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For those who are just starting out - there may be hope. 

I think I have come a long way from my first art show.  I know I still have room to grow but I'll keep learning and trying to do better.

What a difference a day makes – or years of experience.  I admire those of you who have been doing art shows for decades.  You have been so good at sharing your experiences and helping those of us who are new to this business.  I started playing with a camera about 7 years ago.   Many of my friends complimented my snapshots and told me I should go professional.  I thought their compliments were nice and that they were just making me feel good.  Then one year we (my husband/best friend) decided to see if people who did not know me would actually pay money for my photos.  I attended the Daylily Festival in Gray, GA – only 15 minutes from home.  AND….people actually paid real money for my photos.  Wow.  Amazing.  So we did another show and another.  Intermittent reward verbally or financially is highly addictive.  Our first show was an EasyUp with Walmart folding tables, vinyl tablecloths, and Lowes shelving.  We had a large variety of Michaels frames. 

Picture - my first sale!!!!

Side note – The EasyUp may be moisture resistant but if you are showing anything that may be damaged by moisture – don’t.  Remember it is resistant, not water proof.  And condensation was a real problem.  That all ended when the whole thing collapsed during a rain storm due to pocketing pools of water.  Yes we did use the hoola-hoops and swimming noodle tricks.  They just did not work.

It did not take long to learn that being in a tent in 100 degree weather with 98% humidity was NOT fun.   It did not do good things to photography behind glass either. We quit doing shows between June 1 and September 1.  We did take a space in small store in our local downtown area.  That was November 2007.  Just in time for the economy to go south.  Oh Yeah. But we did OK and actually ended up having about 25 artists join “The Gallery”.    This is where I learned running a gallery is a 10 hour day 6 days a week job.  The weekend (day) was catch up in responsibilities at home.  I was not doing any photography.  Never any time.  Sadly…and happily...The Gallery was closed.  But during that time a man came in one day and said “Hi.  How would you like to work with me?”  I said “Who are you and what do you want me to do?”  He was a magazine publisher looking for a photographer.  WOW.  Sure.  If you want to learn photography quickly jump right into being a magazine photographer.  You learn very quickly how to deal with different people in a variety of settings and under whatever light exists.  For advertising the doctor wants all his staff in a small area all looking wonderfully beautiful and happy with all eyes open and get it done within 5 minutes between patients.  OK.  Then you go shoot for a feature and can enjoy more flexibility and creativity.  Setting appointments and meeting deadlines and it all has to be really good quality.  I’m still working with the magazine and loving it and learning more with every assignment.

But back to art shows….We have come a long way.  When I look back at our display in the beginning it makes me wonder why anyone bought anything from me.  Every dollar we made has been put back into the business.  We bought a much better tent.  The very first time we set up the Finale (Creative Energies) we got hit with a microburst.  The 3 booths in front of me were 15 feet in the air way on down the street.  The potter behind me had NOTHING left.  My awnings made perfect airfoils.  Fortunately we had 50 pounds on every corner and like an idiot I hung on to my booth even when being lifted off the ground.  The only damage was a small tear where the awning joined the tent, which Creative Energies promptly repaired in time for our next show.  We got a great deal on Propanels from someone that tried the art show circuit three times and did not enjoy it.  We bought a 10x10 set with browse bins for about ½ price of new ones.  This was a MAJOR change from using gridwalls both from the aesthetic perspective and physical challenge.  The weight of the gridwalls was just too much and the time to set them up with all the bulldog clips and wire ties was miserable.  Loading them in and out of the back of the covered pick-up truck was a major challenge.  So when we saw a trailer for sale for a great price just on the other side of town we snatched it up. 

Picture - Bigger is not always better.  What a mess!!!  I'm surprised we sold anything at all.

We’ve come a long way from our first show.  We leaned so much and have met so many wonderful people.  Even now, every time I go to a show I learn more from those who have been in the business for years.  And when a newbie comes asking questions – I gladly share what I have learned along the way.  It’s only fair. 

As the quality of our booth and the improvement of my skills continue to grow – so do the profits.  I am happy for the “education” I have had the past 6 years.  But I still need more time to get out there and shoot!!!!!

Picture - we now have a clean, uncluttered look with consistent frames.  I love the skirts below the panels that hide all those unsightly wires and other artist's under table stuff.

We've come a long way baby.

I've got to tell you, this is something I wouldn't normally do except that I have all this stuff in my studio gathering clay dust. I thought this would be a good thing to try because I won't throw anything out and I need the shelf space. However, after being on the road for 6 weeks, I did not feel up to driving the 400 miles back to Marquette to get these pieces and then back down to Kalamazoo, where this show was held. So, I just reduced the prices of my normal work and did this show.

First of all, I should tell you that among the crapola that was at this show, there were some heavy hitters like Jim Wilbat, who had just won Best of Show in glass at the Coconut Grove show, Jim Parker, photographer extraordinaire, John Bauman, Patricia Swearingen Hecker, Bruce Johnson, and Vinnie Sutherland, among others. I say crapola because this is a garage sale, after all, and it is meant to get rid of what you have left over that is sitting around your studio. Bonnie wants to make this really easy to do. The show fee is low, around $140. And, she encourages people to use tables that you can rent to display your work, not your booth. I wanted to see what this was all about, so, I didn't rent any tables, which you had to do in advance. Plus, Vinnie Sutherland and another artist were across from me and they put up their displays. I didn't want to look shabby. I ended up putting together a modified display. It looked pretty good and I was happy with it.

