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On March 15 at 6 pm ET I'll be talking with three artists who had solid success jurying into the top art fairs in 2011. We'll talk about:

• their backgrounds
• jury images
• favorite shows
• the big (or not so big) payoff
• how is 2012 shaping up

Artists:

1. Kathrine Allen-Coleman, a painter from Georgia who participated in Coconut Grove, Reston, Old Town, Columbus, Des Moines, Ann Arbor Street Art Fair and more
2. Andrew Shea, a glass blower from Minnesota who was in Belleville, Old Town, Des Moines, Madison, Uptown, Port Clinton, Saint Louis and more
3. Bruce Reinfeld, a photographer from Philadelpia who was Columbus, Des Moines, Cherry Creek, Plaza and more

Catch this podcast live right here at 6 pm.

If you can't join us at that time the recording will be available at this link for download: http://www.artfairinsiders.com/artfairpodcasts

Do you have questions you'd like me to ask them? Please leave them in the comments.

Well, we got hit bad on Sunday, pretty well tanked any sales because of the all day down pour.

Things were not nearly as good as past years here..

Let me explain.

This is a solid show.  Local committee runs it.  Everybody gets to park behind their booths among gorgeous old oak trees.  The locals are well off. Very conservative, but they do have disposable income.

 Most years I can do a minemum of $4k or better at this show.  Have done it since the early 90's.

This year Ellen was in, I was on the waitlist, resigned to doing Apollo Beach, near Tampa, but nowhere in the class of this show--think cow-pies in the middle of a big grassy cowfield.

Anyways, you setup on Thursday and the show is the next three days, they come and they buy, everybody goes home happy.

Ellen and her neighbor Dianne both notice there is an open space between them on Friday. Ellen speaks up for her man--and whadda ya know, I am in the show.  I was on the waitlist.  It is just, after a certain amount of time the committee doesn't call anybody on the waitlist.  Well, I drove over Friday night.  Hit torrential rain, which closed the show down at 4 pm on Friday.  

Murphy's  Law.  As you know if you have ever driven route 60 east out of Tampa, there is one lonely, deadly area of that road, thirty miles long, that is head-on traffic.  Everywhere else it is two-laned.  Murphy's Law.  I was going east, no bad weather, and when I hit that stretch, all of a sudden the rain was so bad I could not see four feet in front of me.  Lucky me, got to drive in it for 35 miles--what a character builder that is.  The Boy Scouts could give a merit badge for it.

 Made it in, joined up with Ellen, in marital bliss, and we had a great evening.  

Next morn, I set up early and was ready at 9 AM when show opened.

Ellen had a killer Friday as did others, there was buying energy and big crowds.

Saturday there where big crowds, but sales sucked, mostly lowend.  Usually I can do an easy $2K-plus on any Saturday at Vero, this year I had to settle for $1400 and part of that was a $600 sale.  Sales around us were the same way, mostly lowend and not much big framed pieces going out the door.

BTW.  The show puts on a great Artist dinner and awards on Friday night, nobody complained, all were well-fed.

The best part of the day was ahead of us.  A lot of lucky artists got invited to a killer party at the house of Alan Teger and Barbara Krupp.    They put out a spread to die for.

  And again, for the second year in a row, I got to practice an Andy Shea move, which involves as you walk out of the party to go, you slowly walk backwards and wave to everybody, and , at least he and I think, everybody else thinks we are walking in.  That Andy, he is always coming up with clever killer ideas for parties.

 We then got sushi at the that great little Siam Thai Orchid restaurant.

Sunday we awoke, full of Sake hang-over.  And the skies were ugly.  They proceeded to get worse.

Had a good breakfeast, read the NY Times and arrived at the show just in time for the first of many rain showers, they just kept coming.

Bottom line, it rained all fricking day.  Some booths, you could swim laps in.  We dammed ours, but who was gonna come in. I made $100 for the day which barely covered the price of my fish sandwich at the local restaurant.

We all tore down, very wet, and headed home.

It was not a good year at Vero.  But there are many, still to come.

Today I was gathering some items I had recently sold so they could be shipped out to their buyer's destinations.  I'm quite proud that I've made some international sales---one of these was going to Australia---and at the same time shocked and surprised that international sales are as common as they are nowadays...  I'm a member of the last generation that can remember life without the internet, and computers.  I remember my college professors excluding "dot matrix" printers as acceptable printing options.  I remember signing into my university's computer lab to use the Apple IIe, and bringing floppy disks with me...  Ah, the good old days.  I guess international shipping is just a sign of the times, eh?  The world is getting smaller all the time.

