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This 30 year old festival has gone through many positive changes in the last 9 years. It moved from a donated ( very windswept space) to the current location approximately 8 years ago. It is a magnificent location in the Civic Center Park of La Quinta, Ca. .This park has incredible water elements with a lake and beautifully landscaped grounds with shade trees and Palms interspersed through the grassy manicured space inhabited by a  small local population of Ducks, Turtles and Koi.

The show is a commission show and the 20% scares off many Artists who feel this is too expensive.  Yes and No - How many shows cost a huge amount of up front money to participate in and then leave you with dismal sales which were actually a far higher cost? Here the staff truly does what it takes to bring in the QUALIFIED, ENTHUSIASTIC, EDUCATED ART BUYERS. Publicity precedes the event for several weeks including a major insert in the newspaper the preceding Sunday chock full of Photographs of a diverse group of incredibly interesting work which be at the show.The current weekend ( March 8 -11, 2012) which the show occurs on is the first weekend of the Major Tennis Tournament just down the road from the show with a shuttle running from the Tennis Tournament to the show so do both without the difficulty of having to repark which  can be difficult at the Tennis Tournament. This weekend also has historically the best weather in March as a bonus. Most of the residents here are very affluent as evidenced by the housing you see in the area and many are Snowbirds with  second homes here for the winter. This combination of factors results in event sales of approximately 2.6 million dollars to date for the 230 artists at the festival. This is an average of $11,304 per artist. Now as in any show there are people who for some reason or another do not sell well. Usually a small percentage who either don't interact well with the public, don't change their work with new interesting pieces, don't realize the importance of positive energy as a magnet for buyers, are new and don't have a booth display that is on a par with more experienced professional artists, don't take advantage of advertizing opportunities or any combination of the above. The people I talked with ranged between $10K and $48K with that occurring in both higher end and lower priced work. Please understand this is a sophisticated audience and even with lower priced work it must be  extremely creative and excellently executed. Denise Robertson ( a featured artist for the show) is a perfect example of this combination ( She had a great show). She is a mixed media/jewelry artist from New Mexico who designed the "GOT ART" pin used to create the embroidery model for a version of the Festival T Shirts.   I actually haven"t included the Sales for the Glass Featured Artist because it would signifgantly skew the results. 

This is a professional show designed for full time professional artist to sell exceptional work to an enthusiastic audience. There are no children's activities at this show. That is not its purpose. This is not a show for beginners or people new to Art Fairs. They just don't have the booth display and presence to compete here. One new artist to the show, a young sculptor who I helped mentor after meeting him during setup, found it challenging with this being his second show and even with beautiful stone carvings, his display and people skills for closing needed work. Unfortunately he sold nothing at the show, however He did have a great positive attitude and instead of racing home (easy to do), He went down down to El Paseo Drive( Gallery Row for the Desert) and went Gallery to Gallery and ended up with a prestigious Gallery taking his work for a successful trip. (He has primarily been a gallery artist to this point.)

SetUp is very easy as it occurs over 2 days with cargo golf carts staffed by volunteers available to move your work to your space. You can also contract available labor on a 1/2 hour or hourly basis to assist you for a fee.On Tuesday there were signigant winds so the show did everything possible to help secure work and opened earlier on Wednesday set up 7AM and allowed artists to stay as late as necessary on Wednesday and come in earlier Thursday (opening day) to allow ample set up time. To protect everyone Booth Canopies must be secured by 36" rebar driven into the ground approx. 30" and clamped to the poles securely as a precaution. They remove it at the end of the show for you.

Lunch is on a preorder basis ( Bristol Farms - upscale food store provides them) and delivered to each artist every day for free as well as waters and snacks and coffee in the AM.  The food at the show is not your typical show food - Ruth's Chris Steakhouse was making excellent steak sandwiches and The Fisherman's Grill ( another  excellent restaurant) was there with quality food as well. There were several rest areas for patrons serving quality wine, beers, water, ice creams etc. There is an Artist Awards Party Thursday evening with beer, wine and an incredible array of food from numerous Area High Quality restaurants and everyone seemed to leave very satisfied.

Admission for patrons is $12 and literally I don't think anyone could realistically see it all in one day. They sell a multi day pass for $15 however all you had to do was ask to upgrade on the way way and they would do that for the $3 so you could visit as often as you want. Online the multi day passes were $12. Valet parking is available and many people chose this option. They do charge for self parking, $7, I believe. Attendance was 25,000 which is total tickets sold with many of this 25,000 coming all 4 days(multi day pass). On Thursday opening there was a blocks long line waiting to get in and buy and this was even longer and more populated on Saturday as these are the 2 busiest days although as we saw it every day was exceptionally busy with patrons.

All sales are done on their sales forms with either a speedy  check out (you provide credit card for commission up front) or you go to accounting upon close of show and pay by check, cash or credit card then. Most artists seemed happy with sales.