Load in and load out were really easy. It helps to have a cart because the show is at the Kalamazoo Convention Center and you can't drive up to your space. There was plenty of room for vans and 3 entrances. There was no waiting in line and you could drive right up to the building. New this year was the option of getting there on Friday and setting up early. It's a Saturday only show and lasts only 6 1/2 hours. I got there right at 3 PM on Friday and started unloading immediately. It took me 4 hours to set up because I stopped to talk to everybody I knew. That's one of the fun things about this show. It's small, intimate, and relaxed. I met Vinnie Sutherland for the first time and had a ball with her. Usually I am the one dishing out the trash. In this case she started early and ofter and gave it to me before I even opened my mouth.

The show was well attended and sales, for me, were good, not great. I wasn't willing to give away my work. I did reduce the pieces to what would be my wholesale price. I sold pieces that I would consider to be good work, not my A+ pieces which I didn't display. I had work at $30 to $300. My customers were savvy buyers looking for a good deal. Most of the people that come to this event are looking for cheap stuff, which there is plenty of. These were not my customers. I didn't sell one $30 piece. A lot of people I talked to and sold to, regularly come to the KRASL show. So, I looked at it as a chance to advertise my work for that show. I was selling steadily until people started offering special deals at giveaway prices. In fact, that would be my only criticism of the show. When someone started offering mugs for $1 a piece that was the end of the show for me. That was a little extreme, in my opinion. I wish exhibitors wouldn't cheapen themselves that much and it clearly had an effect on my sales. On the other hand, these were probably not my customers. 

Last but not least, Connie Mettler threw a pizza party in the lobby of the Fairfield Inn, on Friday night, which is the closest motel to the show. It was a lot of fun and I got to talk and joke around with a lot of really fun people. I made some new friends and hung out with some old ones that I don't get to see that much because we are all in our studios working if we aren't on the road. If I do this show next year, I will rent tables to have that garage sale look. Also, I will make pieces specifically for the event, that I can sell at bargain prices, along with my usual work.

This is copied from my blog

You’ve applied to hundreds of shows over the years. You know what to do and not do with your images. ZAPP and JAS have made it really easy to quickly apply and not really think about it. BUT, when was the last time you went into ZAPP and checked your profile? Checked that all your information is correct? Checked your capitalization, spelling and punctuation? Have you checked your artist statement to make sure it’s current?

 The same things are important on JAS but on there your artist statement is even more important. When you’re being juried on JAS, your artist statement is right in the center of the page, easy for the juror to read. And you wouldn’t believe how many people make mistakes in there. The wrong words, extra punctuation, missing letters and the big one is your name! Sometimes just the first name, sometimes the full name, “James does this”, “Mary Smith likes that”. I was shocked during my latest jurying how many statements had names. Have you checked yours lately?

 Your artist statement should be current and if you want a juror to read it, it should be short. I don’t need to know where you went to school, what your life’s path has been or how many years you’ve been doing this. I need to know anything critical to what you’re showing me in your images. This is not your resume, please don’t list all the shows you’ve done. Short, readable and to the point.

 And then there’s the old issue of a name in the booth image. There are still many, many booth shots that have either the artists name showing or the business name. Please, please remove it. It will not help you and it may hurt you. Take down the booth signs that the show gives you even if you can’t read your own name on it. Anything that distracts from what you want the juror to be looking at which is your booth and the work in it. Leave the chair, that doesn’t bother me at all but get out all the signs.

 And I’ve learned a couple of new things in this last round of jurying that I’ve done. Photographers as a group have the most odd looking booth images of anyone. Many of them look like they’re 20’ x 20’ booths and amazingly they show under 10 pieces with no flip bins! Wow! Please don’t take offense if you’re a photographer because it’s probably not you I’m talking about but you probably know someone who fits this. Just something to think about.

 The other thing I’ve learned is that sterling silver must no longer be a precious metal. No one told me! Jewelers - if there are two categories, precious and non-precious and you work in sterling silver, fine silver pmc or gold, you belong in the precious category. And trust me, you don’t want to be in the non-precious category if you don’t belong there. There is some absolutely wonderful jewelry being made these days without the use of precious metals and you don’t want to be competing with them if you don’t have to. Of course if you’re applying in the non-precious category then I’m not competing with you for a space so maybe I shouldn’t be telling you this…

Some of you may remember a blog I wrote last May entitled “Dear Promoters: Please Promote”.  It was sparked by my attendance at a Cincinnati-area show that seemed to be a shadow of its former glorious self; the artists were of the same high quality but there weren’t enough shoppers around to appreciate them.  Several of you chimed in, some about this particular show and others about the generally low attendance we see at too many shows these days.

As chance would have it, last week brought an emailed “don’t miss the application deadline” reminder from this very show, which prompted an email exchange between the show staff and me.  Here’s what I learned.

The show organizers say they were aware that their numbers were down, and became more aware when they read our comments on this site.  They agreed that they need to improve in the publicity arena and felt they needed to learn more from the exhibiting artists.  While they had discontinued artist evaluations years ago because no one responded, they decided to try again and sent a survey in August (the show was in late May).  They say they received "many compliments... also valuable input for improvement and we have taken positive steps to address these issues."  One of those issues, BTW, was the load-out process that Robert Wallis alluded to which has now been streamlined.

In terms of publicity, the Wyoming Art Show shared with me their new six-point Publicity Plan, the points being Social Media/Online, Promotional Materials, Signage, Local Promotion, and Advertising.  Well, okay, that's only five points, but there's probably a sixth point lurking in the closet somewhere.  I see the plan calls for promotion on major radio and news sources, an effort to get printed postcards and posters into businesses in the wider Cincinnati area, and an email blast to 18,000 recipients tied to a popular citywide entertainment publication, to name just a few line items.  They've developed a new and well-done e-postcard that will go to the artists for distribution to their customer lists. 