But as I was thinking that, my brain skipped to a stream-of-consciousness thought and pondered if people in different parts of the world were making what I was making.  I wondered if there was someone out there manufacturing ruffs and doing what I do by machine instead of by hand.  I wondered if I could justify what I was charging, because my next thought was imagining a customer criticizing my prices and saying, "Why should I pay this much when I can get it from China a lot cheaper?"

And that prompted me to come in and type this blog post.

You see, there are LOTS of reasons why I charge the prices I do.  And for all those boutique/art fair participants who might have shared this same train of thought as I have, this is for you, too.

First off, most items in art fairs, shows, and boutiques are just that:  boutique items or art.  These things aren't what a manufacturer is even interested in making---the profit margins are commonly too low.  Manufacturing is about making large quantities of identical items, creating an assembly line process that makes the making cost effective.  Most boutique and art fair items are generally created in such limited quantities, no manufacturer is going to bother spending the money creating the set up and buying the small amount of materials for such a small return on investment.  It just isn't practical.  My pieces are all made one at a time.  And none of them are exactly the same.

Secondly, most boutique items or fair items are generally made by hand or at least require so much human input in the process of creating that machine manufacturing it is impractical.  The human interaction factor is to high, and thus it costs too much to make en masse.  If it's art, it's obvious the art can't be made without the individual artist's hand or vision.  Now some would argue that non-American workers will work for less, and thus lower the cost of the product.  Well, that idea worked for a while as manufacturing fled overseas away from the US to cheaper production markets.  But now that plan has impacted our local economies to such a degree that more and more Americans are less interested in supporting foreign manufacturing...  Many people that I know are drawing an imaginary line in the sand and are willing to pay extra for products with local affinities.  The thought being that everything is unaffordable anyway, so what's the difference?  If you're going to spend you're money, spend it where it has the most impact on your community and pay the local workers and artisans first.  All my pieces are made by me, by hand, in my studio here in San Diego.  Where I use the money I'm paid for my pieces to buy groceries and support local businesses.

Third, most items sold at fairs or in boutiques usually have a story behind them.  Manufactured items generally do not.  In fact, most manufactured items strive to rise above their origins of mass production, sometimes downplaying it and seeking a sense of individuality and uniqueness that simply isn't truly possible.  The mass market is collapsing in certain areas as it becomes overtly obvious no one is really interested in owning exactly what everyone else has.  If you're making 10,000 of the same thing, how original and unique is it?  And why would someone want to pay a boutique price for it?  I make my pieces for customers that don't want to look like everyone else, who value individual and dramatic appearance so they can stand out in a crowd.

Fourth, the specialty items at art fairs and in boutiques are sometimes made of materials that aren't optimal for manufacturing.  Either the materials are too expensive (making the profit margin decrease to unacceptable levels) or they are too personal (vintage family fabrics, backyard views, local supply chains) or they are too unique (ruffs made out of scrap silk upholstery fabric, for example).  Manufacturing can replicate the effect, but not the integrity or authenticity of their base ingredients.  The materials themselves can be as important as the resulting art pieces.  No one can make the neckwear I make with my great-grandmother's hand painted porcelain pieces.  No one can exactly replicate my hand painted garments with the quality of my lines.  And while it's possible to replicate some of the things I make...  Well, honestly.  Would you bother?  Really?  Truly?  Without any creative input of your own?

Fifth, and finally, boutique items are not made to compete with mass-produced items.  They are in a class by themselves.  To explain this, let me tell you a history:  I once heard about two schools of thought in the beginning of car manufacturing.  American car manufacturers carefully doled out new developments in car technology, exploiting each new discovery for maximum profit, and building cars at as low a quality as they could get away with, knowing that eventually it would wear out and a new car would be purchased.  Built-in obsolescence.  European car manufacturers, in contrast, built a product and sold it for what it was:  the best they could make for the price.  And thus, most high-end luxury cars were European for many years.  Quality over quantity.  Likewise, a boutique item is usually not created to be as cheaply assembled as possible---it can't be, as manufacturing in bulk is the only way to truly accomplish that.  Instead, I would venture to say that true boutique items are made to the best of their ability for the price.  But that may be just a philosophy of my own that I'm "imposing" on others...  :)

So I'm not going to feel guilty about why I charge what I do.  I'm not going to feel weird about making stuff that's so unique it's a novelty.  I'm not going to stop moving forward in my efforts to create beautiful one-of-a-kind pieces that I know someday someone will figure out how to manufacture.  Because what I'm making is only part of what I'm selling.  And the same holds true for all you art fair artisans out there, and all those looking for that special boutique to sell your wares in (like me!).

