Hi all, I am a "newbie" to the Art Fair world and the Monroe Fine Art Fair was my second fair that I have done and I am "still loving it!". I only made $130 which covered my entry fee, but my objective for my first year is to 1) decide if I really like doing this and 2) if the answer is yes, keep learning, learning and more learning.
Both objective were met, but before I tell you about that, let me give a little bit of a critique of how I felt about the way the fair was organized.
Like I said, this is my second show so I do not have a lot of fairs to compare this to. Over all I was pleased. Set up was the morning of the fair and you could pull your car right up to your designated spot. The booths were on the street and very well marked. Once the set up was done I had an artist parking pass to park behind City Hall which happened to be in front of my booth. My location was right at the "T" of two streets used for the fair intersected and I felt the spot was great. Because the fair was not too spread out, I did not feel that there were any locations that were particularly bad. The art that was for sale was of very nice quality. With pieces ranging from the low end $5 cards (like me) to high end beautiful $1000 + pieces. I did not see anything that I would consider "buy/sell" items. There were not any booth sitters, but I had my daughter with me so I could take some breaks. The traffic was primarily consistent (but never what I considered crowded) and both Saturday and Sunday there were some "lulls" in the traffic all together. (A lot of dog walkers).
My learning objective was met. I networked with quite a few other artists, discussed display pros and cons, got a lead on some used display panels and set up and tear down was faster this time then the last. I find that I am really enjoying the whole experience. (Long hard working days make for great sleep at night).
I have one more fair to do this year, Art-A-Licious in Adrian Michigan. Then I look forward to spending the Winter polishing my "display" skills, organizing my "stuff", purchasing better display panels ect.. for the tent and applying for more Art fairs, because "I Am Still Loving Art Fairs"!
Comments
I live in Central Ohio. I will definitely try to get up to MI if there aren't any local venues around. I will be at Monroe and Wyandotte for sure. I would love to have the same spot. Hopefully I'll get to see you!
Yes we did Sheri, you gave me some awesome advice on tent panels :) I am so glad you did well! Your display was wonderful and your art was beautiful! And yes I did enjoy talking with the crowd. Hope to see you at some other fair's through out Southeast Michigan.
Good for you, Anne, and thanks for this report. I know this a volunteer run show and they work hard to make it work. You have it exactly right -- you use these early shows to learn so many things: how to set up a booth, what to show, price points, what the public might be interested in. It is a whole college course in it self. Get out at every show and see what everyone else is doing, take notes and when you get a chance attend some larger events and learn even more. That is the cheapest way and the smartest. Every show will be a learning experience. You will, bit by bit, make sales. When we started doing shows I did not quit my day job until 3 years in when it looked like we could replace my income. Take your time. Make your work better and pick up the marketing information when you are at the shows.
I hope to attend Art-A-Licious and hopefully will meet you there.
Congrats to the Monroe Art Fair committee for keeping it real, and paying attention to only having original work.