of the crowd are something to look at. Personally, I have a hard time estimating the size of the crowd. How can you do this when you are busy selling? If I see police officers and have the opportunity, I will ask them about their estimate of attendance. If there is a paid gate, the attendance figure is probably accurate. D. Number of Artists
I look for shows that have 100 to 200 exhibiting artists. At these shows there will be enough variety to attract the public and not so many artists that the money pie is not spread out over too many artists. Others will argue that the very large shows attract more people and more buyers.
E. Jury Fee and Booth Costs
The lack of a Jury Fee and no request for images of your work and booth are more red flags. I won’t apply to shows that are not juried. One very good show that I do does not have a separate jury fee as it is included in the booth cost. I look for shows that have booth fees in the $150 to $400 price range. For this price I expect to get overnight security, artist reception, morning goodies, clean restrooms or porta-pots and maybe free water all day. I suggest that you have a budget prepared for booth and jury fees. You jury fee is going to be processed shortly after your application is received. Booth fees are usually not processed until you are accepted into a show, but if you apply to several shows, you can have a few thousand of dollars out there. Will your checking account cover them, or are you going to go over your credit card limit?
F. Show Schedule
At this point I have a calendar with several potential shows listed on it. The next step is to look at individual shows in more detail to determine if they will meet my financial goals now, and if the show has the potential over time to accomplish this. This becomes a process of elimination. For my geographic area of Colorado, I want to start doing shows in late May, continue during the summer with a show every two to three weeks. I want to be finished with shows by mid-September. This means selecting 6-9 shows for the summer. The number of shows you choose to do is your choice. What is more important is that you do not spend your time doing shows that do not have the potential to meet your financial goals.
The next discussion will be about what I look for to eliminate shows that do not have the potential to meet financial goals. If you use my technique or that of someone else, post your results here for the 2013 shows that you do, and PLEASE write up the show in Art Show Reviews.com.
Richard, I absolutely love your approach. Maybe you misconstrued my comments about blogs versus reviews. What I was saying is that a lot of blogs have been written about significant shows and they are chock full of info. The reviews are OK, they give barebones info, but they lack a lot of inner qualities that I look for when picking a show.
I am in the midst of moving back south to Tampa from Saugatuck,MI, which is my summer base. In Oct. I will reply to this. Right now, it is a lot of packing and planning.
41 days out of open heart surgery and I am doing well. Walking 30 minutes per day,vigorously, and even climbing up to the 60th step on Mt. Baldy (which is 310 steps to the top). This is a forest-covered sand dune in Saugatuck with stirs to the top. It is quite the climb. I feel great. Later gator. Nels.
Richard - for what it's worth, here's a blog I wrote on this with some good replies with additional advice.
http://www.artfairinsiders.com/profiles/blogs/selecting-shows-do-yo...
-
1
-
2
of 2 Next