And if I'm ever asked, "Why should I pay this much when I could get it from China a lot cheaper?", I'll simply tell them in return, "Go ahead.  Good luck with that!"

Anyway, food for chain-of-thought.

Live Life with Relish!

I learned yesterday that one of my favorite sleeper shows has been cancelled this year, the powers that be decided to go in a different direction. The Love Affair of Tifton in Tifton GA was a long runnning festival, set in a beautiful park and was well supported by the community. It featured local talent (mostly kids) singing and dancing, local food and an arts and craft show. Tifton is a wonderful little community that can best be described as a real life Mayberry. where the people are kind, courteous, well mannered and dogs walk on a leash. I'll miss this little show not because it was a huge money maker but because it was just nice knowing that I would have a relaxing weekend, interact with non-pretencious folks and make a few bucks to boot.

R.I.P. Love Affair of Tifton

RAGS is a wearable art show that benefits the YWCA of Pierce County WA in support of the Domestic Violence and Intervention programs.  It is NOT by any stretch of the imagination a “normal” art show.  Participants are only those who make wearable art, jewelry and fiber artists being almost 100% majority at this show.  It’s a boutique style show, no 10x10 booths, space is very limited.  We had a 9 foot long by 3.5 foot deep space to set up our 2 foot wide shelves with limited room to stand behind our display.  The show is held at a Mercedes Benz dealership and attracts many of the upscale women buyers in the Tacoma WA area.  The RAGS Guild has been holding this show for 18 years and has the jurying, layout, setup and execution of this show down to a science.  The show has a centralized checkout process, sales are all run through the organization’s books and checks are sent to the artists fairly quickly after the show.  There is NO BOOTH FEE, for this show, but there is a 33% COMMISSION, so it’s up to the artists to decide the risk/reward of this show.  For us, it’s 10 miles from home, no parking fees, no high gas fees, no camping/hotel fees, easy show to do, if I were traveling very far, I would think about the commission very seriously before committing to this show.  For us, it’s a “no brainer” any time we’re accepted while living this close, honestly, it’s our one “home show” where we can be home within 15 minutes of pulling out of their parking lot into our driveway.  There is no other show in our area with this potential in sales that we can commute to within a short distance.  We do like the fact that the commission benefits our local community and while we’ve never used the Pierce County YWCA’s programs, we do have friends and other artists who benefit from their programs.  There are several artists that we know who easily pull 5 figures out of this show.

This show is run by volunteers and Guild members.  Plenty of volunteers for booth sitting or any other help that was needed.   The volunteers also brought snacks around, granola bars in the morning, cheese and crackers around lunch and cookies or brownies for an afternoon sugar high.  Volunteers were on hand offering assistance during load in and load out and although we didn’t need much help, it was nice that they offered.  

Set up is very easy on the Wednesday before the show, with times arranged by request.  Thursday evening from 6-9 is the GALA event where attendees pay $70/person to attend.  Food and beverages are available to the artists at 5:30 so we can eat prior to the start of the show and I must say they are very delectable goodies with a nice Chardonnay to enjoy.  And the chocolate dessert table was magnificent!!!  Sales actually started with the Guild members shopping during set up and we had quite a few “lookers” before the event began at 6 PM.  Sales for the Gala night were a little slow for us, but lots of interest.  Friday sales started somewhat slowly followed by a mid-day rush between 11:30 and 2:00, then a last minute rush between 5 and 6.  Usually Saturday is a very strong day for us with slow sales on Sunday.  2012 proved to be the opposite with Saturday being almost dead, except for one lovely customer who bought 5 pieces from us, she stated that she appreciated the fact that we had “affordable” items and kept pulling different pendants and earrings from our display and after trying on 15 different pieces decided she would purchase 5.   Sunday started slow due to Daylight Savings time, but ended up being a great sales day for us which was a little unusual for this show, but after adding up the numbers Saturday evening we were more than happy to feel like we pulled it out on Sunday. 

The other unusual sales pattern at this show for us were the sales of my pieces compared to my husband’s.  Most shows he’s 60-70% of the sales while I pull in the other small amounts, years past in this show I’ve been only 10% of total sales, lower than our average show statistics.  Well, this year my pieces were a solid 50% of sales and until Sunday afternoon, I was 65-70% of our total sales and had the single largest piece purchased of any of our items which was really fun for me in our “friendly rivalry” until I totally ran out of stock on 2 designs and had to start taking custom orders.  The ladies running the checkout area came through our spot on Sunday all commenting on one particular style of earring that I make and buying until I was totally out of stock.  Looking through our records, I think I sold more of those particular earrings in this past weekend than I sold in all of our 2011 shows combined.  WOW!! Great for me, my husband was just chuckling through each transaction, thinking restocking wasn’t going to be a problem for him! 

