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40 Questions Craft Artist Blog Series Question #30 Should I limit thetypes of art I sell at shows?

Welcome back to the world of art fairs, right? I know it seems I might havedropped off the face of the earth, however I am here, just beenworking on a pretty fun project, not related to art fairs per say,but in the realm of the arts... Before I get side tracked – I amhere about the blog series and most importantly this weeks question.When I walk a show – not so much the big, traditional,well-established art fairs, but all kinds, there are times I seesomeone offering some paintings they do and some scarves theyknitted. Another might sell handmade – beautiful and organic –soaps, however at the same time photography too. Am I the only onewho wonders, what are you really good at and now faced with a choice,should I buy one type of art or the other, or neither? Call mekookie, but I wonder if the artists themselves ever ask this ofthemselves too – what am I really good at and should I focus myattention on that. Here's my thoughts on this...

Question #30 – Should I limit the types of art I sell at shows?

Here's my wishy washy answer – yes and no. Here me out though – I havereasons and the answer, I personally can't say it has to be one wayor the other because there are exceptions.

So first the reasons why it can work... Two things come to mind when itcomes to having more than one type of art to sell at a booth at onetime. One, you are just starting out and you don't know what willsell. Two, you are experimenting with a new medium and want to testmarket it.

When it won't work are any other times other than listed above. I say thisbecause if you look at business in the past (or even present) who aretrying to do more than what they normally do, issues occur. Don'tget me wrong there is such a thing as cross promotion of items andpartnerships, however this isn't what I am talking about. Forinstance have you ever walked into your favorite boutique and noticethem starting to carry a line that is just all wrong. Customers getconfused. Is this shop going in a different direction? What doesthis mean about “my” favorite stuff – is it being phased out?Then perhaps you wonder about quality, because if you specialize inbeing a great pottery maker, why take up weaving and start sellingthat – one has nothing to do with the other?

The idea of limiting the types of art to one category is ideal for a fewreasons. Consistency is one. Another reason is honing your talentequals good quality work. Spreading yourself too thin means spendingmore money on different kinds of raw materials, equipment andbalancing the time in making two different kinds of art in twodifferent mediums. At the same time you'll need to consider how toset up your booth to accommodate the two mediums and other similarissues too. One other reason is that show promoters want people tosell one time of medium or else there could be an over abundance ofone medium throughout the whole show which will affect everyonessales. This is particular with jewelry. I have known some people todo one type of medium and then include earrings or bracelets – notcool both with other jewelry artists and the promoter as well.

If you are doing this, and decide that maybe you should narrow it down toone, it boils down to these two points. Really look at the one artform that you love to do – even if you didn't get paid and choosethat one – being happy making what you make will result in betterartwork. The other option is to go with the one you don't mindmaking, but is a sure deal to paying your bills and most costeffective to ensure better profits. The answer is going to bedifferent from one artist to another, so if all else fails make yourdecision the old fashioned way – make a pro and con list, sit on itfor a few days and tweak it, and then come back to it and make yourdecision based on the outcome of the list.

I really feel this is a topic that doesn't get enough discussion andhope my advice helps. The next question in the series will focus onthe whole debate between buy/sell vs. handmade and why customers buyone or the other. Thanks for reading and will be back soon with moreanswers to popular questions. Feel free to ask your own questionstoo – I will be happy to fit it in with the blog series! -Michelle Sholund, www.quickcraftartisttips.blogspot.com