I know there have been reviews of this show before, but here is my 2 cents worth.
Philadelphia is a city with only a handful of Art Festivals for a local artist to choose from. There is Rittenhouse Square, which is limited to fine art only (Photography is excluded). There is the Museum Craft show in November which is mostly craft, obviously, and there is the Manayunk Art Festival, open to all. I think maybe this is a good thing, as there isn't any festival fatigue that I hear about in other cities and states.
The city has become more resident friendly in the past 30 years. Any one who knew Philly in the 70's and 80's knows what a transformation has taken place. The new census for 2010 showed a population gain over the past decade, rare for an East coast older city. Rittenhouse Square has always been a residential core, and it has expanded through the years.
This is be an excellent venue for an art festival. This is it's 80th year. I have teachers who showed here when it was a clothes line show for students. The show now takes place on the sidewalk around the square. In the past, it was in the square on the grass. It was moved recently to protect the park. I have only done the show in it's present layout. Set up is on Thursday evening and you park at the curb across from your booth, parking is first come. It can get crowded, but usually you can get a spot near your booth. Some artists wait to set up on Friday morning. I did this last Fall, and was mostly by myself from 7 to 9, when most arrived to finish. This would be my preferred method, except you are sweaty and beat when the show opens at 11.
Friday is a quiet day, 'though there were buyers prowling the square. Because there is no gate or admission charge, people come back two or three days. I got "be backs" coming all three days. Sales were light, but I heard some artists report that Friday was there best day.
Saturday gets busy. On Walnut street, we share the sidewalk with a farmers market that is there every week. Many artists don't like being where the market is. The sidewalk has 6 feet for all to walk past, and it can get jammed. I don't mind it. I think it brings more people to the fair. Just don't get stuck across from the Amish flower farmer!
I had a mushroom guy across from me. I just made a killer mushroom pizza with his fungi!
Sunday is the busiest day. Philadelphia is filled with art aficionados. There is a real mix of young people, families, and of course us older folk. I talked with many artists, and it seems all types of work sold. I have never had a blockbuster show here, but it has been consistently decent. I find I have a better show here in September, which you apply for at the same time.
Parking is expensive ($24 to $28 a day, less on Sunday). I don't know much about hotels, since I live 30 minutes away, but downtown is not cheap, and they don't include parking. My neighbor stayed around the airport, but I know what a pain in the butt driving there is.
My one bewilderment is this show seems to be ignored by the local media. I would watch the local news for weather updates, and the show was never mentioned. (At Fort Worth the local news broadcast live from the show all weekend) The show director had paid announcements on the local NPR station (WHYY) but their Arts Calendar omitted the show, instead listing some much smaller events. The Philadelphia Inquirer likewise showed no love. This is a common complaint about Philadelphia news media. The visual arts are ignored, supporting the inferiority complex that since we are so close to NYC, there must be no art here.
Load out is like load in, you can bring your vehicle up to your booth at 5:00 right as the show closes. Do this if you can, 'cause it gets crowded at the curb. There is a large group of local art college student exhibitors in the center of the square (a nice touch, I think, to see so much student work. Philly has a large # of art schools, and some teachers require them to "get their feet wet") If you are near an entrance to the park, the students will compete for curb space. Some of them don't parallel park too well!
Comments
I also was at Rittenhouse this past weekend.
First thing to mention is that this show is originals only - no reproductions allowed!
I got called off the wait list a little over a week ahead of time and was glad I did the show. It was my first time. I was impressed that despite the last minute call, all my information was in the nice brochure they handed out to patrons. I really didn't expect to make it in the brochure and expected to field 'where is Blah Blah who was supposed to be in this space' questions all weekend. Kudos to Steve O for pulling that off.
My setup experience was not typical as I didn't get there until 8:30PM on Thursday. So I didn't have any parking issue as people were clearing out. There was enough light from the park lighting and street lighting to set up past sun down.
I thought the crowd was great - there was a constant flow of people and percentage wise, more stopped to look than at a lot of shows.
I was very happy with my sales. There were a lot more attempts to bargain than I’ve seen at other shows, which I didn’t expect, but was ready to handle.
Tear down wasn't an issue – both my neighbors pulled up at 5 blocking my access, but luckily one was done just as I was ready to go get my van to load it and pulled out as I was pulling in.
Parking for me was $12 the first two days and $17 on Sunday – I chose a smaller, closer, street level lot the last day so I could more quickly get my vehicle. It was only a ½ block closer than the first lot, but due to one way streets, way shorter drive wise.