A reasonable start to our 2012 season, not the best, but certainly much better than other first of the year shows.  This was our 3^rd time participating, the 2009 edition of this show still ranks as our number 1 best sales EVER, so we go into this show with high expectations. 2010 we were down 40% from 2009, 2011 we weren’t even accepted into the show, so we were happy to be back in 2012.  Even though this turned out to be our lowest year in sales for RAGS, it still ranks above our normal show average which isn’t too bad of a way to start the year for us, especially since we have almost 0 travel expenses.  Most of the artists I talked to were down this year from last year, but most were still saying they were having a reasonable show. 

So, yet another topsy turvy start to 2012 for us, totally unexpected sales of my designs compared to the pieces my husband makes and yet at the same time  it was so nice to see the customers who had bought from us in 2009-2010 that were happy to see us back in 2012.

Load out was about as simple as it could be for us, the show ended at 4 PM, we were on the road by 4:40 PM and home before 5 PM.  What a nice way to end the weekend, home while it was still daylight!!   Now we’re just hoping to get called off the Waitlist for the Spring Best of the Northwest, if not, we have lots of time to restock before we head to Oregon and a 3 show road trip in late April.

I was at Gasparilla last weekend and somehow left my tent sides. Did anyone happen to pick them up? They are the tent sides to a flourish tent. I was in space #113. I was next to Lisa and Brad from Virginia Beach. I am still in Florida but will make arrangements to get them. Please let me know if you found them. I have contacted the show but no one turned them in Thanks               

Circumstances couldn't have been better for this 5th in my series of seven Florida art fairs. Booth numbers are not given out to artists until they check in on Friday, so I was surprised to see that I got booth number one, the first booth on the left when patrons enter the art fair at the main entrance. There was plenty of room to spread out in the back as well as the side with a side wall to boot. I was able to unhook my trailer and keep it there while I did a leisurely setup. I was no longer flying solo because my wife Marcia finally left Saugatuck, Michigan behind and joined me for a few weeks in Florida.

I had been getting lots of good advice from the blog about why my sales have been so dismal here in Florida... advice that I had taken to heart by making lots of changes to the booth layout. The biggest change was to de-emphasize the low-priced items and eliminate the bins in the middle of the booth. I put the emphasis on my best and largest pieces. Barry Witt, the show's director, confirmed my decisions with some of the same advice I got from Connie and other Art Fair Insiders bloggers.

On Saturday morning Barry had another surprise for me. He showed me the program listing all the artists at the show. The cover featured one my new pieces that I used to jury into the show. Things were definitely looking up.  Us art fair artists are naturally optimistic. When things go poorly, we always find a reason (bad location, bad weather, poor turnout, wrong booth layout), but at this art fair all the stars were definitely in alignment. Unfortunately the buyers just did not materialize for me (again). I did about $270 in sales on Saturday and was actually relieved to do $900 on Sunday. That's how low my expectations have fallen in my Florida tour.

I like this show. There are a lot of really good artists here, and the location is pleasant in the parking lot of a shopping center off of the Tamiami Trail. Its well organized and well promoted, but, I felt that the turnout was light. Seemed that lots more people were here when I did this show a couple years ago. Could be that three shows in Bonita (this is the third one of the season) might be pushing it. People who live in the upscale development adjacent to the shopping center had already gone to two art fairs... why go to a third?

Anyway... Winter Park next weekend. I had one of my best shows there a couple years ago, so, I continue to be optimistic. I'll keep making adjustments to the booth to try to maximize my sales. But it could be that Florida is just not my market.

Since Marcia arrived I have been staying with friends in Naples, which is a relief to be able to save the hotel bills. so, in keeping with the optimism required from an art fair artist, I can analyze my sales and see that I did, in fact, make a meager profit on this one, however dismal my sales actually are.

Viviana Santamarina - Best of Show

Julie Carlson

Dawn Wain

Mark and Lee-Etta Van de Bogart

Brain Sykes

Nicario Jimenez

Bill Secunda

Jon Slade

Marcus Thomas

Vonnie Whitworth

Sam Maddox

Deborah Armstrong

Brian Becher

Patricia Kessler

Stephen Koury

Ning Lee, Best of 2D

American Style Magazine's listing of top events is always interesting to me because there are shows on it I've rarely heard of such as Kentucky Crafted and Francisco's Farm, plus three of them are in Kentucky.  What's that about?

