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It was with great dismay that I heard about the Naples National volunteer who was encouraging patrons at the gate to " the artists are all hard up, come back Sunday and get a deal".  It is a shame that the thoughtless words of one person could have a devastating effect on the lives of the artists.  Rather than be credited for their heroic effects, braving all wind, weather and economical conditions to sell their work, they face being demeaned and treated as lowly carnival acts. 

Artists have families, children, mortgages and jobs.  Being an artist is a job, a real one, just like any other profession.  No better no worse.  It's an honorable living using God's gift.  Instead of being given proper respect as with any other trained person, it seems lately we are used and abused beyond belief.  We are always the first people to be called upon for any charity act.  Donate.  Donate.  Donate.  Or to be used as entertainment, depending on us to at least be of interest for a stroll down the street or a walk in the park. 

The artists have to literally go to war to get a fair shake.  They fight through the jury process, they fight to pay the exceedingly and ever increasing ridiculous booth fees, while the organizations keep adding more booth spaces to increase their profits while diluting the sales of the artists in the process.  They create silent auctions based on donations from the artists.  Every sale in the auction booth is one less sale that could have happened for the artists.  It's become quite obvious the organizations don't care about the artists. 

If organizations cared about the artists, they would consider the times and decrease the booth fees.  If they cared about the artists, they would stop doing silent auctions and pre-show auctions and turn their focus to what they are really SUPPOSED to be be doing, which is supporting creativity and the arts in general.  It has become all about the dollar.  Guess what....artists are quitting right and left.  They are sick of it.  Sick of all the shenanigans and hoops they have to jump through just to put food on the table. 

If organizations cared about local artists, they would stop using them as fillers in the national shows.  Putting local artists straight to the wait list, waiting to see who was a "no-show" and plugging a local artist into that spot at the last minute is a slap in the face to the artist and nothing more than a way to double sell the booth space.  Instead of $500 for the space, they gained $1,000 knowing that the local artist is anxious to fill that space. 

It's about time someone in charge got a reality check.  Street shows are a hard way to make a living.  Driving long distances, staying in motels, getting up at 4am, setting up in the dark, many artists with no helpers, facing extreme weather, knowing there is no refund and then presenting oneself to the public with one's creations, only to hear....."they're really hard up, come back Sunday when they are desperate". 

Patsy Reeves

Naples, Fl.

I am a professional artist that attended the Naples National Show as a patron a few weeks back.

I do fine art festivals for a living. Upon entering the festival, as I was giving my donation, the woman taking the money and giving out the stickers said to me, without me asking so much as how are you, "I'll tell you a little secret. Come back tomorrow if you're looking for a great bargain. The artists are desperate to sell because they don't want to have to haul their artwork around anymore. Believe me it works, I've done it!" Not only was this said to me, but as I entered the show, I overheard her saying it to the next group behing me.

I was/am incredibly offended by this. Not only was this woman chosen as the first point of contact to represent the show, but right upon entry, without my even asking for "secrets" she's advising people to barter with us hard-working artists simply based on her skewed belief that we would rather not be paid fairly for our artwork than have to handle it again. We're "desperate" in fact. Also, it was Saturday morning. She was turning patrons away from purchasing that day. Most artists need strong sales both days to make costs/profit for a high end show such as this one.

This was very disappointing, because I drove an hour from Cape Coral expecting to enjoy what I have heard to be a quality event, run by an artist-friendly organization who claims to support arts/artists. To be greeted by this upsetting statement was unacceptable and needs to be addressed.

Hopefully this has brought some awareness or sparked some dialogue about the relationship/communication between show representatives and art festival patrons. We trust them to represent us in a favorable light, and encourage adding value to us and our work, not taking it away by broadcasting that we are desperate, easy to sneak a deal out of and well. lazy.

Thank you for your time.

