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Noone walked out empty-handed

Posted by geri a. wegner on September 13, 2010 at 2:00am

Mt. Mary Starving Artists Show in Milwaukee is a Sunday after Labor Day tradition. I have been told that people line up at 6am for the 10am opening. Nothing costs more than $100 and there are some real deals at this show.

We arrived at noon and the crowds were tremendous. Parking is plentiful and there were people already leaving so there was parking that was relatively close. There is a nominal charge to get into the show that benefits the college.

The quality of the 200+ artists ranges from average to above average. There is a very good mix of media but I did notice a proliferation of various types of yard art including the ever present stone birds. Except near several booths where people were 2-3 deep looking at what was usually jewelry, the spaciousness of the aisles made it easy to get around. The booths were clearly numbered and the aisles were marked so if there was a particular artist you wanted to see, you could easily find him/her.

This show has wonderful pottery, about half of it functional. I would have been in heaven if I was a raku collector and I had to remind myself that I had enough serving bowls and trays, there were so many I wanted.

A certain golf-playing glass artist was kind enough to let me leave my packages at his booth while I finished my tour of the entire area. It takes atleast 2 hours to get around if you don't talk to too many artists and make quick decisions. This rapid pace is necessary because items literally fly off the shelves.

I really did not see too many people walking around without something in their arms. I hope the artists had as successful a day as I did.

Septemberfest, Schaumburg IL 9/4-6/2010

Posted by B. David Kay on September 12, 2010 at 10:55pm

We just finished doing Septemberfest in Schaumberg IL. We do black and white photography and must say that this was a great show for us. There was a lot of traffic and the people were shopping.

The show organizers have a unique way of doing the set up, but it works just fine. It does get a little hectic, but what show does not get that way when you are trying to set up.

Overall we were pleased with the show and the week end.

Bill and Cindy

Images by David Kay, Ltd

Yellow Daisy (Atlanta)

Posted by Andrea Olson on September 12, 2010 at 10:54pm

I just finished doing my second Yellow Daisy Festival. Last year was great, this year was just hard work, and I didn't do nearly as well, with a much better location and new displays. There was a lot of buy/sell.....again, after the show committee promised to stop allowing it in!

I happened to win the drawing for the"Grand Prize"......which allows the winner not to have to jury into next year's show. I thank God that I didn't say something I would live to regret, and took the prize, thinking that maybe it would keep one buy/sell out.

This is an expensive and physically difficult show to do, and given the buy/sell, I doubt I would consider doing it again.

Way to go! Arts, Beats and Eats gets its MoJo Back...

Posted by Dennis and Clair Thompson on September 12, 2010 at 7:27pm

Big round of applause for Connie, Lisa and Jon who produced one my best shows of the year. The crowds were immense, but better yet, they were well educated, enthusiastic and ready to buy. At one point there were so many people, they had to shut down the entrances to allow some of the congestion to flow through~good problem to have. Although it's not really a first year show, it's AB&E's first year in Royal Oak, MI. I know the directors took some flak for moving it, but it was the right decision and kudos to them for taking the chance and making it a huge success! Royal Oak was welcoming and excited to have us, and both Dennis and I were very pleased at the warm response from the public.The volunteers were awesome, and worked their little patooties off to give us breaks and help out with any issue that arrived.
Truly pleased with the whole experience~can't wait until next year!

Arts, Beats, and Eats Review or Fun, Fun, Fun

Posted by Barry Bernstein on September 12, 2010 at 11:32am

You have to be aware of 2 things about this show. 1) Although it's in its' 13th year, this is the first year in Royal Oak having moved from Pontiac to Royal Oak. I was never a fan of Pontiac because it is an ugly crime ridden suburb of Detroit. Royal Oak reinvented itself about 10 years ago with upscale stores and a really fun nightlife. So, moving the show to Royal Oak was a big plus, and, from my experience here, it was the right move. 2)AB&E is unique in that it isn't just an art fair, in fact, it isn't even the main focus of the event. The main focus is the music, hence beats, and, the main money maker is the food. If you went to the show just to see the music, you were treated to really excellent performances in every genre you could think of. If you had an artists badge, you had a VIP pass which allowed you to float in and out of every show and have the best view or front row seating. The catch was that you were working and couldn't see any of it, unless you left your booth to watch who you wanted to see among the 200 acts. Since I never leave my booth I could only see the last act on the main stage, which this year was Clint Black, because the show ended at 5 PM and Clint started at 7:30 and in the middle of packing up, I grabbed my neighbor, Gwen Bennett, and caught about 45 minutes of Clint who is excellent.