All in all, it looks to me like the show staff is taking their role seriously and doing what they can to kick up the attendance for the 2013 show.  I hope it works -- this really is a nice show in a beautiful tree-lined area with killer art and a ridiculously affordable booth fee.  And, apparently, they have actually listened to and acted upon artists' comments, so it's hard to ask for more than that.

Connie and all posters, thanks again for delivering and using a site that gets noticed by show organizers.  Sometimes good things happen when we whine.

We are so happy to announce that Connie Mettler will be speaking at ArtSmart!

“ArtSmart”, a three day Creative and Professional Development Conference for Artists, will take place at the University Plaza Hotel in Springfield Missouri, March 15 – March 17.
Guest presenter Reed McMillan will open the conference with “Changes that Compel Creativity,” which will address the political, social and economic challenges artists face and how they can utilize those challenges to succeed.

Connie Mettler, founder and operator of 4 art fair oriented websites, will present sessions as well on increasing your opportunities for success as an artist.

The annual ArtSmart conference, presented by The Best of Missouri Hands, is a must to attend if you are an amateur or a professional artist who is looking to up your game and expand your potential. ArtSmart is supported by the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency.
To learn more about ArtSmart and the Best of Missouri Hands, or to register on line for ArtSmart, visit www.bestofmissourihands.org

Email:  director@bestofmissourihands.org 
University Plaza Hotel and Convention Center - Springfield, Missouri Hotels
333 S John Q. Hammons Parkway, Springfield, Missouri 65806

http://www.artfairinsiders.com/events/artsmart-creative-and-professional-development-conference-for

It brought back memories as I read Nels recent post about the "history of art fair tents." I've been doing art fairs on and off since the early '70s but I also had a long career as a filmmaker and video producer. I exhibited in the "Images" art fair in New Smyrna Beach in 1983... my first Florida art fair. The experience got me thinking about the people who choose this occupation. I noticed that there are some very fascinating characters who exhibit at art fairs. I thought it might be interesting to get to know some of these artists in a documentary. In 1984 I didn't exhibit at Images, but I brought a video production crew down from Chicago. We shot video and collected interviews all weekend and produced a 25 minute documentary called "Art Fair."

The doc aired on PBS stations in several markets around the country and even garnered an Emmy nomination in Chicago. (It didn't win. A documentary about the Chicago Yacht Club's entry in the America's Cup sailboat race won the Emmy in that category.)

Today I dug out this old video and uploaded it to UTube. I watched it again and was surprised to see that there were very few tents being used at Images in 1984. Check out the video. Its kind of fun to look back. I wonder how many of you will recognize some of the artists we interviewed. I wonder how many of them are still out there exhibiting at art fairs. The video is about 24 minutes long although the UTube entry says it is over an hour long. But, the last 36 minutes is black, so I don't recommend you watch that part. Enjoy!

Here's the link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q16q5Ju_pBk&feature=youtu.be 

Congratulations to these members of ArtFairInsiders.com who make this online community the "Facebook" for art fair artists! Your votes from the blogs and private emails to me have been counted and the winners are:

Member of the year: Geoff Coe

Most Helpful: Larry Berman

Personality: Nels Johnson

Author: Nels Johnson

Funniest: Barry Bernstein

Newcomer: Elle Heiligenstein

runner up: Richard Sherer

Special Recognition: Geri Wegner

Best Blog Post: Lots of votes all around, just proving that there is some excellent writing showing up at AFI.

Winner: Barry Bernstein, "The No-Holds Barred Coconut Grove Art Festival Review", 2564 views

Best Discussion: tie

"The Rejection Season Starts" - Jim Parker, 2534 views

and a repeater from 2011: "What's the Worst Question You've Been Asked at an Art Fair?" - Linda & Jim Dalton, 20809 views and 49 pages of comments. I'd say any artist or show director could learn a lot on this one. 

Find the "Art Star" on these members pages, plus Amazon gift cards are on their way to the winners above with thanks from all of us at AFI.

What is the Best Thing about ArtFairInsiders.com?

What members are saying about us:  BestThingAboutAFI-1.pdf

My personal honorable mentions in the blog posts:

"I'll take everything", from Pat Sorbini

"Don't Survive, Thrive!", from Marti McGinnis

"ideas for closing the sale", from Deborah Potash Brodie

"How low can you go?? When a customer wants to bargain", from Carla Bank

"Faking a Sale", from Brian Billings

John Leben's entire series of blog posts as he navigated the winter Florida shows. Here's the wrap-up for 7 of them. They were a real lesson for everyone.

And one that resonated with so many of us: Archie Smith's accident with the bandsaw, "It Finally Happened"

Honorable mention in the discussions:

Besides Archie's plight which generated a lot of support for him and his family I was really pleased at Robin Aronson's discussion: "Minnesota Art Shows - Beware". Robin's discussion got artists working together to capture a woman who was passing bad checks at the shows. She was apprehended as they worked together on AFI to share information. Great job to all of you!

the discussion that got the most feathers ruffled:
"Winter Park Artists to discuss fraud" - nearly 25,000 views and many pages of comment

The many helpful posts discussing and sharing booth shots in this category: Show Us Your Booth

Just for fun - Best artist application:
Marion Arts Festival, Marion, Iowa

 

In Memoriam 

We will surely miss these artists who we were used to meeting in the next booth for many years: Dean Lauderdale, Bob Black, Barry Cohen, Marla Fry, Don Nibert, Leslie Jensen, art promoter Sandi Jewell and Linda Anderson's husband Neil.