Well maybe not entirely but I would like to relate an experience that I had with my credit card merchant account. A few years ago I decided that it was probably in my best interest, and in the interest and convenience for people that wanted to purchase my work, to finally break down and sign up for a credit card merchant account. Up till then I was doing no more than 5 and maybe up to 10 shows a year. I didn't have any problems with sales not involving a credit card as people came to the shows either with cash or a handy checkbook and an ATM, at least at the shows I was doing then, was always nearby. It wasn't an inconvenience as people understood when I explained why I didn't take credit cards; not enough shows to warrant it at the time.

Fast forward a few years and I felt it would be in my best interest to up my game and begin to accept credit cards. I did what I felt was thorough, though not exhaustive, research on the different companies that were willing to support a weekend warrior/artist. The costs just for monthly statements ranged from $7 on up. The discount rates, as we all know, varied greatly as well. I called 1st National Processing and was given what I felt at the time was a reasonable program. They sent me a Nurit 8000 set up with a "store-and-forward" program. My statements were only $7 at the time and the discount rates were among the lowest as well.

November of that same year rolls by and I'm hit with $129 for a PCI fee! What the heck is that!? I call 1st National and am told that it is the annual indemnity fee for my account. Didn't know about that one! Basically, if someone gets hold of my account and finds credit card numbers stored on my machine, which it was set to delete anyway, I would be liable for any problems associated with it. I didn't want that! Water under the bridge, life goes on, lesson learned, I suck it up.

Soon I noticed that my $7 a month Merchant Account Statement had grown another fee. An additional $4 "Regulatory Fee" was being appropriated from my check book per month. "Enough of this", I thought. Besides which I was beginning to experiment with Square and was thinking of migrating over to them anyway. The "Store-and-Forward" system was beginning to make me nervous. What if something went wrong and I lost an entire days receipts? Before I tossed the whole previous system out however I saw the ad (like the one blinking at me now from the sidebar) for  "FREE" Credit Card Processing. I called them up and was satisfied with what I was told. Indeed, they said, there would be no fees accept those associated with the cards that I processed.  Seemed like a good idea, that way I could migrate over to Square and have this other system as a back up if it were ever needed (By-the-way, don't leave your iPhone in the sun!). They canceled my old account and gave me a new account with a new number (and a new account provider). Given the caveat as previously described I did use the "back-up" and was charged for the transactions as described in the plan. No problem.

The end of the year rolls around, no other fees as yet as advertised, yet now I'm seeing $16.95 being charged against this account for PCI fees again. Wait a minute, if you look long enough at the flashing ad, it says "NO PCI fees"! (or upfront fees or recurring fees, etc.) I call up 1st National explain the situation and indeed they concur, no fees. The money goes back into the bank account.

January of this year rolls around and I receive a letter which states that "due to escalating costs" I would be "assessed an incremental fee based upon the difference between $10 and (my) transaction processing fees." They also reminded me about the PCI fee (again!) What's this all about, I thought my account was "FREE". I called mid January and was told by Jason that he would have to research this (stalling tactic?). What? The bank representative doesn't even know what's going on? He dutifully took down my phone number and assured me that he would get back to me. I didn't hear from him so out-of-sight, out-of-mind.

March 1st rolls around and much to my chagrin I receive a "Merchant Statement" (I haven't seen one of these since the problem with the second round of PCI fees being charged). I call Merchant Services and Jared apologizes profusely for Jason not having gotten back to me and explains there is nothing he can do to reverse the charge. I will have to call the sales office at 1st National Processing. It is a few days before I can call 1st National. When I do I am greeted by what at first I thought might have been "Dog The Bounty Hunter" or at least someone who just finished charm school at a collection agency. He was gruff, as though I had just taken him away from an episode of Storage Wars and didn't appreciate it. I was, to say the least, taken aback by his attitude for, in their defense, any time I had contacted them previously they have always been pleasant, patient and attentive to my questions or concerns. I explained the situation one more time to him and he basically told me that due to the fact that they (the bank) had "escalating costs" they had to charge the $10 a month fee and that they (1st National) couldn't do any thing about it because the banks could do whatever they wanted to and that if I wanted he could cancel the account effective the same afternoon. I did!