Here's the list:

1. Kentucky Crafted: The Market

Louisville, Ky.
This year’s event, on March 19-20, will feature the best of fine art and craft, as well as musical performances, specialty foods and the chance to meet Kentucky authors. Learn more at http://kycraft.ky.gov.

2. Scottsdale Arts Festival

Scottsdale, Ariz.
Every spring, 200 jury-selected artists from throughout the U.S. convene in Scottsdale, offering art and crafts representing all mediums. This year’s festival will occur March 9-11. Visit www.scottsdaleartsfestival.org for more information.

3. Paradise City Arts Festival

Northampton, Mass.

“It’s well laid out, and there’s a terrific attitude among the artisans and the crowd.” There should certainly be a great attitude at the next show, May 26-28, which will feature 250 artisans, a silent auction for charity and tasty food. Go to www.paradisecityarts.com for more information.

4. Saint Louis Art Fair

Clayton, Mo.

“It manages to share an amazing variety of high-quality artwork and activities and performances for everyone,” writes Emily Fisher of St. Louis. For more details on this fall festival, scheduled on Sept. 7-9 this year, check out www.culturalfestivals.com.

5. St. James Court Art Show

Louisville, Ky.
Every October, the historic neighborhood of Old Louisville provides the setting for the St. James Court Art Show.  The 56th annual juried event runs Oct. 5-7 this year. For more information, click on www.stjamescourtartshow.com.

6. Paradise City Arts Fesitval

Marlborough, Mass.
The Northampton festival’s sister show and namesake made our Top 10 this year. Quality crafts, from blown glass to hand-forged jewelry, as well as fine art paintings and sculpture, make it a winner with AmericanStyle readers. The next show takes place March 16-18. Go to www.paradisecityarts.com for more information.

7. La Quinta Arts Festival

La Quinta, Calif.
Set in the tony Palm Springs Area, this show brings in big buyers and high price points are just fine. The next show takes place March 16-18. For details, visit www.lqaf.com.

8. Ann Arbor Street Art Fair, the Original

Ann Arbor, Mich.
The Ann Arbor Street Art Fair has been delighting patrons with contemporary fine art and crafts since its founding in 1959. Held on the central campus of the University of Michigan, this year’s festival takes place July 18-21. Go to www.artfair.org to learn more.

9. Francisco’s Farm Arts Festival

Midway, Ky.
OK, technically it’s at a vineyard, not a farm. This year, the festival will feature only artists who have received formal invitations to exhibit, marking a departure from previous events. The festival runs June 23-24. For details, visit www.franciscosfarm.org

10. Kentuck Festival of the Arts

Northport, Ala.
With more than 250 artists, the Kentuck Festival showcases exciting art and crafts, as well as demonstrations of traditional skills such as blacksmithing and quilting.  This year, the Kentuck Festival takes place Oct. 20-21. For more information, check out www.kentuck.org.

What do you think of this list? Is your favorite show missing?

St. Louis Art Fair - photo credit Ben Meadors

September 7-9
Clayton, Missouri

Central Business District

(one of St. Louis's 91 municipalities)

181 Artists

Friday 5pm-10pm

Saturday 10am-10pm

Sunday 11am-5pm

Deadline: March 22

Cultural  Festivals, the Producers of the Saint Louis Art Fair invites you to apply to be an exhibitor at the 19th annual  Saint Louis Art Fair. a fine art and fine craft festival. Held in  the central business district of Clayton, MO., one of St. Louis' dynamic communities. Each year the Saint Louis Art Fair attracts over  125,000 arts enthusiasts.

Things to know:   

• 181 participating artists (includes 31 award winners)
• Up to $21,000 cash awards
• 2011 Cash sales $7557 (source: post event survey)
• $7568 (AFSB Net Avg Sales = Gross
  Gross Sales Minus Show Fees + $200 Per Diem Expenses)
• Artists Amenities: Free electricity, 24 hr security, free reserved parking, artists breakfast (awards breakfast)
• 10 x 10 booth spaces with 2" buffer on all sides 
• 5 Jurors - 3 artists (festival) one buyer, one gallery and or academic
• Jury Fee: $40
• Booth Fees; $625-$725

Fiber artist Sally Bright

The St. Louis Art Fair offers an affluent, educated and sophisticated audience at our show.  Research shows that of our 150,000+ patrons,  over half sustain incomes over $60,000 while over a quarter maintain  incomes in excess of $90,000.  Research also shows that nearly half of  our patrons are college educated or have received post-graduate degrees.