I know this site is helpful to many of you, for which I am grateful. Consider as you are discussing the art fair business who is reading the site. Over and over I hear from art fair directors how the information you share on the site is affecting how they put together their events and they are reading, learning and changing their shows to make them places where artists want to be. You may not notice it but, bit by bit, you are changing this marketplace by your participation.

Many people keep this site alive and full of information, in addition to the people mentioned above thanks to Pat Finney who helps behind the scenes, Melanie Rolfes, Pat Falk, Dave Hinde, Oscar Matos Linares, Paul Flack, Alison Thomas, Robert Wallis, Don Mabry, Lois Anderson, Warren Townsend, David Bjurstrom, John Leben and so many more, including everyone who participated in the Secret Santa project.

Thank you to my assistants, Jacki Bilsborrow who participates at AFI and keeps ArtFairCalendar.com up to date, Sabrina Aughenbaugh who puts together the calls for artists and Julie Cottin who runs ArtShowReviews.com. Also to Larry Berman who keeps the spammers away and so very much more.

Many thanks to all of you who have made this community flourish, not only those listed above but to all of you who taken the time to care, comment and share with one another. We are looking forward to what will happen here in this ever evolving group. Thanks for all your support to one another in this exciting art fair business. Community is what makes us strong.

May 2013 bring you all the blessings you deserve. See you at the show! Connie

EDITOR'S NOTE:  I originally wrote this in early Dec. after the show.  Went to publish it and lost it in the internet ether (yes, I know, hit the save button--I did not this time).  So I had spent almost two hours composing and editing, and then I lost it.  Naturally, I was pissed.  So here it is as best I can recollect.  A little "bon mot" to end 2012 with.  Hope you read and enjoy.

Doing the Englewood, FL show in early December is like going to your Grandmother's house for a special meal.  You know there is going to be that mouth-watering meatloaf ringed with baked potatoes, browned onions and carrots, and that "killer" gravy that you can sop up with those tender biscuits.

Englewood sits nested below Sarasota/Venice and between Boca grande Island.  The gulf beckons.  Take a short bridge out there and you are in a whole other world.

It is still Old Florida."  Believe me there are not many of those places left anymore.  You see vestiges of it in Cedar Key, New Smyrna, Vilano Beach and Fernandina.

It is home to several artists on the circuit like Jim Sears, Al Dela Vega, Ben Essenberg and Carol Swayze.

Carol first invited me down to the spring show eons ago.  I fell in love with it right away. Yeah, I did not make a lot of money, but it was easy to do, and most importantly, you were among friends and having a good time doing it.  Isn't  that one of the main reasons why we return to certain shows over and over again-- even if we don't make a lot of moola?

Over time, I came to stay with Ben Essenberg.  He has a big house, a big family, and a big heart.  Oh, did I forget to mention he still has a lot of room to put up a lot of artists and their vans.  Plus, there is always a good feed going on.  BTW.  Generously, Carol Swayze puts up a lot of good artists, and their vans and motor homes.  She also puts on a hell of a good feed with a lot of serious hooting and hollering around a campfire.  Two great venues for us wandering "gypsies" to pull our wagons up to.  And the golden waters of the Gulf just beckon over a short bridge, with, no tolls.

Englewood is like what most art shows were like when I first got started in the late seventies.

Mellow setup, usually the day before.  You could park behind your booth--the whole show.  You could take your time setting up--no show- Nazi committees here.  You could smoke a number in your van.  You could enjoy a little tequila or other.  You are always surrounded by known artists.  And occasionally, you could make serious money, especially if the Boca Grande "Good Shoes" people showed up.  Of course, a good mailing list never hurts having.

The December show show s always slimmer pickings then the spring show.  More buyers in town in March.

It is a small show with maybe 100 artists.  Many are regulars on the circuit and do it for the same reason I do.  Usually, there is plenty of room on your sides and behind.  Also, the show ends at 4 pm and you can be out of there in no time, and have a meal at home, or maybe some sushi.  Whatever.

The best times of this show come on the Friday and Saturday nights of the show, after we are done selling.

This year I crashed at Ben's, along with Carol and  Michael Webber, Bill, and Steve Khourie.

Naturally, we sat around a big table, with a big meals, with lots of wine and beer flowing.  And we told stories.  About people, long gone, who we still remembered.

To me, that is important.  I like remembering, and I like being remembered.  You can't take it to the bank for anything, but you can sleep the "sleep of angels" hoping you will be remembered in some kind way.

I got around to telling the story of Rene Marchettie.  He was a talented painter, along with his wife Sandy, who was on the circuit for eons, nationwide.  These people sold work for serious moola.

We always did the old Piedmont Show in Atlanta.  Back when it was a nine-day show, first in May, and then finally in September. At show closing we always jockeyed for position "A", being the first van into the show at end.  He always out-foxed me and was first.  He would give me that big grin and twirl his mustache, and yell,"Nels, maybe next year--but not now."

Rene died the perfect way most artists pray for, if you gotta go.  He fell over dead, peacefully, in his directors chair at the show, with a smile on his face, and a customer wanting to give him a five-thousand dollar check.

We all got a good chuckle about that.  You know how I like to tell stories of old.

Then, I started ribbing Steve Khouri.  He is a talented wildlife painter, who is very handsome and very successful.

Steve had the newest IPhone with that delicious voice of Siri.

So I just plum up and asked him, "See what Siri has to say if you ask her 'Does Siri do BJs'. Steve's face turned four shades of red and pinks, like his sunsets.  He said," i am not going to ask Siri that."

