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OK, I’ve fallen behind a couple of days and peeps, I had a couple of hairy nights and Expo had the Gala last night, which I’ll write about in a separate post.  Suffice it to say, I may not have been writing, but I’m collecting a ton of material...onto Charles, today’s Peep!

Charles came into the art world because of a terrible accident which nearly ended his life.  Despite the fact that it ended a very successful career as a high-end carpenter, he says he would “relive the accident a thousand times” because it opened up a new life for him.  One look at his work and you can understand why: these beautiful forms couldn’t come out of a two-by-four! Organic, flowing, full of movement, the wood comes alive, this in purple heartwood and maple:

I wish I could do the wood grain justice with my camera for this mahogany piece:

Although he has patiently explained to me the intricate process of transforming a 2-D drawing into a 3-D sculpture, I still can’t wrap my mind around it.  It looks ingenious to my2-D artist eyes.  This is a piece in the making:

 Here's Charles with his sculptures to give you an idea of the size.

See more of Charles’ work at: envisionsbytaube.com

Jeff Condon's paintings at the Krasl Art Fair - a beautiful July day on the shores of Lake Michigan




Sun setting over the Bluff in St. Joe in February

On Friday morning (February 4) I was in St. Joe, MI, to assist in the jurying of the 50th Annual Krasl Art Fair on the Bluff along with four other jurors that included veteran artist Jerry Berta and art professionals associated with the Krasl Art Center. Director Sara Shambarger has been on the job here for 16 years and knows how to run a jury and is very explicit about following all the rules. She uses Zapplication and insures that there is a comfortable setting and enough technical equipment so that every applicant gets a fair chance. We all had laptops linked to a Mac Mini and the images were projected on five screens. (These details are included because I don't want Nels bugging me about set up, etc.) ;)

It is hard to jury into this show because approximately 50% of it is filled with pre-juried artists, chosen by the judges from the previous summer's street jurying. This information is spelled out in the prospectus. 95 artists will be returning leaving approximately 120 openings for the 2011 show. Because of their date (smack in the middle of the biggest art fair weekend of the year) they also have a wait list of 100+, to insure a good looking show in case some of the applicants choose to go to Madison, Cain Park, Plymouth or State College.

There were 861 applications, 157 more than last year. Sara said she thought it was because she did more outreach, advertising for artists to apply. I think it was partly that but more than likely because of the great word-of-mouth from artists who were happy with their sales in 2010, plus these good reviews here "Krasl Art Fair", "Back to the Future" by Barry Bernstein and "Krasl Art Fair on the Bluff" by Leo Charette surely didn't hurt.

So, how did it go? Very smoothly.

For each category we were first shown the invited artists images. Then there was a preview of the total category and then we did the scoring round. For each application the description was read. There was hardly any discussion, it was very serious. In fact, we were asked to keep any communication to a minimum. We could ask questions.

Here are some stats to give you some kind of idea of what kind of competition the various categories have. The smallest number of applicants is in the Printmaking/Graphics category with 8 applicants. The largest category is jewelry, broken into jewelry non-precious and jewelry precious, for a total of 176 applicants for the nine spaces available in this category (remember there are invited artists and in jewelry 10 are returning). 100 photographers applied for 12 spaces. There were two categories in fiber - wearable and decorative, for a total of 62 applicants. There is space for 9 artists in fiber art. Wood had some beautiful entries, but only 8 out of the 50 applicants will be invited to participate.

(Full disclosure here - in the year's when we were doing shows (1978-2006) we applied to this show several times and were never accepted).

What did I think of the quality? Overall there were very few substandard applications. By that I mean, images ill-prepared, out of focus, propped up on chairs, groups of images gathered on table tops or clearly from people who don't understand about the business. A few questionable booth shots where they seemed like an after thought by the artist, but 90% were "ready for primetime" in that they were well exposed, showed a theme and a body of work that had clearly been carefully chosen for the presentation.

Tips for applicants? Just what everyone always says, do fine work, choose your best images, get everything in on time, complete the application, make your booth shot pristine. The first image is the most important because we all read left to right. Right?

