For those of you who are intrigued about what happens in cities before the big shows descend on them you'll find this article from the Royal Oak Tribune interesting. It is all about where residents and visitors will park during Arts, Beats & Eats, which is held on Labor Day weekend and draws 100's of 1000's of people to Royal Oak's downtown. Not only is the show promoter, Jon Witz, involved in the street layout, so is the Oakland County Executive, the mayor, the residents, the business people...this is a big deal.

• Who wins?
• Where will the show be this year?
• How much will the parking tickets cost?
• Who gets the revenue?
• What streets will be used? ...makes you glad to set up and get out of town with some fat pockets, doesn't it?

Residents defend festival parking: http://www.dailytribune.com/articles/2011/03/03/news/doc4d7054514fc76792252001.txt?viewmode=fullstory

    Last year's setup for Gasparilla 2010 was by all accounts a disaster.  It was their first year in the park and the fire marshall threw the staff a curve at the last minute by restricting access to the setup area.  Some artist even left before setting up and did not return.  

    The staff took the complaints very seriously and and this year the situation could not have been more different.   In past Gasparillas, the sign in time was seven in the evening (or was it six?).  Lines of people would be waiting, ready to go, staring at the volunteers sitting behind the packet boxes, who were staring back defiantly until the second hand hit seven.  Then the rush was on.  

     When the show was moved to the park the setup window remained the same.  Combined with the above described variables it turned out to be a mess.  So I'm told.  

     This year, instead of opening the setup on Friday evening, it was started two full days ahead of time.  Since all the spaces are off the street and out of traffic, there is no reason the tents can't be set up that far ahead of time to spread out the setup traffic.  As a result this year's setup was like being on a different planet.  

They had given an actual address for gps that got us right to the sign in and staging area where we were supposed to meet.  it was roughly an acre field (about a mile and a half drive from the show) on the edge of a neighborhood where they had the sign-in tent set up.  There was plenty of parking and everyone lined up ready to pull out and take their spots in the convoy to the show site when called.  When it was time to go they lined us up (it was easy and quickly done) and the lead car pulled out.  Unlike Atlanta Dogwood, which had a similar system, there was no motorcycle escort.  That seemed a recipe for disaster since our convoy would certainly be broken up by traffic lights.  It was.  As soon as we cleared the light, however, there was a big blinking rental sign that directed us to the next turn.  Then there was another sign at the next turn.  After that there were live people positioned to direct us.

     When we got to the park, it was obvious why this could not be done without close direction.  Although the lanes leading into the park were two way, the lanes leading out weren't.  The staff had to work with fire lanes laid out by the fire marshall and the loss of a loading lane that was left open for rush hour traffic.  We came in on a single lane reserved for artist traffic.  It would have taken only one stray van to cause massive traffic jams on Ashley.  One more stray van would have blocked all the other artists from setting up. In many shows having all the vans stray works itself out nicely.  This ain't one of them.

    We stopped our vehicles next to the grass area (NO vehicles on the grass, thanks) and started the land rush.  We had two hours on Thursday to dump and remount for the drive out (Friday you get an hour.  Its enough.)  We even had time to get unloaded and get our tent and panels set up before they called for us to move out.  The staff members helped some of the artists with unloading and setup(!).  They were at all times courteous, professional, and downright friendly.  They kept us posted on how much time we had left. It was the most relaxed, stress free setup we have had in recent memory.

     As soon as we were pulling out another line came in right behind us.  The precision with which the whole thing was done would have been amazing for a tenth year show.  This was the first time they had used this system.  Setup itself was relaxed, uncrowded, and there was plenty of room to spread your stuff out around your spot before organizing it into a show ready booth.  Spaces were twelve feet wide.  Storage space seems generous.

     You'd better make sure you have everything trucked in that you can't carry because artist parking is not very close and you only get one shot bringing your vehicle in before the show.  The lot we will be parking in is a fifteen minute walk away.

      Now let's hope the crowds are ready to buy something besides corn dogs.