What kind of "escalating" costs could they possibly have? From my perspective a "FREE" account is a win-win for both the bank and the vendor. The bank wins because they can charge their "discount" rates for swiped or keyed cards, they continue to make money. The vendor wins because they (were) not charged unless they actually used the machine. So basically they are telling me that if I'm not using the thing it is going to cost me $10 a month no matter what. So much for "FREE". If I were using the machine on a regular basis however, and my processing fees were $10 or more, than it would be "FREE" but there are times I'm not doing shows at all and don't want to be assessed the $10 per month! I guess they just can't stuff it into their pockets fast enough!

This past year I've been pretty much using Square exclusively anyway without a hitch, except maybe for the incident described above. Their on-line statements are much more useful to me with a breakdown of fees charged, tax paid, etc. then the other merchant statements ever were. (By the way Square charges their 2.75% on the tax as well! Can't figure a work-around for that one) All that glitters is not gold, so do your own due diligence when shopping credit card vendors.

Cheers

Inspired by many calls and by the post- Can the System be Improved, (Thank you R. C. Fulwiler) I would like to start a new thread exploring ideas of how to create that improvement.  My proposal is that we generate some ideas and then ask the National Association of independent artists (NAIA) to help champion it.

As a starting point, can we assume that artists would like the following from the jury process-

1) Criteria- You want to know what you are being judged on.

2) Process- You want to know who is judging your work and how.

3) Numbers- How many slots are open for how many categories.

4) Results- Specific comments so as to be able to make decisions going forward.

Other desires?

While each sounds simple, they also each have issues.

Criteria- reminds me of the Supreme Court Judge who stated "I can't define what is obscene but I know it when I see it".  Stated criteria needs to be just as flexible or we would never see anything new at the shows.  It can be simplified. A statement like- our jurors will judge your work based on: Technique, creativity, and originality tells you what they are looking for without giving you any information.  Artists do you have examples of how this has been done well?

Process- Of the above, this is the most likely to be public in my experience.  Projected, monitors, three jurors, score of one to five, yes, no, maybe...   Not so hard to let artists know the system and, while you may not agree that a monitor is acceptable, at least you know what is expected.

Numbers-  If there are a particular number of slots open in a medium that information could be useful.  A show cannot let you know how many applications will be received but could give historical information.  Predicting the future changes the future.  If I tell you that I have ten slots for photo and generally get 40 applicants you may not apply.  I might end up having to select from fifteen applicants suddenly and miss out on having your work in my show.  Any ideas of how to make this fair?

Results-  Not every artist really wants to know the jurors comments.  Many say they do, but then argue each point.  I try to be clear, but after I get attacked a few times for my jurors subjective opinions it is tempting to go back to generalizations.  Movie line "You cant handle the truth".   How am I handling this now-  The notifications go out with general comments.  If artists want they can call me and I will let them know what the jurors comments were.  I start with the safer things- "Um, your booth shot was out of focus".  If you prove to me that you want to hear I will continue going and discussing for as long as it takes to be helpful.  If you instead start arguing with me it will be a very short conversation.  Zapp just added an option to share juror feedback with the artists.  Let's see if that helps.

Please, let's hear some more stories and maybe together we can change the systems.

August 31-September 1  
Oakbrook, Illinois
Oakbrook Center
Sat. 10am-7pm; Sun. 11am-6pm
120 Artists
Deadline: April 1

This event is a classic summer tradition, drawing thousands of visitors and showcasing thousands of works of art every Labor Day weekend.  The Invitational Fine Art Exhibition hosted by Oakbrook Center celebrates its 51st year and invites you to explore a world of artists, with works in watercolors, pastels, acrylics and oil, photography, pottery, sculptures, jewelry in fine metals and precious stones, works of art in fiber, glass, metal, wood, leather, stone and mixed media.