The jury returns in July and does a street jurying for the following year's invitations. I am looking forward to being there then and hopefully will be seeing you.

Even when you are having a disappointing show, sales not quite up to expectations, the event can still garner you many rewards:

1. new information that you can draw from to help you make better decisions next time
2. a chance to visit another part of the country
3. word-of-mouth help from fellow artists
4. new friends, and best of all
5. trading!

I have some amazing art, clothing, jewelry, sculpture, lamps, etc., that I will remember and cherish long after the proceeds of an event have long ago paid the gas bill, the insurance, new booth fees and more.

There is no reason to walk away from a "losing" event having gained nothing. Here's a good article from the Orlando Sentinel about artists trading at Mount Dora.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/lake/os-lk-artists-feature-mount-dora-art-20110206,0,3008871.story

What was your favorite trade?

Well it looks like it is finally happening and it looks like I will not make it to Artigras.  Since the dates have changed three times now I am not going to cancel until the ink is dry on the closing papers but if you are a photographer on the wait list you might want to get ready.  I could do the move the weekend after but yesterday the rental agent showed the house and despite the big sign on the door that says don’t let the cats out and the same notation on the information sheet for the house, she left the door wide open.  Scared the crap out of me since both our cats are pampered indoor guys.  I’m sure I’m not her favorite person right now since I did lose it a little when I called to tell her I was not happy.  So there is no way I’m going to leave my babies alone in the house for three days to go do Artigras when this idiot has a key.   The moving van is showing up the 17^th and I will go up the 18^th with the cats and then come back to a mostly empty house with no TV to do Gasparilla and Vero Beach.

This whole mortgage  process has been arduous.  This is no exaggeration – I have printed, signed, scanned, and emailed back 57 documents.  Last week, because it is a manufactured home on a permanent foundation, we paid $395 for a guy to go under the house and make sure there were no wheels still attached.  The house has an addition on it that is half the size of the original house.  What do they think we’re going to do?  Attach the pickup truck to it and drive off with it?   There apparently is only one mover in Florida who has any kind of decent reputation.  Want to have nightmares – google “mover complaints”.  Dropped PODS, lost PODS, holding the furniture hostage until you pay an additional $2000, losing all the stuff completely.  We were ready to move it all ourselves until we found this company which does a flat rate move.  Pick it up on Thursday, drive it straight to Virginia, and deliver on Saturday.  The only problem is that it is one 26’ truck and there is no way this stuff is all going to fit.  So there will be at least one trip with a rental truck. 

At any rate, if all goes well, the cats, the furniture, all the vehicles, and me will be completely in Virginia somewhere around April 1^st except for the show van which will be sitting in a friend’s driveway until April 9^th.  I’m going to see a lot of 95 and a lot of Amtrak between now and then.

Ann Arbor Public Art Administrator
The City of Ann Arbor seeks to hire a consultant as Administrator for Public Art. The person hired in this part time position will sign a personal services agreement with the City of Ann Arbor. The position reports directly to the Public Services Administrator and responsibilities include overall leadership, general management and the daily operations for the Ann Arbor Public Art Commission (AAPAC), including program planning and development, financial management, coordination with project managers and all other activity in accordance with policies and guidelines of AAPAC. For more information, click here.

Are you a Michigan artist?  You might find this publication, Cultural News from the ArtsAlliance, very helpful to your business. It is always full of excellent links about the visual arts from very local to national information. Full of networking, grants, jobs, volunteer opportunities, jobs, etc. More info at this link: http://a3arts.org/

June 3-5
54th year
100 Artists
Deadline: February 15

The Prairie Village Art Show is not located on a prairie but in the heart of the Kansas City metro area and surrounded by upper income demographics.  Forbes magazine recently listed Mission Hills, KS, as being the 3rd most affluent city in the country and it is next to the show.  The show is well attended and draws patrons from the entire metropolitan area.

This show is small with only 100 artists but they come from all parts of the country.  The Art Fair Sourcebook says that Prairie Village "Attracts an affluent and educated clientele."