Hope I am not too late in getting this out to all of you doing Gasparilla this weekend.  In Ybor City where I live is a great restaurant that does $2 martinis from 11 am-7pm daily.  They also do 50% off all entree prices from 4-7 pm daily.  The restaurant is called Berninis.  It is one block from my house on 17th street and 7th avenue, which is the main drag in Ybor.

Jason Fernandez the owner has been running this recession-fighter deal for almost two years now.  Any drink made with Finlandia vodka is only $2 from 11am-7pm daily.  It can be a martini, a screwdriver, a Black Russian, if Finlandia is in it it is only $2.

This is a primo high end Italian restaurant that does everything perfect and yummy.  So, all entrees and pastas are half price from 4-7 pm daily.

For instance, you can get a veal chop for $14 instead of $28.  A filet would be $14, a pork ossobuco is cheaper than that.  You can't go wrong with this place, and they take reservations.

Just thought this might be a great place for some of you.  Ellen and I eat lunch there three times a week.

Oh, by the way, I just got a call to do the show this weekend.  Gee no golf tomorrow.  Boo hoo.

This is a very useful, down to earth, letter from a woman who runs an art fair in northern Michigan. What I especially like about it is this:

• this is not a nationally ranked show, much like most shows around the country
• the tips are very pragmatic
• it is a great example of what many smaller art fairs should be saying to their applicants

READ ON and LEARN:

I'm sending this to everyone who applied this year, so don't take it personally unless you think you might need to.

We did our jury last night and I have a few comments about image quality.   The whole jury process is very competitive and this should probably go without saying, but I'll say it anyway.  IMAGE QUALITY MATTERS!

Some of you have been sending the same images for quite a few years.  If you have new work, we'd like to see it. 

A few of you sent images that were the wrong size.  Pay attention.  If you send us things that are too small to be seen, it's not helpful to you.

A few of you just sent bad images.  Getting professional photos of your work done is very expensive, I know.  It may not be necessary, but you do need to make sure that the things you send are of good quality.  You have a lot of competition.

I'm going to talk mostly about the booth slides.  I sent out an email to many of you last year and it was obvious that you listened.  Thank you.  It's not important to me that your booth shots be good, but it's VERY important to you.

If you have new work, we need to see a newer booth shot.

The booth shot represents your whole body of work.  If your booth shot is blurry or messy looking...
We try to do a blind jury, so would prefer that neither your name nor your face appear in the shot.
The jurors see four images.  If they see three amazing pieces and then something different in the booth shot, it WILL affect your scoring.  Perhaps you did three really great things in grad school or three great pieces this year.  We need the booth shot to be representative of the work you will be bringing to this year's show.  If there is a disparity between what we see in the booth and the other images, the jurors can't help but wonder.  Some of you just need to update.

The prize for worst booth shot this year goes to someone named David.   Perhaps you know who you are.

We really want to see you do well - we care.

Good luck to you all - responses should go out next week - Donna

Many thanks to Mike Barnes for forwarding this excellent letter to me. He gets the first AFI bumper sticker!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dV5QyrqNjII

This year was our 15th year and Jon Hecker put together this video using my little non-video camera. Without our artists there wouldn't be a show!!!

Visit: www.CallsforArtists.com today!

BEST OF THE BEST WINNERS - Coconut Grove Arts Festival

BEST OF THE BEST - Duncan McClellan (Glass)

BEST BOOTH - Kimberly Coy

BEST POSTER DESIGN - Guy Harvey (Painting)

CLAYWORK
1st - William Kidd
2nd - Elisabeth Maurland
3rd - Michael Schwegmann

JEWELRY & METALWORK
1st - Fred Tate
2nd - Kate Rothra Fleming
3rd - Sue Brown Gordon

DIGITAL ART
1st - Carolina Cleere
2nd - Beau Tudzarov
3rd - Daryl Thetford

MIXED MEDIA
1st - David McKirdy
2nd - Chris Bruno
3rd - Kathrine Allen-Coleman

FIBER
1st - Starr Hagenbring
2nd - Amos Amit
3rd - Kate Bishop
3rd - Xiao Song Jiang

