First year show, and I was a little nervous about participating. WOW was I wrong. This was a relatively small show (74 artists minus a few no-shows) for the first year, and will likely be expanded.
Sales started for me within an hour of the show opening - which is mind blowing (at least for me...), and continued till just before show closing on Sunday. I have not been doing shows for very long, but to date, this was my highest grossing, and I couldn't be more pleased.
The crowds were pretty steady both days (we were competing with Nebraska Football on Saturday), and I had a constant stream of people in my booth. Patrons were friendly and interested - and they knew about the show well ahead of time.
Artist amenities were great (remember this show is by the same promoter who does Omaha Summer Arts), the setting was lovely and spacious. Here is a link to an article just posted about the 20,000 patron-strong turnout:
http://www.omaha.com/article/20120917/NEWS/709179940/1694
I hope to be part of it again next year! If your work is a little offbeat or more "funky" than what you generally see at art shows, you'll like this one. There was A TON of fascinating work. I could have spent everything I made - easily! :)
Replies
Hey, I was planning to apply to this show for 2014, or at least considering it, and wanted to let folks know that there are a couple of different deadlines floating around. On the "Call for Artists" list, it says deadline is June 1, but I think that might be outdated.
This (below) is from Zapp (copied April 2, 2014) and the deadline is MAY 1 ... heads up. I had on my calendar a note to finish the appl in late May, which would have been too late.
ARTsarben 2014 - 3rd Annual - Produced by the Omaha Summer Arts Festival
Show Dates: 9/27/14 - 9/28/14
Application Deadline: 6/1/14
REQUIREMENTS:
Media
Images: 4 (a booth shot is required)
General Information
ARTsarben - IMPORTANT DATES
March 1, 2014
Artist Application Live on ZAPP
May 1, 2014
Invited Artist Deadline to Accept Invitation
June 1, 2014
Artist ZAPPlication Deadline Application and jury fee must be submitted by midnight CST
Jury Date
Mid-July 2014
July 1, 2014
All Artist Notifications mailed and posted on ZAPP
August 1, 2014
Juried Artists must accept show invitation & submit booth payment
August 15, 2014
Cancelation deadline for full refund, less a $50 processing fee, at midnight CST
ARTSARBEN September 27 & 28, 2014
Camryn, what you *might* be seeing there is a May 1st deadline for the re-invited artists. This is a show that will typically re-invite quite a few people. They would have received an invitation to participate (jury exempt) back in November.
This just a maybe - but I was re-invited to the 2013 show - and that's how it went. My guess is they need to know how many re-invitees are accepting so they know how many open spots are available for other applicants.
oh, heavens, you are perfectly correct!
I was so caught up in seeing June 1, then May 1, that I thought I should share this breathtaking (although incorrect) news.
So I had it correct the FIRST time (for non-returning artists.)
June 1, 2014
Artist ZAPPlication Deadline Application and jury fee must be submitted by midnight CST
I should probably just decide what I'm doing and apply EARLY instead of at 11:55 p.m. on the night of the deadline, as is my unfortunate habit.
Robin, so glad to hear some good news. I am glad you had a great show. Did they say they would expand it for next year?
Hi Jacki,
I think during the artists' breakfast, they talked about space and how many artists *could* fit comfortably. We all had (in my opinion, anyway) plenty of room. Space both between and behind tents, which is always nice. They mentioned that the area has enough room for about 90-ish artists. Hopefully the show will expand successfully next year.
Congratulations on a great show Robin - may there be many, many more!
Glad you had a good time, I sure did! I was pretty busy with Thirsty our Giant Parade Puppet and our tie dye rainbow BubbleYou℠ Bubble Tower -the world's biggest bubble toy ®. This venue was awesome, lots of room, wide streets AND sidewalks. Very pleasant and inviting. The event had been advertised city wide, so their was quite a mix of people, all good. Producers were a joy to work with: straightforward communication, good response time, clear instructions and feedback. Hope to return next year. I'm running seven days a week recently, hope to get some photos and video posted soon.
Cheers!
Bill "Stretch"Coleman
Bill Coleman Entertainment
http://www.bubbletower.com/
Great to hear this report, Robin. I've been waiting to hear. First year shows can be nerve-wracking, but this one put together by veterans of the Omaha art market know how to promote and have solid connections. Congrats to them and to you.