Awards for the show are Best of Category and Awards of Merit with A Best of Show which went to Mona and Alex Szabados for their beautiful Enamelled High Karat Gold Jewelry. The jurors for these awards engage the artist and very enthusiastic and enjoyable compared to many shows. This is a highly competitive juried art show with applications on Zapp. There are 5 different qualified jurors for entry for each category. Usually this is 3 Artists and 2 others ( Gallery Owners, Educators or Museum directors or other consummate Professionals) for each category. This show is for Working Artists who personally produce the work for sale, not production studios or factory operations. The artists on the jury help to keep this show a level playing field of working professional artists with incredibly diverse , highly skilled execution and beautiful presentation. The photos of your work need to be very high quality, cohesive body of work as it doesn't matter how great you think your work is , it is HOW IT COMPARES TO THE OTHER HIGHLY PROFESSIONAL ENTRIES. Most Important, I cannot overly stress how important your booth shot is. It needs to be as much a replication of a gallery experience as possible. Extra attention on this will result in better sales everywhere. A white canopy with tables is not going to cut it. You are in competition with everyone else's booth display and many are quite extraordinarily beautiful. The Flea market look isn't cutting it. ?? Would you like to be next to this booth is a question asked of jurors??

More Photos of the site are coming later.

This is a great show for most exhibitors--lots of moola can be made.

So far, nary a peep.

Patricia Heckler via Facebook told me it was off for her this year compared to other years.

Jim Parker did it--so far are ya keeping it all to yourself Jim?

Just would love to hear some feedback from an important show.

We know things are tough in Florida (too many shows, too many in same location, sluggish economy, etc.), but is that trend not only unique to Florida?

Summers are always a time for big shows with big paydays.  This year we got high gas prices staring at us, we got a national election, which yes, Geoff Coe, does impact our sales.

So, a report from Texas would be welcome--come on out into the light my fellow lurkers--illuminate us.  

I will say thanks, in advance for any helpful info.  Nels.

Hi

 My first show this year is at Richardson, Texas.  I feel like can make the trip in one day but I wondering if this just stupid in my part. I am driving from Chicago, IL to down there.

How do you prepare for a long trip like? I already check everything in my car and seems to be okay after $$ spending on it.

I just spent 1.5 hours trying to be compliant with the tax situation from Bayou City.  Be sure you are well medicated before attempting to deal with these people. They have a mandatory system where if you fail to report any sales on a 1/4ly basis, you will be fined $52!  One and a half hours getting set up only to have the built in calculator not work. Wow. My guess is that a lot of artists get the number, and cancel the account and Texas doesn't get their taxes?  

Wow, kick ass show.  Again!

This is the first year we opened for Friday night, and that was well worth it.   People were walking thru the show well before the 3pm opening, and they were not just tire kickers.

Saturday was strong as well, and Sunday sealed it up tight!

The patrons are well traveled, educated art buyers, and they are interested in your work and the process.

Thank you Boulderbrook Productions, Richard Sullivan, Boca Grande Resort, the wine tasting volunteers, the tiki bar, the restaurants and musicians for making this happen.  See you next year! 

August 31-September 3 

Happy buyers at Arts, Beats & Eats

Royal Oak, Michigan
Downtown Streets
155 Artists
Deadline: April 10

We invite you  to apply to the 15th annual Arts, Beats & Eats. This festival is the "go-to" event  that heralds the end of summer in metro Detroit, hosting more than  300,000 visitors who come to enjoy the amazing diversity of art, music  and food in a cool urban setting.

This event is held in Oakland County, which is the  third-wealthiest county in the nation (including cities such as  Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills and Rochester).

The 155  artists chosen to participate come from across the country to join our  celebration. Being an art fair artist is a demanding business. A  professional staff awaits your arrival and we look forward to welcoming  you with perks such as vigorous volunteers, easy set up and take down, good cash awards, free food and beverage tickets and personal attention  to particular needs.

New this year:

• A lower number of artists than in 2011
• reduced exhibit space prices
• an enhanced layout with varied price  structures
• easier load in and load out
• improved parking access, and  much more!

This year we  will miss Connie Mettler, who has left to pursue

People love this festival

full time her commitment to artists through her various websites. Good Luck to you Connie!

We are pleased to add Donna Beaubien who has joined us as our new Associate Art Director to our Art Team. Donna comes to us from a long history as an artist and a director of art fairs, such as the Art  Fair Chair for the Guild; Art Fair Birmingham, Meadowbrook, Greektown, and the Village of Rochester Hills Art Shows. Welcome Donna!

We know you  are aware of the challenging economic times throughout the nation and in  Michigan, but we want to reassure you that we are committed to meeting  your needs and bringing you the audience you deserve. Ford Arts, Beats & Eats has been one of the few festivals that has been able to sustain a fine arts component over 14 years, and the event's recent move to Royal Oak and limited number of booth spaces, positions it as one of the top potential sales spots for artists anywhere.

Our  promotion is considered among the best of art festivals

nationwide. You  cannot be in the metropolitan Detroit area on Labor Day weekend without seeing specials about the arts activities on television, hearing artists' interviews on the radio stations and reading comprehensive feature articles in the press, directed solely to the juried fine arts show.

Buyers of all ages

**********************

Looking for more art fairs for your 2012 season?

Visit www.CallsforArtists.com

From Kristina Jones, Manager of Events for the Suburban Collection:

Hi Connie,

I have about 10 booths left and we are accepting any category EXCEPT jewelry.  We are super excited this year, as we are trying out a Living Social deal for customers, plus we have upped our advertising budget, so we hope that turnout is better than ever.  Plus, we have a first warm weather out of our way!