Before I discuss the logistics of the event, I want to say flat out that everyone was happy at this show. The city of Royal Oak was ecstatic because the turnout was huge. In fact, a few times they had to close the gates because it had reached capacity. John, Lisa, and Connie were happy because they pulled this off without any major problems. The artists were happy because the buyers really came to buy. The 3D people did ok from what I heard, and that was my experience. But, the 2D people, especially the photographers, had excellent shows. I think Jan Kaulins stayed open 24 hours a day because he kept selling, and the painter next to me was giddy. So, I assumed she did really well. As I said, I had a good show, not great, but, I did better here than Ann Arbor. The other potters and the glass people I talked to agreed with me--good but not great. Still worth it though.

For some reason, I didn't have a map and we were required to check in before setting up. When I got there, I had to ask a number of security people who were guarding the entrances where to go to check in and they had no clue. I, finally called Connie and she directed me to the church where we checked in. There was bagels, coffee, etc. for the artists, once again. Once we checked in, there was no problem getting to the booth. Setup was easy. There was plenty of room for all the artists and take down was equally painless. Parking for the artists was free and easy to get to. The music and food booths were open at 11 on the first day. The artist part started at 4PM because we couldn't set up the night before. People were actually angry that they couldn't get to the artists booths right away and they moved the time up from 4PM to 3PM. That was a good sign. Next year, artists will be able to set up on Thursday night and the art fair part will open at 11AM. Even though the show was 4 days long, it was easy to do. The crowds were large and the streets were wide enough to accommodate everyone. The people were mixed in that many were knowledgeable, but, many had no idea what they were looking at. I had to explain what Raku is many, many times. That just allowed me to pontificate about he work which I like to do. The weather for the most part was pleasant. There were some sprinkles, but, the high winds that were predicted didn't materialize. The show closed at 9:PM each night but you could stay open as long as you wanted past that time, which many artists did. You need lights for this show. My outlet didn't work but they came and fixed it within minutes. The volunteers were plentiful and excellent. They would run and get us anything we wanted so we could stay in our booths.

I only have 2 complaints: 1) Parking for attendees was $15 which I thought was excessive. I don't know whether these were municipal lots or privately owned. If you were willing to walk a quarter mile, you could park on the surrounding streets.. 2) I thought the food was overpriced and the portions were embarrassingly small. Someone needs to tell them to not be so greedy. The best deal was the Berringer and Mondavi wine booths. You could get a double portion of wine, which equaled a glass, for $2.50. I took advantage of this a few times.

In conclusion, I think John, Lisa, and our own Connie Mettler, did an excellent job. This is a show to consider doing. It's only going to get better as it gets tweaked.

"Beside the beer, the paintings are the best part," Foraker said.

Posted by Connie Mettler on September 12, 2010 at 9:27am

Welcome the return of the Brandywine Art Festival to Wilmington, Delaware! We all hate to lose art fairs that succumb to either the economy, the negligence of the organizers to keep them alive, loss of funding, etc., so it was with great fanfare that the residents of Wilmington welcomed back this popular event.

From Delaware Online by Ginger Gibson:

"After half a century of ushering in the fall for Delaware residents, the festival was canceled last year because of a financial dispute between the former organizer and Brandywine Park. But this year it was back bigger than before with 235 vendors.

Barry Schlecker, 70, who organized this year's event by forming a new
corporation and a new festival, couldn't get away from the operations
tent. He had trouble even completing sentences as attendees walked up to
congratulate him.

"Everybody is raving," a vendor exclaimed as she walked by.

"This is great," saids a friend who reached out to shake his hand.

Schlecker, who was the driving force behind getting the festival back on it's feet, was a little taken aback. "Everyone is thanking me like I saved the world or cured cancer," Schlecker said. "It's just an art show."

Read the rest of the story and the positive comments at the end: Reborn Brandywine Festival is a Hit

Texas Hijacking & Robbery

Posted by Jenzen on September 11, 2010 at 12:40pm

Hello fellow art fair folks,
The State of TEXAS is telling my husband and I we owe them over a $1,000 for attending a $0 sales event in San Antonio. Have any of you ever been required to file a "FRANCHISE entity tax form?
We did a show in San Antonio a couple of years ago and I applied for what I thought was a one-time sales and tax permit. They said they determined we needed a "franchise." I couldn't see why, but they said we could get a $500 a day penalty if we sold in the state. So I filled in the form and sent it in. We did the show, $0 sales -- which I reported. Then I kept getting calls about not filing out the quarterly franchise forms. I FINALLY got to talk to someone who said he closed out the franchise. Yesterday my husband got a phone call saying we owed the state something over $1,000. (He freaked and didn't get the exact amount)
Anyone else have any experiences like this? We spent money in Texas, didn't sell anything and they want this kind of cash? Its a holdup! We need help!

