Blog

First off, this show is not held on a farm ;-) It's held on the campus of Midway College in Midway, Kentucky which is a lovely campus. The show has had a high reputation, and was much larger at one time with almost 300  artists. The Lexington Art League ran it for a few years and had moved it somewhere else, and it had suffered. A local volunteer group has taken it over, and the show is a smaller and more intimate one now with a little over a hundred artists. It is a gem of a show, and more than likely will increase in size over the next several years. It's a regional show and draws from the wealthy neighborhoods in Lexington, Frankfort, and Louisville.

Set up was on Friday with assigned arrival times. We had some issues with waiting for the guide to take us to our spot, as some tents had blown over earlier and everyone was helping pick up scattered work and getting it sorted out. We had to wait over 45 minutes, and part of it was one of the helpers forgot we were there waiting. Finally we got to our unloading point, carted one load in, and then the guys with the tractor and wagon showed up and got everything else in one load. The sidewalks are narrow, so vehicles aren't permitted to drive in. On the positive side, there are crews of volunteers who will do the heavy lifting and take everything to your spot. The show director came by later and apologized for our long delay on getting moved in.

We set the tent and walls up, and came back Saturday morning to hang work, and were ready when the customers rolled in. It was a little cool and breezy, with rains expected off and on, so the rear tarp was stretched out with a set of painter poles and corner braces to make a closed in rear room to the tent, and a couple more tarps closed it in to make a 5x10 extra room for storage and a place to stay warmer and dry. All the spaces had more than adequate room to store inventory and set up chairs behind the booth.

Saturday took off well with a good buying energy and you would see a variety of work being carried by the customers. Our sales were good enough to pay all the expenses and still make a profit. Sunday started off okay, but the crowds were different, with either the very young or the much older. The middle age buyers with money weren't there on Sunday and most artists around us reported sales of half or less than Saturday. It still added up to a very decent show and I will re-apply for next year.

Tear-down was smooth, with volunteers constantly checking to see if you were ready to pack out. By the time we were packed up, the wait time for the tractor and wagon was only about 15-20 minutes, and a couple of young volunteers helped load the tubs and boxes into the wagon and drove to the van where they helped load everything in.

The show is a hidden gem out where you wouldn't expect to see a higher end show, it has moneyed and knowledgeable buyers who didn't price quibble, and volunteers who were extremely helpful. More shows could use their model :-)

Promenade of Art Arlington Heights in Arlington Heights, IL

Part One (before the show)

I started writing this review before the show started. Main reason I am heading to Virginia Beach two after the show because I will be part of Boardwalk Art Show in Virginia Beach.  

My home base is Chicago, IL. I do travel out of state. As I stated I do out state shows because my type work allow me to that and I believe that the Chicago market is saturated and had become a market for the tourist (this is my humble opinion). What I mean with market for the tourist. Your work will do well if you had post card art or art work that you relate to the city or Europe, social events and social awareness. You can still do well with other type of work but as an artist you need to work harder and not depend only in the art shows.

Art Fair Artist have so many reasons why to stay close to home (family, work, amount of shows, type of work, economy, etc). It is very personal choice and is up to the artist to make that choice. Why I make this statement because if you do only shows in Florida you will be bond to a show with Howard Allan. If you only do shows in Chicago you are bond to do a show with Amy Amdur. When I am out town I had been ask if I do shows with her and answer is yes. God, artist look me up and down and sometimes people spit fire. Same thing happen when discuss her in forums.

I had observed in the last few weeks how Amdur is promoting each of her shows and you can not ask to much more from her. I was told last year that when she does a show she get permits so the stores and other vendors  do not put racks on the streets and offer special sale at the same time that shows goes and why because she does want people to be distract from the artists. That sound weird but think what happen in Ann Arbor. She gave the artists post cards and the post cards now show one of your pieces. She does that for every show that she promote. Amdur taking over some shows not adding.  I believe in near future other of the One of  a Kind Show and sale in Chicago  if you come to do a art fair not a festival in Chicago you will be bond to a show with Amy or Erin. People are begging for Erin to take more shows but she wont do more than x amount shows no matter what. I also can tell you that is not cheap to put an Art Fair in Chicago (does not count politics). Every time you do a show there is a 25 license fee add to the booth fee and some residents do not want this events in the living areas.  

So why I choose to do this show. I choose it because 57th St Art Fair or Community Section has lost his luster but it could bounce back when Obama get out of the office because of the rumors of the library coming to Hyde Park Area. The Hyde Park Area is in a transformation movement but I am sorry but big corp is taking over the area or been allow to come in. 57th is follow by Wells St and Old Town. I think for 57th St Art Fair the booth fee, lic and jury fee is 360.00 and Promenade is 495.00. Wow 135 difference so if you using this either show as a filler or pairing with Old Town 57th booth fee wise is the first choice.  Also keep in mind you can apply to Columbus and Edina. If you are local you may consider the Barrington and Millennium with Amy that go before this weekend.

The set up for Promenade is done Friday night. One group start at 6pm and another start at 8pm. You can only set up until 10:30pm. That means in my case I should be able to put the tent up but I may not be able to hang everything until Saturday morning. I already know that I will be next to a sponsor. God had Mercy of me.

