Sara Shambarger, director of art fairs at the Krasl Art Center, resigned on November 21, the organization announced. Shambarger spent 19 years directing the popular Krasl Art Fair on the Bluff, and three years leading the Artisan Market fundraiser for the St. Joseph art center.
The popular St. Joe art fair was started in 1962 and has been a loved local tradition, increasing in prestige and attendance in subsequent years. When Sara took over the art fair it was heavily grandfathered, reinviting the same artists back every year. Under her direction each succeeding year there have been fewer invitations and the event has opened up to a greater diversity of artists.
With her fine attention to detail and the relationships she developed throughout the area she was a great partner with the media and tourism bureau, using them wisely to grow attendance from a mostly local and summer tourist event to a well-known show around the Midwest. The Chicago area tourist crowd who have second homes in the area plan to be in St. Joe specifically for the show. It is a "must do" on the western side of the state.
Sara excelled at artist hospitality, instituting many amenities to enable artists to afford to stay in the area on that weekend, including a home stay program where locals opened their home to artist guests. As many people on vacation bring their dogs and they are not allowed at the fair she began a relationship with the local animal shelter so that now when someone shows up with Rover there is a kennel right there where he will be taken care of while Rover's family shops at the show.
With a master's degree in social work Sara knew how to listen to people and empathize. Artists are losing a solid advocate with her departure. Sara is a well-loved person in the art fair business. Her smiling face and helpful manner will be missed in St. Joe in July.
Comments
In spite of what some survey says, KRASL was by far the best show in Michigan, in terms of quality of work, ease of setup, respect for the atists, a loyal clientele, and all out fun. Ann Arbor isn't even in the same league.
I have no confidence in that happening. If Sara didn't leave because of a better position somewhere else, it cannot be a good thing. I think there was a certain amount of lack of appreciation, for what Sara has done with the show, by the board and the executive director. I wouldn't take that to be fact, just my speculation. Everyone thinks it is easy to put on a great show that appeals to the patrons and at the same time, makes the artists happy. If it was easy, there would be a thousand more shows that would get the same respect instead of just a handful.
Let's hope they can find someone equally qualified and empathetic to fill her shoes...
What a great loss to the art show community.