Lined up for the Great Lakes Art Fair opening

April 13-15
Novi, Michigan

Spring Great Lakes Art Fair

Suburban Collection Showplace

150 Artists

 
Show: Fri. 1pm-8pm; Sat. 10am-6pm; Sun. 11am-5pm 
Artist Reception: Saturday 6pm

Please  join us for the Great Lakes Art Fair, a unique fusion of lush  landscapes, tempting food, and an optimal indoor venue create spring and  fall events that are rapidly becoming established as the Midwest's  premiere indoor art fairs!  

Consistently lauded as one of the most artist-friendly art fairs, accepted artists are given postcards and free tickets for their customers, free electricity, a roving snack cart with complimentary snacks and drinks during the show, complimentary morning coffee and muffins, plus more! 
 

What to expect:

• elegant entrance gallery showcasing your art
• delectable cuisine and relaxing entertainment
• community partnerships and other fresh components, to create a regional marketplace for artists and their patrons.  

The Great Lakes Art Fair believes effective promotion is as crucial to overall success as the selection of artists.  Our mission is to deliver a high quality experience for patrons and artists that will assure qualified buyers, return visits and exponential event growth.  A multi-level marketing and publicity campaign to promote the event throughout the region, including media partnerships in print, radio, television, direct mail and building awareness of this new regional event.

Participating artists are provided with custom GLAF discount coupons, e-mail blast content and other collateral materials to distribute to their patrons.  Drive up to your booth to unload and load.  Artist hospitality area and reception.     

For more info: www.GreatLakesArtFair.com

Apply:  http://greatlakesartfair.com/artistapply.html

Seriously. I was robbed. As a result, my art show season ended with some big surprises last fall in Albuquerque, NM.

And really, I’m okay with that.

Now.

I was in town doing The Rio Grande Arts and Crafts Festival, which runs the same time as the Hot Air Balloon Fiesta. The fiesta is one of the largest international balloon events in the world. 

On day three of the two weekend event I returned to the hotel found a big surprise: my trailer had been stolen.

The police were called in and the papers filed. I was told at that time “good luck” getting it back and that it was probably long gone in Mexico.

In the hope of getting some relief, I talked to the front desk at the Days Inn and asked to talk to a manager.  The manager was not in but I was assured there was surveillance video of the parking lot. The next day I returned to talk to the desk because I still had not heard from the manager.  I was told she had been ill and would call me later. Did I mention it was the Days Inn in Albuquerque on Menaul Blvd?

I heart those boots.

My good friends, David and Judy who were also at the art show, let the show directors know of my plight.  The show directors called a local news station and I made the evening news.

This was good because it brought people to my booth that might not otherwise have stopped.

My second surprise came when I realized the Days Inn in Albuquerque on Menaul Blvd doesn’t give a care about me or my trailer.  I never heard from the manager. I never received a phone call. They even refused to hand over the surveillance tape to the police.  I even went so far as to call the chain to see if I could file a complaint and never heard back from them either.

We  stayed at that Days Inn in Albuquerque on Menaul Blvd ELEVEN days and nothing EVER happened.

Then my third surprise came!

I got a call on the Friday of the second week of the show and the police had spotted my trailer in downtown Albuquerque. According to the police I was one of the lucky 1 in 20 to get theirs back!

Great news, I was ecstatic!

During this time I was thankful I had insurance to cover my trailer. I was lucky that most of my art and booth were at the show. I lost three bins full of prints, display items, packaging materials, lighting equipment and a small original.

However, when I tallied up the number on exactly what it was that I lost it was still at around $2,000. I thought this was still worth putting in a claim.  This is where surprise number four came in.

After putting in my claim I was told it was not going to go through. They said it was because my art business is, “only covered up to 500 feet of my office.”

MY office?

What office?

I am a fine art painter!  My agent knew the nature of my business when I signed up for the policy.  I stated that I need the insurance because I travel and do outdoor juried art shows.  I needed protection from weather, theft and car accidents. I needed to have the trailer and its contents insured!

According to the agent, after the fact, none of this was covered.  The reality stung.

I felt as if I had been robbed. Again. Twice.

Once by a couple of yahoos in a hotel parking lot and a second time by a licensed insurance professional.

Then I began to thank my lucky stars.

You see, I had been in an outdoor show last spring where a small twister took out 10 booths in a different part of the show.   Had I been one of those artists, I would have lost everything.  So I am in pursuit of a new agent and insurance because April 6, 7 & 8 I’ll be at the Deep Ellum Arts Show outside of Dallas in Deep Ellum, Texas to kick off my art show season (I’m in Booth 20!)

Lesson learned ……I will make sure all my bases are covered properly. After all, this is a business and not a hobby.

Just to be clear – did I mention it was Days Inn in Albuquerque on Menaul Blvd?

Boca Grande Masters Art & Wine Festival

What a wonderful show Boulderbrook Productions presented on Friday, Saturday and Sunday this weekend! Most artists set up on Friday and took advantage of the extra hours that Richard Sullivan provided for the participants and public. The weather was perfect and the sales were brisk. It is a pleasure to do a show when you've ample space, convenient parking, perfect weather, talented artisans and interested buyers! Since we do a show most weekends, it is fabulous to say that this show was our best show ever anywhere! Many thanks to Richard Sullivan, Victor, the Boca Grande Resort and the patrons for a great show!