Oakbrook Center is a premier outdoor shopping center located in the  affluent western suburbs of Chicago. The Center features more than  160 fine shops,including Bloomingdale's Home and Furniture, Lord  & Taylor, Macy's, Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom, All artists  are located throughout the mall's walkways among trees, flowers,  plants, waterfalls and fountains.

If you want to be in the heart of where Chicago shops this is the place.

This is a contemporary fine art exhibition. ONLY original work in design and concept is allowed. Thus, no imports or works made with  the use commercial kits, molds, patterns, plans, stencils, or prefabricated forms accepted.

Festival Facts: 

• Jury Fee: $25  
• Booth Fee:  $350
• Ribbon Awards:  $5,000+
• Attendance:  157,000
• Event is promoted extensively through various media outlets
• Friday evening and Saturday morning set-up
• Continental breakfast for exhibitors on both days

Oakbrook Center's Invitational Fine Art Exhibition showcases work from artists all over the U.S. and Canada.  The admission is free.

Artists interested in applying for Oakbrook Center's Fine Art Exhibition, please click here, or email : oakbrookcenter@ggp.com

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

Find more art fairs looking for you: www.CallsforArtists.com

A perfect weekend for shows in Florida, and a welcome change from last weekend.  The Bonita Springs National, sponsored by the Center For The Arts, was a pleasure to attend.  It is well promoted and well run.

The attendance is not huge, but they are the right people, and there are plenty of them.  We had fewer sales than on the average weekend, but they were much higher sales overall; making for another successful weekend in Florida.  It was a very well-heeled crowd.  A mailing-list really works wonders in South Florida, and a lot of our fans made a special trip to see us.

Now we are off to Winter Park for our last Florida show.  The weather is again predicted to be delightful.

So how were Vero, Juno, and the rest?

I have just been accepted to the Charlotte Fine art show May 10-12th and I'm curious if anyone has participated in this show and how it was/is? This is only my second year doing the festival circuit and the show charges $725 for a 10x10 space...that is the most I have seen for a two day festival thus far. I'm sure there are more expensive shows, but it seems like a much bigger risk paying that much.

I have also been accepted to LEAF (Lake Eden Arts Festival) outside Asheville where I live, but it's much less expensive $375 for a four day event. I can't decide which one to do.

LEAF is about 20 min from where I live (no cost on hotels) and Charlotte is 2 hrs.

Any information would be helpful.

Thanks everyone!

Leif Erik Johansen

sugarloaf somerset -- booth 527. come over and say hi if you are exhibiting as well.

We juried the Royal Oak Clay, Glass and Metal Show Monday.  A few observations. 

First it amazes me every year how creative people are able to get within these few mediums.  One hundred and twenty booths and each stands out as creative and unique.

Secondly, while I did not feel that the booth shots were given more weight than the work images, the majority of rejected work had poor booth shots and the majority of accepted work had professional images for their booth.

I say majority because it is not universally true.  We accepted some work from artists with poor shots, even from an artist that had no booth shot.  For this event at least you can't entirely blame the "fourth image".

I try to be communicative with the applicants so I did send some specific notes to artists regarding their displays.  Of course those reflect only my opinion, but if you would be interested in seeing them, you could check out the posting on my website- Integrityshows.com/blog.

If you have not looked at R. C. Fulwiler's blog yet- Can the System be Improved?  I would suggest doing so.

September 6-8
Clayton, Missouri
(one of St. Louis' 91 municipalities)
Central Business District
181 Artists
Fri. 5pm-10pm, Sat. 11am-10pm, 
Sun. 11am-5pm
Deadline: March 21

Cultural Festivals, the Producers of the Saint Louis Art Fair invites you to apply to be an exhibitor at the 20th annual Saint Louis Art Fair.  A fine art and fine craft festival.  Held in the central business district of Clayton, MO., one of St. Louis' dynamic communities.  Each year the fair attracts over 125,000 arts enthusiasts.