What to Expect:

• 20,000 Upper Income patrons
• 24 hour security
• Electricity available
• Friday night Wine
• Saturday night dinner delivered to booth
• Artist's lounge with restrooms, snacks and air conditioning
• Parking nearby and overnight parking allowed
• Discounted Hotel Rates
• Booth sitters

The Village in Prairie Village is one of those "lifestyle" shopping areas, intimate enough for ease of shopping yet anchored by well-known names such as Macy's and Starbucks with lots of restaurants.  Does it sound as though your clientele will be showing up here?  Then you know what to do! Apply today.

Application on line at:  www.zapplication.org

For more info visit

www.prairievillageshops.com

or contact Donna Potts at: 913-362-9668

Keith caught my eye with his gently evocative scenes of places he has visited which hold a special place in his heart.  From his home state of Utah, to sunny Italy, his scenes reflect a quiet spirituality, even the bears he photographed himself at Yellowstone:

This trail winding through the woods of Utah really intrigues me and I would love to follow it.  It reminds me of the Long Island I used to know, peaceful and unspoiled (without the mountains though!)

Keith has been one of the troopers here through this spate of unusually cold weather we've had here (30-40 degrees under the tent),  on site painting at the Expo quietly working away on several new pieces armed with coat, mittens, and hot chocolate.  I think we should get like, Purple Paintbrushes or something.

See Keith's work at www.keithdabbfinearts.com

So I decided to try Florida.  I choose this show and one next weekend because I was able to squeeze a girls getaway in between my two shows.   I figured it was a good time to test this part of Florida out for me and get a vacation as well. 

Geri has already posted how great the weather was.  It was amazing.  Can't get any better.  I will try to not repeat what has alread been posted.

Set up was early morning.  We didn't get a lot of instructions ahead of time.  Just a map of the booths and time to show up.  They did open up the artist parking the night before ($40) so I parked the van on Friday night and was able to find out where check in was the next morning.  I am not a morning person.   I like to know where I am going ahead of time.  There are a lot of ways to get to the booths.  There wasn't any instructions, just get to your booth area one way or another.  My booth was on a side street, off the main area.  We were back to back, but with a planted median in between the booths.  I paid extra for a corner spot (see the second picture).  This was really just a walkway.  I had 4 feet between my booth and the other corner booth next to me.  For me it was not worth it because I feel that one needs 6 feet of space to stand back and look at a painting.  The good think about having this "corner" spot was I did have a little bit of access to the back of my tent.  Otherwise the back of the booth was not usuable.  I found it interesting that jewlers and painters were placed next to eachother. 

Break down was a free for all.  No load out passes or anything.  Just move the blockades and go for it.  I prefer to break down before I get my van.  I am use to doing that any way, so I didn't run to get my vehicle.  Unfortunately the public was also allowed into this area during breakdown.  It made it very difficult and dangerous.  Near then end my van back door was almost taken off.  My friend actually  had to jump in front of the car to stop them.  This car then proceded to run over my tent poles and almost me, but I rolled out of the way. 

Sales were not what I hoped.   My cost just for the show, booth, jury, parking was over $600.  I would expect at least 10x.  Many artist told me I was crazy to expect that in Florida.  If I wouldn't have gotten a corner space I would have hit 10x, but that still wouldn't have been enough to get me excited to travel 10 hours away from home.  The only artist I talked to that would come back to this show was a jewler that lives in the area.  Everyone made some money.   Enough to go out for dinner that night, but not enough to be excited.  I did not see much of anything walking by in way of sales.  Maybe jewlery, small stuff put in purses.

I was  disappointed with the crowds.  The show claimed 60,000 people attend, but no way.  The picture I have above was taken during a busy time.  The other pic is also a good example of the crowd.  Very few kids in strollers, but tons of dogs in strollers.    The people who did buy were great, and didn't ask for discounts.

The show was fun to do.  Now I am having a great time on the Florida beaches.  Today we went to the races with a group of patrons we met at the show.   

