Hello All,
I would love to hear from anybody who has attended the "Denver Merchandise Mart",
preferably with photography.
Thank You in advance.
Annette
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Hello All,
I would love to hear from anybody who has attended the "Denver Merchandise Mart",
preferably with photography.
Thank You in advance.
Annette
You need to be a member of Art Fair Insiders to add comments!
Replies
Which event? The Merchandise Mart hosts everything from quilt shows to gun shows. Need to know your subject matter as well. Thx!
Thank You Jacqueline.
It is the Denver "CO Arts + Crafts Spring Festival" taking place April 20-23rd, with 850 vendors and admission of $695.-.
Still a Newbie as of last year I wonder about those Big shows. I do photography. Thx!, Annette
Hi, Annette
I am also a photographer. I wouldn't consider this a "big" show. I had to go look this one up on the Merchandise Mart website, so definitely not well-advertised. 850 vendors, $695 booth - VERY steep for this venue (Cherry Creek booth fees are in this range with a smaller number of artists). I'm local and wouldn't nibble on this. Might be better to look at more well-known shows with lower fees if you're trying to hit the Denver market. Try Colorado Artist Tour , which is put together by Jim DeLutes. It's $10 for a year and is pretty reputable.
Thanks Jacqueline,
I appreciate Your research on this. Never left the area of Colorado Springs yet but do subscribe to Colorado Artist Tour, other than Jim DeLutes ~ were DO You find the shows and deadlines?? and what is the 'norm' for admissions.? I haven't a clue of what I should make per show either!! wondering if I should go on ~.
Any other help would be greatly appreciated in the photography line of work. I would love to see Your website, Jacqueline.
Thank You so much,
Annette
www.AnnettePhotos.com
I haven't really done too many shows in CO, but this year I'm sticking closer to home for various reasons, so we'll see how it goes.
I use primarily CO Artist Tour and Zapp to find shows, but also poke around places like Denver Handmade Alliance, Meininger's Art Supply calls page, and the Denver-area co-op gallery calls. There's a spiral-bound festival book that is sold at Meiniger's for about $25. I haven't used it, but thumbed through it a couple of times. It has the more off-beat types of venues around the state that aren't strictly art, but you may want to take look and see if it fits you and your work. Don't bother with the Art Students' League - the don't admit photo into any of their shows. The Downtown Denver show can be spotty in terms of quality and sales, so I stay away. Jim's a lovely guy, but his show isn't the best. The Boulder shows, both HA and Open Arts are crap shoots. Open Arts wants $425 this year to be on the mall, which I consider too steep for my sales, but you may have different experience. Castle Rock is OK - not great but OK and you can sleep in your own bed. With your subject matter and style you may do well in some of the touristy shows where I don't fare so well. Frisco, Breckenridge, and some of the near-mountain shows may work well for you, but skip all of the Evergreen shows - they're not worth the drive. Golden is good, though, but very competitive. Avoid the Capitol Hill People's Fair like the plague.
With booth fees and the types of markets varying so widely, it's hard to come up with a "reasonable" figure. You really have to consider potential sales against your total expenses, which is tough. Having done the Boulder show on the mall back when booths were $350 (just 2 years ago, BTW), I know that $425 is an impossible dream for me. Yeah, I can sleep in my own bed, but one lousy sale after 3 days of 100+ degree heat ain't gonna get me there. But you might do well because you and I have very different bodies of work. It helps to walk the show the year before if you can, but in lieu of that scan the show's website for anything that doesn't sit right. Are there crowd photos? What do they look like? Are people carrying art or beer? How many people in the shot? Was the shot taken near the booths or with the juggling clown on stilts? What the photos don't show is almost more important than what they show. What about sales and attendance figures? If they claim attendance of 150,000 at a show, and the city's population is only 250,000 something's rotten in Denmark. That being said, I do know some artists who are throwing whatever they've got at whatever show they can get into just to see what sticks in this economy. Everyone has to forge their own path. It's just a really tough and expensive learning curve.
In terms of doing photo at festivals, you may want to check out Larry Berman's show forum. It probably has more advice on it than I could ever give. The link escapes me at the moment, but maybe he can chime in with it? Also pick the brains of some of the old-timers around here. There's a lot of institutional knowledge on this site that no one is tapping.
Good luck, Annette! I hope your first year goes well for you!
Jackie
http://www.jwebsterphoto.com
Hello Jackie,
WOW, Your website leaves me in Awe!!
In the older'n days I strictly did Black and White and silver gelatin emulsion in my still existing darkroom ~ but then I had to work 2 jobs to support my Daughter through SCAD for 5 years, how fortunate You are having been able to graduate from this Fine Institute as well!!
Then came Digital and things changed again. It was my Daughter who persuaded me to "Do" something with my images, i.e. making notecards etc..
After arrived making a few 1000+ I quickly discovered that NoBody wanted BLANK cards, but All loved my images!
So here I started making enlargements ~ matting and framing them ~ not really looking ahead, but soon was invited to exhibit at the local hospital, winning 1, 2, + 3rd place from the 'Peoples Choice Awards'. Presently my little Gallery has also been chosen to be presented at the Colorado Springs Libraries.
Next I bought an EZ-UP tent with Sta-Bars and Mesh panels, venturing out into the fields last summer trying my luck... though it is Fun ( After setting-up) and I brought home a few 100$ each time, it is a LONG way from retrieving the materials I already have invested in ~ so I think I will go on, hoping one day to arrive at a profit.
I have done better at the local juried 2-3 day larger shows vs. Craft shows by far, which I will not repeat. Though going out of town scares me with the extra hotel and gas expenses.
Somewhere between the lines ~ peddling my cards being rejected, I have heard of the 'Denver Merch. Mart' where wholesalers sell to the Merchants, now wondering what that is all about. Even in Ft. Collins, where my Daughter now lives, I was told that all their inventory comes from Atlanta's Merchants Mart.Expo, as I took a few days to explore my possibilities on College Ave, to no avail.
Thank You So much for making the time to respond to my Quest, Jackie, it really gives me a perspective of putting out my 'feelers', and I can only learn from doing it which is a hard task I've gotten myself into. I So appreciate all Your input of various events of value.
My Very Best to You in Your Future, Jackie, wishing You a Joyous New Year with prosperities.
Annette