Part Two the show is here:

Friday arrived I decided to take off at 4pm. Traffic is bond to get worst by the hour in Friday night. It took me 2 hours to get there and the GPS told me to get off the highway.

Set up day arrive and my starting time was 8pm. I got lucky and they let us start going in around 730pm.  I also find out that the sponsor was not  next to me. The main goal was to put up the tent up with walls. I manage to up almost everything up and just have tight up next morning. I end helping another artist I chatting I got out of there at 11:30 pm. The trip back home only took 30 minutes. Saturday came around 8am to finish the set up. I notice That I did some basic mistakes but one thing I learned was to use my lights during set up, I can always recharge the battery.

Both days of the show people show up around 10am and the traffic was great . It seems that the show was full both days. I only notice a less people around lunch time and end of the day. I think that very typical at any show. Some artist did very well and some did very bad. People was purchasing items under 100.00 for the most part and some in the 300.00 range. So to have a great show you need volume of small stuff. In my case I sold 7 small frames and lot of small print but no big ticket items (495). The sponsors and music was very low key. Bathrooms was available through different restaurants in the blocks.

The break down was very easy. You break down all the way down. Get a pass bring your car in and load. We got lucky because the weather was great and only rain over night. I did saw the candle lady but she was at the end of the row. She is very nice and yes see the point of some artists.

At the end I did not have time to look around and the show was well promote . I have a great time and easy both days. Nothing bad to post other that if you did not know is a blue collar area, There some money but people really watch how they spend the money. If you decide to the show do not expect to sale big ticket items because they do not move as much as you want to see.

Now to Virginia Beach.

I know that markets are not art shows. I combined work and vacation once (never again) and did the Saturday markets in Portland and Eugene, Oregon. The woman who runs Eugene reminded us that markets are different and were dependent on a recurring customer base instead of a rush of festival goers.  Fair enough. I think I made 80 bucks. Chalked it up to market research.   Oh quit yer groanin'

Anyway, when a friend of mine wanted to start a market here in Buffalo, on our newly fabulous waterfront, she asked me for info on how it was done and I was able to give her the nuts and bolts info on how the sellers are organized and chosen etc. She ran with it and, in partnership with another artist, has established a really lovely market. 

I hadn't been able to participate because of conflicts, but this year I signed up for 3. I live a few blocks away and probably would have spent a few hours down there anyway. The tents are lined up along the boardwalk with the grassy yard behind you and the water in front of you. It is a popular destination for locals, so you are guaranteed an audience. There is music, a food truck in addition to the restaurant options already there.

We had a great time. The weather was perfect, people came out in droves and there was an Urban Planning convention in town so we had those folks checking it  (and us)  out. A wedding party showed up to take pictures and wound up dancing to the band. I made a few hundred bucks which felt like more because the event was easy and so much fun to do. 

An unexpected benefit of doing a small show before the festivals start is that you learn just how unprepared you are for the season to come. We're out of bags? Seriously? Where are those business cards? That browse bin is too short for how you want to use it.  And so on. It's like when the Bills play scrimmage games in Rochester before the real season starts. Well, sorta like that except for the paycheck.

The only sour note came when a 50ish guy with a gray buzz cut and jeans belted just under what would have been pecs picked up a matted print and asked if I would sell it for 5 dollars less. Uh. No. I directed him to the bagged prints that were cheaper and he went for that. (I don't need no mat) Then he asked if he had to pay tax. I pointed to my tax certificate and said that yes, I had to collect it, and they did spot check us. (we're talking a buck here) I'm just gonna give you this, he said, holding out the money sans tax. I looked at it, assessed how important it was to take this guy on and took the money without a thank you. As he left the booth he said, condescendingly,  that he was a business person. I answered that so was I.( And that I must be doing better than he since I has just paid his sales tax for him. ) OK, so he was out of the booth by that last bit, but it made me feel better.

Bottom line is that if you live in the area and have no big show on a market weekend, it is a pleasant "grocery money" show run by high energy, awesome women who are also artists and know what we need. They had everything nailed, from load in to artist parking. (Parking down there is a nightmare. They got us our own little lot) Plenty of advance info. Ready to help with any thing you need.

I am looking forward to my next one on July 5th. Just hope Mr Buzzcut doesn't come back but if he does, I'm ready  for him.

Oh, what can I say? Much was touted and little came through except disappointment. Maybe it was a fluke with the poor sales, but the weather gods smiled, there were crowds at one time, but still at the end was much gnashing of teeth and wailing. More on that later, but let's get the logistics out of the way first.

The Kalamazoo Institute of Art has had this show for many years and it has a high reputagtion for a quality show and for being organized and well run. No complaints on that score as they sent emails several times informing the artists of what was going on, what the booth assignments were, where good deals on lodging were and so on. All the work before the show was impeccable.

Set up was early on Friday morning, with set up time starting at 8:00 AM with a 3:00 PM show start time. We arrived at 7:45 with many artists already there and setting up at a leisurely pace. The show is held in Bronson Park with the artists arranged along the sidewalks, set up on grass and facing sidewalks. If you were on the interior of the park, as most were, you could drive on the sidewalk and unload. Heck of a deal. There was more than adequate space behind the booths, unless you had a flower bed behind you. We had room to set up an awning behind us that used the rear tarp as the awning, so we had a 7 foot awning over us to keep the sun off, and were able to stack tubs and boxes behind that.

