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Show promoters- Puleeeeze stop calling for "vendors" in your prospectuses and advertising. It drives me nuts!

August 22 

small and large businesses.

  I went to the Broad Ripple Art Fair Open Jury in Indianapolis in February. I got to be a "fly on the wall," watching five judges as they decided the fate of 539 artists that had applied for the show.

   Because I am a jewelry artist who participates in juried art shows, and because the jury process has always been dark and mysterious to me, I decided to attend. It was a show to which I had applied, located an hour from my home, and an invitation had been emailed to all applicants.

     When I got there they were finishing up in the photography category. It was in a conference room with a large screen in the front, where the digital images were projected. The five judges sat at two long tables in the front row. Each judge had a laptop in front of them, seeing the same images that were being projected on the large screen. As they viewed the images - all three plus a booth image, the narrator read out loud the artist statement. There is very little interaction between the judges. The images would be up for about 30-40 seconds, the judges would mark their scores, and go on to the next artist.

   I found it fascinating to see the artist entries for photography. They ran the gamut from traditional to contemporary and realism to abstract. Seeing exactly what the judges saw, and in the short time given for each entry, I started to gain an appreciation for the challenge of judging an art show.

    It's all subjective, after all.

     After photography there was a break for lunch and then the jewelry category began. The host briefly showed images from each entry in the category. Then he went back through them, giving 30-40 seconds per artist, while the narrator read the artist statement. Since jewelry is my category, I was especially attentive to the images presented, the booth image, and what the artist said about his or her work. With 128 entries, the highest number of any category, it can all start looking the same after a while.

      "We should score down every time the term 'unique' or 'one of a kind' is used!" one of the judges jokingly said during a break.

I don't know if any of you have encountered this email, but apparently it is being sent out to artists:

"Hello,
I am Page Jocelyn, i came across  your items on the advert website and became interested in  ordering from you.
i will like to inquire on the items you have for sale  because i will be buying it for my new apartment.
I will like to see different pictures of the types of Items  available and my method of payment is by Bank Cheque.
Hope to hear back from you soon.
Regards
Page Jocelyn"

After several emails back & forth my husband made it clear to her that we have a website that she can look at and choose the art that she would like to purchase.  She decided on a painting and agreed to the price.  We gave her the address that she should mail the payment to, and she said that she would.  Then today we received an email from her saying that her financial administrator had sent us a  check that was meant for someone else, by mistake, but that we shouldn't destroy it or send it back but deposit it.  This put up a red flag for us, so we "googled" her name and a dialog came up indicating that there are several other aliases used for the same scheme.  If you deposit the check, they would have your bank information.  Of course we will not deposit it (if and when we receive it), but just wanted to know if anyone else has had this experience.

How to take better pictures with your iphone

I just completed an article about how to get better quality photographs from your iphone. It's a good follow up to my article on how to set your camera to photograph art.

Did you know that there's an app that allows saving as a TIF, offers exposure compensation and exposure bracketing.

http://bermangraphics.com/blog/iphone-camera-photography-tips/

Larry Berman
http://BermanGraphics.com
412-401-8100

90 seconds long

I spent a few hours with printmaker Ronna Katz at last summer's Ann Arbor Street Art Fair. While I was there she made several sizable sales. Her attention to her customers and clear knowledge of her media were apparent as the afternoon progressed.

I watched her sell several large pieces to a couple who had traveled from Cleveland to purchase, specifically collecting original prints. Ronna has been in the art fair business for quite some time, having grown up behind the booth when her parents sold their work at the shows.

It is people like Ronna that collectors come to the shows to meet. 

Arrow Electronics and the Cherry Creek Arts Festival are coming together to bring you the Arrow Five Years Out Art Challenge. Through it, we’re inspiring artists from throughout the world to explore the notion of thinking Five Years Out and express what innovation looks like through their medium.

Barry Witt's 3rd Bonita Springs art fair of the season took place in Riverside Park on March 14 & 15. This show is on the same weekend as the popular Vero Beach show. I applied to both but was not invited to Vero Beach. I'm a digital artist and I sell limited edition prints on both paper and canvas. 