PAINTING
1st - Yu Zhou
2nd - Christopher Castelli
3rd - Xiao Song Jiang

GLASS
1st - Scott Gamble
2nd - James Wilbat
3rd - Todd Cameron

PHOTOGRAPHY

WATERCOLOR
1st - Marylin Valiente
2nd - Jim Holehouse
3rd - Vonnie Witworth

PRINTMAKING & DRAWING

1st - Leslie Peebles

2nd - Chia Haruta

3rd - Lynn Libby

WOOD
1st - Mark & Carolyn Reynolds
2nd - Joel Hunnicutt
3rd - Grant Ward
3rd - Gino Miles

SCULPTURE

1st - Nnamdi Okonkwo

2nd - Paul Freundt

3rd - Gino Miles

2011 NAPLES NATIONAL ART FESTIVAL AWARD WINNERS

Best of Show – Mark Sudduth, Glass
Best 2D – Ron Phillips, 2D Mixed Media
Best 3D – Marc Sijan, Sculpture

Award of Distinction 2D
    Jon Smith, Painting
    Cali Hobgood-Lemme
    Clifton Henri, Photography
    Michael Chen, Photography
    Yu Zhou, Painting

Award of Distinction 3D
    Don Nibert, Ceramics
    Tom Ahern, 3D Mixed Media
    Mark Reynolds, Wood
    Kristine Holeman, Jewelry
    Michael Gard, Metal

Congratulations to our members winning the prizes in February!

The Key West Art Show has been ably covered in recent posts, so I thought I would add some photos to share with you all.  Enjoy.  Below is a mural on a coffehouse there.  Then a shot at the show.  Then a bougenvillia shot, they are blooming everywhere.  Next, inside Pepe's, my favorite restaurant.  Across the street is BO's where his truck always sits.  Then, how much is that dog in the window?  Then up to Islamorada for palms and sunset.

Artist Robert C. Barab Jr., 68, died Feb. 27, 2011, at home.

He was the beloved husband of Trilla Ramage of Hampton, VA, father of Sasha Barab of Bloomington, IN, and son of the late Lucille and Robert C. Barab Sr. Robert was born in Wilmington, DE, Dec. 3, 1942.

An artist, he was an award-winning fine art photographer who traveled the world to find beauty and share it through his images: http://www.robertbarab.com/ (www.robertbarab.com). Prior to his career in photography he was also an award-winning jewelry designer and maker. A graduate of Goddard College with a BA in creative writing, at the time of his death, he was completing a novel.

He is survived by his wife and son, as well as two brothers,Peter Barab of Portland, OR, and Drew Barab of Denver, CO.  He also is survived by his daughter-in-law Anna Arici Barab and grandsons, Julian Barab, Andrew Barab and Trey Barab, all of Bloomington.

Friends may call 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Porte Fellowship Hall, St. James United Methodist Church, 1533 W. Queen  St., Hampton, VA 23669.  Services will be private.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to: The Robert Barab Memorial Fund in c/o St. James United Methodist Church, 1533 W. Queen St., Hampton, VA 23669.

Robert was part of the art fair world for many years. His large scenic photographs were part of many of the nation's top art festivals. He was a gentle man with an inquiring mind and always a great neighbor at an art fair. Robert will be missed by many in our business.

     This morning I was sitting by the fire, watching the snow fall outside my window, and thinking about relevant content for this months newsletter for my arts and crafts guild. Suddenly, I was struck by a random thought, “who coined the phrase Arts and Crafts?”

     I suppose you could say my medium is pine cones. I love working with them to create a wreath or an ornament. Debra has a knack for creating beautiful jewelry designs with beads, while Lida turns a piece of denim and a few beads into a stunning handbag or jacket.Others paint, carve, weave, and knit. If there is a material – - i.e., wood, iron, wax, charcoal, or clay – there is an art or a craft waiting to be created.