It was a nice leisurely set up where we didn't have to fret about being done by the time the customers showed up. People started walking through about 2:00 or a little afterwards. Crowds were reasonably heavy, lots of lookers, but zilch buying energy. Some of the artists around me were getting a bit worried. I figured it was the typical Friday crowd as Fridays usually suck. Nope, I was told by the repeat artists that Fridays here are supposed to be a good day. Yeah, I sold a single $20 piece on Friday. 

The awards dinner was well attended and thank goodness they had alcohol, because it blunted the significance of Friday being off-stride for many of the artists. There was grumbling aplenty, although as usual there were some who were doing well. Unfortunately the impression was that the majority were not happy campers.

Saturday rolled around looking good. The weather was beautiful, and the in case I didn't mention it, the park setting was beautiful. Here's a photo I took that morning with the morning sun streaming through the trees and shining on the rows of white tents.

 Unfortunately the crowds were lookers and talkers, more interested in sharing stories of being in the same places I had been or wanting to go there. Hey, you talk to them and hope the connections will spur a sale. It wasn't happening. The best I did on Saturday was two small flip bin pieces at $29 each, unmatted no less.  The woodworker next to me sold three tables that were beautifully done, but with a double booth, that wasn't enough to salvage his show. A jeweler down the sidewalk from reported selling nothing for the final 3 1/2 hours of the show with disappointing results for the entire show. Several other artists said they lost money doing the show. There were other times I felt like I was still in the classroom teaching; talking to people only semi-interested in the work and not making much money.

The rush seemed to be from about 11:00 to 2:00, and the crowds tapered off quickly after that. No one seemed to be interested in spending much. I had a couple nibbles and even with discounting the price, still no takers. The parades, marching bands, the beer garden, and all the other entertainment are neat and fun, but the concern has to be if that is drawing too many people there for entertainment only, and buying the art work is taking the back seat. 

Things started slowing down quickly, and this snap shot is a telling image. It was taken at 3:30 when that's the usual last rush time on the last day for coming back to get what you looked at earlier.

When the corn dog and elephant ear stand is deserted, you know you're in deep doo-doo. The food concessions out in the street pulled the plug early and started tearing down about 4:30 or a bit earlier. When they opened the street barricades for the food vendors to get their trucks in, the artists joined in with a big rush of vans coming in before the show was over. A good 15 minutes before the show was over, there were vans already parked in front of my space. I commented about this to a couple of artists around me, and the answer was that they had done nothing for the last several hours, and the show was over when the food vendors pack up as those guys stay as long as they're selling.

This was the first time I've seen a quality show like this just fall apart at the end. I started packing up at that point also. There was a pretty disgruntled attitude among many of the artists, and more than a few were rushing to get out of Dodge. I was a bit miffed when someone pulled up directly in front of my booth as I was planning to stack panels against the street light and stack boxes on the sidewalk in order to save time and energy loading up. Another artist from further in the park asked one of the people who parked in front of my booth if she would let her know when they would move so she could park there. My wife who is normally a patient person (hey, she puts up with me), got her dander up and interrupted to let them know we had our van ready to move in there first. It wasn't taken well, but have a little consideration. A little after we got the van in, the person on the other side of us moved, so I was able to turn my van around in the other direction to let that artist get her vehicle in.  

There were several judges who came around inspecting for the art work itself, booth presentation, and some other criteria to determine who is invited back next year. This is supposed to be a hard show to get into, and the quality of the work all around is very high. While the KIA has the process of the show down to a near science delivering strong logistics in a very nice urban park environment with high production values,  they can't guarantee a buying crowd despite excellent weather. Without that buying crowd, it's hard, and damn hard, to justify going back when you had 3 sales totaling $78 before taxes.

I would be very interested in hearing the experience others had this year. One person mentioned in another forum post that they did the show last year, and it was their worst show plus getting bedbugs from their motel. At least I didn't get that bugged over the show.

September 5-7
Huntington Beach, California
Pacific Coast Hwy & Beach Blvd.
150 Artists
Deadline: July 31

For years, Southern California has showcased many smaller to medium community art festivals. This new event is built on current day models with an emphasis on visual arts activities targeting the most creative artists from around the country and providing all participants the best opportunity to sell to the large crowds in attendance.

The festival will emerge onto the Southern California scene in early September to put an exclamation point on the endless summer. The event will offer national marquee touring artists plus a host of California's own.  Foodies will be exposed to some of the best local restaurants providing  trials of their best cuisine and SoCal great wine regions will showcase their top notch supply. 
          

• Over 1 million dollars in local media will support event
•             
• Event is partnered with the local Huntington Beach Art Council who will be promoting to their database
•             
• The combined assets of Art, Food, Wine & Music will draw large crowds 
•             
• Target is 35-54 - disposable income
•             
• There is no other event like this in Southern California and will carry a model like some of the largest events in the U.S.
•             
• Nfuse 360 Marketing is a specialized event marketing company that knows how to produce top tiered traffic driving programs that deliver results
•             
• Perks program at event. Consumers that buy art will get complimentary special benefits at event
•           

          Forget your preconception of a typical music or arts festival.  This is anything but ordinary. Artists from all over the country will showcase their best and creative side in a juried event never seen before in Southern California. We believe in the arts and this iconic Southern California celebration. 