Salem (OR) Art Fair Doesn't Raise as Much Money as Hoped, Layoffs Planned

Posted by Connie Mettler on September 11, 2010 at 10:41am

From the StatesmanJournal.com:

This summer's Salem Art Fair & Festival, the first-ever with a firm entry fee, cleared $221,000, up slightly from last year, said Sandra Burnett, executive director of the Salem Art Association.

However, the art association had counted on more income from this major fundraiser, especially from sponsorships and entry fees, Burnett said Friday.

As a result, the organization is laying off the equivalent of 1.5 staff members in an effort to balance its budget of....read the rest of this story here

Now that is sad news. We need these community organized art fairs, especially the ones put together by arts organizations. There is a discussion at another place on this site with the slant that the events are getting rich off the backs of the artists. I believe this article tells the other side of that story. As usual, the comments from the community are another thing altogether...

Broward County (FL) Resident? An Arts Survey for you

Posted by Connie Mettler on September 10, 2010 at 5:08pm

Broward County, FL is home to 5,635 arts-related businesses employing approximately 21,833

people (as of January 2010). These arts-centric businesses play an important role in building and sustaining economic vibrancy. In addition to employing a creative workforce, these businesses spend money locally, generate government revenue, and are a cornerstone of tourism and economic development.

As a member of the creative workforce we invite you to complete the following survey. The information provided will assist us in the planning of future programs, workshops, and services relevant to the area’s artists, cultural arts organizations, and creative community.

Please complete the following survey by September 30, 2010.

SURVEY Link: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/C8FCPMN

NOTE: To learn about and register for upcoming workshops and programs, visit our website www.broward.org/arts

We also invite you read the ‘draft’ the Creative Broward 2020 - A Plan for Cultural and Economic Development in Broward County, Updates will be posted periodically.
http://www.broward.org/arts/publications/cultural_plan/cp2020/reports.htm

Marietta Art in the Park

Posted by Andrea Olson on September 8, 2010 at 8:28pm

Marietta Ga. September 4-6th

I did this show for the second time and was once again impressed with the smooth set up, tear down, and the way it was run. A call for a booth sitter,, and within two minutes, one was there. This show was a joy to do, and I look forward to doing it again.

My proceeds were off last year by $600, but given the economy, it was a good show. The quality of the artists was outstanding.

Andrea Olson

Cape Cod Paragon Festivals

Posted by Debi Winegar on September 8, 2010 at 6:30pm

Great weekend for this show -- weather was beautiful as was the set up.

I travel in a big ole RV so my needs are a bit different than those in vehicles that were able to pull right up to their spots to unload/load up. Ron & Bill accomodated me by ensuring my space was in easy reach of the large parking lot and walkway, making my set up/breakdown wonderfully easy. Thanks guys!

On Saturday folks began to come thru the Green early, making purchases as they did. My Saturday was very good, pretty steady all day with both women and men purchasing my silver jewelry in abundance. Sunday however was a completely different crowd for most part of day -- more lookers, browers, bit older group. I noticed that early on Sunday there were a goodly amount of 2D going out to cars. About 1pm it picked up again for me, never really got back to high pitch .ut all in all when I totaled the whole weekend I am not complaining in any way.

I was able to stay in that large lot I mentioned over weekend -- thank you town of Hyannis! --which made it nice as finding a spot to park my big ole beast can be tricky at times.

Bill and his gang did a great job of laying out a comfortable show for customers to walk with no confusion of which way to go. Yeaaa!

I may be down south next year at this time, but if not I will for sure do this show again as I see only an expanding future for it as customers spread the word regarding the stellar quality of work featured.

Debi Winegar
MoonShadow Jewelry Creations, LLC

Excellent shows to do in the St. Louis area

Posted by Amy Furgiuele on September 8, 2010 at 2:54pm

Well, I'm in the center of Illinois so I might as well check "both ends", right?? So, on that note...several artists and I have been talking about the abundance of shows in the St. Louis area, but we've also heard that many are "not like they use to be" and that others aren't exactly as they are advertised. So, then... what ARE some good shows in the St. Louis area and do you consider them more art or craft based? We're all looking to start our application lists for next year and we'd love to hear from those of you with first hand knowledge... thanks!!

