You can draw your own conclusions as to what this means. For instance, you could compare show fees for a particular show over the years vs what we take in at that show. Or, compare entry fees. I won't do this. You can figure these things out for yourself.
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I'd like to chime in that not only am I doing GREAT, but I am in better shape, financially speaking, than I ever have been. I was not an artist during the heady days of 10 to 20 years ago, and I don't really care what I might have made then; I only care about what I make now and whether it is "enough". I have been self-employed since 1994 (carpenter/painter) so I know quite well what it is like to manage your life with a sporadic and unpredictable income. My first art show was in 2006, and in 2008 (!!) I committed myself to art show income exclusively, and dropped my construction business. Economic downturn notwithstanding, 2008 was my best year, surpassed only by 2009 income. I have managed to cut a significant 5-digit credit card debt in half in two years, and now anticipate being debt-free by the end of 2012.
Sure, I might have been able to pay off that debt in one year if I brought in $10,000 per show, but the reality is that anything over $2000 per show is enough for me to survive, pay down debt slowly, and feel confident that I will be fine. Anything more than that is icing! This year, so far, all my shows have brought in more than $2K, and I am feeling very good about 2010!!
There are some excellent writers on this site. Imagine being an artist and a writer -- where can you go with that? Whenever I come across an opportunity that I think an artist can do I post it. I also try to write stories about where else artists have gone and how else they have sold their work. Google Ted Gall, visit hippiejack.com. Larry Berman and Greg Lawler used to be art fair artists. Those of you who live near large metropolitan areas have lots of opportunities to find arts positions. All of the arts administrators seem to be turning over in the Detroit area, etc. There were staff turnovers at the Omaha Summer Arts Festival, Des Moines, the Ann Arbor Street Fair this year -- and these are just the ones I heard about.
Raya said:
NELS - I agree Make new and better art, push your creative boundaries! YES, be pragmatic; with price points as well as how you’re doing business (where and how).
BARRY - Jobs verse Art Fairs I’ve bounced back and forth for decades. Even worked for a Fortune 500 company for a few years (the benefits were fabulous!) but MARTHA - I wouldn’t want to be a CEO even though I know I could.
LINNEA- YES! To reinvention. Blessed be! how many times have I embraced that endeavor. I keep my ultimate life goal in mind and jumped off the cliff, I always land in a better place…eventually.
MICHELLE - Diversity This is the time for trying out new ways of selling (I just sold my first painting via the internet this week!).
I also lost one of my Galleries last week…they couldn’t pay their rent... Aren’t we all creative people so why can’t we create a job…just takes a lot of hard work once you find the right idea (oh so simple!)…but do-able. Stay open and vigilant to opportunities.
I’m not doing the fair circuit this year (and haven‘t for a many years…other than having an agent handle my work at the shows like NY ART EXPO). I too have been faced with a serious decline in income over the past 2 years so I’ve gotten into a weekly artist market here in Santa Fe, NM which is artist run and coordinates with the local farmers market. Friends who did it last year did very well. It’s become THE place to be as a shopper and an artist every Saturday. The support your local farmer/artist does well and we still have tourists who love the experience.
I’d love to travel next year to some select shows…Ann Arbor would be a childhood dream realized…I grew up there and use to help family friends in their booth when I was very young. Sounds like it’s very difficult to get into?
William S. Eickhorst said:
Michelle, I like that fact that you have gone to the gift show as a buyer. I've done that myself at the Javitts Center in NY. It is a little claustrophobic being in a room with all those chatchkes (knick knacks sort of), however.
Funny, at the Florida shows I've been talking to a lot of people who have switched from wholesale to retail because they can't make enough money selling to galleries. I try to do both. In fact, I have a wholesale price and my retail price or art fair price is just a markup of my wholesale price. Over the years, everyone seems to switch from wholesale to retail and then back. In my own case, every gallery that I've done well with have gone out of business. I still have a few good galleries and I'm looking for new ones. In a future discussion I am going to discuss the issue of wholesale vs retail. It's important to take advantage of all the sales outlets, galleries, art fairs, internet, etc.
Munks said:
In my opinion, you are r-
In my opinion, you are ri-
Damn! For some reason, it seems my keyboard won't let me type out that word in this context!
Hmmm.
Let's try it this way:
William, in my opinion you are not as wrong as you usually are in this particular case at this moment in time.
There - that was more difficult than I thought it would be but I was able to say it and we're all the better for it!
William S. Eickhorst said:
1. Original topic. I cannot look back at past years and believe I can repeat it (or for some NOT repeat) sales. Regardless of inflation and other crap, there are far more factors that can lead to why we are up and down over the years. At the end of the day, you can't shut your eyes super hard expecting to open them to the year "1990". You have to move forward based growing from mistakes you can fix and do the best you can.
2. The economy. The economy goes up. The economy goes down. People stupidly act upon crazy statements based on the media. I am betting if less people listened to the news and most of all believe everything they hear, we'd be better off as a society.
3. The new success at shows is diversity. I hear it all the time - shows aren't what they used to be, sales suck, booth fees are high and promoters are out to rip us off... So I ask why are YOU still putting all of your eggs in one basket called art fairs if you are not getting the results you want? With so many opportunities to sell art like on the internet, through wholesale opportunities like galleries or gift shops, participating in studio/artisan trails, etc. you have to diversify yourself. Patrons don't go to shows as much as they used to for many reasons - the timing of the show, choosing one show out of multiple shows on a given weekend, the health of patrons has gone down hill due to diabetes and other issues, and extra patron fees (fees for parking and admission) are just a few of those reasons. If you think about it, while some artists are solely relying on art fairs to sell, you are only selling a few hours about 2 days on a weekend a couple of weekends a year (depending on if you do shows full time or part time). Selling via websites (which are open 24/7) and have their work in maybe 5 galleries (open 5 days a week or so), in addition to doing shows, well do the math... They are reaching far more people making up for some shows that have poor sales.
4. Jobs. People who can't get jobs - although I am fully aware it is tough getting a job when less people are hiring - I do feel some have a pride issues. I am not embarrassed to say I have been working 1 and 1/2 years part time, after solely working for myself via my craft business. I still do shows, just can't afford to do as many as I want. With less time devoted to the business I found I had time to do something part-time - which helps contribute to our household income as well as give me spending money to boot. I work at a really awesome boutique where I do work as a sales person as well as being the manager during the week, design display and do merchandising, I have gone to a gift show as a buyer (something I could easily do day after day), and even get to sell my own work at the store! The thing that is so cool right now is it is far easier to create a job than it is to try and get a job. Check out elance.com or try your hand at teaching at an art school (for adults or young adults) or community college. Why not be a consultant or speaker for different art organization functions, not to mention applying to the art director jobs mentioned earlier in this post. As my husband puts it, it is better to get paid a set amount of money every day than hoping and praying you'll come home with money at the end of a show (no matter how convinced you are that it is going to be the best show that year).
Great discussion folks! - Michelle
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