Please visit www.CulturalFestivals.com for more information or call 314-863-0278, email: info@culturalfestivals.com

To apply visit  www.Zapplication.org

(listed under Saint Louis Art Fair - notSt. Louis Art Fair)

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If you live in the Midwest the last weekend of January will lure you to Columbus, OH, where you will find the Art Studio Clearance Sale, sponsored the the well-regarded Ohio Designer Craftsmen. I've always wanted to go shop there and see this show especially since during the 80's and 90's, etc., we did many excellent art fairs with this organization at the Ohio State Fairgrounds, home of Winterfair, held on the first weekend of December.

It is nearly a four hour drive, but the need to know made me, and my friend Barb Burkhardt, set out in a snowstorm, even though early that morning she had dumped her car into a ditch. We left that car in the hands of her husband and the towing company and headed for the Indiana Toll Road. The need to attend an art fair is a strong motivation in our lives.

Luckily the weather lifted quickly and we made it to the Fairgrounds with ease. We met Sharon Kokot, director of the organization, at the door. The parking lot was full and people were carrying packages out the door. A good sign.

It was a nice building, unfortunately I didn't check out the load in and load out logistics (sorry Nels and Geoff), but no one complained to me and I saw lots of people I knew: Pat Bolgar, Lois Bosworth, Linda Chamberlain, Alice Ham, Mary Johnston, Peter Katke, Jeremy Keller, Michael Kifer, Kathy LeSeuer, Tom Michael, Bob Reiberg, Todd Richter, David Ross, Mark Schlabaugh, Becka Strachan and Stacy Hanlin Rohr.

They had food available to keep people in the building, but no bells and whistles, as you'd expect from a clearance sale.

Thanks for the good deal Mark!

Interested in a few more details? Here are a few quickie interviews with AFI members Linda Chamberlain, Stacy Hamlin Rohr and Mary Johnston:

If you are spending the evening in Columbus this is a great town for eating. We had a fabulous dinner at Marcella's Ristaurante in the Short North area on High Street: delicious martinis and their specialty authentic Italian dishes and wines.

The next day we headed downtown to visit the Columbus Arts Museum. There was an amazing crowd of people on a winter Sunday. Someone is doing excellent marketing. The museum had a Caravaggio exhibit and a very cool selection of modern art. Saw a Wegman that was jaw dropping.

Nearby we visited the home of James Thurber. This is where he wrote the "Secret Life of Walter Mitty."

Cool trip to Columbus and just the thing to cure a little winter cabin fever. Right - on the way home another snowstorm. C'est la vie.

I was just about ready to pitch today's Fort Myers News-Press when I saw this article on the front page that analyzes why FL tourists visit the Sunshine State and what lures them.  According to the article, visitors who are drawn by arts events are fewer than others (such as recreation), but they spend more money.

Read the article here.

September 1 & 2

Oakbrook Center

Oak Brook, Illinois

130 Artists

Deadline:
April 1 

Oakbrook  Center  is a premier outdoor shopping center located in the affluent  western  suburbs of Chicago. The Center features more than 160 fine  shops,  including Bloomingdale's Home and Furniture, Lord & Taylor,  Macy's, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, and Sears. All artists are located throughout the mall's walkways  among trees,  flowers, plants, waterfalls and fountains.

For over 45 years,  Oakbrook  Center has held both an  Invitational Fine Art Exhibition (September) and a Fine Craft Exhibition (July) offering  artists from all over the U.S an opportunity to display and  sell their  original work. Please note this change: we are combining these two events into one event where original work in all media will be included. We will no longer be hosting the July Fine Craft Exhibition.

This  is a  contemporary fine art exhibition. ONLY original work in design  and  concept is allowed. Thus, no imports or works made with the use  of  commercial kits, molds, patterns, plans, stencils, or  prefabricated  forms accepted. The  exhibition features live entertainment, free parking and admission.

Festival Facts:

• Jury Fee: $25
• Booth Fee:  $350
• Ribbon Awards:  $5,000+
• Attendance:  157,000
• Event is promoted extensively through various media outlets
• Friday evening and Saturday morning set-up
• Continental breakfast for exhibitors on both days

For additional information, please contact:

Oakbrook Center - Marketing Department

Suzanne Beres, Sr. Marketing Manager

Miriam Blumenthal, Associate Marketing Manager 630-573-0700, or oakbrookcenter@ggp.com

Please mail application and checks to:

Oakbrook Center

Attention:  Suzanne Beres

100 Oakbrook Center

       Oak Brook, IL  60523-1838

Checks Payable to:  Oakbrook Shopping Center LLC

Visiting Artist Cory McCrory clay artist will have her whimsical hand built pieces  and  Graydon Cafarella watercolor artist will have his award winning paintings up for sale.  Each will be demonstrating their talent live for you to see and ask questions; along with Sycamore Art Attacks co-op artists.  We will have food and beverage available and basket raffle must be present to win.  Don't miss out on such a rich experience of different styles of art coming together in one place. 

