John Leben

About
Activity Feed

Location

Saugatuck, MI

Your Medium

Digital

Years in the Art Fair Business

Off and on for 30 years

First show ever

Old Burton Place art fair in the 60s. Now the wells street art fair.

What is your website?

https://Www.lebenart.com

What are the best things about art fairs

To be able to sell my art and make a living on my own terms.

Best show ever and why

Recently, 2009 DES Moines art fair. Why? Perhaps because people attending looked forward to it every year and attended with the intention of purchasing something, unlike cities like Chicago that have an art fair every week-end so none of them are considered a special event.

Worst show ever and why

I remember a show in Muskegon, Michigan a few years ago when I didn't sell anything.

Who referred you to ArtFairInsiders.com? Please be specific.

Connie

John Leben posted a discussion

Large Movable Gallery Walls

I have two very large movable gallery walls that are looking for a new home. They are on heavy duty castors for repositioning. They are covered with carpet much like ProPanels so art can be hung using Velcro hooks. Note the dimensions to determine…

John Leben posted a blog post

The Truth About Art Fairs

Arts, Farts & Applecarts A Blog about Being an ArtistI published this blog in two parts on my website. It is mostly directed at people who buy art, but I thought other artists might find this interesting as well.There are a lot of different kinds of…

Cindy Welch commented on John Leben's blog post Arts, Farts & Applecarts - by John Leben

"Just went over and read your entries. I am in a different league (type of work/shows) but I appreciate your writing and stories. Very relatable. I subbed for your blog while there."

John Leben posted a blog post

Professional artist - Part 2

Please notice that the “a” in artist above is a lower case “a.” It should have been lower case in my previous blog about being a professional artist. I’m proud of the fact that I can make a living selling my work. I’m proud that there are enough…

Connie Mettler commented on John Leben's blog post Arts, Farts & Applecarts - by John Leben

"Good for you, John. Turning over every stone seems to help. In general, I don't refer to people as "artist" instead I always preferred Painter jeweler photographer, etc. We are indeed lucky in this business to be able to walk that line between…"

Jodie Davis commented on John Leben's blog post Arts, Farts & Applecarts - by John Leben

"Oh yes, that first sale!
I started the business going to Germany and having my cuckoo clock designs made. It was a whole different ball game when I made the decision to become my own source of supply and after four years of learning and developing…"

Nels johnson commented on John Leben's blog post Arts, Farts & Applecarts - by John Leben

"Great blog John, could not said it any better, when I grow up, I want to be as good as you.
Oops! I am older than you. But you are Gooder.
You have real talent.
Enough of the allocades.
We both know the satisfaction we get when a "stranger" buys one…"

John Leben posted a blog post

Arts, Farts & Applecarts - by John Leben

Yeah... I just started publishing a blog on my website. It's called Arts, Farts & Applecarts. It's about being an artist and it is designed to drive traffic to my website as well as a place for me to vent. This is my first blog entry. I thought I'd…

More…

Comment Wall

You need to be a member of Art Fair Insiders to add comments!

Join Art Fair Insiders

Comments are closed.

Comments

Connie Mettler June 28, 2017 at 10:35pm

John, Thank you so much for supporting Art Fair Insiders during our 2017 Pledge Drive.
Connie Mettler April 19, 2017 at 10:55pm

Congrats on being awarded the Post of the Week - 4/16/2017
Connie Mettler March 22, 2017 at 12:17am

Congrats John on being awarded the Post of the Week - 3/20/2017
Connie Mettler April 15, 2016 at 8:33pm

Thanks for this good discussion topic, John. It's gotten a lot of attention AND thank you for continuing to contribute to this website. Your message have been helpful to many.
Connie Mettler January 19, 2016 at 11:35pm

John, congrats on being awarded the Post of the Week - 1/12/2016.
Connie Mettler November 6, 2015 at 2:34pm

Thank you, John, for referring Susan Elizabeth Fleming to Art Fair Insiders.
Connie Mettler October 5, 2015 at 10:04pm

Congrats of being awarded the Post of the Week - 10/5/2015.
Connie Mettler August 10, 2015 at 9:40pm

Congrats on being awarded the Post of the Week Award - 8/10/2015.
Connie Mettler June 29, 2015 at 4:26pm

John, thank you so much for supporting Art Fair Insiders during our 2015 Pledge Drive.
Connie Mettler March 10, 2015 at 10:56pm

Congrats on winning the Blog Post of the Week award - 3/9/2015