Learn more & apply: www.zapplication.org/event-info-public.php?fair_id=3474   

Art Fair Road Trip? If you are going to be at the Sausalito Art Festival on August 30-Sept. 1, what do you think about a beautiful drive down the Coast and being part of this brand new festival the following weekend? Think about it.   

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Find more events looking for artists, fill in your calendar: CallsforArtists.com

Wow, I won! Thank you Connie and all who donated prizes to the pledge drive.

 I AM REWARDED AGAIN!!!!!!!  Sorry about shouting but I am so excited that I am a winner.  I have always felt rewarded with all the wonderful info here at Art Fair Insiders but to find I was rewarded again with free booth space at Sandy Springs...WOW!!! My donation was nothing compared with what I get from everyone here.  Thanks Connie and everyone who posts the helpful information here!!!!

I made a pledge to AFI because it is such a great resource for artists but never thought I would win.  I won free booth space to a show in St Augustine FL that I've heard great things about but have not yet experienced.  Thank you AFI and especially to Old Town Art Show for making such a great donation!

• Srey Tiep - 5/7/2014 "Zapp IE Exaggeration Uncalled For - 4 important updates you should not miss"
• Annette Piper - 5/14/2014 "An Aussie show with an organiser who MUST have read AFI"
• Ruth Finkenbiner - 5/20/2014 "Back in the Game - Started with a Double Header & our first Award!!"
• S. Brian Berkun - 5/28/2014 "Gambling on Estes Park, CO"

Thanks to Srey, Annette, Ruth and Brian for these contributions, keeping us all on our toes.

Deadline for voting - 6 pm, June 13.

CLICK HERE TO VOTE

I joined this group many years ago to help me move from being a "dyer" which many refer to as "indy dyer" over to Surface Designer - which is actually what I have always done for over 55 years, mixed with garment design. I have been afraid for too long to move into the art world with my work and everyone here has helped me transition.

People's supportive commenting about art shows, etc in this group couldn't be more generous. I know sometimes mine have been blunt and to the point. Many times out of protecting myself and keeping the goal in sight - my work, my business and making sure I don't get off track.

In the meantime, I welcome mentoring others, when the time is right (that is key), and as I continue to get exposed to more people on the "art" side, I am thankful for all the experiences I have had being on the side I am moving away from, the opportunity to learn sometimes painfully, and the opportunity to share with others. Part of my learning and experience process was putting boundaries in place.

I found too many times, I would get trapped in someones issues, without stopping and saying to myself - whoa, is this really where I want to go? That was one of the hardest lessons for me over the last 8 years, to comfortably (key) be able to say to someone that is "picking" my brain when I don't wish to have that done to me, "Oh, this appears to be turning into a consultation and we will need to schedule an appointment to continue." I am amazed at how that simple sentence can have so much power in an instant. It was one of the hardest things I struggled with when approached by someone asking a "non-product" related question far too often during shows. This was one of the biggest boundary issues for me, and since I started with this response about a year ago, I have seen major positive change in me and especially in my sales. Taking back control during these times, rather than going with that really old archaic school of thought - the customer, and everyone else is always right, and you just have to sit there and take it (how I was taught so many years ago in retail). I removed the everyone else factor, and it's amazing, the results I am getting in my sales - measurable differences, just by putting up boundaries. So, when I saw someone discuss this very topic in a recent post, and made me realize, as part of our mentoring, we need to explain to others in the business when it's appropriate and when it's not. While some of you may take offense to this, here are some stats, and perhaps you will understand how critical setting up this boundary may be if you are also trapped. I have improved my sales to date by 25% over 2012/2013 which were both flat-line years. I must be doing something right.

September 12-14
Ferndale, Michigan

Fri. 3pm-8pm
Sat. 10am-8pm
Sun. 12noon-5pm
120 Artists
Deadline: June 15

Noteworthy:

• Artwork leans towards the edgy
• 11th year
• Extensive marketing
• Artist amenities include free parking, beverages, free Sunday breakfast, respect
• Location: Nine Mile Road at Woodward, Ferndale, in the heart of a vibrant downtown
• 40,000+ shoppers flock to this hip destination 

Event Summary:  

Twice as funky as the average fine art show...  

Ferndale's vibrant downtown attracts young upwardly mobile professionals in their 20's, 30's and 40's. It is a lively community with varied shopping and exciting clubs and restaurants. Attendees have the means to purchase items that appeal to them.  Their taste in art tends toward less pastoral, more active work. While traditional images do sell, this show focuses on the unusual.

We are committed to your success. Please feel free to call with questions or concerns at any time. We are artist focused and seek to provide a venue that enhances your work and simplifies your participation.