I said, "Come on, what have you got to lose, and besides, enquiring minds want to know."

So he asked her.  She replied,"Sir, I am not familiar with BJs but I will be glad to research it on the internet for you."

I asked Steve about five more sex-related questions for Siri.  Finally, he relented after five and retired with Siri for some serious pillow talk.  Whatever that was about.

Next day, I took Ben to breakfast at our favorite morning restaurant, bought a New York Times at Publix, and heled on down to the show (That's Hawaiian for for taking a short trip).

Sunday was beautiful, we all made a little money and I headed home with sweet thoughts.  It was a good way to end a most difficult year in the business.

It is only a little over one hour to my home in Ybor City from Englewood.

I left at a most opportune time.  Winter Soltice was just around the bend.  Light shadows were longer, and more colorful, upon the land.  I saw tops of palm trees painted in bright pinks. Rivers, like the Alafia, painted in pastel lavenders with crimson high notes.

I was heading home to sushi with my favorite blonde.  I was thankful for good health again.  Wealth is coming in 2013.  I feel it in my bones--and my brand new work.

I thanked God there were still shows like Englewood that could nourish my inner spirit.  I silently thanked Carol Swayze for inviting me on down, those long, years ago.

In my heart and soul I still have many miles to travel, many pieces of great art to create, and most of all, many great friends to spend my time with.

I am truly blessed.

Happy New Year everyone.  Nels.

February 1 - St. Louis, MO, Sheraton Clayton Plaza Hotel - 5 pm to 9 pm

Cultural Festivals presents Photographing Art Work Workshop presented by Larry Berman. Learn how to put your art work in images to wow the jurors. Providing professional images of your work is one of the best investment you can make in your career. 

Registration%20Form%20-%20Berman%20Workshop.docx

Cost: $10

For more info: 314-863-0278

February 2 - Jury Image Workshop - 9 am to 5 pm

Artists, take advantage of this great opportunity to improve your jury submissions and have your images critiqued by past SLAF jurors.  Images will be displayed in the same way we do for the yearly SLAF jury.  Jurors will speak openly about submitted artist images.  There is no cost to participate. APPLICATIONS MUST BE RECEIVED BY THE DEADLINE OF 11:59PM CST, FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2013. 

The workshop is limited to the first 150 applications.

Artists can submit images and attend this free workshop and still have 7 weeks before the 2013 Art Fair application deadline to update and submit their applications.

1) Create a FREE user account or login online at www.zapplication.org

2) Upload your artist images

3) Apply NOW to this mock show and join us 2/2/13.

More information will be sent to applicants prior to the workshop. We hope you find this to be helpful as you prepare your application for art fairs.

Whether you are new to the digital application process or looking to improve your jury submissions, all artists are welcome to attend and learn!

Applications for the 2013 Saint Louis Art Fair presented by Sterling Bank are due March 21, 2013. Learn more at www.culturalfestivals.com

Apparently this is the second year that Cherry Creek Arts Festival has done the Colorado Artist Image Review Workshop. I missed any announcement of it last year and thought it might be of value to sign up. I've seen on this Blog that other festivals are also hosting this type of review. I hope the trend continues with other festivals as well!

Terry Adams of the Cherry Creek show was there with his support team, a representative of Zapplication and I especially enjoyed meeting Jerry Gilmore who acted as the juror/review person for this event. He seems to be popping up quite a bit as of late, just heard him on the BlogTalkRadio presentation as well. He was very gracious and generous with his time answering questions for this event.

To say the least, as Jerry pointed out, if you haven't seen your slides projected before an audience, or even projected them on your own, it is WELL worth it. Terry told of one artist last year who stormed out of a presentation. He followed him out and asked what the problem was. The artist reported being quite embarrassed at the quality of his work when presented this way and he was on his way home to fix it! Although I didn't storm out I too was disconcerted about how one of my images presented when projected. Had I not been in this presentation I might never have known that this one image (out of the 40 or so I have on Zapp) was formatted differently and thus showed up washed out and lifeless. It is one that I have used quite frequently as-of-late so I was concerned about the impression I was making! I too immediately went home and went about the business of finding out what was wrong. I dropped an email to Larry Berman about it and he was quite gracious about helping me as well. It was only after reviewing all of my stored images (not the ones stored on Zapps website) that I found the problem with this culprit. Zapp requests that images be stored in sRGB mode and wouldn't you know it, this was the only one that wasn't.

Although no guarantee of how your images will appear when projected one of the things you might do is preview them in a browser window. When I did the "Preview As a Juror" on Zapp this inconsistency in image quality did NOT show up.

So back to the issue at hand. The other eye opener was the difference in quality of images depicting people's booths. I've done a lot of work this year myself to make the best presentation possible after getting some useful feedback from Jim DeLutes and was rewarded with a complement by Jerry saying that my presentation was very professional. Some of the others at the review had a long way to go. And cropping of your booth shot. I thought that I had it pretty tight but got some feedback suggesting that I crop it even tighter!

Pre-review Booth Shot: Review Booth Shot

I'm especially sensitive to the idea of large blobs of white in an image, especially when you consider that the jurors are sitting in a dark room for long periods of time and a big white area will tend to blind you when it comes up on the wall/screen. I tried to bring down the brightness in the second image but it started to turn to grey so I left well enough alone. You can see in my second image that I removed the bins and really cropped the booth down very close. It should be noted that some shows want to see everything that you will have in your booth including the bins and chairs!