Excellent shows to do in Chicago

Posted by Amy Furgiuele on September 8, 2010 at 2:52pm

Several artists and I have been talking about the abundance of shows in the Chicago area, but we've also heard that many are "not like they use to be" and that others aren't exactly as they are advertised. So, then... what ARE some good shows in the Chicago-land area and do you consider them more art or craft based? We're all looking to start our application lists for next year and we'd love to hear from those of you with first hand knowledge... thanks!!

Arts On The Creek, Atlanta, Ga.- Not Worth the Time

Posted by margaret luttrell on September 8, 2010 at 2:02pm

Showed at Arts On The Creek last weekend, in John's Creek Ga, (upscale suburban area of Atlanta. ) Applied through Zapplication. This was more of a community fair than an Art Show. With 54 artists showing and 26 of them jeweler's this show was lopsided and not well run. Competing with Comcast booths and other various weird relailers in a give away mode, art was not held in much importance. Hot, dusty and with a kids Choo Choo Train encircling the artists, I felt that I was at the county fair and in a few minutes they would be judging the tomatoes and cucumbers. Needless to say, it was not a good weekend and except for jewelry-nobody sold much.

Upper Arlington (Ohio) Labor Day Artfest

Posted by Leslie Kaplan on September 8, 2010 at 1:49pm

First time for me doing this one-day show in my old hometown. I did not get a chance to get around to see the other booths, but it seemed like a buying crowd, at least in the moderate to lower price category. I sold a few pieces in the $200-350 category.Great weather, which always helps! Sales were brisk in the early morning, with lots of folks coming in before the official opening time. UA is a well-off, well-educated and fairly sophisticated community near the OSU campus. I rented a tent, which was dark and not ideal, but I coped, and it was easier than putting up my own for a one day gig. The fire department(?) checked every tent for adequate tie-downs and fire certificates, the first time this has ever happened to me. The award jurors handed out little cards that told the artists when they had been juried, which was kind of thoughtful.

Anyone else do this show?

Collapsing Tent at Oklahoma City Festival sends people to the hospital

Posted by Connie Mettler on September 8, 2010 at 12:30pm

A tent collapsed at Arts Festival Oklahoma City injuring four people on
September 6 and closing the festival. Firefighters and paramedics came
to the rescue. Read the rest of the story here: http://www.news9.com/global/story.asp?s=13107536

Artist chairs

Posted by Victor Edwards on September 8, 2010 at 12:09pm

I give Artists a discount on my artist chairs,I only charge $300.00 to artists which about what it costs to make them.Mahogany frames,stainless steel hardware and cordura seat ,they last for 20 years or more.I also do repairs for the life of the chair and refinish and reseat them.

Fourth Street Festival, Bloomington, IN --- great weather, friendly folks, nice show!

Posted by Leo Charette on September 7, 2010 at 12:30pm

Labor Day Wknd 2010: This was my first time at the Fourth Street Festival of the Arts and Crafts. This is a good, solid show and the weather was PERFECT both days. It was nice to do a show that made a good profit. The show is well managed and the community is involved! The committee running this show is invested in making it a positive for both artists and patrons. The Patrons....wow!... they support this show in numbers. The show claims 48K attendance, I'm not sure if it got to that number but there were hordes of people attending the show. The image above shows the attendance on Saturday around noon and it was much this way on Sunday.

The organizers have kept the show small, 120 artists. I think that's perfect. Booths are all in a line, up both sides of the tree shaded 4th Street, so no bad spots...patrons walk the entire show. Plenty of storage behind your tent and artists parking is near for easy access to inventory. Bring shims... you will need to level but not too much. This is a Zapplication show: jury fee was $25 and booth fee, $200.

Sales were strong for me on Saturday and if things had continued on Sunday, the show would have been outstanding. For many artists I spoke with, sales were down on Sunday though attendance was equally strong for both days. There was a lot of energy and enthusiasm for the art. A lot of folks come out to enjoy the creativity with a nice mix of young and old (no gate fee). Sales for me were mostly for small stuff, under $100, though I did sell a few pieces for $200 and one piece for $300.

This is a well juried show and deserves its top ranking. I would return if given the opportunity.

Cheers, Leo

P.S. Restaurants in Bloomington are FANTASTIC. I usually pass on the vendor food... but not here... fabulous.

P.S.S. Judy Goskey, good to meet you at dinner!

40 Question Craft Artist Blog Series - Question 31 - How has Buy/sell gotten so out of hand?

Posted by Michelle Sholund on September 7, 2010 at 9:20am

40 Questions Craft Artist Blog Series – Question #31 Buy/sell: How did it get so out of hand?

I am doing it... opening the can o' worms that is. This is something I have wanted to discuss, but wanted to wait for just the right moment. Heading into the home stretch of this blog series I figure now is the time to cover the topic of buy/sell over the next few questions of this blog series mostly because many artists are finding they are having a hard time competing with it when at art fairs. Before I dive in head first, I want to make sure we are all on the same page. For this question I am going to cover the basics first.