I had suspected for a couple years that Madison On the Square was not doing a conventional "on site" jury.  I just saw an e-mail they sent out on March 16th informing applicants that the jurors will be given 8 days to review the applicants.  To me this smelled of "off site" jurors being given the code to get into ZAPP ADMINISTATION for jurying at their own leisure. 

I think that this is the absolute wrong way to go for a jury process.  So why would they want to do this?  Saving costs would be tops on the list of reasons to do this.  They charge $35 per artist jury fee.  Let's assume that they get 1200 applications.  This is a top 50 show.  Maybe they will get even more.  Sure I know that there are between 62 and 87 re-invited artists that don’t have to pay a jury fee.  However, that's still about $42,000 just in jury fees not counting late jury fees.  Even if they paid 4 paid jurors for 2 days covering all the expenses for airfare if necessary, hotel and food, additional support employees, ZAPP projectors, or computer rental, etc, I would think that quite a tidy profit could still be derived from this profit center of the show.  Or perhaps the director doesn't want to be bothered with the tremendous effort involved in producing an "on site" jury.  I understand this as I've done it but....well, I guess, that's part of the job.  Maybe the director doesn't think that they are any qualified jurors within a 1000 miles.  No, that couldn't be.  I know that looking at 1200 applications, 4800 images, is a chore.  If done over 2 days, 600 artists are very manageable.  Sure it can be visually and mentally exhausting.  But I don’t think that’s the problem.  Ok, so I'm perplexed.

If the jurors are looking at the images ‘off site’ then the images are not looked at simultaneously as it says in the prospectus. They are not looked at simultaneously by the jurors as is done in a ZAPP projected jury.  And in addition, when off site they are not projected; they are looked at on a monitor when viewed off site.  When viewed on the on-line ZAPPLICATION process, the images are looked at individually with only a very small thumbnails being seen as a grouping at the end and on the scoring page; these small hard to see thumbnails are the only simultaneous viewing of the images.  This seems very deceptive to me.  By the way, I have been suggesting for 3 or 4 years to ZAPP that they enlarge these grouped images.  I finally hear that they may do just that.

Now let's look at it from the artist’s viewpoint as to why this is a problem for them.  Jurors would perhaps be dispersed across a large area in different time zones.  (Ok so the 2 jurors that they’ve announced are from the Madison area). Maybe they would be looking at the images during the directors working hours and maybe not?  What if they had multiple questions with no one to answer them?  What will their pre-jury instruction be?  Who will enforce the rules?  I've been to enough live juries to know that there are a lot of questions.  Will the jurors be looking at the images on quality monitors, or even similar monitors?  Will different judges be seeing the same thing from an image or not?  Perhaps juror 'A' has an old CRT monitor that's 10 years old and is totally not able to be controlled for color and brightness.  Perhaps juror 'B' has a monitor that cost $50 at some box store and the contrast is so bad that there is no shadow detail seen or the highlights are completely non-existent.  Laptops are notorious for their poor quality of images.  The point is that the jurors may not be seeing the same thing.  As a professional photographer I know how important "calibrated" monitors are.  Calibration standardizes what is seen on a monitor as long as it’s capable of control.  Ok, let’s proceed.  What if juror 'C' has a young child that is home and needing attention while they are jurying images during this 8 day process?  The jurors could be very distracted from doing their due diligence for any number of reasons:  diaper change, ice cream time, homework, domestic dispute, etc.  What if juror 'D' worked really hard all day but waited till the last moment to jury the images.  Perhaps they fall asleep at their screen and are half conscious giving a score and click on the wrong button.  Will that juror be doing justice to the jury system by being totally exhausted at the end of their work day?  Not likely.  Jurors “off site” can look at images for different lengths of time.  Is this fair?  They can even research web sites and explore other images done by artists.  Is that fair?  What if the juror decides to consult with what friends think of an artists’ work.  The images could be copied and pasted to be seen anywhere.  This alone has been a major concern for many artists.

The bottom line for me and I hope many artists is that they are not, let me repeat that, are not being judged equitably.  For $35, or $5 or $75 for that matter, they deserve a fair shake.  Having jurors not "on site" is not a fair and equitable way for shows to be jurying.  There are way too many variables for the jury process to proceed along this path to give the artist what they are paying for and deserve.  For years this show was run successfully by intern directors:  graduate students, in the arts program at UW Madison, who would be the director for 2 to 3 years.  Now a paid director has taken over and it seems that what is now important is the bottom line.  It is no longer the well being of the artists and what is in their best interest.

Is it a stretch to assume that all of this has something to do with the chaos that has been going on in Madison and Wisconsin?  Is it a stretch to say that this has something to do with the current administration in Wisconsin defunding the Wisconsin Arts Board?  Ok, I certainly will not go there as it is off point.

