Fernandina Beach is a great old Florida town. The Annual shrimp festival brings out the locals and fills the town with visitors from all over North-eastern Florida and Southern Georgia. It is a street party with an art fair thrown in for good measure.Set up is on Friday between 6 and 9 PM. I arrived at 8:30 and set up at my leisure under street lighting. There is always a steady stream of hundreds of people flowing toward the food and music. The fireworks begin at 10 PM.The fair is put on by the local art group and if you're popular with them you'll get a decent spot on the main street. The first two years I did the show I was in the 600 block (the show is 7 blocks long between 1st. street and 8th. street). The higher your number, the further you are from "the party".In those years, I grossed around $5K. The third year, I found myself the second-last booth as people were leaving the show in the 700 block on main street. My sales were cut in half. But I got to watch people sprint for the buses. When I asked a member of the committee why I had ended up there, she told me the spaces were handed out according to jury scores. That means I just missed being relegated to a side street.Fortunately, that year I won an award and was told I could pick my space for the next year as long as I didn't try to bump an exhibiting committee member. I picked a great spot with shade and a corner and, of course, I had my best Shrimp Festival ever. Location, location, location.Unfortunately, during pack-up I had a few words with an obvious armature who hindered everyone around her. It turned out she was a local committee member and our block captain. The next year I was on a side street. Its a small town!You do not want to be on any of the side streets. The first few cross streets are filled with junk dealers, food booths and so-called antique dealers for a half block in each direction. I mean this literally. No other show I've ever done mixes this flea market atmosphere with art, but it all works out just fine somehow. Further down the cross streets are filled with over-flow artists.I was assigned a side street booth 3 times and by the third year, I decided I would drop the show if it happened again. It did and I did.Last year I got back to the main street and had a decent show. This year I got the same spot and did even better. On Saturday, I had sales of nearly $2K with my highest sale being $139. Sunday came in at less than half of that. My neighbor, an oil painter sold many of her reproductions on Saturday and at least 3 originals on Sunday, She had to bargain some but a triptych went for around $2500. She was very happy.A well-known photographer who was across the street shared his grief with me. He sold 2 large panoramas on Saturday but his network was down and he couldn't run his charges until he got back to his hotel. One was a completely bogus account and the other one came back Sunday morning asking for his money back. A jeweler who was doing his first Shrimp Festival did very well and will apply again. A first-time photographer who specializes in European imagery was very near the party (200 block) and was so disappointed he said he would not try it again.Setting up and tearing down in the 700 and 600 blocks is generally easy because it is a wide street with room enough for booths on both curbs and 3 lanes in between. Further down there is angled parking and some irregularities that make only two lanes available between booths at the curb. Most, if not all, artists have storage behind and some even have enough room for an outside wall to display on.Parking is easy to find within a couple of blocks unless you want to pay $10. Then you can be within a block. There is a lot for big rigs and the weekend charge is $50.A judge comes around and either tells you to take a piece in for judging or he doesn't. The ribbons are handed out around 3:30 Saturday afternoon. Checks follow.My esteemed colleague (Mr. Johnson) has written of the food and social amenities so I'll end it here.
Good for you, I'm doing another show that weekend so won't be there. The show is held along the main street. There are six or 7 blocks designated by the cross streets. The show starts at First street and ends at Seventh Street. So you'll be in the 400 block between 4th. & 5th. The odd numbers are on one side of the street and even on the other. That's a good spot to be in. Congratulations, and good luck.
R.C.
I got in! My first time to enter the Shrimp Festival and got in on space 416. Do you feel this is a good area? Were there any maps anywhere online that could tell you where you are. Possibly you may have an old map that could be scanned or emailed. Again, this is a first time for me to do the festival. Biggest concern in amount of inventory to bring. I paint crabs, fish and shrimp. Thanks for the advice.
Heather Jordan
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I got in! My first time to enter the Shrimp Festival and got in on space 416. Do you feel this is a good area? Were there any maps anywhere online that could tell you where you are. Possibly you may have an old map that could be scanned or emailed. Again, this is a first time for me to do the festival. Biggest concern in amount of inventory to bring. I paint crabs, fish and shrimp. Thanks for the advice.
Heather Jordan
Great report. Who was the panorama guy who got burned? I hope it wasn't S.V.