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In their advertising, Howard Alan Events billed this show as "The first and best art festival of 2012."  One could be snarky and say, "Well, sure...so far!"  But for many of the 200-plus artists who exhibited,  it was a solid weekend, with brisk crowds, packages aplenty, and enough sales in the till to leave hope that maybe, just maybe, the economy has turned the page as well as the calendar. 

Alan has been holding events at this fine upscale mall, halfway between Naples and Fort Myers, for six years or so. The last few years have featured an early-season show in November as well as the long-running one around Valentine's Day weekend.  But this year Alan moved the fall show to New Year's weekend--a savvy move since other Florida promoters are staying shuttered until Jan. 7. (The second show will be held six weeks hence, as always.)

The show's location within the mall was shifted slightly this year, closer to the property's SW corner, which seemed to make access a bit easier for artists and patrons alike.  Setup was all day Friday, 10 to 5.  Most artists took advantage of that; those that didn't could arrive early Saturday morning.  (There's lots of lodging within 5 miles of the show, as any Priceline search will prove out.  Alan also arranged a special at the Hyatt on site.  I didn't use either option, since I live 20 minutes north on US 41.)  

Layout was back-to-back in three columns, with enough space behind the booths for inventory and supplies, and just enough space between booths to squeeze through and get them if, like me, you didn't have a back door.  Parking was off-site this year instead of behind the movie theatre--a last-minute change that was well communicated by email--and shuttle buses ran before and after the show for those who needed it.  Alan arranged with Costco to provide an "artist's breakfast" booth with muffins and pastries and bottled water, but alas, no coffee.  It was a minor inconvenience, given that a Starbucks and Panera Bread are adjacent to the show, but it would be a nice addition next time.  

Weather was Chamber of Commerce-perfect: cloudless blue skies and temperatures that reached the low 80s both days.  Crowds were steady enough on Saturday, but patrons were definitely in "browse mode".  Sunday amped up both attendance and sales.  Interestingly, too, several artists mentioned to me that they thought the crowd skewed a bit younger than a lot of the Florida shows they do.  Maybe it reflects vacationers, as opposed to residents and snowbirds...or maybe Facebook and social media advertising is starting to have an impact (but that's a subject for a later post.)

I out-did my Day One results by better than 3 to 1 and reached my sales mark from the February 2011 show at 3 PM Sunday--a happy event since this show marked a new product mix for me, with fewer but larger canvases and no more 8x10 mat sales or notecards. It also helped that I'd mailed Christmas cards to all my large-ticket patrons, with a hand-written message and my show schedule printed on the back.  Over a half-dozen came to say hello, and several made new purchases. 

I made a point of walking the show twice, and I thought the quality and category mix were excellent. But why take my word for it? More convincing proof were the three times I heard women calling their friends to tell them about the event, all with essentially the same message: "You've got to come down here and see this...it's a beautiful show!" I can count on one hand the number of times I've witnessed that.

Like any show, there were folks who didn't fare so well.  Jewelers (which Alan held at 20% of exhibitors) seemed to fare a bit better than 2-D artists, generally.  Several photographer friends were disappointed, and a nearby painter who had sold several large pieces at last year's event wasn't so fortunate this time around.  But on the whole, folks were chalking it up as a solid start to the New Year. 

How 'bout some of you other AFI'ers out there?  What did you think?