Posted by Caroline Kwas on November 8, 2010 at 5:27pm
Has anyone done the Stockley Gardens show in Norfolk VA? A Fellow artist suggested it to me, as I'm moving to Charlotte, NC and wondering what fine art festivals are near there. I'm in FL now, which is Art Fair mecca, but some of those shows that are "highly rated" by other sources really haven't panned out for me as they are touted. I'm a realistic oil painter of outdoor/northern maritime scenes and have found the west coast FL crowd to be, well, not my demographics. While I'm bloggin', how's Michigan been treating high end oil painters? Thanks all!
I've done Stockley a few times, Spr 08, and this fall 10. Spring 2008 was awesome, but this area has been hit hard by the economy... folks just aren't buying 2D. I had a mediocre show this fall, better than many but I didn't meet my goal.
The issue for me about Stockley Gardens is they require both jury and booth fees up front. Your submission to jury is a commitment to show, if you get accepted, NO REFUNDS if you choose to do another show. Putting all of your eggs in one basket might be OK if you're accepted, but if you are not accepted then you have missed all the deadlines to other show and it is a lost weekend ... there are other good ones on that weekend (e.g. Bethesda Row, MD). I do the show when it is convenient, but it is not on my top list because of this policy. -- Cheers, LC
I did Stockley last month for the first time. I'm local - and I've been to the show a few times, and know some of the regular artists. Normally it's a big money maker. This year, not so great for painters - and mixed media. Even some of the jewelers I talked to said it was really slow - much more than normal.
Parking is a pain - and load in and load out also hard.
I would do it again - and hopefully will get into the spring show. The quality of work is wonderful!! The organizers were very helpful - no complaints from me except for the economy.
I did Stockley this past fall. I was called off the wait-list and set up on early Saturday morning. I didn't have to compete with everyone else setting up but I wasn't prepared for the parking situation and the unloading/walking/dollying my work to my booth site. I didn't have much instruction when they called me about loading in but it was very easy to find volunteers to ask questions. After I loaded in, I was able to park my truck about a block away on a residential street but parking was scarse near the festival.
Weather was very good the whole weekend. There were definitely people there on both days.
I was expecting to sell a lot more of my originals than I did but since this was a local show for me I didn't have any expenses except for gas and booth fee. I sold mostly prints and A LOT of notecards. I wasn't totally disappointed since I saw some 2-D artists that didn't seem to be very busy or selling much of anything. Yes, I agree that the 3D was a hit. An artist next to me selling 3D was doing very well and I saw a lot of people walking around that had bought birdhouses.
Would I do it again? Yes. I would like to try and get into the Spring Show. It's local for me so I don't have hotel expenses. One thing-I am a newbie to shows but this show had the BEST PEOPLE WATCHING EVER!!!
there is 2d but it does NOT all sell, a 2d abstract painter near me did not sell a thing! (spring show) and a water color painter also near me sold a few reproductions. From my view point and speaking with other artist, its the fine crafts that sell at this show
Wow, you guys are awesome! Thank you for all the help! I have to see how my show schedule works out, but this show is a possibility for me, especially if the 2D art is big...
All of what Holly said is true, but the people of Norfolk are very loyal to the Stockley shows. The diehards will come out in the bad weather, but people will come out in force when the weather is nice. They have a spring & fall show. The spring is the more sought after one. When I did Stockley my sales were not great, but I was local so my expenses were less and it was also a Nor'Easter flooding cold weekend. I still would do the show again. Booth locations in the center of the park usually don't flood. It's the outter rim, especially the South end that flood. The show usually has mulch bags for soggy grass/mud issues. Parking is easier if you come in from the North side. I had good luck finding parking close to my booth, but you do compete with the residents & church crowds on Sunday. If it's a Nor'Easter weekend, just don't park in any low spots or your car could flood. Bottom line - it's a good show when mother nature cooperates, but it has horrible conditions when she doesn't.
We've been told by several other artists that we should try Stockley Gardens, but have had conflicts with local shows. They all said it was good, but that's just word of mouth.
Comments
The issue for me about Stockley Gardens is they require both jury and booth fees up front. Your submission to jury is a commitment to show, if you get accepted, NO REFUNDS if you choose to do another show. Putting all of your eggs in one basket might be OK if you're accepted, but if you are not accepted then you have missed all the deadlines to other show and it is a lost weekend ... there are other good ones on that weekend (e.g. Bethesda Row, MD). I do the show when it is convenient, but it is not on my top list because of this policy. -- Cheers, LC
Parking is a pain - and load in and load out also hard.
I would do it again - and hopefully will get into the spring show. The quality of work is wonderful!! The organizers were very helpful - no complaints from me except for the economy.
Weather was very good the whole weekend. There were definitely people there on both days.
I was expecting to sell a lot more of my originals than I did but since this was a local show for me I didn't have any expenses except for gas and booth fee. I sold mostly prints and A LOT of notecards. I wasn't totally disappointed since I saw some 2-D artists that didn't seem to be very busy or selling much of anything. Yes, I agree that the 3D was a hit. An artist next to me selling 3D was doing very well and I saw a lot of people walking around that had bought birdhouses.
Would I do it again? Yes. I would like to try and get into the Spring Show. It's local for me so I don't have hotel expenses. One thing-I am a newbie to shows but this show had the BEST PEOPLE WATCHING EVER!!!