For more info:  www.MichiganArtShows.com 

Now accepting applications at: www.zapplication.org 

You may also contact Mary Strope for a paper application:  

Mary@integrityshows.com 

SO cool!  I like to donate to Connie's forum because I think it's a terrific resource for those of us in this business.  But this year I also won a prize!  In fact, I won an Amazon Gift Card for $100 -- and since I buy just about EVERYTHING on Amazon that is a really GREAT GIFT.  Thanks Connie and thanks Chris Taylor for donating the gift. 

I was one of the many people to donate to this year's Pledge Drive.  As I looked longingly over the prizes, I secretly selected which one would make it's way into my hands if my name was drawn.  I saw the first list of names and disappointingly, my name wasn't there.  I waited anxiously for the 2nd drawing (a whole week later!!) and lo and behold, my name was on this list!

99.9% of you don't know me - I rarely start any posts and don't comment often.  I'm a beadweaver in Pennsylvania and do shows part time (that pesky full time job gets in the way at times:) and I don't travel much outside of my 3 or 4 state area. I've been a member of Art Fair Insiders for several years and have thoroughly enjoyed reading people's reviews, funny stories of their adventures on the road, and have tried to buy things from the classifieds.  Even though I didn't win any prizes last year, I wanted to make sure that my contribution - no matter how big or small - would help to keep this great site going.  The prize I chose this year was the booth space at one of the Rose Squared shows in NJ.  Last year was my first year at these shows and I am so excited to be going back in two weeks. 

Thank you Connie for all of the hard work you do for this site daily and for pulling together these awesome prizes!!

First time at this show this past weekend (May 31-June 1). My category: photography-landscapes.

A review? phhhttttt --No--A novel: by Dale (Yak) Yakaites (I'm watching my Brewers get beat by the Twins and I have plenty of time.  :-)

The Racine and Kenosha, Wisconsin, areas have had some tough times in recent years in terms of businesses closing and a bigger than normal downturn in the economy. Racine is a little rough around the edges, and I didn't know what to expect giving this show a try. As it turns out, I have nothing but positives to say about the show—at least that was my experience.

Monument Square is in the downtown business area about three blocks off Lk. Michigan. This not a big show (80 booths), but the quality of art being shown was quite good. From what I understand this show had fallen on some hard times a few years ago after about 50 yrs. in existence. The previous promoters lost access to the Square to another venue, but it returned with new organization to the Square last year after a year or two near the lakefront.

Organization and artist emails, contact info, etc.–excellent   Check in easy. Friendly people!Plenty of volunteers on hand making sure things were going well for artists. Free coffee and bakery available each morning both days. Artist lounge available (artists only) both days. Dinner on Saturday night. Did not attend..Volunteers for booth sitters by sign-up---excellent. Water provided during the day for artists.

Easy enough Friday afternoon load in--drive up to booth--if you have just a little patience while others load in. Same for Sunday load out--show ends 4pm Sunday. Booth spots are 10x10 (doubles and corners available) with "a little" space available behind booths depending on where your spot is. There is daytime music both days, but I didn't consider it intrusive for artists--not blasting (although my booth was located at one end of the show away from the stage). A few food vendors are located just outside the square in street parking areas. Good separation between food and artists' booths.

Crowd? Excellent both days. Great weather and people were taking advantage of it. The setting is unique in that it is in a business area, but not what I would call a shopping district. After setup on Friday, I found myself wondering where the foot traffic would come from. Show opened at 10am both days and it was obvious the the promoters did a great job of advertising. The crowd appeared out of nowhere on both days and was very steady. Everything from "the good shoes people" and to retirees with money and local corporate people (SC Johnson Co etc) to young couples (who were my best customers--new homes) families, and some dog walkers. One note: I've never seen so many well dressed women of differing ages-- and men--with serious ink on their arms legs, shoulders--wherever--- in one location at one time!

Artists?  Yes, quite a few jewelry booths, nice fiber art, unique clothing, metalwork, excellent watercolor artists, but for a change a modest number of photogs. Otherwise a pretty good variety of art from high end to moderate prices. Booths of each category were well dispersed.

Sales?? I had a very good show and two other photogs I talked to did "okay". I personally would look forward to going back, but a number of other booths around me barely made booth costs for the weekend. People were buying quality it seemed because I saw some larger pieces being carried out. I also grossed about $5,000 in "my phantom sales" because I was keeping track of "attaboys--$0.50" "beautiful work--3$"  "you have an excellent eye--$4 and WOWs $5. I subtracted $10 though for each "so, you must have gone to these places, eh?

Only negative: free parking-- but about 3 blocks away. No shuttle or golf carts. I do have some back issues and a little trouble walking at times.

My biggest overall impression was that the people who ran the show bent over backwards to make artists feel welcome. Doing the show was a pleasant experience.

1 down---10 more to go this summer. A good start was had.singalong now---(cue Roy and Trigger---haaapppyyy saales…to you……until……I write again…

There will be quiz on this review at a later date.

RunAwaaaaay!