     In pioneer days many of these“arts” and “crafts” were simple necessities. There was no local WalMart. If you needed a plate you found a board and cut it down to size. Clothing? An empty flour sack would make a fine shirt. But I wondered, when was wood carving or painting first referred to as “art” and sewing and bead work labeled “craft”?

     In my Arts and Crafts Guild there are are many talented artists and crafters who work with many different mediums. Bob weaves baskets. Marla makes quilts. Ruthellen paints portraits. Some build birdhouses, while others make nativity ornaments from pop sickle sticks and transform tea cups into pin cushions.

     For millions of years people have created things with their hands, borne of necessity or enjoyment; cave man formed weapons from rocks, while cave woman strung rocks on a reed to adorn the neck; today known as necklaces. How did these numerous and varied things that we do come to collectively be called “Arts and Crafts”? I went to my computer to investigate.

     If you've studied art formally, then I guess you already know that the term was first used in 1861 to name a movement. Somehow this discovery did not surprise me. It seemed only natural that the arts and crafts movement was begun in an effort to improve the tastes of the Victorian public, by an English designer named William Morris. The industrial Age had led way to machines doing the work of man, and quality became lost in mass production. By the mid-19^th century factories had almost entirely driven artisans away from their skills. Morris hoped to overcome the inferior quality of industrially produced decorative arts by promoting a return to medieval style craftsmanship.

     The movement was started to set the values of nature against the artificiality of modern life, and grew to encompass architecture, furniture design and almost every medium. From this arts and crafts movement sprang the first Arts and Crafts Guilds, such as The Gild and School of Handicraft of London, started in 1888. Although these early Guilds encompassed much more than what we think of in terms of arts and crafts today as they developed into such areas as complete house design, home redecorating, and even bookmaking, yet the aim was not unlike the arts and crafts guilds of today: to seek to set a higher standard of craftsmanship and protect the status of the craftsman.

     Arts and Crafts Guilds have evolved greatly since the 1800's to become what they are now. However, in many ways the arts and crafts movement of 1861 still equates to the artisan and craft groups of today, such as the Pine-Strawberry Arts and Crafts Guild, whose members find value in the craftsmanship of a hand-made item over one created in an assembly line.

     Although shoppers of the 21^stcentury will rush to the discount stores for the factory-made “bargain of the day”, there will always be free-thinkers. Those who like their predecessors who followed in the foot-steps of William Morris, have an appreciation for the quality and originality of hand-made arts and crafts, and a respect for those who make them. These discriminate shoppers will flock to the nations arts and crafts festivals and delight in the wide array of hand-made treasures that await them.

     Having completed my research and satisfied my curiosity as to the origin of the term arts and crafts, and content with my findings, I slipped into my factory-made jacket (only$20 atWalMart), and went outside to shovel the snow.

The Weather was wonderful. Saturday started great, good crowd lots of interest, people talking about the big ones. This has been one of my favorite shows since 1981. By Sunday some artists did well others not so good. Jewelers and some woodworkers were happy. Me? Add this year of dismal sales to the last few for this show. Why? Previously there was a local’s patron buying program that was apparently discontinued; usually I went home with a few of those, so that is one difference.  I seldom get to view a show, so took a little time to see what was in the booths around me this year. I would have to say not enforcing the show rules could be the big culprit in my dwindling paycheck. I choose the shows I apply to by the rules as stated in the show prospectus. It says you must not have more than ten linear feet of "FRAMED" reproductions hanging and the total number of reproductions may not exceed 50% of everything you have. As a Painter with only original paintings it's hard to compete with unlimited numbers of inexpensive Reproductions.  The Reproductions were supposed to be clearly marked as such. WOW, if anyone was asked to leave because they were in violation of the rules I didn't hear about it. One painter had ONE original in their whole booth, and freely admitted it. Everything else was marked Print, not Reproduction. Another had four originals total, of work that appeared to be old and a booth and a half space filled with Giclee. Another oil painter had ALL walls filled with perhaps a few framed originals and massive numbers of uneditioned, unmarked, Reproductions. Every wall of his booth had unframed reproductions hung. These kinds of violations need to be addressed by the committee, find some knowledgeable people to police and enforce your rules. I realize the show director is busy putting out fires during a show but a volunteer could easily observe the violations I noted. Based on earlier blogs, the volunteer would need to check each day as there are cheaters who find it good business to change out their display after judging or the review committee has walked through. If the director doesn't want to take the heat of removing rule breakers after asking for compliance use the committee to do it. Rules are rules.