I think this article is pretty concise and helpful for those in a quandary about their merchant account situation. Here's a link:

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/iphone_credit_card_swiping_battle_continues.php?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rwwfeatured+%28ReadWriteWeb+Featured+Stories%29

Hi Everyone,

I couldn't find the answer I'm looking for searching this site and others, so I'm posting the question. 

I see there are 4 unique applications for St. James Court.  Some reviews suggest that 3rd and 4th st locations are better then inner court. Again 3rd st has its own application and 4th st has its own application.

Those artist that applied for the 1st time, did you apply to more than one of the 4, or just apply to 1 for that particular year, hoping for the best to get accepted. 

Are the chances of getting accepted to any of the 4 the same as getting into 1?    Do some artist apply to 2 or more hoping that 1 of them will accept you?

As a 1st time applicant to the show, should I pick one to apply to or should I apply to 2-3 or all 4 hoping maybe 1 would accept me?

Any insight would be helpful. 

 Thank you in advance for your feedback.

hi - has anyone in south Florida heard of "We Merge" magazine? Claims to promote art and artists? Wants to do a traveling show FL-GA-NC and looking for locations. They approached me for my gallery space and I'm just doing some resreach on them before replying - maybe I'm just a naturally suspicious type but there's so many scams out there!!

Appreciate any in put

thanks

Anne Jenkins

Two new shows are in Jacksonville--finally-- April 9,10 Avondale Art Festival-- and the rebirth of the Sawgrass Art Festival on May 7,8 2011

 I think it’s fair to call Lauren Queen of the Sky. She captures the sweeping, dramatic desert sunsets here in the Southwest in vibrant impressionistic strokes; I am psyched to see that someone else has noticed that at a certain time during some twilight skies there is a green streak:

When you stand up close and look at Lauren’s work, her brushwork is loose; step back about ten feet, and these large canvases turn into crystal clear scenes. I was reminded of Chuck Close.

I have the privilege of seeing her start and complete a commissioned piece, from sketch to underpainting to final layers. Once again, I am reminded of my own goal: learn to paint faster. I am learning much by watching my peeps!

Visit Lauren’s site at http://laurenknode.com

Lori, an oil painter like myself, lives here in the Phoenix area, and the first work of hers to catch my eye was one of Kaibab Path at the Grand Canyon, a dramatic scene of this winding path that descends to the floor of the canyon.  This really captures the claustrophobia of a narrow mountain pass contrasted against the vertigo of a sheer canyon drop: 

And because the glare was so bad, here's a detail:

I also really liked her handling of the architecture and the light shining through in this piece,

The first thought that struck my mind was that her scenes remind me of the Mediterranean, with her use of color and play of light; as it turns out, there is no need to go abroad to capture beautiful light: many of her scenes are of California and the Southwest, and her scenes are well known to locals.  Her work feels warm and inviting, like a Southern California summer day.

See more of Lori’s work at www.lorimyers.com.

History of all awards at: http://artinusa.com/bonita/awards.htm

Last weekend found Ellen and I back at Images.  I used to live here back in the 80's and have done the show off and on since 1981.  Many years this fine show is plagued by bad weather, either rain or extreme cold.  This year's weather was perfect.  Can't say the same for sales--it was hit or miss, depending on whom you talked to.

New Smyrna is a laidback beach town just south of Daytona Beach on the east coast.  Mellow amply describes the community, their approach to art and how the show is run.  It is one of the easiest and teardowns in the business.

The show has 225 artists.  Frankly, I think it is too many for the size of the community and the crowds it draws.  It slices the pie too thinly for many artists.  The show is held on concrete along Riverside Drive and then on a stretch of Canal Street, their main drag.  So you have the Intercoastal waterway as a backdrop--not too shabby of a setting.

Most spots are tight on the sides, but all have ample room behind for inventory and yourself. The crowds are big, early in the day with a good mix of oldsters and youth.  Lots of dog-walking at this show, but no ponies.

At Saturday's end,many people had barely covered expenses especially most of the photographers that I talked too.  By the way the second photo is of AFI's Jim Parker and his wife, Karen.  They had a nice corner spot and he snagged a nice Award of Merit--it paid off his tequila bill for the weekend.