Yak

Just returned from The Kenan's Center 100 American Craftsmen show in Lockport NY and thought I do a review.  I've done this show for 4 years and it is truly a pleasure to do.  There are only 100 artists and it is located in the skating rink building on the grounds of the Kenan center.  Load in is extremely easy as you can pull right up to one of the garage style doors that open on all around 2 sides of the building.  Set up is Thursday and Friday till 3:00 so you have all kinds of time. We set up on Thursday and had Friday morning free, so we went to Niagara Falls (about 1/2 hour drive). This show has some of the nicest artwork I've seen in my travels and a lot of it compares to the ACC show in quality.  There is a preview night on Friday night that runs 5:00-9:00 and my sales were about $1,000.00 for that evening opening, so they do buy then.  After we close, we all go over to the Kenan Mansion (BEAUTIFUL) for a dinner party with lots of good food (Sushi if you hurry), an open bar and live music.  Sunday morning they have a meeting and provide breakfast.  The artists are asked for our suggestions or comments which are written down and many times implemented for the following year.  During the show, there are floor aids that will bring you complimentary ice teas, water or coffee all day, every day.  they also will watch your booth for bathroom breaks.  I personally have never been treated so well by a show!  

The skating rink has a metal roof, so using the square in 'offline' mode saved me this year.  In previous years, it was a struggle to process credit cards and probably was this year for the artists that don't use square.  Also the building is not air conditioned and can be a little toasty, so dress light and bring your fan.  Sales were good for me this year, but not up to the previous fantastic years I've had there.  Maybe the weather was too nice, I was really hoping for rain and we had perfect sunshiny days.  Anyway, really worth a shot for high quality work.

http://www.kenancraftshow.com/Pages/default.aspx

This is a Howard Alan show located in the outdoor Legacy Village lifestyle center (ie shopping mall of the 21st century).  It's a Saturday-Sunday show with set-up availability on Friday morning, Friday evening and Saturday early morning.

Although many show promoters say their shows are situated among wealthy neighborhoods, in this case they really weren't kidding.  This place has so much money that even the cop who stopped me for speeding one morning said, when he learned I was going to Legacy Village, "man, I can't even afford to drive down the street up there."  The expensive speeding ticket was handed over shortly thereafter.

Turns out this area is home to a large Jewish community, some who arrived directly from Jerusalem.  Wish I had know that before I brought my bread-and-butter Xmas-ornament sideline product, which is usually a great impulse purchase that adds over $1k to my show totals.  Not so much, this time.   But that's okay.  There was quite a bit of other ethnic diversity at this show as well, so it was an interesting weekend in that regard.

Although artists who know me know that I'm not a fan of shopping mall shows -- Robert Wallis, remember my exhortation to back away from the mall regarding Easton? -- I must say that Howard Alan seems to do it as well as it could be done.  Artist parking is a mile and a shuttle ride away, so that obviously adds a layer of complication when it comes to set-up, tear-down and day-to-day back and forth.  But you can drive right to your space for loading and unloading, and the HA staff was so organized and the logistics so meticulously thought-out that the whole shuttle thing was barely noticeable.  Staff was professional, helpful, friendly and always on the ball.  A pleasant change of pace.

Weather was perfect all weekend.  Sunny, low 80s and slight breeze, so no excuses for anything but a great show.  Attendance and sales were steady all day on Saturday.  Seemed as if the crowd could have been bigger, but those who attended were generally ready to buy rather than just look and move on.  They knew what they were doing and knew what they liked -- overall, an educated and easy-to-deal-with group.  The show continued until 8 pm, which was a couple of hours too long in terms of ROI.

Sunday attendance was surprisingly brisk for the first couple of hours, then the families with small kids who thought we were free entertainment descended.  That was pretty much the end of the steady revenue flow.  Sales still happened here and there, but the periods between sales grew longer and longer as the day wore on.  By 2 pm, artists were groaning that they had 4 more grueling hours to go and some were looking for alcohol or bullets to end their own misery.  In the end, most artists said they did "okay", which in some cases meant several thousand in sales but less than they normally do at shows.  Others, who were showing great and very creative work, said their results were lousy.  I ended up a couple $k to the good, so at least it was better than sitting at home.

This was my first HA show so I must rely on the opinions of other artists for a comparison to other HA events.  In general, this one is viewed as an under-performer, mostly because the $450 booth fee, plus app fee, hotel cost and gas quickly takes you to $1k or more in expenses and the revenue doesn't quite live up to that investment.  But if you don't travel too far from home (I was 4 hours away), it can be a nice little filler show.  I did hear from several people, artists and shoppers alike, that this show is usually plagued with horrible weather of some sort, so that's another piece of the puzzle to consider.  The quality of exhibitors is good, there's live (and good) music, and the food booths are upscale.

I may very well apply to this show again as an alternate to my hometown Summerfair show next year.  But, more importantly, it's made me a fan of Howard Alan and I'm now taking a closer look at their other offerings.

Okay, I was warned about this one, but oh-no, I had to try it anyway. It had one thing going for it; cheap booth space at $110. If you're local, give it a shot, otherwise stay away.

Booth space was unusual at 15x10, so the prospect of having two extra sides available to hang work sounded good, so I sprung for it. Sort of like a mouse going for the cheese. My neck still hurts.

Okay, so I get the usual acceptance letter, and given that it looked like some locations required some heavy duty carting in, I asked for something close that I could load in easily as my knees and back aren't amenable to long walks on the beach and in the rain. I luck out; I'm only about 8 spaces from the curb. The letter said set up time was 7:15AM on Saturday. Damn! My wife and I decide to drive up to Chicago from Indy on Friday and get a room instead of leaving in the middle of the night on Saturday morning. Despite spending over 2 hours in rush hour Friday afternoon traffic just getting from downtown Chicago out to Schaumburg, we figured it would be a good idea to scope out the location and see where the booth is located.