The control, the standardization, of the jury process and of the jurors as a group is gone with this newest move by Madison On the Square.  It is no longer a "level playing field" for artists.  The shared experience is eliminated.  This smacks of a director giving up and giving in.  So I decided to email Annik Dupaty, the Director of Events, Madison Museum of Contemporary Art.  She is the director of the show.  I simply asked if it is true that jurying takes place off site and her reasoning for this.  She responds first by saying that jurying off site is the “standard of the industry.”  I don’t know where she gets her facts on this.  ZAPP does not even know what the percentage of shows jurying off site is.  She also claims that the system was set up that way when she took over as director.  I know one of the previous directors and this system for jurying was not in place while he was director.  There was a director between his term and Anniks taking over.  The graduate student director before Annik took over quit the post as director and did not graduate.  She states that,  “in these hectic ‘modern’ lives we lead it is hard to get full-time, busy working people to (1) align schedules, and (2) commit to being here for 1-2 full days straight”  Well, we have always been in these hectic ‘modern’ times.  Every generation lives through their own modern period.  Jurors were brought together for 50 years before this and other shows started to ask jurors to view images off site.  Jurors were in one location long before the shows were making the amounts of money they make now.  If jurors were paid a decent amount, I don’t think finding jurors to participate would be an issue. Many would relish having been a juror for the show and adding it on their resume or curriculum vitae.  She further states, “…and it isn’t necessary with the technology available to us.”  Well, that brings it full circle and to the conclusion that I reach and that is:  JUST BECAUSE YOU CAN DOESN’T MEAN THAT THAT YOU SHOULD.  The world is full of misguided decisions made with the idea that just because something can be done means that it should be done.

Since the costs for jurying have been so dramatically cut, have the jury fees or booth fees been reduced?  Would Annik be willing to send out a fair Survey Monkey to see what the applying artists feel about “off site” jurying?  I’d love to hear that the applying artists think it’s a good idea and that I’m wrong about all of this.

I think artists deserve an explanation so they can decide whether this is a show that they want to participate in.  They ARE the show.

Hope everyone had a terrific St Patrick's Day!  Since it was the 50th anniversary of the Denver Parade, we went all out.  Bellco Credit Union sponsors us in the parade.  Thank you Bellco!  Our four Giant Parade Puppets were festooned with shamrocks and green trim.  I rode my new stilt bike, featuring a red headed Leprechaun made by Cory Gilstrap. http://www.facebook.com/cory.gilstrap I mounted him on the handle bars with a pot o gold just out of reach of the grasping Leprechaun !  Photos and stilt bike riding practice video here:  http://stiltwalker.com/states/colorado/denver/50th-saint-patricks-day-parade-denver/

I didn't give Cory a huge budget, but he was very gracious to work with my budget and deliver on time.  I was/am very happy with the yet unnamed Leprechaun. (any ideas?)   Both the free hand, and the out stretched leg as well as the head are all pose-able.  Cory also provided the Pot o Gold.  After the parade I did sew on some more gold coins.  The thrift store fishing pole, which I provided, I also shortened in preparation for next year's parade.

Youtube has some video of the parade with our Giant Parade Puppets, one video even catches me on my stilt bike gliding by.

http://youtu.be/DCHMxZhiR_o

http://youtu.be/2fN7NEMI2es

Every year the Denver Post prints in the paper and online a photo of one of our Giant Puppets .  this year I couldn't find us online, but the daily had a photo of one of our puppets on the Friday before the parade, and the YourHub weekly insert had a terrific photo of all four Parade Puppets!  Best photo ever published!  Yea!

I'm enjoying reading all of the festival reviews, hope you enjoy this somewhat off topic post.

Cheers!

Bill "Stretch" Coleman

June 22 & 23
Auburn Hills, Michigan
Summerfest Arts & Craft Fair
Downtown Auburn Hills
Sponsored by the City of Auburn Hills
Fri.: 4pm-10pm; Sat.: 10am-10pm
40 Artists
Deadline: April 1

This is an outdoor show open to all artists and craftsmen!  Please come and share your specialties with the northern Oakland County community: arts, crafts and hand-made items (please no flea market items, used clothing, homemade foods, or drinks) - estimated attendance for this FREE two-day festival is 5,000 people!

Details:

• Spaces 15 x 15
• Early bird special: $30 (by April 1)
• $40 (by May 1st deadline)
• Application online: www.auburnhills.org/index, then click on this image:  

Hi, fellow artisans!  I lurk here more than post, ofcourse, but thought I might just post about an inaugural show in Florida the first weekend in .  I noticed earlier that there was a post from someone wanting input on it.  It is the St Johns River Artfest in Sanford, Florida.  I have been a stained glass artist for over 20 years, but doing shows only about 5.  I have confined myself to Georgia shows, because it is so expensive to travel, but decided to offer my glass to other audiences this year..This is 1 of only 2 shows I have booked so far this year.  The first is the Mossy Creek Festival near Perry Ga, which I have done for a couple of years. 

 I spoke to someone on the planning committee for the St Johns show a while back.  It is a juried show, and I got notice yesterday I have been accepted.  According to the person with whom I spoke, the main purpose of this event is public education about how the art is created, and to that end will have a special section of the show for demonstrating artists.  I applied for that, but have not yet heard if I have been accepted for that.

They are doing extensive advertising in the area, and even their website seems to be artists friendly.  They will have lots of volunteers who will be there for the artists.  The accepted artists will be mentioned in advertising.

