It was a strange show this year. I've been in this one every year except once since 1988. One year very early on I got skunked, but generally do okay, some years better than others and always made expenses and then some. This year was the first time in about 20 years that I lost money doing this show.
First, the good things about the organization. The organizers were on top of it this year, being exceptionally helpful, and if someone needed help in setting up or tearing down, the guys in the golf carts were there to lend a hand. One young guy helped me out for about half an hour, taking down the booth and folding tarps and tops, and schlepping baxes and panels over to the roadside. This was the first time I can remeber when we got out of the grounds before dark, and in fact had time to spare before sunset.
The loadout process still sucks, altough this year didn't suck as badly. The grounds are crowded, the roads are small, and there are a hell of a lot of artists to get out. The time waiting to get in the grounds at tear down is easily 45 minutes to an hour, and I've always waited until the prints were packed way before my wife would go get the van, and I would continue to tear down the panels and booth. They don't let people in until the spaces free up. When someone abuses the loadout by getting their vehicle immediately, they tie up a loading out spot for over an hour while everyone else twiddles their thumbs and waits in the line. The smart ones have a wheeled dolly they load virtually everthing on and trundle it off the grounds to a parking lot across the entrance. That's okay if you're young and strong ;-)
The weather sucked, heavy overcast for much of the time, dank , cool, and humid for most of the day. It looked like rain but never did. The crowds never hit a crush as they have some years, although the volunteers said the crowd size was up this year. It didn't look like it to me from my end of the Green zone up next to the Lilly Mansion. I had some minor sales early, but it never turned into much. Part of it was my fault so I'm not laying the total blame on the economy or the show. I didn't see much 2D work being carried around, just a lot of small sacks.
So what did I do right? This is the only show where I get a double booth. It looked about as good as it ever has, nice open arrangement with a gallery appearance, two sets of free-standing panels, a 38 inch and a 30 inch Pro-panels set at a right angle mirror imaging each other, and they were placed under the center pole of each tent. Everything was easily visible and it was an open and airy looking set up, with small crowds wandering about inside at times.
What did I do wrong? Not enough time to get everything replaced that sold from the last show. I was up late matting and framing until the last minute, but apparently chose the wrong ones to get done. The old 20:80 adage applies here, and even within the 20% portion there is still a skewed distribution. I spent too much time trying to get a few more pieces framed during the show and not enough time talking to customers, IMO. I did get one piece framed, and it was an older image that hadn't moved for a while, and I placed in a newer more contemporary frame, and it sold within 15 minutes of being hung. There were a lot of questions of pricing, although most pieces were priced, and a few asking for discounting on multiple pieces (Like 2 pieces are enough to ask for a discount?). I'm not going toward Walmart pricing, and don't plan to. My prices are already low enough as it were, not the lowest out there and not the highest.
My feeling is that I need to do some serious weeding out of pieces that have sat for a while and not moved. There are a couple of shoots I've done that are way overdue for selection and processing. It's time to retire and replace about half of what I have. My concerns are that the work is starting to get stale.
The next show is Funky Ferndale, and given the nature of that show from I'm reading, there's a set of pieces that I need to redo specifically for that show, and here's hoping the gamble pays off. Maentime, I've got 4 days to bust my butt getting work caught up and ready to roll. I'm bummed mightly by this years dismal performance at Penrod, but it's already behind me and all I can do is figure what I could have done better and just freakin' do it.
Comments
Karla, good luck at Rising Sun. I did that one the second year they had it and it was a disaster with nothing happening the first day, and the the Sunday was when those terrible winds came up the Ohio Valley and blew down trees and power lines. We got out out of there about 15 minutes before the winds hit and I thought the van was going to blow off the road. I lost money doing that show.
regarding Penrod, you were probably close to me. I was at Green 27 and 28 with the double booth, second from the end by the mansion with the bushes behind me. I never did get a chance to get down and see the 11 year-old kid from Evansville who had acrylics and watercolors.
Well this was our first time doing Penrod - it's local for us - but have only been doing shows about 3 years now and didn't think we were ready set up wise until this year to apply. We were thrilled to be accepted. Our spot was in the Green area - next to Lilly Home and conveniently on the road and under a tree while also being an end spot. End spot and outside row is spectacular placement and we took advantage of the fair gods and opened our tent from three sides to allow for easy access and expanded viewing.
