While everyone is entitled to their own opinions on what is good art and what isn't, there should be minimum standards to even be considered. I know that quite a lot of art festivals have specific criteria that they use when jurying different media.
But, I would have to say that at least half of the people attending art festivals have no idea what they are looking at.
I attended the Buffalo Grove Invitational Fine Art Festival on July 21st. Much has been written about this art festival and some of the posts are still on this website. This is what was on the website for this festival-----
"This year’s festival will feature a wonderfully chosen, juried group of approximately 150 artists"
I guess that the Invitational part means that any and all artists are invited to send in their app fee to this show.
One person claimed that the promoter was trying to satisfy all price points at this festival. I don't have a problem with that although most artists these days have already figured out that this economy begs for a variety of price points within a booth.
But when questionable art is allowed into a festival that is billed as Fine Art, I do have a problem. To me, this is false advertising. This is a public that is Wal-martized, Pottery Barned and West Elmed to the nth degree and having questionable art at a festival exacerbates the problem. If a person cannot recognize quality they won't be willing to pay for it.
I saw art at this festival that I also saw at a festival where the booths were inexpensive yard art, toe rings, soap and candles and tie-dyed t-shirts. Not exactly what is considered fine art.
Comments
Thanx Geri for pointing this out. Is soap art?
Thanks Jacki, some people would say I need to get a life!!
There should be more patrons out there like you, Geri.
I agree. Everyone is so used to cheap imports when shopping and then buy/sell at shows that they become blind to art. Then go into shock when they like something and ask the price!
Call me cranky, but after Annapolis my position is that if it has soap it's a craft show that may have some art at it.
I've been saying the same thing for over 10 years. I think most of these shows should not use the term art in their title. I've always wondered if they could be sued for using it.
I've always laughed when I got a notice that I have been "invited" to do a show. It always means I have been invited to give them my money. They know they can get away with calling the show an Invitational even though nobody was actually invited to do the show. It's so Orwellian. Those of you who have no idea what I mean by that should google the term "Doublespeak."