I know it is a first time show, and I am rolling the dice, but I just have a good feeling about it.  Apparently, they did not have as many applicants as they wanted, so they are extending the jury period through mid April, and asked that I let other artists know.  If interested, just go to their web site at www.stjohnsriverartfest.com .  I will submt a review after the event...

Even though I have been more of a "lurker" than a participant, I really appreciate the conversations here.  I just have not had anything to contribute til now.   Happy Shows, all.....Mary Anne Maslanka

Working @ the salon til 3 hope to make time to design a few more jewelry pieces, have really good Idea for a silk cord bracelet and necklace...and my next painting is going to be Sunset over Poppy Fields, its a picture I found taken in France on the edge of a vineyard, Gorgeous sunset cant wait to start it!

Sonoran Arts League 12th Annual Festival of Fine Art (http://www.sonoranartsleague.org/festival.php). I had an inkling of a feeling...but I went ahead anyway. The guides were right again but I, a mere mortal who doesn't listen well yet, trudged forward. A friend of the wife who is a long time member of the arts league had told us about this show and how they were trying to get a new variety of art in it and I thought, "what the heck, as good an excuse to get out of winter in Denver as any and it is no further than any of the other shows I've done so far." So, off I rode. This time I had to do it all myself as the wife and I have been gone for about a month with shows and a vacation in Hawai'i with my sister and bro-in-law (what am I doing in Denver?) and she felt the need to spend time with her elderly father with whom she has been living for most of the last 3 years. No big deal, I've done it all myself before, even if the tendinitis in my elbow is acting up a bit.

The show was held at the Stagecoach Village in Cave Creek, AZ. I found out later it was previously held at the town center of Carefree, AZ, not too far away. Which suggests that this show might have an identity crisis. There was also another show at the same time as this show at the Frontier Village, just up the road, organized by another show promoter! I think I read somewhere that this area has too many shows, I'm starting to get the picture...Set-up for this show, like most of the shows that I have done in AZ was the day before. Ran into an artist whom I recognized (apparently she didn't recognize me) and asked her if she knew where the check-in was. She explained that she was an artist (I knew that!) and didn't know anything more than I did but that the gal over there was Candy (the shows organizer/promoter). I made some comment about the Stagecoach Village looking like another Arizona ghost town like Fountain Hills. That comment didn't go over real well as the "artist" got defensive, at that point I retreated. But it does seem that a lot of these newer small shopping areas that have developed around the Phoenix area look like ghost towns to me with low levels of occupancy. Cave Creek is not a new development, it is a town that developed long before Phoenix blossomed and still has the ambiance of a small arts community. Other developments like Stagecoach Village have developed as shopping centers within the town limits later.

I did catch up with Candy, who had taken on the task of organization of this show from the arts league, she was busily trying to figure out spots for the artists as she reported that "10 artists canceled" (more about that later!) and she had to reconfigure her layout on the spot. Good thing it wasn't a huge show! She pointed out a spot on the east side of the mall for me which was soon commandeered by another artist who needed the space to spread his sculptures out. Not to worry, my new space was next to him and it was just as good if not better. Have you ever been to the middle east and gone among the vendors in the little streets and every one of the booths in the bizarre looks like it has almost the same stuff? The show setup had that feel to me on reflection as I and four other photographers were within spitting distance of each other! "Good thing we're all different" reported the guy next to me. It was true, my work is more about 20th century Americana, roadside attractions and rusty automobiles, his was western landscape work, the guy next to him had huge black and white canvas landscapes, the guy around the corner was western/cowboy stuff on leather and the guy down the block had different western landscapes. I guess that is what happens when you have to organize on the fly!

Back to the show...Set-up for this show was Thursday afternoon at 4 I was there at 3 and got my booth space which gave me ample time to get things up, especially with the increase in daylight hours, before the Friday opening time of 10 a.m. Not unlike the Carefree show that I did in January (http://www.artfairinsiders.com/profiles/blogs/carefree-fine-art-wine-festival-january-2012) this show was also mostly populated by the snow-bird crowd of lookers. Long story short...Most of us sat around for long periods of time during the day or talked to the curious on Friday. Fortunately, at 4:30 one individual and a young couple came in and saved the day with their purchases. Could they be angels in disguise come to save me? Saturday was pretty much the same along with lots of talking and sharing about my work but the email to a client that I had met at the January show came through. He came in with his wife and put in the order for 5 photos of work that he had commissioned.