Some things that struck me about some other booth shots were, browse bins that were pointed into the light so that they looked like shining beacons in the sun (see mine above left), bins that obscured what was in the booth, chairs that obscured what was in the booth, etc. Jerry pointed out how backgrounds can tend to swallow the art, there needs to be contrast between your background and your art. For jewelers, especially if your work is small, it's nice to see professional display cases but if you can't see the jewelery, hanging large photo posters on the back wall is better than the lovely swag fabric. Also, it is a good way for people on the street who can't get through the crowd to preview your work. Oh, and by the way, lose the posters with your name or the company name in the background, jury's are not supposed to see names, the same goes for paintings, etc. use a photo editing program and get rid of the signatures or names.

As for cropping those art images, I know this seems quite elementary, but if you have 2D work lose the frame, unless...it is an integral part of the art. It is easier for a photographer to have images of their work especially in these days of digital capture but if you are taking pictures of your 2D work for gosh sakes make sure it is square to the frame! There were several images in this presentation that looked like they were taken from the side which created a distorted perspective (like looking down a tunnel).

Finally, bodies of work, I struggled with this one myself. Juries want to see a cohesive body of work. At first I thought it better to show a range of work, uh uh. Tis better to show that you have an ongoing theme rather than a smattering of this and that. One artist at the review was arguing this point and still insisted that their body of work was ALL of their work, good luck with that. I appreciate that they like to take images of whatever, I like diversity also, but when it comes to a jury I put my best foot forward and show a cohesive body of work, whatever it is.

All-in-all it was really instructive to participate in this kind of event both for what needs help as well as what looks good. If you have the opportunity to go to a show preview do so.

First off, this blog is not just about me--there is some good meat, read on.  

We all, especially those of us on this site, have lot to be thankful for.

Me.  I am so happy to be live and breathing, very well, thank you.  I can now set up my own booth, with no help, and tug those 45-pound John Deere weights into place.  Ellen says I need to get a newer, lighter booth.  Fat chance. I know what I know--and everytime I climb that six-foot ladder to reach my roof on the van--I think,"I knew I'd make it to the top of the art world one day."

Enough about me.

Here is where I think we should really give thanks.  These are in no ascending or descending order, they just fly off the top of my head as I merrily type away this morn.  (Damn!  Where did I put that shot of tequila?).

Give thanks to Connie Mettler for starting this site.  It has changed in many ways, mostly, all for the better. Sure, some of the old vets no longer contribute (but I bet they still lurk).  We don't get as much news about how people are doing at shows.  We get some, but most of the significant shows have scant info.  I know people are reluctant to give sales figures.  I know a lot don't want to blab about a good show and then feel "I will probably never get in again."

We get lots of good info about so many others things germane to our biz.  It is all here on this site, you just got to know how to navigate it.  Be thankful, it wasn't like this years ago.  It took me eons to amass info that is now at the tips of our fingers.

Give lots of thanks that we can still find a way to sell our own art in this material world.  People envy our freedom (too bad they don't pay our bills).  To be able to create, market and then reap the rewards is a cosmic art high.  Be thankful.

We are still in a slow upturn.  The easy sales are still long away.  But we are tip-toeing closer all the time.  Be thankful that you are one of the many contributors to this.

Be thankful you don't have to work a job being a greeter at Sams Club,, or Home Depot, or similar ilk.  Yes, you get certain benefits from it, but it is a slow death for those of us who have worked for ourselves over the years.  I begin my 33rd year in the biz this 2013.  My goal is to never work for anyone but Nels Johnson.  He is a tough employer who expects a lot.  Early morn photo-shoots, making mats, long drives to shows--but he lets me play golf and fool around in the garden a lot.  Be thankful you have such an employer in yourself.

Be thankful for all the wonderful personalities who inhabit this site.  Their experience, and sense of giving, is astounding.We have such great, steady contributors.  Learn from them and just maybe, become a contributor yourself.  It is always cool to look at the computer screen and see words that you have written--and think, "Wow!  Tons of people are going to see this, and if it goes out on Facebook too, a ton more will see it, doesn't necessarily mean they will read it."  It is a great high.

Lastly, be thankful we live in the land of the brave and the free.  Say grace at your meal today, remember those of the past who used to partake, give thanks to have such good friends, be thankful to be in good health.  Take nothing for granted.  We are all little specks in the sands of time, but our colors will live on for eons.  That is why they call us artists--not vendors.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone, from Ellen Marshall and Nels Johnson.

So, I met with my accountant today.  I mentioned that I started doing art shows in neighboring states.  He says that if I go into another state I need to file a tax return in that state, because I made income there.  Are all of you filing income tax returns in every state you do a show or how do you handle this?  Seriously, it is hard enough to make any money without having to pay my tax guy to do additional work! I'm having a tough time with this one.

  My last four shows have not been as profitable as I would like. I am new to the art show world, and I am trying just about every show that I think may be a possibility in my area.  I live in Texas, and have decided to stay in my state for the first few years to get my feet wet, and figure out which shows work best for me.  My fall shows are all new to me, and each have been within at least a four hour drive. 

  What is interesting for me, is that for my past four shows, if it were not for men surprising their wives for either a Birthday or Christmas, I would not have made profit.  These have all been large paintings, and one commission, that have been purchased as a surprise gift.  The wives perused the booth first, and then a few minutes later, here come the husbands ready to buy, and practically whispering just like the knock-off rolex dealer with a trenchcoat on a major city corner.  I love to be a part of this, and I have decided that romance is not dead after all (slight nudge in my husband's direction, bless his unromantic heart...). It made my day, literally and figuratively.

