Artsplosure in Raleigh, NC is an extravaganza… part art, part music, part kids… The music and kids activities were set slightly apart from the artists. Extremely well advertised with print, TV and social media. 170 artists…and it seemed to be pretty well juried from what I could see… more 3D than 2D with lots of jewelry. http://www.artsplosure.org/artsplosure2012/ceramics.html Show ran from 11am-7pm on Saturday and 10-5 on Sunday. The weather was simply gorgeous. Perfect weather for a festival! The music went on long after we left on Saturday. We were welcome to stay open but it had been a long day and my sales to that point did not warrant staying open...
They were looking and buying
This show has been around for a lot of years and they have a solid methodology for how they do things. They were responsive to emails and communicated as needed. They were organized. And I can’t say enough good things about the volunteers who helped set up and acted as booth sitters! Free lunch both days and air conditioned restrooms worked for me. They were upfront in the artists packet about not depending on overnight security so I packed out my glass on Saturday but didn’t notice any residual damage anywhere the next morning. Between the music, beer and wine continuing well after close and somewhat of a homeless population in the area, it was better safe than sorry.
Entrythingy is the entry vehicle. $32 jury fee and $225 gets you a 12x12 space with room on the sidewalk behind you for limited storage.
Setup/load out – Same day setup since they can’t close the streets the night before. They had asked early on if you needed a lot of time for setup. Even number spots could start setting up at 6:30. Odd numbered spots could start setting up at 8:00am. A lot of us were unloading onto the sidewalk by 6 just to get it done. Parking was only a block away. Volunteers were around to help you set up if you needed it. Overall, it was an easy load-in on my end of the street. Load out was pretty much the same. (map attached) Initially, I had some reservations about my location because it seemed like everyone on our end of the street were either new to the show or hadn't done it in several years. Not to worry... people seemed to be coming in that way and foot traffic was abundant. I don't think there was a bad location here...well, I say that because I was far away from the stages...but I digress...
People started showing up before 10 and it was getting crowded by noon on Saturday and stayed that way all day. I had more people in my booth during this show than I did for the previous five shows combined that I’ve done this year. Sunday seemed to be more beer and wine oriented and with folks there for the music but that could just be my impression since I didn’t sell a thing on Sunday…
Lots of foot traffic in my booth
In terms of sales, this ranked 5th out of the six shows I’ve done so far this year. Sadly, I did not make expenses…. I even had a smaller version of my larger pieces so that I had something in the under $100 price point. Lots of interest did not translate into lots of sales… Which was disappointing since my last two shows were wicked awesome in terms of sales and commissions.
However, the ladies next to me with the $130 necklaces had a very solid weekend as did the gentleman on my other side who sold several of his guitars made out of license plates for $300+ a pop. I saw lots of smaller prints walking by as well as bags with ceramic pieces cradled like babies in their new owners arms… the money was definitely there if you had what the crowd was looking for. Some people were there for the art and looking for specific artists; some people were there for the music, beer and wine; and others were just there because it was a gorgeous day.
Peter Geiger had a stellar show
I went into this show knowing it was a large, multi-event, family-style festival. I needed to dip my toe into the market just to find out if I might have an audience. I had a couple of nibbles from galleries which I will follow up on. If no one was selling, I would write this off. The Raleigh/Durham/Apex/Chapel Hill area has a huge arts community. Surely there is room for me…
Anyone else want to chime in with their experience?
Comments
Hi Kathy. Nice to meet you at the show this weekend and thanks for including a photo of my booth! Hope to see you at another show soon. - Pete
petergeigerart.com
Great review Kathy!
@ Paige...Don't let those comments bother you. I would assume that most of us (if not all) have heard at some point the same type of comments. I've had people tell me, "I took a picture just like that one." Then they pull out their cell phone to show me. And there is always someone with a family member who can easily do what you do. I am sure everyone handles these comments in different ways. Normally, I just smile. I figure if they are making such comments they are not potential buyers. So I don't waste my time worrying about them.
Hey all! I was at Artsplsure this past weekend too. I was on one of the off shoot streets and had a large building behind me and a parking garage across the street which kind of made for a bit of a wind tunnel, especially on Sunday morning. I sold a small piece and had 2 small comissions but not enough to cover expenses and I live in Chapel Hill, NC so I didnt even have to pay to stay anywhere or anything. I thought the crowd was wonderful and everyone that came through was very interested in my work (glass mosaics) but for some reason not many were buying...I'm not sure if I don't have what people are looking for or if it's just cause I am new and haven't figured out exactly how/to who to sell my stuff yet. I had a lot of people interested in talking to me about commission work but since I live so close I think perhaps the urgency to work it out then wasn't there...and I'm sure I lost sales because of that. The people around me seemed to do pretty well though. And they were super friendly with advice since I am new to shows and everything.
One of the most frustrating things for me is the number of people that come through and say "o yea mosaics, cool, I've been thinking about doing this myself" and "hey son look, its just like what you did in school" and "o my grandmother totally did this" I don;t know how many of you get this reaction and I know mosaics are something that many little kids do, but mine are a bit nicer than the stepping stones a child does and I'm not sure how to set my mosaics apart/above those in order to actually sell them and get recognized as art. I put in a ton of time to each piece and know from walking around that my prices were comparable, so those kinds of quick dismissals are really disheartening.
The organization of the event and the assistance from the volunteers was, as everyone has already mentioned, fantastic. Overall the show itself was a good experience for me and I'm glad all of you had such good shows!!
TY Kathy.
Jimmie and Lori, it gives me hope. I want to make this market work... Thanks for sharing your experiences!
Melanie, all age ranges from 20 somethings with credit cards and not afraid to use them to 50+. Not too many in the 70+ age range...
Thank you all for sharing. I have thought about doing this show. It isn't to far from me and I have many clients here in ATL that live in that area who encourage me to try it. What are the age ranges of the buyers? 30's and 40's something or 50+
I love this show, I've done it for the last three years and every year the sales get better and better, definately worth the drive from Tampa. It's a great restaurant town and I try a new one every year, this year it was Sauba, Saubu a thai restaurant recommened by a local, pad thai to die for.
I had a fantastic show for a two day event sales for me were on par from Dogwoods in Atlanta and Knoxville. I moved a large 30x45 canvas print and sold out of several 16x20 prints. I had my mix media paintings last year at this show and took in perhaps three hundred in sales. I returned this year with my photography and turned well over the 10x booth fee formula. I had a corner spot and although the transient element was abundant behind my area I had zero problems. The music was loud Sunday evening but the rest of the time it was at a reasonable level. I eagerly look forward to next year. I really enjoy the area. I have been treated well in the past and weather permitting look forward to a great show in Cary in August.