I'm a two dimensional artist - impressionistic representational working in watercolor, oil and acrylic. This was our best one day show ever - and we did well better than covering the cost of admission. I sold a number of larger paintings as well as a large number of my smaller impulse miniature paintings.
Load in and load out went very well for us - we set up the tent and walls on Friday - and I hung art on Saturday morning. I do wish the people would follow the rules and not get their vehicle until they are at the end of their strike (if working with a partner - this can be staged to go get booth when tent is on it's final deconstruction). A few in our row rushed to get vehicles prior to striking and held up the load out for everyone. I think the volunteers did a fantastic job of jockying the vehicles into the grounds, helping to load vehicles and being very present and personable.
I thought the weather was perfect - while not a beautiful sunny day all day - it was not raining, the humidity was down and it was comfortable for the the attendees to move from booth to booth.
We were very impressed with crowd size and consistency of attendance across the day. There did not seem to be a lull at any given time.
We also kind of wish this was a two day show - just due to effort involved in getting it all put together and then down in essentially a day - but I'll take this show any way it's offered.
I would have like a representative of the show to have made the rounds to speak to us at some point during the day - just for that "personal touch" - but perhaps they did and I just missed out somehow.
Over all - this was a GREAT show for us - and if accepted we'll be back next year!
We're on to Rising Sun, Indiana this weekend for a two day event - much smaller - but we thought we would give it a try. Fingers crossed as the 2 hour trek is an atypical long one for us.
Happy arting all!
-k-
I appreciate the comments of Penrod veterans. This was my first year at Penrod -- and probably my last. I am a somewhat local (1 1/2 drive) 2-D artist. I was pleased that the set-up and tear down wasn't as arduous as I had heard. But in my booth at the very back of the Yellow area, I did not sell one piece. By the time people got to where I was, they would walk in the middle aisle glancing from side to side, as if they needed to say they had seen all of Penrod. Between the hundreds of artist, the stages, food, performances, etc. it just seems too big. Ironically, for me this was the best weather of the entire season -- no heat waves or violent thunderstorms. It was a lovely setting, but I can go experience the grounds for free any day.
There were more entries this year, and they used outside judges, which I don't think they've done before.
Let's hope it improves next year.
I've felt at times that a 2-day show would be good, but I've heard others say it would just spread the sales out across two day instead. I'm not sure about that since the admission is so steep, you're not likely to see people coming for a second day. I think it would be a different crowd each day.
I've got 3 more outdoor shows to go; Funky Ferndale next weekend, St. James at the end of the month, and a one day show in Covington, KY the weekend after that. There's a late app to send in for an indoor show in Lexington, KY and that will be it for the year.
I'll probably spend the winter going over about 900 shots I took in Europe in 2008. I had a heart attack that fall and never got around to really going over the work. There's about 400 shots I did in Charleston this summer that need to be looked at with a fine toothed comb, and finally I can start going over my old work on film and start scanning some of that work to see what's worthwhile. So I'd say I've got a plan for the winter ;-)
Robert, I can't help but respond to your post.....
I too am a local artist who loves to do this show. I have only been doing it though since 2006.
The most fabulous things about the show?? The Penrod volunteer guys are the best helpers around. Really cannot say enough good things about them. Sleeping in your own bed and going to work in the morning :)) Great music coming from the stages. Fun seeing some friends at the show too instead of just an endless line of strangers. Usually decent weather. And, some good sales. However, not this year.
The tough things about this show: This was a year where I wondered what I had done wrong. I was coming off some major surgery and not feeling myself so maybe that projected. My body of work has changed in the last few years and while I am doing really well in other places, maybe there were no buyers out yesterday that wanted to give me that 'instant gratification' we all crave. I do a good business doing custom pieces for clients so that may very well come later......but I am not sure I could have 'given' away even my 25.00 prints yesterday. A few of my artist friends did well so I knew there was hope. A second day of the show? Maybe that would have helped (and I know there are lots of people out there that wish this was a 2-day event).
Maybe I just should take a break from this fair. But for those of us that live/work here it is such a nice show to do (I was loaded out and home by 7 pm) that we SO want it to work as a sales venue for us. So maybe next year Robert!! You are right, it is behind us! And, where was the guy with the trailer with 'Another one bites the dust' pulling out?? This was my last outdoor of 2011....wish I could have left there last night on a high note.