I did Bonita Springs a few years ago when it was at the mall. I didn't do very well that year and I was skeptical about this new location, especially since Barry now has three art fairs at the same location (January, February and March). I was pleasantly surprised by the pleasant location, and by the ease of getting into the park and setting up. I was in a booth in a parking lot area on asphalt near the railroad tracks, one of three sections of the show. The main section is on old 41 with booths facing each other on both sides of the road. The third section is north of where I was in a grassy area with booths, again, facing each other. Artists are not assigned booths until the day of the show, so I didn't know in advance where my booth would be until I got there. I was happy with my location, being a corner space near one of the entry gates to the show. 

Friday was a setup day, starting at 12:30. We got there at about 1:30 and Marcia and I took our time setting up. It was hot so much water was consumed. We backed the van up right next to our booth and was able to leave it there for the duration (a much preferred option rather than having to unload everything, park the van, then set up). We had lots of room with spaces at least 12 feet wide and as deep as necessary. We took advantage of the space and extended our booth back about four feet giving us a covered booth 14 feet deep.

Walking the show on Saturday morning I saw some pretty good quality art, but I also saw a lot of unused spaces. I'm not sure why, but I later learned from another artist that there were 19 no-shows. That number may be hearsay, but there were lots of empty spaces. Later in the day a somewhat disappointed customer told me that the show advertised 200 artists, but she only counted 140. Since there is an entry fee of $5, she felt a little bit gypped. Not sure why there was such a light turnout of artists at this show, but it may be that the 3rd and final edition of this show was just one too many. 

Anyway, besides those few negatives, the patrons seemed to enjoy the show and seemed to be very engaged with the artists... at least at my booth. I didn't experience the "zombie walk" of patrons shuffling by without looking. People came into my booth and looked at my work, including the two jurors, who took the time to introduce themselves. I did not win an award. The turnout for the show was pretty light. It was never crowded, and, in fact, it got downright empty in the late afternoon as the temperatures continued to rise. I have a marine battery which I used to power a large fan. It kept Marcia and I a little cooler, and the customers liked it. 

My sales were brisk in the morning topped by a past customer who ordered a $950 canvas print to be delivered to Little Rock Arkansas in April. That sale made my day and I wound up with just over $2000 in sales Saturday. I was delighted and relieved by the response to my work, especially after such light sales in South Miami and Lake Wales, my two previous outings. We closed down at 5pm in a park populated only by us artists. Customers were gone by then.

Hoping for a continuation of good sales on Sunday, I was initially disappointed. I didn't make my first sale until about 1:30. But then, one of those sales spurts happened that is really hard to understand. I had two hours of brisk sales until the afternoon sun drove the customers away. I topped off the day with just under $2000, bringing my take for the show at just over $4K.

As in most shows, some artists did OK, and other artists were disappointed. I was happy with my sales, especially with such a light turnout of customers. More worrisome about this show is all the empty booth spaces. It makes me think that artists are giving up on this show. Maybe three shows in the same location is too many. Or, maybe it will just take some time to bring customers and artists to this new location. And, maybe Barry should consider scheduling the show on a different date so it doesn't conflict with the more popular Vero Beach show.

As I get older, I appreciate shows that make it easy for the artists. Setup and tear down were a breeze. Artist parking was a short block away in a nice grassy field. Booth size was generous. And, I made a nice paycheck for this show. I'll do it again next year. Next weekend I'm scheduled to do the downtown Naples art fair on 5th Avenue. I'm also on the wait list for Winter Park on the same weekend so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I'm not looking forward to that dreaded Saturday morning setup in Naples.

Just a few more days and counting until I leave for sunny Florida from Tennessee. I was juried into this year's Winter Park show and I see reviews that are all over the place for the event. Should I be concerned about Nels' review from last year? Hopefully I wont! I looking forward to posting a positive review myself.  That's why we do festivals, right?

I'm certainly looking forward to my first ever time in the Orlando area for a festival. Any suggestions on nice dinner spots in the area? Any others have tips for the show would be appreciated! 

Thanks in advance! 

Matt 

Mt. Desert Island, Maine
 

The Downeast Maine Art Festivals are a series of fine art and crafts shows held during the peak of the tourist season: August and September, on Mt. Desert Island, Maine, home to world-famous Acadia National Park and Bar Harbor, and are held in incomparably beautiful locations! 