  Sycamore Art Attack is an non-for-profit art school and we have a co-op artist gallery.  We are located 215 W. Elm St. Sycamore Il.  You can contact us at sycamoreartattack@comcast.net. 

I subscribe to a lot of blogs, but only a few of them are by local people here in San Diego, or people that I know personally.  I don't know why, I just don't know a lot of people that are into blogging...  I can't say it's impacted my life much---with the internet it doesn't really matter if you're local or not.  You can read about the trials and tribulations of people on the other side of the world!

But this one artist here in San Diego posted a series of articles on his blog about his personal art collection, and how it's displayed in his home.  His name is John Purlia, and he's a photographer.  But he has a substantial collection of a variety of different art pieces that he has hung in different rooms in his house. His collection really reflects his personality and interests, and it's absolutely gorgeous!   He even shares images of his collection on his website.

John takes us on a tour of his residence through a multi-day series of posts with photographs of his walls and interiors, with interesting stories of his collection.

And that got me thinking of others that I've known who own art pieces, and how they display it.  I had a landlord that bought art not because it would work with some "interior design" he was trying to accomplish but simply because the work intrigued him and he liked to look at it.  I think, bottom line, that a collector has to feel some sort of connection to a piece if they're going to display it in their home--otherwise they might as well seal it in a packing crate and put it in storage to try and collect value over time...  Art is, I think, meant to be enjoyed and seen.

It also got me thinking about the famous artist, Fred Babb, who created a painting that said, "Good Art Won't Match Your Sofa".

But this train of thought ultimately led me to contemplate the role of Wearable Art in our lives.  Because of our cultural milieu, art that is wearable isn't often considered in the same "category" as Fine Art (or that which can be defined as a sculpture or painting or some other piece with no other purpose but to be Art).  Because wearable art has a functional side as well as an artistic side, it is somehow considered less "pure" by most critics in the western art world--it's very utilitarianism defeats it's attempts to be artistic.  Because it's sometimes not considered as artistic as a painting, it's not held in the high regard that Fine Art might be, and is less sought after as collectors items.  Being less easy to define,  we don't recognize as much Wearable Art in our lives.

Fashion is collectable in part because of it's construction, but also because it was designed by a famous brand well known for accomplishment in the fashion world.  The pieces aren't necessarily collected for their aesthetics, but for their originating designer names.  I'm over-simplifying, of course, and shouldn't generalize everything into one lump.  There are exceptions.

But can the argument be made that Wearable Art probably wouldn't have the caché that something like Fine Art would have if displayed in one's living room?  I can't recall anyone in my life that actually displays, on a mannequin, any of their wearable art collection in their home.  It often lives in a closet if they even own any pieces.  We have hundreds of thousands of framing stores all across the country, but where are the commensurate stores for dress form displays for one's home?  Do we, as a culture, put any emphasis on displaying our wearable art collection like we do our collections of knickknacks, chotchkies, china plates, or wall hangings?

There is one significant distinction between Fine Art and Wearable Art:  Wearable Art is portable.  It goes with you.  You literally bring your collection of favorites to wherever your destination is instead of inviting others to your home where it is displayed.  In some respects, your body is the museum.  It is an opportunity to be a walking gallery.  It is a moveable collection.

So my question for you is:  Do you use your body for display of your favorite pieces?  Do you share with others your collection?  How do you display it?

And as an artist, do you embrace the opportunities you have to share your work by wearing it?  Do you take the chance to become your own gallery?  If you are embarrassed to wear your own work, how can you expect others to not be embarrassed to wear it when they buy it from you?

Food for thought.  Live Life with Relish!

June 16 & 17
San Rafael, California
By the Lagoon
At the Marin Center Fairgrounds
10am-6pm
250 exhibitors
Deadline: April 1

The Marin Art Festival is our county's lawn party for the arts and "one of the most beautiful out door art festivals in the nation."  The event now in its 16th year features work from over 250 artists from across the globe.  The festival will host an artist preview and silent auction as well as continue it's popular hourly raffle for "art bucks", $100 towards the purchase of art with participating artists. 

The festival is full of color and surprise and offers a unique line up of entertainment including hands-on art projects for children, and live music featuring some of the best Bay Area bands.  As is tradition, Taiko drumming starts off the festival each morning.  This year's Master Artist is landscape painter Kathleen Lipinski.