I also got a nice award for $500 and it too paid for a lot of tequila and other things.  Sales were mostly lowend for many of us.  As always there were delightful exceptions.  Down from me, a fellow artist with ceramic lamps sold steadily all show, and hids lamps are not cheap.  As usual, photographer Steve Vaughn killed them with his canvassed images.  So did a certain Italian photographer.  Several painters sold one or two nicely priced works.

The real winners at this show were the ice cream people.  By my humble calculations, I saw at least a gazillion ice cream on the stick go buy me Sat.  They cost $5 each, which means they made five-gazillion dollars off of it.  We are in the wrong business.  To their credit, they make their own ice cream and regularly sell out wherever they go.  Their business model obviously works, well.

The show has a very successful Patron Purchase Award system.  Notice all the green ribbons on the booth in my second image.  Those are all Patron ribbons.  There were a ton of them at this show.

Sunday brought equally good weather and crowds.  I did a little better than Sat. and ended up doing as good as Bonita.  My January gross for four shows in 2011 is 25 per cent better than last year.  I think that is a good economic indicator.

As I said, sales were all over the board.  This is just one of those shows that you have to try for yourself.  It won't cost you an arm and a leg, and New Smyrna is a lovely beach town with a great beach that you can actually drive your vehicle on.

Well, this weekend I go to Ft. Meyers and Ellen goes to Sarasota.  Hopefully good sales wil follow.

  Oh, I would be remiss if i didn't mention Bill and John Slade were at the show, and they killed them as per usual.  And I got to drink some Three Monkey Beer---a Slade fav.

Well, here's a first.  I am doing the "Tequila Report" before I do the blog of the show.  What the heck!.

So, Ellen and I are in New Smyrna doing Images.  Lucky for me, I have a two-year-old barter tab with Clancy's Cantina which I have not had a chance to use yet--$350.00 worth.  That is a lot of shots and margaritas.  So, Saturday we invited noted Minesota glassblower, Doug Becker, to join us on a little Mexican extravaganza eating, drinking exposition.  You gotta understand when you invite Dougie along that's like inviting a whole Minnesota brewery along for a tasting.  He and his brother Joe could wipe out all the Wisconsin breweries in one nite's tasting.  But, brave souls that we are, and we love him, we included him.

Clancey's has been in New Smyrna since the days I lived there back in the early eighties.  They have moved twice, each time enlarging, into finally the old grocery store on the beach.  It is pure Tex-Mex fare at a fair price witha gazillion tequilas to choose from, and believe me, we did.

A cool appertizer of theirs is a shrimp, wrapped with a jalepeno smothered with mozellera chese then deep fried.  It is a great starter.  They do great fish dishes,tacos and all the rest.  This is a local's place, so you get to catch all the local buzz.

Which brings us to ice fishing in  Minnesota.

Webbie was not available so Doug ably stepped in.  We are in serious training for the great Tequila-Swizz-off with the notorious chugging-queen, Connie Mettler.  We were working our ways thru Paron Anejo, then Don Julio, then Commemorita anejo, and finally to Milargo Anejo.  Doug started getting a little poetic with me.  Started talking about ice fishing up in Minnesota.  They have lots of winter, so you embrace it or go into hibernation until spring break in Florida.  

Well, nowadays, they are not sitting in those little itty-biddy wooden shacks that look like Ozark urinals shacks.  These guys go out and build an 8x10 foot building and cart it out onto the lake.  Then they put a heater in it. They use augers and saws to cut a eight-foot by five-foot  opening in the ice to fish from.  Or at least they used too, using little rods and reels.  Nowadays, they put fish in some kind of a tether down in the water, then they crank up Creedance Clearwater Revival music to fish by.  When they play "Bad Moon Arising" the pike come arising and now they gig em with a spear.  They call it "Spike a Pike" fishing.Those Minnesota boys know how to have fun in the winter.

We rolled out of Clancey's refreshed and slumbered.  A good time was had by all.  Check out the place, if you ever down that way, it is worth the margarita.