Now I had mentioned that 10 artists had canceled this show. There was a kink in the jet stream that had sent it south along the pacific coast midway down the Baja Penninsula and then shooting back up through AZ, UT and western NM and CO. We were sitting right in the middle of it. Apparently those 10 others had gotten nervous and bailed early. Most of the others that were at the show were nervous as hens with a coyote in the house talking about where the weather was, what was expected, etc. Judging only on how it looked in our little corner you would think nothing was out there. Skies were blue on Friday and the temperature was 85 but anyone with a smartphone (me included) was watching the Weather Channel App. It was supposed to be cooler on Saturday with high winds showing up by 2 or 3 in the afternoon and rain showers. When Saturday arrived although it was a bit cooler, only 75 with some overcast and sun peeking in, it was still nice. The artist crowd was getting even more nervous as the day went on with a few taunts from fellow artists about "chicken little artists". Candy was circulating rumors about possibly shutting down the show early and that wasn't well received by some of the participants either. I was feeling like the show was played out so I was good either way. By the end of the day I couldn't discern fact from fiction but the word was the show would pack it in which indeed it did even though, although forecast, there was no wind or rain what-so-ever even at 5! There was some grumbling but most artists pulled up stakes. Two artists in our area decided to stay and left their tents up, at least overnight as-far-as I knew. Wonder what happened to them? As it turned out it rained like crazy Saturday night into Sunday morning with more on the way later in the day. Was it a good call? I think given the combination of lackluster sales and the prospects of bad weather it was well worth it to pull out a day early!

As for getting out of Phoenix on Sunday morning? I-17 going north to Flagstaff was closed due to 19" of snow, I-40 both east and west through Flagstaff was closed due to the snow as well! Although I had another motel night booked I decided to leave a day early via the southern route through Tucson (in heavy rains) and then east into NM. The weather wasn't any better there as vehicles were being routed off the highway in Lordsburg due to high winds and no visibility between there and Las Cruces. I've been snow bound in Las Cruces before but Lordsburg is even worse. I started to feel like I was in an episode of the Twilight Zone, the only other thing needed at the MckyD's was Rod Serling!

Show Organizer/Promoter: Sonoran Arts League via Vermillion Promotions

Booth Fee: $25 Jury Fee, $375 Booth Fee, $30 City of Cave Creek Business License and an Arizona License euphuistically referred to as the Transaction Privilege Tax (TPT)/License

Logistics: Load-in, depending on where you were located was either easy or a lot of transporting. I was there earlier and was able to park at the middle gazebo and cart my stuff in. If you were at one of the entry points it seemed easier. Some of the streets were narrow and there wasn't much space to park and unload.  Some areas of the show did have a lot of congestion built into the way booths and streets were setup. Some artists may have gotten overlooked at either end of the show. Load-out was pretty much the same. I was packed up and out by 7:30 which was only an extra half-hour from my usual time, sorry sweetie! I think it took the extra time as I first packed everything up and then had to cart all my stuff up a ramp to the nearby parking lot, usually I can drive right up to my piles of stuff.

Show Hours: The show was set to run from 10-5 Friday-Sunday

Amenities: This was not a regular Candy Vermillion Production for which I was told she often provides lunch for the artists, that said, she did have yummy sweet stuff, water, juice and coffee each morning. There were limited booth sitters from the Arts League that went by given that the show was in such a small space anyway that didn't seem to matter much. The show had a few nice food vendors (and popcorn) I think it was the same Greek food guy from Tubac! serving variations on a Greek menu, gyro's, hummus, salad, etc.  Nearby restaurants, were there any? Like I said the shopping area looked like a ghost town. I  looked for food when I drove out one night but didn't see any in the immediate vicinity. I bought stuff at Safeway and kept it in a cooler.  Parking was in an area at the back of the mall, plentiful and free. The walk to the lots was not too bad. Porta potties aplenty seemed to be kept clean!

Reflections: I would probably not do this show again unless I move to Arizona. Although the booth fee was not exorbitant  it is too far to drive, the return was too little and the expenses too much. Another reason I may not do this show again is that there seem to be too many shows going on in this little part of the greater Phoenix area. Overkill! Unless the thought is that vacationers are only around about a week or so and a new batch of blood wont know the difference?

I wish I could say that I've been so busy filling orders from the Jan and Feb shows that I had no time to report on this show till now but although I've been busy it hasn't been as a result of the aforementioned purpose! ;-P I had this show on my radar for a number of years but wasn't able to get to it till this year, just missed the deadline last year.  I should be learning to listen to my spirit guides more carefully for a reason! Years ago (20) I would spend two weeks with a friend as an escape from Denver, in Tucson, between holidays and really enjoyed the mild weather (60-70 or so) thinking I was heading for something similar I chose to go to Tubac, AZ thinking that February should be almost tropical as compared to Denver (it is!). The weather topped out around 60 at least one day and I remember some good gusts of wind that sent dust swirling around and made some artists nervous. Our neighbors recounted the horror that they had experienced the week before in Palm Springs and it made them a little nervous to say the least. (http://www.artfairinsiders.com/profiles/blogs/there-but-for-the-grace-of-g-d-go-we). We set our chairs out in the middle of the wide road to catch whatever sun we could over the next several days.

Tubac is located 40 miles south of Tucson and about a half hour north of the border and Nogales, AZ/MX. A little bit of history...The area is believed to have been inhabited approximately 11,000 years ago by mammoth hunters, since 300-1500 A.D. by the Hohokam, followed by the Pima and native O'odham, who "greeted" the Spanish in the 1600's. It was under Mexican control by 1821 and came under possession of the United States in 1853 as part of the Gadsden Purchase. In the meantime it boomed and busted under various mining interests. Arizona became a state in 1812, homesteaders were kicked out. In 1948, artist Dale Nichols arrived establishing the Artists School. The first Tubac Festival of the Arts took place in 1960, with the Tubac Center of the Arts opening in 1972.