Speaking of Editioning, this show doesn't require it. Just the labeling of Reproductions as Reproductions as I mentioned unenforced.  I realize there are different theories about how it's done and that the editioning of Photography started as a marketing ploy but surly there are "some" standards. I've seen this in "Painters" booths also so the following practice is not unique to photographers. You see an image, it is numbered and editioned, and then you see the image in a different size. It again is numbered and editioned; you realize the editions have different edition sizes. What? Then you go on to see smaller versions same image, 10x12, 8x10, 5x7 same title, no editioning at all. Apparently once you get below a certain size it doesn't count? Give me a break. This is wrong. Shows should protect their reputations and the public by not allowing unscrupulous practices. Either it's editioned (set number) or it's an open edition. When art is editioned, the customer anticipates that their copy represents one example of the total number. Changing the size, hand coloring, adding extra paint does not constitute a separate new edition it constitutes a variation within the edition. Painting on a reproduction does not make it original, it is a hand colored reproduction. The traditional usage of A/P (artists proof), and P/P (printers proof) have to do with the printing process. These are prints that are pulled as the colors are being adjusted to get the artists desired outcome,  “under the supervision of the artist.” Generally they do not exactly match the approved edition. Publishers have subverted that practice, to give the artist a few (god knows how many now) prints of his own in addition to the "Editioned" prints the publisher has been authorized to pull and sell.

Well, I just brushed the dust from my teeth and can now write this review.  Unfortunately, getting the dust off my clothes, booth, pedestals, and, pots is another story.  It's time to buy a case of canned air.  Maybe my next show will be windy and it will blow it all into the next booth.  This show is divided into 4 sections, but really it breaks down into 2 sections.  The lucky ones get to display on the street and the rest of us poor slobs have to be in the park, where they put down some sort of chips that break down when stepped on, piled up, tripped over, and kicked on everything.  This puts a layer of dust on everything, which makes everyone cough, hack, and wheeze.  Not to worry though.  You don't really notice it until you break down your booth and notice the fine film of dust on everything.  Fortunately, if you are on the street you don't have this problem.  I'd like to say that they reserve the best artists for the street, but, I didn't find that to be the case.  The quality is evenly distributed throughout the show, with the usual number of excellent work, really bad work(How did they get in the show?) and some buy/sell. I can't really say that what I saw was actually b/s.  To me, if it looks like it was machine made or mass produced, what is the difference? What used to make our shows unique is that the work was hand-made and looked hand-made.

The Skinny: Load in and breakdown was a pleasant experience.  Exhibitors booths are broken down into 4 section and each section has a 3 hour arrival time.  You have to register at a booth in a huge field and then drive a designated path, a few blocks away, to your area.  Once you arrive, there are people to guide you in to a parking spot.  I found it to be very civilized.  There are plenty of people to help you unload, for a negotiated fee, and they will even help you set up your booth.  I paid $10.  Some paid more.  Some people didn't pay anything.  Once you unload your booth, you have to drive back to the parking area and take a shuttle to your booth to set it up.  They don't allow vans into the park to mess up the a fore mentioned mulch on the ground.  People on the street have the last setup time and they can drive right to their booths and unload and set up.  Some people find this annoying.  I kind of liked the way it's done.  In the morning of the show, everyone has to park in the field and shuttle in.  The shuttles run continuously and often.  I'll bet you are thinking that breakdown is a real problem with everyone trying to get in at once and get out of there as fast as possible.  After all it is Naples. Surprisingly, breakdown is also civilized.  You can only get a pass to drive in after you've broken down your booth. Since people take different times to breakdown,  I'm very slow, getting a parking space to load is no problem. Unlike other shows, where the help disappears at breakdown, there was plenty of help loading.  You could take your time while leaving. The shuttles run until 10PM on closing so, if you wanted to, you could go eat dinner and come back.

