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I'm New, I mean newer older, or older newbie or.....

Posted by Rick Woods on August 26, 2010 at 10:46pm in Welcome to Art Fair Insiders!
Been painting a long time, sold some, gave some away, but finally giving this art thing a chance to stand on its own two tentacles.
My first booth:
Launched this biz in March, set up my first booth on Mothers Day, and promptly got blown out the door. That is, my stuff did, with me trying to ketch it afore it ended up in the lake, a bit after noon. Got it back, put it up and the wind blew it out the other side. And started raining on it. When the cries of anguish died down to quiet cursing, we all kinda decided en masse that we were done for the day. Home, warm and dry again by 2 pm.
Two more since then that weren't much better. But I'm learning a lot, and I hope to learn a lot more from you all.

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  • Alison Thomas August 27, 2010 at 6:28am
    I think a big part of this business is just plain persistence. I remember my first show(?) sitting in the pouring rain looking up at my $3000 display thinking - I can't quit I have to pay off the display. A few years later I am loving it and doing well. I would suggest you spend some time researching displays and creating one that will withstand the wind and elements better. Good luck and hope to see you on the circuit.
    • Rick Woods > Alison Thomas August 27, 2010 at 6:00pm
      Hi Doug, Ditto on the show notes here. Show #3 was last weekend, almost as bad as the train wreck in Show #1. Weather was better, but poor promotion, too much buy/sell competition, and the wrong visitor motivation conspired to make it a complete flop.
      Got a couple of examples of better displays to follow up on, and I thing your take on the director's chair is a good one. Seemed to me that when I stood up and walked around, people left sooner, like I was crowding them out, so I stayed in my chair and chatted them up. But I was down low so it was harder to look them in the eye.
      I'm also looking at better signage and demonstrating my painting.
    • Rick Woods > Alison Thomas August 27, 2010 at 6:00pm
      Thanks Alison, valuable feedback. Persistence and a thick skin among a few other traits I'm developing. Also to be a lot more selective in which venues I aim at. I'm blessed to have great mentors living next door, long-time carnies who now occasionally run some of these fairs as well.
      I am so tempted to invest a bunch of cash in a great display, but that will poke more holes in my reserve cash parachute that's looking a little tattered right now. So I'm thinking in terms of what I can build. Screen frames are wind resistant but I'm finding they don't isolate my work from whatever is in the background.
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