Things to know:

• 181 Participating artists (includes 31 award winners)
• Up to $21,000 cash awards
• 2012 cash sales $8666 (source: post event survey-show did not open last year on Friday evening due to storms)
• Artists Amenities:  free electricity, 24 hr. security, free reserved parking, artists breakfast (awards breakfast)
• 10x10 booth spaces with 2 foot buffer on all sides
• 5 Jurors-3 Artists-1 Buyer, one gallery and or academic, bios can be read online at www.culturalfestivals.com
• Jury Fee: $40, Booth Fees: $625-$725

Too many customers? Matthew Hatala has many admirers at the St. Louis Art Fair

What helps to make this event so successful:

The Saint Louis Art Fair offers an affluent, educated and sophisticated audience at our show.  Research shows that of our 125,000+ patrons, over half sustain incomes over $60,000 while over a quarter maintain incomes in excess of $90,000.  Research also shows that nearly half of our patrons are college educated or have received post-graduate degrees.

For more info: www.CulturalFestivals.com

or call (314)863-0278, email: info@culturalfestivals.com

To apply: www.Zapplication.org, (listed under Saint Louis Art Fair-NOT St. Louis Art Fair)

Visit the St. Louis Art Fair on YouTube.com:

Saint Louis Art Fair

Several artist friends and I are dedicated to modifying the jury system as we know it.  We are emailing every show that rejects us and asking for our score and how it relates to the acceptance score and the waitlist score.  We explain that this information is essential for our growth in this business and besides, we paid for it..

The result has been mixed.  Some have embraced the concept and some have been completely pig-headed.  The most recent response was from a show I've done many times over the years and always have rated as a top show.  It is also held in my hometown of Milwaukee, WI.

I was rejected for the third year in a row and inquired about my score and my category.  The return email blew me away!  I'm sure it revealed more than the respondent intended.

It started off with a completely ridicules statement.  It said the scores were confidential.  Confidential?  From me?  I paid to be juried.  The score only applies to me.  Who are you protecting here?  The rest was all designed to assuage me and get me to apply again next year.  Then, in answer to my question about my category he dropped the bomb.  I had entered in the Digital category.  He said 2 artists from last year were re-invited and there were 22 applicants in my category.  Of the 22 applicants ... wait for it ... 1 was accepted. There will be 3 Digital artist in this year's show!

I don't know about you, but something doesn't seem quite right here.

The last Saturday in February brings the Garage Sale Art Fair to Kalamazoo, MI, at the fairgrounds. Let me tell you folks, people in the region are definitely looking for excuses to get out of the cabin and they flock to this event. I love to attend not only to shop, but to see so many of my "old" friends. 

Bonnie Blandford and Michael Kifer (a jeweler and a potter) do a great job organizing and advertising the show. The parking lot was full when I arrived 15 minutes after opening. One of our favorite AFI-ers Barry Bernstein gives a full review here: http://www.artfairinsiders.com/profiles/blogs/bonnie-blandford-s-garage-sale-art-fair-or-out-with-the-old

Here's a brief video from this year's show:

For those who are just starting out - there may be hope. 

I think I have come a long way from my first art show.  I know I still have room to grow but I'll keep learning and trying to do better.

What a difference a day makes – or years of experience.  I admire those of you who have been doing art shows for decades.  You have been so good at sharing your experiences and helping those of us who are new to this business.  I started playing with a camera about 7 years ago.   Many of my friends complimented my snapshots and told me I should go professional.  I thought their compliments were nice and that they were just making me feel good.  Then one year we (my husband/best friend) decided to see if people who did not know me would actually pay money for my photos.  I attended the Daylily Festival in Gray, GA – only 15 minutes from home.  AND….people actually paid real money for my photos.  Wow.  Amazing.  So we did another show and another.  Intermittent reward verbally or financially is highly addictive.  Our first show was an EasyUp with Walmart folding tables, vinyl tablecloths, and Lowes shelving.  We had a large variety of Michaels frames. 

Picture - my first sale!!!!