Damn good thing we decided to stop by, for as we pull up to the site it looks like half the show is already setting up. WTF?? Some folks got emails saying they could set up Friday, but we certainly didn't. I went to the sign in table, no one there, but all the badges were laid out. Okay, get the badge and start unloading. We get the first load from the curb to the booth location, and we notice a few vans pulled up on the courtyard. The letter said cart in only. Okey-doke; when in Rome.. I pulled the van next to the space and start unloading :-)

Ah, the fun is just starting. The 10x15 space didn't include any space between the rear of the booth and the one behind it. A quick consultation with the guy behind me and we both moved away from the back; I moved 2 feet and he moved one foot. Now we had storage space. To hell with the marks on the pavement; when the booths across from you are about 35-40 feet  away, a couple of feet isn't going to kill the traffic flow. We get the booth and panels up, and decide to hang the next morning.

Next morning rolls around and I realize there is not a lick of shade on this courtyard and it's going to be hotter than hell in the direct sun. I usually put up an awning behind the booth, but no joy there due to the narrow storage, so the back door becomes a side door and the next door neighbors who are placed at a 45 degree angle to us agree that attaching their side tarp to my side awning (the side tarp) and the pole assembly would work just fine to get both us a shaded area almost 15 feet wide between our booths. Hell of a deal ;-)

Now for the show. I never saw any of the organizers from the Arts Center come around. No one, Nada. I did talk to one of the judges for a moment, but the other one was a surly looking schmuck who wandered around with a scowl and didn't so much as even glance at my booth. The lady who juried the entries came around and introduced herself, and we had a wide ranging discussion that went on for about 15-20 minutes. Outside of that, none of the show people came by that we could tell. Their office was just inside the entry way on the way to the indoor restroom, and I would see one or two people in there. I guess they were too busy sipping their Starbucks to bother with the plebian artists on their grounds.

The best way to describe the organization of this show is slipshod and ineffectual. The best thing is that their lackadaisical attitude allowed those of us on the courtyard to bring our vehicle up on the pavement and get the hell out of there mach schnell, not to mention setting up. The facility is beautiful with a pond in the middle and artists set up around that, sort of like Loring park in Minneapolis. Another artist said for the last 20 years they struggle every year to get themselves organized. Sounds like it may never happen.

Bottom line is the sales. Mine was at the bottom. It sucked; big time industrial strength shop vacuum suck. A total of $300. That paid the booth fee back, paid for the gas, and one nights lodging. It didn't pay for the other two nights or the meals. I lost about $200 doing this show. The painter behind me did zip. I saw David Kay there and he was doing okay, and selling smaller flip bin pieces. I brought big pieces, with probably 30  12x16 smaller flip-bin pieces and those may have been too big. The crowd was either geriatric or stroller moms, and they all seemed to have short attention spans with the ones who walked into my booth sticking around for about 30 seconds.

It was not my crowd, and this is a one time show for me. I'm not going back, it's not even a good filler show. Too many artists around me were complaining about low sales. A lot of the artists around me were first timers although the potter next to me did okay and she had done the show for several years. She already had a following and was selling to repeat customers. I just don't see the crowd as high ticket or even medium ticket.

Lack of organization, apathetic management, cheap crowd, low sales make this a show to avoid. Another reason to avoid this one is the location by the picturesque lake. You can't drive there because there is no road, only a sidewalk too narrow for a van, and a set of steps to navigate. At tear down, a woman artist about 60+ was pushing a cart uphill on the grass, up the sidewalk, and then unload at the steps to carry up the steps and then reload onto the cart again. Bless her heart, she probably got her van loaded yesterday. What in hell are these people thinking with logistics like that? This is asking for someone to have a freaking heart attack.

This long running neighborhood show was held April 26-27, always the weekend before the Kentucky Derby. It's in the middle of the area called the Highlands, just a couple blocks off a very busy area known for it's eclectic shops, restaurants, and night life in an older section of Louisville with beautiful homes that is well maintained. Parking is an issue so the smart ones arrive early to make sure they can find a parking spot.

I've done this show for about 20 years and watched it change from a casual neighborhood show that had the fine art and crafts at the top half of the long street this is on and the "crafty" work at the other end. The quality work has become the entirety of the show with the "loving hands crafts" completely supplanted. There are still some unusual items to be found but the quality is good.

There are four rows of booths in this show, with one row along the sidewalk with little to no space behind you depending on where you are, and many of those are raised from the street by a couple of feet or so. Those have problems with access if it rains and turns the grassy strip between the street and sidewalk muddy. The more enterprising artists come prepared with a wide plank and nailed on cleats to make a set of steps so the customers don't fall or slip.