The show is 10-5 both Saturday and Sunday.  I would like to see the show go a little later on Saturday.  Hey, we are here already. The weather was great, again. 80 degrees and sunny. No wind. The crowds were good, not great.  Unfortunately, sales were not good for most people I talked to.  Some people said they had a good show.  A lot of people had one good day and it wasn't the same day for everyone.  My first day was pretty good and my second day was virtually none existent.  For others, Saturday was bad and Sunday was good.  One jeweler friend did $6000 and was very happy. She was on the street.  Another potter friend had a zero show until the last 5 minutes and then sold a nice piece.  The people around me weren't selling.  I'm sure there were exhibitors that goose egged.  A glass blower friend, again on the street, did $6000.  I only talked to a few people and we need to hear from others as to how they did.  I was down about 30% from last year, which was my first year doing the show.  Would I come back next year? Probably, but I look at it from an economic perspective. Since I am already here, my initial costs have been spent. So, as long as I take in more money than what I am spending at the show, I would do it.  For the economically inclined, marginal revenue has to either equal or be greater than marginal costs. 

Btw, you may get the idea that being on the street is better than being in the park.  I'm not sure that is true.  Most people get around to whole show.  You can ask for a space on the street, but, getting one is a random act, unless you've supported this show with your presence and have an established space on the street, like some of my friends.  Once you get your space assignment, you can just about forget moving.  The people that run the show, do not like to inundated with space change requests.  That's just may be my opinion and I may be wrong about that. If someone asked for and got a space change, I'd like to know about it.

There are two things I would like to see different at the Naples National.  The first one is I would like to see the booth sitters offer the option to go for food and drink instead of baby sitting my booth.  In today's climate it is really important to be at your booth as much as possible. You don't know when someone is going to be the customer that makes your show.  I talked the booth sitter into going to the deli across the street to get me a sandwich.  While she was gone a customer came back and purchased a piece. I would not have had that sale if I had gone for the food.  The second thing I would like to see changed is the "entertainment."  During the prime selling time, from 12-3PM there was a 12 year old American Idol reject, with a somewhat screechy voice singing show tunes and (gag me) Justin Bieber tunes.  Now, I'm sure her parents and grandparents, and a lot of older folks that make up the Naples demographic, really though she was fantastic.  But I, and a lot of artists close to the stage, found her distracting, at best.  It is my belief that, at an art fair, the music should be complimentary to the art and not another one of the myriad of distractions that these events are adding to the shows.  At a national event where exhibitors are coming from long distances and spending an increasingly greater amount of money, the artwork should be the main focus of the event and every effort should be made to create a favorable selling/buying atmosphere.  Keep the distractions to a minimum.  That would be most respectful and greatly appreciated, by us.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.  If I've forgotten something please feel free to ask or add to this post.

In another five minutes, I'd have clicked "Send" on my Zapplication for Howard Alan's Stuart (FL) show, when my cell phone rang.  On the other end of the line was Naples National show director Marianne Megela, who informed me that a spot opened up from the waitlist and did I want to be in this year's National? 

I weighed the pros and cons for about a nanosecond. Or would have, had there been any cons to consider. Then I said yes.  And as events proved out, it was the right call.

This show (#8 festival in the nation) met all expectations: Great weather, large and knowledgeable crowds, phenomenal sales, and a friendly, helpful corps of volunteers: from the parking lot attendants at Friday setup to the former furniture mover for Allied who not only took charge of my long, long dolly from site to vehicle, but inspired me with his story of recovery from drug and alcohol addiction. 