Side note – The EasyUp may be moisture resistant but if you are showing anything that may be damaged by moisture – don’t.  Remember it is resistant, not water proof.  And condensation was a real problem.  That all ended when the whole thing collapsed during a rain storm due to pocketing pools of water.  Yes we did use the hoola-hoops and swimming noodle tricks.  They just did not work.

It did not take long to learn that being in a tent in 100 degree weather with 98% humidity was NOT fun.   It did not do good things to photography behind glass either. We quit doing shows between June 1 and September 1.  We did take a space in small store in our local downtown area.  That was November 2007.  Just in time for the economy to go south.  Oh Yeah. But we did OK and actually ended up having about 25 artists join “The Gallery”.    This is where I learned running a gallery is a 10 hour day 6 days a week job.  The weekend (day) was catch up in responsibilities at home.  I was not doing any photography.  Never any time.  Sadly…and happily...The Gallery was closed.  But during that time a man came in one day and said “Hi.  How would you like to work with me?”  I said “Who are you and what do you want me to do?”  He was a magazine publisher looking for a photographer.  WOW.  Sure.  If you want to learn photography quickly jump right into being a magazine photographer.  You learn very quickly how to deal with different people in a variety of settings and under whatever light exists.  For advertising the doctor wants all his staff in a small area all looking wonderfully beautiful and happy with all eyes open and get it done within 5 minutes between patients.  OK.  Then you go shoot for a feature and can enjoy more flexibility and creativity.  Setting appointments and meeting deadlines and it all has to be really good quality.  I’m still working with the magazine and loving it and learning more with every assignment.

But back to art shows….We have come a long way.  When I look back at our display in the beginning it makes me wonder why anyone bought anything from me.  Every dollar we made has been put back into the business.  We bought a much better tent.  The very first time we set up the Finale (Creative Energies) we got hit with a microburst.  The 3 booths in front of me were 15 feet in the air way on down the street.  The potter behind me had NOTHING left.  My awnings made perfect airfoils.  Fortunately we had 50 pounds on every corner and like an idiot I hung on to my booth even when being lifted off the ground.  The only damage was a small tear where the awning joined the tent, which Creative Energies promptly repaired in time for our next show.  We got a great deal on Propanels from someone that tried the art show circuit three times and did not enjoy it.  We bought a 10x10 set with browse bins for about ½ price of new ones.  This was a MAJOR change from using gridwalls both from the aesthetic perspective and physical challenge.  The weight of the gridwalls was just too much and the time to set them up with all the bulldog clips and wire ties was miserable.  Loading them in and out of the back of the covered pick-up truck was a major challenge.  So when we saw a trailer for sale for a great price just on the other side of town we snatched it up. 

Picture - Bigger is not always better.  What a mess!!!  I'm surprised we sold anything at all.

We’ve come a long way from our first show.  We leaned so much and have met so many wonderful people.  Even now, every time I go to a show I learn more from those who have been in the business for years.  And when a newbie comes asking questions – I gladly share what I have learned along the way.  It’s only fair. 

As the quality of our booth and the improvement of my skills continue to grow – so do the profits.  I am happy for the “education” I have had the past 6 years.  But I still need more time to get out there and shoot!!!!!

Picture - we now have a clean, uncluttered look with consistent frames.  I love the skirts below the panels that hide all those unsightly wires and other artist's under table stuff.

We've come a long way baby.

Craftmen’s Classic, Columbia SC – Gilmore Shows (March 1-3)

This is the show that taught me the importance of good lighting.  It was three years ago.  We were all set up and ready to make money but it was just not happening.  We were trying to sell photography in a booth in a corner of a dimly lit building.  We walked around and saw that the booths that had customers and were making sales had nice lighting that showed their wares well.  DUH!  So I went to the administration booth and asked if we could purchase electricity on the spot.  As soon as we did, my husband, Jim, ran out to Lowes and purchased a couple of reflector floodlights.  Within 10 minutes of installation I started selling.  Jim ran back to Lowes and bought a bunch more lights and cords.  This was the beginning of getting serious about a really professional display.  More on that in another post.  By the end of the weekend we did OK at this show.  Not really great but OK. 