Noteworthy:

• "The Most Beautiful Art Festival in America"  Event takes place by the lake in the Marin Civic Center Complex designed by Frank Lloyd-gorgeous vistas in every direction.
• The event is promoted to Marin residents who have taste and means.
• Extensive print, radio, TV and social media promotional campaign.
• Attendance is up towards 15,000.
• Major food experience with sit-down dining and student waiters.  Includes the Great Marin Oyster Fest.
• Limited to 250 juried artists.  From as far away as New York, Louisiana, Texas, Norway and Niger, Africa.
• Space Fee includes the white tent canopy, artists spaces are 10x10 and are grouped four to a tent and every space is a corner.
• Exhibitors are requested to spill out 3-4 feet outside their space to create a bazaar-like environment.
• Exhibitors can rent panels, umbrella tables & chairs and they will be in your space when you arrive.
• Music and dance stages are low-key and do not hinder artists to customer sales talk.
• Jury/Booth Fees: $25/$700

For more information and to apply: www.marinartfestival.com    

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Looking for more art fairs for your art fair season? Visit www.CallsforArtists.com

While lots of artists were enjoying the windy weather at Gasparilla, we did the Venice Art Fest with H.A.E. They did their usual good job of organizing, advertising and being on site. Setup there is a breeze (no pun intended) as long as you don't mind doing it at 5am. Quality of the work was very good and the crowds came out on Sat. Sun morning dawned with grey skies and wind. We were fortunate to have buildings across from us which shielded some of the winds. Anyway folks did come out around 11 when the sun did it's appearance. It seems that the same virus affecting sales in Sarasota has spread south to Venice. While there were many folks on the streets, they were not spending much on art. Our sales were very disapointing as we have done well here through the years. Just when we were thinking things might be getting better in FL we have 2 poor shows in a row to bring us back to reality. Go figure. Anyway a few of us had a nice diner at a local eatery on Sat night and shared stories of days gone by. 5 more Florida shows for us, do hope they are better.

Opening his studio in 1982, Jay McDougall's early years were spent designing and building original pieces of furniture. His sculpted wall pieces and vessels are the distillation of a career spent pursuing economy of line and form. Carved exclusively from Minnesota hardwoods the sensuous shapes call forth the rolling curves that flow as easily as the undulating hills around Fergus Falls, MN, where he lives and works, collecting logs and transforming them into cherished collectables.

Jay says:

A writer for Fine Woodworking Magazine, Jay also has garnered numerous national awards for excellence in his field  and was selected as a 2008 McKnight Foundation Fellowship recipient.  Today's discriminating contemporary craft collectors can find Jay's work  in the nation's most prestigious venues for acquisition. Read more here.

This month find Jay and his fine woodworking in LaQuinta, CA, at the LaQuinta Arts Festival, March 8-11.

We attended the Gilmore Shows, Inc Craftsman's Classic in Columbia SC March 2-4, 2012.  Load in and out was fairly easy with parking just feet from the door.  The entrance we used was a tight fit (standard door width) so we had to be careful how the hand truck was loaded.  Friday was painful.  I did not talk to a single artist that had much in the way of sales.  Saturday was better.  Nothing to be excited about but at least getting closer to covering expenses.  By the close on Sunday we finally covered expenses (just barely).  Show fees (booth and a half), electricity, gas, hotel, cost to produce - it adds up. The good news is we made black again.  Not much for four days work for two people plus the time for me to get the inventory ready.  Some day maybe I will be able to pay for time on task.  In the meantime we are still enjoying the shows and seeing our other artist friends and exploring other communities.  I am addicted to all the accolades even when they don't buy.  Last year this show brought in more $$ than any show I had done to date.  Others also said it was a great show last year.  No one had an answer as to the downturn this year.  Weather was not great with severe thunderstorm threat Saturday and lots of wind.  Sunday was cold (local standards) with wind.  It is an indoor show so I thought it would help bring people to the show since is was not a nice outdoor day.  Maybe they were just keeping their hands in their pockets to keep them warm. ;-)  I think this one is worth doing again.  It is a good location with lots of advertising.  Our next show is March 17.  It is a little local show (37 booths and about  7 to 10,000 shoppers) one hour from home - St. Patrick's Festival in Dublin, GA. 

Busy busy busy! getting ready fro the upcoming season. I have so many ideas ( a good thing ) but finding time to accomplish everything....one project at a time I suppose. Compiling jewelry pieces and crafts on the weekends. Also every spare evening I sit down and paint...currently finishing up a commissioned project of a portrait, a young boy & girl from the 1930'S hope to be completed soon!