I am so excited. I'm going to Chicago to attend the SOFA (Sculpture, Objects and Functional Art & Design). This is a very classy gallery event that I've always wanted to see. Amazingly, the folks at SOFA sent me an invitation to attend with a friend the Opening Night Preview. So I'm going!
I haven't been to many art fairs in the last six months, so this will be very special.
If you're on the West Coast you have a chance to attend ART San Diego and see if the big league events are for you.
One of our sponsors hosts the 3rd annual Mountain Art & Craft Celebration in the Georgia mountains. I'd like to visit that one in the near future.
What about you? are there any shows out there, or will you be shoveling snow with Richard Sherer?
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Today I attended an arts and crafts show that I have been to every spring and fall since I think the spring of 2013. The fall is usually find more $$ spent and a bigger attendance though the spring can be good too. The show is a fund raiser for Southdown Museum and Plantation in Houma, LA.
Today, as many have experienced here, we got rain. Most of the day. It was the worst crowd, or lack thereof, since I started going there. Of course the organizer nor the board for the museum can control the weather. More on that later.
It started rather shaky yesterday when dh and I went to set up. They have a grid/map they use every time because the property is fixed and there is no need to reinvent the wheel every spring and fall. We were going to be in a new location due to requesting a move after the spring show. We were going to be one down from an end/corner booth, nearer the museum/plantation home. Long story short by the map we were supposed to be one booth down from a corner booth. By the signage marking the booths, we were on a corner. This did not jive. Of course we asked about it before we began setting up. (None of our immediate neighbors had arrived yet.)
Dh presented an option that allowed us to moved and everyone else stay in place ... since we were moving anyway it really didn't matter to us. We asked about spot that was in front of the house, big enough to house our booth but it did not have a booth number nor an artist or crafter assigned to it. We were given the green light. It worked so well for us! The back of our booth backed up to the plantation. We had a sidewalk at the back of our booth and a little lagniappe area around our booth so we had some "breathing room." It also placed us at the head of an aisle so we could see down the aisle and people could see us as they came up the aisle.
We enjoyed our spot so much I spoke with the lady in charge and asked if it was possible to put that spot back as a booth site. She was very cordial and agreed that it could go back on the map. This particular venue has some issues it will have to face that some of the regular sellers won't like or will have to adjust to or just not return. There are multiple 200+ year old oak trees that are on a historical register. They cannot be cut down. Not that I'd want them to cut them down. However some of the branches have grown significantly since the last show in the spring. So much so that some booths were displaced due to the extent of the growth. The lady who was organizing this show said she would have to work with the board for the plantation and those who have had those booths for years to come up with a compromise that pleases everyone. They do not want to lose long-term artists/crafters but want to maintain the integrity of the property. I am encouraged by her willingness to work on the behalf of both.
The worst part of the day was the rain that began mid morning and came and went most of the day and finally just came and stayed. No lightning so that was good. The show hours are usually 8:00-4:00, Saturday only. At 2:35 today they called it and said the show would close at 3:00. Though the grounds were wet they did allow us to pull up to our booths for load out starting at 3:00. A rainy load out always takes us twice as long as a dry one. Dh was off site at another event today but finished up there as dd and I finished up at the show. From the 2:35 announcement it took us till 4:20 to close it out. We were all soaking wet, as were the other artists/crafters. Fortunately we did not lose any product.
We did not make much $$ today but met some wonderful people while there. We also got to see some friends we see only on the road. We had some previous customers come by and say how pleased they were with their prior purchases. After had a very rainy load out we were all ready for a shower. Dh had to go back to his prior event. But we were all in the mood for a good hot meal so we hit Big Mike's BBQ and Smokehouse here in Houma. Y'all have to try it if you're ever in town.
Going to SOFA sounds like a great time! Good for you!
I'm working on an order over the weekend, glazing.
It feels odd to not have much pressing on me, as my last show was cancelled in VA due to the hurricane,
and I have a trailer full of pots!
I took a break a while back. I started ramping it up again 5 weeks ago when I started getting ready for my show. Usually, I take a break now and I pay for it by having to fire in January. This year I'm doing what I said I would do for the past 20 years and that is work now and be finished by Jan 1st. I'll be in Florida the whole month of February and maybe March and maybe half of January depending on how much work I will have. I have a ton of clay, all the glaze material I can use, a full tank of propane, enough pots for 3 shows and no money. I've got to sell these pieces.
We are participating in Denver Arts Week by opening our studio Friday evening in the RiNo Arts district. There are several established galleries and other artists open within a block each direction, so hoping that folks come out and see what's new.
And we have a second note: although I won't be there, because I'll be at my own open house, we have four pieces in the "Bibelot" show of miniatures which is opening Friday as well, at the Kanon Art collection on Santa Fe in Denver. No worries, although the work will have to stand on its own this week, Kanon will have an artists' reception later in the month because several of the artists were caught in the same "two places at once" dilemma.
Here's a couple firsts: while we had steady attendance at the Open Gallery, with a mix of old friends, patrons from other shows, and folks we didn't know who were doing the studio/gallery tour ... one of our pieces was stolen right in front of us. Poof! It wasn't particularly expensive, but it was eye-opening. I had thought previously that it might be a good idea to hire a 20-something solely to watch the artwork, since when we get busy chatting, we can't be looking at every part of the display. Lesson learned.
And secondly, I have a website/blog. Hadn't posted much lately, just too busy. But I did a reminder post Friday (the morning of show) with a photo of a cake pop I was going to serve at the event and the invite. Several folks said "I saw your blog and it reminded me to come down and see the open house." That was unexpected and another good reminder.
And just because it was adorable: snow globe cake pop. Things I do when I should be in the studio but ... On the other hand, it DID bring folks to our location, so wasn't a waste of time.
Nice, Camryn. Hope your studio event went well. Do you have a link for the Kanon Art collection? I'm always interested in miniatures.
Sure thing, here's the Bibelot facebook page (Bibelot is the name of the show at the Kanon Collective.) Many of the works shown are small paintings and drawings.
https://www.facebook.com/events/1494195094242399/
Some of my miniature sculptures inside snow globes (I hope that one isn't being displayed on the floor!) https://www.facebook.com/123512540993021/photos/pcb.112662169734876...
Here is the gallery website: http://www.kanonart.com/bibelot/
I get that, Richard! I keep coming across opportunities that could be big -- but frankly not following up on them. Just got back from a 3 week trip and the catching up is exhausting, let alone taking on new work.
Would you rather have the horse or the manure?
If I was 30 years younger, I would go to Brazil and get a mule. They are breeding some beautiful animals there. There are no more horses or mules in my future. They are a cash drain with hay, feed, vet and farrier bills. I saw your FB posts from SE Asia. For now I provide a service by taking manure which my friends with multiple horses need to get rid of. The trades are good for developing new cash clients too.