  It does make me wonder though, if this is a common occurance, or if people are waiting to make large purchases for special occasions instead of outright buying something that they like. Since I am still new to this business, I am wondering if this is common?

We hear a lot of talk about photo quality and the jury process and, really, it hit me yesterday what we're talking about.

 I sat through the first day of the Fort Worth open jury and it was quite an experience.  It was the first one I’ve ever attended and I was surprised in some areas.  I understand the jury’s only job on this first day was to decide “yes, no or maybe”  so, there seemed to be very little going on.  No dialogue or conversation of any sort.  They went through the photos very quickly with no conversation of any kind.  The second time they looked at them, a very short artist statement was read while the photos were being viewed.    They had a few more than 1300 applications and that’s around 6500 photos they had to look at.  To say they hurried through them would be a gross understatement.  There were 214 jewelers with five photos each and the only thing the jurors will ever know about them is how good their photos were.

I now understand why it is necessary to have photos that blow their socks off.  The person with nice, yet average, photos doesn’t stand a chance.  They don’t have time to study artistic quality so, the photos with the greatest initial “pop” are they ones that catch the jurors attention.   It doesn’t seem quite fair because a lot of outstanding artist are being left by the wayside simply because their photos aren’t eye-popping.

If  everyone could see this they’d be lined up down the street at Larry Berman’s house!  I suppose the bottom line is this:  If your photos don’t snap, crackle and pop, you’re not going to get in.  Simple as that.  The jurors won’t even notice the artist whose photos do not fit this category.  You could be the best artist on Earth and you’re going to be quickly overlooked and cast aside..  I now have a much better idea of why it is so difficult to get into some of the better shows.

Also, the entire process can get pretty boring if you‘re a spectator only interested in one or two categories.  To me, one of the best things about it was that it offers up some good ideas for booth set-up.

I have felt like I have some pretty decent photos but, "pretty decent" doesn't even come close to what one needs.  The ideal is to have photos that sort of slap a juror in the face as soon as they pop up on the screen.  Anything less than that is simply going to mix you in the pot with about 1000 other people and then it becomes difficult to stand out from the rest. 

One parting thought.  Is it common practice for a jury member to also be an applicant to the show in which he is jurying?  To me, that smacks of a conflict of interest and should not be allowed to happen.  Does anyone else agree?

For those who have never had the experience, I highly recommend attending a jury session for one of the big shows.  I think it will give you a whole new perspective on your photos and whether or not you need to make some changes.  Larry and others have been "preaching" this for a long time and I've now had the opportunity to see why they stress the importance of this.  It can't be overstated.

Do you sell your 2D art on notecards?  I highly recommend it.  I think that art show patrons like to support the art that they appreciate, even if it is a small way.  Greeting card carousels are not expensive and card sales have made the difference from a miserable show and a decent one for me.  I print my cards myself, but would love to find an economical volume printer.

I wrote in my blog about the evolution of custom pencil portrait cards.  I cracked myself up writing it, I hope it makes you smile if you have time to read it!

http://www.pencilenvy.blogspot.com/2012/11/christmas-card-wars.html

That's probably the last time I'll write in my blog until the new year.  Tis the season!

Love to all

Foxfire Park Fall Fine Arts Festival

 Downtown Nashville, Indiana

"The Art Colony of the Midwest"

October 19th, 20th, and 21st
&
October 26th, 27th, and 28^th

This first time show looked like a good bet to fill in a big hole between St. James and a show in Lexington, KY. Booth fee was low, $120 for one weekend or $200 for both. The time is at the peak leaf viewing for Brown County, Indiana, and hordes of visitors converge on the small town during those two weekends. Seemed like a good idea. The show was scheduled to have about 70 artists each weekend.

The show ran Friday through Sunday for two weekends, and the artists had the choice for either one or both. I figured going for both was a good investment, particularly if the turn out was good.

Set up was on Thursday, and rain was threatening for the evening so the promoter sent out emails Thursday morning that we could show up at 10:00AM instead of 6:00. That was a good idea as there are only a couple of hours daylight left at that time. Half of the artists were set up when I arrived around 4:00. The field was scrub grass with gravel poured to level out spots. Later on they put down straw in the booths and the aisles. I was feeling ill and wasn’t moving fast. After the sun went down there was no field lighting, so I plugged in my inverter and used a 100 watt light to keep working. I finished putting up the tent and offloaded all my boxes by 8:00 and left.

Friday arrived looking like warmed over Hell, dark clouds, intermittent rain, and damned cold. I judged correctly and brought along the 2-burner Mr. Heater. It kept me warm and the rear of the tent was much warmer than the front. That gadget was worth its weight in gold that weekend. Didn’t sell anything at all on Friday. The first couple of hours saw very few people walking the show, and the standing joke among us was asking when they were going to open the gates. There was an admission charge, and many of the tourists passing by wouldn’t come in with the $5 admission. Eventually show management dropped the charge, but someone forgot to cover up that part of the sign. There was a micro rush mid afternoon,  but the rain started again and the crowd dissipated like a puddle of water in the Sahara. The show was supposed to go until 6:00, but by 4:30 some artists were zipping up and leaving. No one around me sold anything significant and most were reporting nothing.

Saturday was equally lackluster, cold, dark, and damp. The weather dampened everyone’s spirits, especially the customers. I finally got lucky and sold a single $80 piece. The jeweler across from me still had sold nothing, likewise a painter, and a potter.

Sunday was beautiful weather with glorious sunshine and a day I would rather have been out taking photos. Regardless, most of were in high hopes we could do a resurrection shuffle and make enough money to turn a profit. It didn’t work. The visitors walked through, oohed and ahhed, said “nice work” and kept on going. Nothing sold that day for me.

