Gaithersburg, Maryland- 6/25-26

We checked into the hotel on Fri., flipped on the tv for the weather and there was a tv ad on the local Fox station; I had a comp. copy of the washington post and there was ahalf page ad. Feeling good we went to the site and saw tons of signage on the way. A first year show, fit our northern bound schedule, we have done fine in previous Paragon events, so here we were at this town center that was packed with people Fri. night. We also saw a CNN ad for the show when we returned to the hotel. These are big $$$$ ads.

Set-up was easy, the quality level of the art was fantastic- especially my neighbor Edward Loedding- his photo drawing flowers (I am beyond description words) were WOW.. A pleasure to be next to a 2-d exhibit that isn't littered with browse bins and $25 copies. Just as it was really great to see people SELLING ONLY ORIGINALS at Virginia Beach (more on that later).

Our sales were real good; many were not so fortunate- as is the case at all art festivals- the folks that came were there to buy and we saw many packages and paintings walk by. Neighbors around us seemed to be doing o.k. but we stayed at our booths and had to work hard for every sale. It never seemed crowded on site although there were few parking spaces available. Maybe the vast layout just spread the population out. One point-- the event was advertised as at The Washingtonian Center (this is how the developement company has branded this town center) --the locals know this site as The Rio- Paragon will for sure advertize it as being at The Rio next year-.

Paragon had coffee,snacks,water, Sat. lunch; and an overall great attention to details and THE ARTIST'S SUCCESS. Keep it up-some shows work and some don't, weather etc. We were real pleased with Paragon and their energy.

BY THE WAY-WITH 5000 MEMBERS HERE WHERE ARE ALLTHE EAST COAST REVIEWS ??????

I'm a 2-D artist who was at Gaithersburg. The show was held in a side parking lot of a sprawling, up-scale shopping complex. Although there was an array of signs pointing the way, only a trickle of patrons passed though the show. However, those that came were very serious art buyers. I sold a number of framed, limited edition pieces along with those that were only matted. All my receipts were from Gaithersburg/Germantown/Rockville except for one from West Virginia. Every artist around me did well. I nicknamed one line drawing artist "The Be-Back King" because everyone who told him they would return, did so, and shelled out the money. This show had to have the highest purchase to patron population ratio of all time! Cheers to Bill Kinney and Paragon for selecting a location that produced, even with poor attendance. Bill checked on me several times both days to see how things were going and he ran a tight ship making sure everything was done properly.

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Comments

Lynda Wallis July 13, 2011 at 12:53pm

OMG...%$@))&&%...crazy that THIS is the show I canceled. This is exactly the venue and crowd I've been looking for! Well, life called me away from this show for unavoidable resons. I will MOST definitely apply to do this show again. Thanks for the thorough reviews.
Connie Mettler July 12, 2011 at 6:25pm

This is great! Gaithersburg is a wealthy area - but I never imagined on a hot weekend we'd have such happy artists. Good job, everyone!

Was this a first time show? if so, I'm sure everyone was taking notes to make it even better next year.
Geoff Coe July 12, 2011 at 11:56am

Winthrope: I agree with your review in every detail. It is always refreshing to have a promoter visit my booth and check in to see how things are going. Even more impressive that he came by on Sunday afternoon to ask for a sales total. Bill is a straight shooter: he's got a plan, commits to it, works it, and evaluates a show's success based on its performance to the plan.
Winthrope Hiers July 12, 2011 at 12:01am

I'm a 2-D artist who was at Gaithersburg. The show was held in a side parking lot of a sprawling, up-scale shopping complex. Although there was an array of signs pointing the way, only a trickle of patrons passed though the show. However, those that came were very serious art buyers. I sold a number of framed, limited edition pieces along with those that were only matted. All my receipts were from Gaithersburg/Germantown/Rockville except for one from West Virginia. Every artist around me did well. I nicknamed one line drawing artist "The Be-Back King" because everyone who told him they would return, did so, and shelled out the money. This show had to have the highest purchase to patron population ratio of all time! Cheers to Bill Kinney and Paragon for selecting a location that produced, even with poor attendance. Bill checked on me several times both days to see how things were going and he ran a tight ship making sure everything was done properly.
Lynda Wallis July 11, 2011 at 1:22pm

Hey Bill & Jon, thanks for the review. I had been accepted into the show at Gaithersburg, but had to pull out for personal reasons. What is your art? I'd love to do the show next year. Can you speak a bit more to the type of 2-D art you saw walking by?
Ruth Finkenbiner July 11, 2011 at 11:55am

So Steve why don't you post some reviews from the West and Southwest? As an artist in the Pacific NW we are considering shows further away next year and are always looking for input. BTW, a couple of us, Steph Mader and myself have been posting a few reviews this year for some of the shows in Washington.
steve appel July 11, 2011 at 10:38am

thanks for the comments but you want east coast reviews what about reviews in the southwest or west. I believe that when artist find a good show they keep it to themselves. That has been the norm for years.
Annette Piper July 10, 2011 at 8:49pm

Thanks for the review - great to hear of a show with lots of buyers around :)
Alison Thomas July 10, 2011 at 1:39pm

I hope to see you there next year.