The show's meticulously organized game plan is detailed on their website, and you're expected to have read it thoroughly before arrival (I did).  Setup is all day Friday, but it's organized by "zone" (which is determined by your booth number and location).  I arrived on time at 11 AM for checkin, got my "zone pass" and packet, and was quickly directed to curbside parking on the west side of Cambier Park, from which it was about a 50-yard dolly along paved pathways to my booth location in the center of the park's tree-lined main walkway.  (The park itself is just a block from Naples' 5th Avenue, which hosts a number of shows during season.)  Bright-vested volunteers, some equipped with headsets, were everywhere to help out.

Show protocol calls for you to fully unload, then drive back to the check-in/Artist Parking area and return by shuttle bus to complete setup, although I was allowed to stay curbside since things weren't yet busy.  The shuttles ran continuously (with pickup every 20 minutes) but I had mixed luck with them: Some of the drivers drove around the park as if they, themselves, had a bus to catch, and didn't look around or slow down unless you were waiting right at the curb to intercept them.  No matter: I was empty-handed, and it was only a 12-minute walk back to the lot.

Both days had near-perfect weather (in contrast to last year's cold rain and wind), and the crowds didn't let up all day Saturday.  Sunday's attendance was a bit lower, by all reports, but still heavy on buyers--my sales were actually higher on Sunday.  I was working solo so didn't have much time to interview other artists, but everyone I did speak to were satisfied..even the painter of spectacular African wildlife near me, who zeroed on Saturday, wasn't daunted: she's done the show for years and has a steady clientele in the area.

I came early on Sunday to grab some hospitality muffins and coffee and then walked as much of the show as I could.  The show's main traffic areas are 6th Ave S, on the east side of the park, and the east-west thorough of the park itself.  Some artists were set up on looping connector walkways, and I overheard a few of them talking about being in "dead zones" with lighter pedestrian traffic. 

On such a sunny, warm day--it was in the low-to-mid 80s--it was a bonus to be in the park, under trees.  The streetside booths were unshaded and artists and customers alike said it was pretty darn hot, despite gentle breezes.  The one downside of the park location: You were set up on sand and grass.  If you were on uneven terrain, the crew brought over mulch to level things out, but there was nothing you could do about the dust and grime.  The tent and rugs are going to need a long hosing this week.

As you'd expect the caliber of work was top-notch.  It was great to see so many bags being carried around, and --I gotta be honest!--especially that a fair share of them came from me.

Volunteers brought around breakdown instructions on mid-day Sunday: Basically a repeat of the Friday performance.  A number of large, generator-powered light poles were brought into to illuminate the grounds during teardown--a nice and no doubt expensive touch.  I was directed to the opposite side of the park, though, which meant a dolly of around 200 yards around curving, dark walkways.  Without the help of my volunteer from Allied, I'd probably still be dollying.  He worked his butt off to help me load, and we got everything to the van in three trips and half an hour.  Definitely worth the $30 I offered him!

The Naples Art Association has another show (Mercato) at the other end of town this coming weekend, and after a day at the beach to rewind I'll start gearing up for that one.  If you are lucky enough to do the National next year, bring plenty of inventory, a helper, cleaning supplies, and an industrial-strength dolly.  And with luck, you'll be needing that dolly to load out your cash drawer. 

All that said: I'm just one artist, and it was a big show.  How did YOU make out??

Around the country erotic art shows are popping up all over. There is one in Detroit where the visitors stand in line in the cold to get in. Really. I've also heard about a good one in Seattle. But this week in Florida don't miss "Tampa's Nude Nite", March 3-5.

Do you suppose there is a dress code?

From TampaBay.com and the St. Petersburg Times:

Tampa's Nude Nite art show bares all

This year's theme is "Victorian steampunk," a style that incorporates elements of fantasy and innovation from a 19th-century perspective on fashion, culture and architecture. Expect feathered costumes, chicken wire gowns and skin-baring Victorian-style models.

The March 3-5 event will include 160 artists — double the participation of Tampa's first Nude Nite in 2009. Artwork by painters, photographers and sculptors will focus on the body beautiful in the buff. Stilt walkers, jugglers and other character artists will create a bazaar-like atmosphere.

Are any of you participating? or have any of you participated in one of these events?