Last year we came prepared with track lighting and were ready for big money.  It did not happen.  We barely made expenses.  We debated whether we should do this show again this year.  We decided to give it another try and happy that we did.  As it turned out this year sales were among our top five. 

Friday was rather slow for us but Saturday we did pretty good.  Sunday started off slow but ended up OK.  Talking with friends it seemed most were just getting by.  

What I like about this show:

• It is an indoor show.  Having been in a micro-burst, a deluge of rain that collapsed our EasyDown, or suffering extreme cold and hot I have come to appreciate indoor shows.
• Load in and out is as easy as it gets.  Our trailer was parked 50 feet from out booth and the ground is perfectly flat.  Just be careful loading the cart as the entrance is a standard width door.  Wider loads need to be taken to the other side of the building where the cargo doors are located.
• They have a nice artist lounge stocked with complimentary coffee, tea, bananas, apples, donuts and microwave.
• There is a great community of artists
• It is only about 2.5 hours from home
• The very nice and friendly SC Department of Revenue is on location Sunday afternoon to help you complete your tax forms and submit payment   :-)

Springtime Made in the South – Savannah GA (February 22-24) 

This is my first show of the spring season.  I hope it is an indication of how this year is going to go.  I love working with the Hunts (Carolina Shows, Inc).  They are one of the most artist friendly promoters out there – at least that I have dealt with.  And they know how to promote their shows.  There are always crowds whether it is Springtime Made in the South or their Christmas Made in the South Shows.

What I like about Springtime Made in the South

• It is in Savannah, which is a wonderful place to visit
• It is in a convention center – no worries about weather
• People were lined up all morning waiting to get in
• There is a community of great artists and crafters
• Load in and out is relatively easy
• Convention Center Concession Stand offers 50% discount to artists.  Their Irish Nachos are sinful!
• The Convention Center staff are wonderfully friendly and helpful.  The restrooms are spotless all weekend.  Porters are available but not obnoxious
• There is space inside the convention center for your back up inventory
• There is a free ferry ride from convention center across Savannah River to the Riverfront for great food and beverage. On the Riverfront there is Wet Willies (frozen drinks) and Vinnie Van Go Go for great pizza and calzones, some great microbreweries and Irish bars, many wonderful restaurants and market center with great artist galleries.
• I stay at my daughter’s home and get to visit with family and cut overhead

Talking with my friends it appears sales were all across the board.  Some barely made expenses while others did OK.  A few of us did really well.  I give credit of sales in my booth to my husband. That man can sell sand to people in the desert.  We sold big and small.  Anywhere from $2. Notecards to $325 framed canvas prints.  One nice lady said “I’ll take that and that and that and this and this and this.  We were so busy Friday we did not have time for lunch.  We were ringing up and wrapping as fast as we could.  Saturday was almost as good.  Sunday was slower but still better than previous years.   Bottom line – we took in just short of $5000. 

Side note.  Last year a man liked one of my prints but he was not sure it would fit and he was riding with friends so could not take it with him.  He rode home with his friends (an hour away) and decided the piece was perfect and called us to say he was on his way back.  He arrived just as we were packing up and happily took his artwork home.  This year he was back.  He said he loved the print but the colors were not quite right for his room – so he painted the room to look good with the art!  Love. It.

Another lady admired a piece we had but left.  Later in the day she came back with her paint and fabric swatches.  It is so much fun helping people decorate their homes.

I've got to tell you, this is something I wouldn't normally do except that I have all this stuff in my studio gathering clay dust. I thought this would be a good thing to try because I won't throw anything out and I need the shelf space. However, after being on the road for 6 weeks, I did not feel up to driving the 400 miles back to Marquette to get these pieces and then back down to Kalamazoo, where this show was held. So, I just reduced the prices of my normal work and did this show.