The show is organized by the Chamber of Commerce ( A link to the show website: http://www.tubacaz.com/festival.asp) and is likewise manned by volunteers of the chamber. Check in is easy at the chamber building, you're given a map, additional materials and sent on your way. Depending on your location at the show there are either very wide streets for set up or narrow ones. After all this was a colonial town with all the charm of one and the historic streets of one. We were on the main street into town which meant lots of space to set up. In fact there was a large empty area behind our booth that we could just leave our van in as we setup and there was plenty of space for others as well. The show sets up Tuesday afternoon before the official beginning of the show ( Gotta like those day before setups!). And so, on Wednesday, the show began. Being as it was a Wed. crowds were light, or so we thought, Thursday was busy as it was reported that 9-11 tour buses had unloaded eager tourists in the parking lot. Friday was like Wed. with Sat and Sunday being not much better (or does my memory serve me correctly?) The age demographic was generally the "Snow-Bird" retiree who may have come down from Green Valley or even Tucson. Some other visitors came from as far as Phoenix (2.5 hours away). Maybe I'm being too critical but when the 5 foot tall popcorn bags, dogs and baby strollers come out in force it seems to go along with a strolling crowd that doesn't buy much and so it was in Tubac for 5 days. Other reports that I read later (of course) suggested that the 5 day ritual should be shortened by at least 2 days, if only I had known then...We had some sales (never judge a client by the way they look!) and the promise of others " I'd like to buy three of them but I need to measure that space", what else is new? We saw some large pieces walk out as well as the usual yard ornaments. Our neighbor the jeweler sold smaller pieces, earrings and small necklaces, etc. the cowboy leather wallet and belt guy sold at a fairly regular pace while the gold glass guy across the way didn't seem too busy, was it because his booth seemed sort of isolated in the corner there?

Logistics; Load-in, depending on where you were located was either easy or a little chaotic. If you were at one of the entry points it was easier. Some of the streets were narrow and there wasn't much space to park and unload.  Some areas of the show did have a lot of congestion built into the way booths and streets were setup. Some artists may have gotten overlooked on some of the smaller side-streets. Load-out was pretty much the same. We were packed up and out by 7 which is typical for us.

Amenities: Don't expect them, no water, no snacks, limited booth sitters as the chamber volunteers were spread thin. The show had lots of nice food vendors (and popcorn). Several vendors served variations on a Greek menu, gyro's, hummus, etc.  Nearby restaurants were $$. Parking, expect to pay $6 daily in one of several lots scattered around the town. The walk to the lots was not to bad. Porta potties aplenty seemed to be kept clean although I found the secret bathroom around the corner that was deluxe!

Reflections: I would probably not do this show again unless I move to Tucson anytime soon. It is too far to drive, the return was too little and the expense too much. Another reason I may not do this show is that years ago I swore off of doing shows that had any hint of dust and other blowing stuff. It gets into, onto and all around my framed 2-D pieces and I don't like the clean-up afterwards!

September 15 & 16
Omaha, Nebraska
80 Artists
Deadline: April 1

The Aksarben Village Art Fair will showcase the work of 80 artists from throughout the U.S..  The goal of the show is to feature offbeat, creative and novel artwork that is affordable and can be purchased as a gift or enjoyed every day, such as vintage jewelry; hand-sewn purses; one-of-a-kind, whimsical items for the garden and home and other treasures, along with a wide range of artwork that will attract buyers and browsers of every age group.

What you can expect:

• Affluent shoppers
• Mixed-use urban lifestyle setting
• Established neighborhood
• Multi use park and amphitheater
• Free and convenient Parking Garage

Aksarben Village is a $300 million development that combines retail, restaurants, entertainment, residential and hotels to offer an exciting planned urban community in the heart of Omaha.

Here is your chance to get in on the ground floor of an event organized by solid show promoters.

Established art fair presenters the Omaha Summer Arts Festival and Vic Gutman & Associates are proud to partner to introduce this new fall event.

For more info: www.aksarbenvillage.com 

Apply at: www.zapplication.org   

Email inquiries to: amcnabney@vgagroup.com

I have had too many shows turn around on Sunday afternoon to break down early because of poor sales.  It bugs the hell out of me when other people do that as well.  I think it is incredibly disruptive to the people who are staying and maybe trying to eke out some sort of profit from a bad show.

However, there are valid reasons to break down early.  My general standard is if I feel my work or I am in danger.  That is a call that each person has to make for themselves.  And weather being what weather is, sometimes we make the wrong one.

I think there are valid reasons to not do a show.  There have been a couple occasions when I wish I had made that decision.  I did make that decision once with Naples National and it was the right one for me.  They had changed from an easy load out to a difficult one.  I did not have any vacation time to take Monday off and it is a point of honor with me that I do not call in sick to work just because I am late getting back from the art show.  My co-workers and boss are very decent about working around my shows and I owe it to them to not take advantage of that.  I found out later that people in my section that year got out around 1AM.  That plus a five hour drive home.  It was the right call.  I did eat the booth fee without complaint.  It was my fault for not reading the show literature sooner.  Actually I think that if we are willing to eat the booth fee and attempt to give as much notice as possible it is a personal call.

What are everyone else's principles?