This show is set in the Chicago neighborhood of the same name & has some serious architectural charm. My 20 year old daughter who came to help liked the feel of the neighborhood so much she informed me that when I die she's using her inheritance to buy one of the historic houses there. I told her it's good to have a plan but I probably won't be leaving her several million dollars. She squinted at me & said "mom, you have to believe! I do." So apparently I'm going to become vastly wealthy doing art shows. Good to know.
This is a 2 day show with a morning set-up. Normally I would not even apply to a show with a morning set up but this one is usually worth the effort. They stagger the load-in times to try to ease the chaos & for the most part it works but often cars are still parked where the booths are going & artists have to wait for the tow trucks to come in. There is an option to come in before 5am & quietly unload your stuff onto the sidewalk but no setting up until your assigned time. After you dump your stuff as quickly as possible you then have to find parking. Be prepared to pay $35 to $70 per day per vehicle. It's just flat out painful if you have a trailer or oversized anything!
Most spots have some storage behind & the spaces are 10'x12' so you can have side storage or more display area if you work it out with your neighbors. There is a requirement that the sidewalks behind the booths remain passable on all streets except Menomonee. Why it's okay to block the sidewalks on only that street is a mystery.
The crowd that comes to this show is not looking for kettle corn. In fact there isn't a popcorn or roasted nut vendor to be found. We called a near-by restaurant & had a fabulous sushi lunch delivered to our booth just because it was fun but there were some good food trucks on hand each day. Art-wise, I saw lots of large pieces leaving the show on both days. The people seemed very art savvy & came to buy. Also, the show is a reasonable size (something like 250 artists) so people can walk the entire thing & come back easily. If I hadn't already lost my show packet I would look up the exact number.
There is another show called the Wells Street art festival going on at the same time (& just one block away) but the 2 shows seem to co-exist pretty well. My daughter went to check out the other show show & when I asked her about it she said "it seems like this one (Old Town) is for spending money and talking about art but then you need to go to Wells Street to celebrate with all the partiers." I think that about sums it up.
The Old Town show was asking for a $7 "contribution" to get in but I couldn't tell if that had any effect on the number of people that came. Also, the weather really cooperated this year with sunny, mid-70's temperatures. There was a hint of rain late Sunday but it turned out to be nothing more than a sprinkle.
I finally got to meet Connie Mettler in person on Saturday which was a hoot & had great neighbors all around. If you ever want to see an exceptional booth go see Amy Flynn's Fobot set-up...it's really clever!
This is one of the very few shows in which absolutely no reproductions of any kind are allowed. They come around and check to make sure everything is up to their standards & I believe there is some sort of pre-jurying for next year. Again, if my show packet was not lost I could be more accurate. I do know that if you are pre-approved you get a letter during the summer inviting you back. If you're not pre-approved then you have to go through the normal application process.
Hotels, like the parking, are not cheap in Chicago. I stayed out by O'Hare airport since my kids were flying in Friday & I needed a place that has surface parking as my trailer won't fit in a parking garage. It's only about a 25 minute drive down to the show site from there so not too bad.
Overall, despite the hideous morning set-up, this is a very pleasant show with an appreciative crowd. I had average sales on Saturday & then had my best single day total of the year on Sunday. The load out process is sort of a free-for-all in the best possible sense. The staff let us do what we know how to do & it went as smooth as silk.
I will be hoping to get a letter this summer inviting me back!
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I'm with your daughter, Jennifer. This is a great section of Chicago and I hope you earn enough with your work so you can "gift" her with one of these homes.
It was a pleasure to meet you and to see your work up close. It is really beautiful and watching all the interested people in your booth made me suspect you would have a good show.
Have you done this one before?
I stayed at the "Getaway Hostel" about a mile and a half from the show. Not fancy, but very affordable.
Replies
I'm with your daughter, Jennifer. This is a great section of Chicago and I hope you earn enough with your work so you can "gift" her with one of these homes.
It was a pleasure to meet you and to see your work up close. It is really beautiful and watching all the interested people in your booth made me suspect you would have a good show.
Have you done this one before?
I stayed at the "Getaway Hostel" about a mile and a half from the show. Not fancy, but very affordable.