 At the end of the show, a photographer with some very nice landscapes sold a $10 flip-bin piece for the entire weekend, the jeweler across from me zeroed for the weekend, another jeweler didn’t make booth fee, the potter next to me came close to break even, a painter didn’t meet expenses. This was the back row of the show, and my suspicion is that it was death row. The artist behind me sold about $800, and the ones up next to the sidewalk (where people could walk in without the admission) did okay and I heard of one doing $1500.

So what was wrong with this first time show? People were used to seeing flea markets and swap meets on the grounds [edit: Flea markets and swap meets were not held on this site. That was incorrect information given to me. My apologies for the inaccuracy]. The signage was not readily noticeable, and the admission fee wasn’t covered up after they decided to drop it. The rows of booths were parallel to the street and the back three rows weren’t that obvious. Rotating the layout would have made more sense so people could there were a bunch of artists there. Another issue was that the art fair was not the destination draw; the promoters were hoping that they could tap into the crowds of tourists coming into town. It was an older crowd, not a terribly sophisticated one either, for the first couple of days, and the third day was families and kids, which meant we were the monkeys in the cage for their viewing amusement.

Most of us on the back row said we weren’t returning for the second weekend. I decided I wasn’t coming back and would just forfeit the extra $80 booth fee. It would cost $90 in gas to make the 60 mile drive from my home. I decided I had lost enough, and didn’t plan to go through the futile effort of setting up and tearing down again. I saw that I was slated for the back row again, and that sort of sealed it.

An artist friend on mine in Muncie, Indiana has a neighbor who does shows with stained glass. The neighbor dropped an email to him after visiting the show on the second wekend, and he passed it along;

“I did check out the Nashville show.  They weren't charging admission and there was less than 30 booths.  Not much of a variety of arts.  For a juried show I was disappointed.  I asked one vendor how she was doing and she said terrible.  I was there in the middle of the afternoon and there were less than 10 people walking around.  I saw a vendor from Florida, one from Michigan and one from IL.  I bet they went in the hole and were disgusted.”

I checked the revised booth layout before the second weekend. It was down to 50 artists for the second weekend, but almost half of them bailed out. When faced with low sales, the wrong crowd, bad weather in the 40’s and low 50’s, and high lodging expenses at peak tourist season, I can’t blame any one for cutting their losses. I won’t do this one again, barring some sort of miracle like getting paid just to show up.

I am an introvert by nature.  A huge one!  In fact, I often dont even like being with people.  I'd much rather spend times with my dogs.  But yet, I find myself in this business of art festivals, where being an introvert is basically your ticket home with zero sales.  I work hard every single second at festivals so that no one person (not patrons or other artists) knows that I am anything but a person who loves people.  That is why I was so shocked that this past weekend I had not one, not two, not three, but FOUR people come BACK to my booth to tell me thank you for being so kind, friendly, or patient.  One man told me that he hoped I had a wonderful show and that he would see me there again next year as I was one of the only artists who was nice to him.  He even said that a lot of artists ignored him, and a few even acted like he was a burden to them by being in their tent and asking questions about their art.  One man was not 100% mentally there, and I could tell he didn't have money to buy anything, but man you better believe he called every person he knew and told them about "this awesome girl with amazing artwork you gotta check out!" (his words, not mine)  Even though I knew he wouldnt be a sale, what did it hurt by me making an effort to be kind?  Nothin!

People!!!  Come on!  Where is the kindness?  Where is love and compassion?  The patrons are the ones allowing you to continue doing something that you love to do.  Keeping you out of a droning 8-5 job that you hate.  We need these people!  And they need us to make them feel a connection and bring a spark of something to them!  If I, the introvert that I am, gets FOUR people to make an effort to thank me for being nice, I know there is a serious problem. 

And no, 3 out of 4 of those people didnt buy anything this time.  And the one who did, just bought a small print (probably just b/c I didn't make him feel like a half rate person).  But you know, they signed up for my mailing list and liked me on Facebook.  And they will remember me for a good reason.  And maybe next time, they will buy something.  But even if they don't, I made them feel good, and isn't that most important?

I've been reading so much on this site about people staying away from first year shows. In a way I can't blame them, you obviously want to go where the money is. But, how are new shows suppose to get started if quality artists don't participate? There are lots of artists out there and new ones starting every day. When the economy gets better these current shows are going to attract more artists and become more competitive. Whats going to happen years from now if there aren't any new shows being created? Just curious what people's thoughts are on this.

Check Your ZAPP Images

If you've uploaded images to ZAPP since the upgrade, or had anyone upload them for you, check them to make sure they enlarge.

I've been experiencing two issues with uploaded images. I've experienced thumbnails not appearing but the space where the thumbnail should be enlarges when clicking on it. Deleting the file and uploading again corrects the issue.

The other issue is where the thumbnail appears normally but doesn't enlarge when clicking on it. Instead I get an error message, "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later." This is something I've experienced multiple times in the last 24 hours. Again deleting the file and uploading again corrects the issue. But how many times do you test to see if your images enlarge after you upload them and see the thumbnail. at this point I recommend testing every image after upload.
 
Though the person I spoke to at Westaf couldn't duplicate the problems, it took me under a half hour to set up a new ZAPP profile where I uploaded the same image multiple times and experienced the same two problems, including one time where I experienced both problems on the same upload.

To see the results of my recreation of the problems, log into ZAPP and enter the number 1 as both the username and password. Please do not change anything about the images so I can report it to them later today.

Larry Berman
http://BermanGraphics.com
412-401-8100