Question #31 Buy/sell: How did it get so out of hand?

First, clarify the terms. I hear buy/sell, retail, and re-sell or re-sale used interchangeably and don't think that is right. Buy/sell refers to the idea of buying something that is already made - at cost or wholesale value - and then resold to make a profit. This has been going on for many many years as this is how retail stores work and do business – in this aspect there really is nothing wrong here.... Just think of the can of corn, tools, cleaning supplies you buy... this is all re-sell. However, the best way to describe the issue with craft artists is re-sell as it is the re-selling of items, mostly non-handmade by the "artist" yet proclaiming it is made by them. The issue grows from this as much of the items are imported from China or India where labor wages and work ethic is deplorable and the more we perpetuate this, the more it says to others it is ok because "we" are saving money. This is where everyone gets their panties in a bunch – including myself! However, the wedgie will have to be adjusted later... The question is how did it get out of hand.

Think back to when you saw this popping up... For me it is the early 1990's. Based upon my research, I am almost dead on as much of this started in the late 1980's to early 1990's with the beginning of NAFTA (North American Fair Trade Agreement) – a good amount of info on this is available via wikipedia to learn more about NAFTA – which created a trade bloc with the US, Canada, and Mexico. A trade bloc which is an intergovernmental agreement to reduce taxes and tarrifs on traded goods in hopes to build relations with other countries. Not much later APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) was formed. In the formation of these groups the flood gates opened to allow more and more goods come into America. One of the best examples – and not the only one – is Wal-Mart in their push to have lower prices. Being they are such a mega company where money can and will be made, getting “product” cheaper to make a profit, is where much of this school of thought comes from. Who cares if the quality goes down – and this is me talking (don't forget the issues with kids toys and toothpaste recalls) – at least “I” am making money. The issue is when cheaper labor is available, businesses follow and take advantage of that because it is an easier out. After all many of us want to keep costs low to increase profits. This is enticing to artists because many are just one or two people. If that artist has found a niche and is exploding they may find this is the best road for them, never really having the forward thinking of what impact this might cause. And it is this way of thinking, where I think re-sell has greatly affected the art community all in the name of making a couple of extra bucks.

The issues this has caused is a battle of quality vs. quantity. “Artists” are now (and have been for at least 10 years or more) trying to pass off work as made by them when it is most likely something made overseas. Then there is the issue of determining what is and what isn't re-sell when it comes to jurying. What erks me, and countless others, is that the true artists who have learned their medium through years of training, making each item by hand, and jumped through the hoops of getting into juried shows to see their neighbor who simply took their “art” out of a box, slapped a new price tag on it and start selling at the same fair is what makes me (us) irritated beyond measure. This is not fair, it is cheating, and plain wrong. It cheapens the show and the hard work of fellow artists. Now that I hope we are on the same page, future questions which I will answer, will be the subject matter in this blog series. The next question will deal with this re-sell issue in ways how to over come this by educating the public and then tips on how to deal with possible culprits at shows you sell at. I cannot say enough how thankful I am to know all of you reading this support this and are able to get something out of my tips. Knowing that makes my day. Please keep reading and print and pass them along to friends or others you see may benefit from this blog. - Michelle Sholund, www.quickcraftartisttips.blogspot.com

Holy Crap!!! ABE Review

Posted by Peter William Katke on September 7, 2010 at 7:57am

So, I usually don't post a review. Too busy, blah, blah, blah, but this one needed some props. Keep in mind that I've only been doing shows for a couple of years now, but this show was the first one that seemed to be like what I hear it used to be in the good old days. There were people lined up out the booth to buy and I can count on one hand the times that there actually wasn't someone in the booth. Friday was busy, but not much for sales. Saturday was better, but not by much. Sunday I spent the whole day trying to keep up with the stock to no avail. Monday wasn't as good as Sunday, but I'm convinced that that was because I just couldn't replace everything that I had sold. Even then, Sunday was still better than Friday & Saturday combined. There were a few minor problems as could be expected, but one of them was that they opened up the show early because the people wanted in! I just wasn't ready to be open an hour early with no notice, I just heard from another artist. So I'm sure I lost several sales since I had to close up the tent to keep people out. Good problem to have I guess. The bathrooms and food were pretty far from us at the end but the volunteers were also great and plentiful so I did have plenty of chances to take a break.

Thanks to Connie, Lisa, & Jon for making this a great show for me.

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Note: this page contains paid content.