First of all, I should tell you that among the crapola that was at this show, there were some heavy hitters like Jim Wilbat, who had just won Best of Show in glass at the Coconut Grove show, Jim Parker, photographer extraordinaire, John Bauman, Patricia Swearingen Hecker, Bruce Johnson, and Vinnie Sutherland, among others. I say crapola because this is a garage sale, after all, and it is meant to get rid of what you have left over that is sitting around your studio. Bonnie wants to make this really easy to do. The show fee is low, around $140. And, she encourages people to use tables that you can rent to display your work, not your booth. I wanted to see what this was all about, so, I didn't rent any tables, which you had to do in advance. Plus, Vinnie Sutherland and another artist were across from me and they put up their displays. I didn't want to look shabby. I ended up putting together a modified display. It looked pretty good and I was happy with it.

Load in and load out were really easy. It helps to have a cart because the show is at the Kalamazoo Convention Center and you can't drive up to your space. There was plenty of room for vans and 3 entrances. There was no waiting in line and you could drive right up to the building. New this year was the option of getting there on Friday and setting up early. It's a Saturday only show and lasts only 6 1/2 hours. I got there right at 3 PM on Friday and started unloading immediately. It took me 4 hours to set up because I stopped to talk to everybody I knew. That's one of the fun things about this show. It's small, intimate, and relaxed. I met Vinnie Sutherland for the first time and had a ball with her. Usually I am the one dishing out the trash. In this case she started early and ofter and gave it to me before I even opened my mouth.

The show was well attended and sales, for me, were good, not great. I wasn't willing to give away my work. I did reduce the pieces to what would be my wholesale price. I sold pieces that I would consider to be good work, not my A+ pieces which I didn't display. I had work at $30 to $300. My customers were savvy buyers looking for a good deal. Most of the people that come to this event are looking for cheap stuff, which there is plenty of. These were not my customers. I didn't sell one $30 piece. A lot of people I talked to and sold to, regularly come to the KRASL show. So, I looked at it as a chance to advertise my work for that show. I was selling steadily until people started offering special deals at giveaway prices. In fact, that would be my only criticism of the show. When someone started offering mugs for $1 a piece that was the end of the show for me. That was a little extreme, in my opinion. I wish exhibitors wouldn't cheapen themselves that much and it clearly had an effect on my sales. On the other hand, these were probably not my customers. 

Last but not least, Connie Mettler threw a pizza party in the lobby of the Fairfield Inn, on Friday night, which is the closest motel to the show. It was a lot of fun and I got to talk and joke around with a lot of really fun people. I made some new friends and hung out with some old ones that I don't get to see that much because we are all in our studios working if we aren't on the road. If I do this show next year, I will rent tables to have that garage sale look. Also, I will make pieces specifically for the event, that I can sell at bargain prices, along with my usual work.

The Gasparilla Festival of the Arts gets lots of fabulous appli-
cations and one of the reasons is the really generous prize money. Accomplished artists and rising stars vie for the $15,000 Raymond James Best of Show Award and an additional $59,500 in prize money. Congratulations to this year's winners: 

Raymond James Gasparilla Festival of Arts Best of Show
$15,000.00 - Steven Olszewski, Pinckney, MI, Sculpture

Board of Directors' Award

$7,500.00 - Aletha Jones, Madison, WI, Watercolor

Roddy Brownlee Reed Award of Artistic Excellence
$4,000.00 - Trent Manning, Winter Haven, FL, Sculpture

Mayor's Award
$3,500.00 - Todd Cameron, Minneapolis, MN, Glass

"Balance", bronze sculpture by Steve Olszewski

Anniversary Award 

$2,500.00 - Amy Beeler, Oregon, OH, Jewelry
Friends of the Museum Award

$2,000.00 - Katherine Mathisen, Ocoee, FL, Ceramic

 Individual Award of Merit

$1,300.00 - Leslie Bevis, St Petersburg, FL, Painting

I will be show six pieces of my work along with Clyde Butcher and Iran Issa-Khan at the Elizabeth Evans Gallery in Marco Island starting March 8th.  I'm honored to be asked to contribute my work with these artist.

I'll be showing pieces from two of my series.