August 1 & 2
Northeast Harbor
Northeast Acadian Harborfest

Northeast Harbor Marina waterfront
40 Artists 

This  show is being expanded in 2015 to include other culturally-related activities. 

August 7-9
Bar Harbor

Bar Harbor Fine Arts Festival

Held on the grounds of the Bar Harbor Inn on the town waterfront. This is our "flagship" show and has established a reputation with both artists and patrons as one of the top shows in northern New-England. 

September 11-13
Bar Harbor
Bar Harbor Fine Arts Festival II 

Held on the grounds of the Bar Harbor Inn on the town waterfront.  This show follows Labor Day weekend while the Bar harbor region is still very busy with tourists and when cruise ships make more frequent port calls in Bar Harbor. 

The shows are produced by a show circuit artist like you and for you!  Promotion is island-wide and uses cards, posters and tasteful outdoor signage as well as newspaper and internet advertising.  Promotion of the shows goes beyond just the weekends of the shows--customer and gallery inquiries will be forwarded to the appropriate artists year-round.  
 

These shows are ideal for the traveling artist wishing to have a "working vacation" -- most artists stay a week and often do back-to-back shows.
 

Jurying is by on-going periodic rolling-jury.  Spaces are

limited in media categories in order to maintain a balance of media types and therefore spaces are reserved on a "first come, first paid" basis.

How to apply:

Applications are at www.Zapplication.com  

Further information may be had at www.marcfink.com/shows  

calling (207)266-5162 or by e-mail atin_a_cloud@hotmail.com

THURSDAY, MARCH 19 - 12 noon

Connie Mettler talks with Marcy Boroff, from Renaissance Craftables, one of the east coast’s premier craft show promotion companies partnering with downtown areas and non-profits. Marcy Boroff had worked with her mother, Barbara, on shows for years and took over the business in 2010.  

She operates 8-9 events each year primarily in the Philadelphia area and in New Jersey near Philadelphia.

As a craft show promoter, Marcy feels very strongly that it is a partnership between the artists, the downtown areas or non-profits she is partnering with, and the community of festival-goers.  

How did this company get from mall shows to the streets of some of the best shopping areas in the East?

We talk about:

• the role of the show promoter and why they do it
• choosing a location to host a show and starting a new show
• building and implementing a marketing plan
• the good part of being a show promoter
• the bad part and the worst part
• building relationships with the shopping areas where they host their events
• building relationships with artists
• the future of craft shows and their economic impact

Learn more about the company: Renaissance Craftables General Guidelines for Artists

If you live in the east and are sometimes wondering what is all this talk about art fairs when what you do are craft shows -- this podcast is for you. There are regional differences in our business and the Boroffs were some of the first people to develop the market in the East. 

Got questions for me to ask Marcy? Leave them in the comments below.

Hope you'll be listening on 3/19 -- if you can't make it then you can always access our podcasts at the Radio link up above at this iTunes link. 

looking for opinions on the Montauk Art on the Green show held on Memorial Day weekends?

art show Recycle and its prestigious juror Elissa Goldstone, Director of Exhibition at the Socrates Sculpture Park.  With her direction, we look forward to a really awesome show. $2,800 in cash prizes will be awarded including $1,000 Best in Show.  The exhibit runs May 9-June 14.  

This call for submissions is open to all residents of the U.S. and its Territories 18 years of age or older.  This is a juried exhibition for artists working in all traditional and non-traditional 2D and 3D media, including film/video when part of an installation.  All artwork must be original in concept, design and exception.  All work should be non-utilitarian in nature.  This is a fine art exhibition.
 

  
Final Application Deadline March 24

From the latest newsletter from B. Eric Rhoads
8 Secrets To Winning Art Competitions
From An Art Competition Judge

http://us9.campaign-archive1.com/?u=08b7b899f536384c34bdeb9f6&id=5a167a717b&e=6eac799ad3

Some of the information isn't relevant but some of it should be considered when applying to shows.

Larry Berman
http://BermanGraphics.com
412-401-8100