There is a grassy median out from one side of the street that has two rows of booths back to back. The inside row, facing the sidewalk, are even at the edge of the pavement and you have to contend with sloping forward about 6-8 inches and a downhill slope that drops another 2-3 inches, so you have a 2-axis tilt to contend with. Bring lots of pieces of 2x4s for shims, or if you have the space in your trailer or van, bring a pair of 2x6 or 2x8 by ten feet long boards. it's a lot faster shimming the boards to be level so the tent and the display panels are all easily leveled. Since the ground has a rounded crown, it is a tedious pain in the butt to get everything leveled. A point of aggravation that has developed over the last several years is that the artists on the far side of the median have been pulling their booths back from the edge of the pavement as much as 2 and 3 feet which means you have very limited space between the booths. For those who like to sit behind the booth or have some work space back there, this creates a problem. This is an issue I plan to send an email to the organizers about, since the inside row has no choice but to shim and level, and the outside row is moving to more level ground. Things need to be on a more even footing, as it were.

Once past the grassy median, the street is more of a wide boulevard and another row of booths are across the street on the sidewalk again. That location has wider sidewalks and there is storage room available behind the booths.

A nice benefit for the artists on Friday afternoon set up is $2 brats and $2 draft beer. The brats are local from a packer in town known for their excellent meats and brats. The brats are $5 during the show. Arrive early on Friday, have a leisurely set up and close down with the brats and beer :-)

There are bands present but they are off to the side with the food tents and not excessively loud. The music runs the gamut of blues, country, and rock, and surprisingly well talented. No objections to the way they do it at all.

The weather was very nice this time, but for whatever reason attendance seemed to be down and so were sales. Most artists were saying sales were down 1/3 to 1/2, and mine were down about a third from usual. I had an order of canvas prints I had decided to farm out, 17 20x30 pieces, that were in delivery but didn't arrive in time for me to have at this show. The physical size of the packaging dictated it go by truck instead of UPS, and the extra 2 or 3 days on delivery time killed me. FWIW, I used to do St. James and I always did better at this show than St. James. It's a more leisurely crowd and people will take time to look rather than flow along with the St. James river of people.

Tear down is fairly easy with most artists getting out in about an hour to an hour and a half, although the inside of the median is congested. Take your time and enough people will clear out that you can get your van or trailer right up to your booth or very close to it. 

I never did see my groundhog buddy who has had a burrow in the middle of my tent for the last 4 years. I've noticed the burrow gets bigger each year as the portly furball keeps growing. One of the organizers dumped a bucket of gravel in the hole this year and the next day all the gravel was kicked out of the hole. They offered to move me, but a few 2x4 blocks stuffed in the hole with a a bunch of mulch took care of the hole so no one would step in it. They always have more than one entrance so he can go somewhere else, but you have to wonder if it would break through and get pissed enough to chew on the Propanels or flip bin.

This was the first year the show has gone to the dark side with Zapp and there were teething problems, but organizers pretty much got those kinks worked out. For a while they used slides like everyone else, then the person doing the judging moved and there were no slide projectors available, so you sent actual photos to them for judging, and they finally went to Zapp to try and streamline the process. This is a good dependable show ran by a neighborhood association as a fund raiser. I see many of the same artists returning year after year so that has to say something about it.

Many thanks to Terry Adams, Executive Director of the Cherry Creek Arts Festival, for joining me on yesterday's podcast where he shared lots of interesting information about running one of the most popular art fairs in the country. How much power does he have to choose the artists who are accepted? Listen to the podcast to learn.

On to the news! Using Random.org Terry drew the names of the winners:

1. Jean Black

2. Jacob DuChane

3. Bernadette Rogers

4. Jan Anderson

5. Mendy Marks

6. Robert Osborne

7. Michelle Dieter

8. Dale Yakaites

9. Candiss Cole

10. Richard Sherer

11. Patricia De Maria

12. AmyRenee Cornelius

13. Kay Cummins

14. Bill & Stacy McLauchlan

15. John Leben

16. Alison Fox

17. Megan Horan

18. Bruce Reinfeld

19. Art Map

20. Larry Smith

21. Joseph Kubis

22. Patrick McGannon

23. Rose Marie Lanpher

24. Mike Shearer & Triny Cline

25. Jennifer Ivory

26. Susan Kennicott

27. Gerald Mulka

28. Jane Johnson

29. Debra Ehmann

30. Margie Luttrell

31. Daryl Cohen

32. George Raab

33. Diane Rose

34. Gary Willcock

35. Alyx Morgan

36. Tamara Kelly

37. Judith Levitt

38. Sharon Tesser

39. Debbie Stillman

40. Elizabeth Tivol

& we still haven't heard from one of last week's winners, Roberta Starbird.

Thank you and congratulations to each! You may recognize many of them as they have been participants on AFI for some time.

The first 20 winners have already chosen their prizes, you know that SHOWoff and the Flourish black mesh panels are long gone, but there are still plenty left. The procedure to claim your prizes is:

• visit the discussion at this link: http://www.artfairinsiders.com/forum/topics/prizes-available-for-the-winners-in-the-2014-pledge-drive
• choose your top 4 prizes
• send me those choices: info@artfaircalendar.com
• I'll make arrangements for fulfillment
  
  

This will be "first come, first served!" So, let me hear from you.

Which, of course, also means that if you haven't pledged yet you have more time to help us support our websites. We really appreciate each and every pledge, no matter the size.