Lisa Berry
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Lisa Berry
The staff felt that attendance was less than other years, but we were busy until time to pack on Sunday. Set-up and tear down was not too bad and we couldn't drive on the grass, but the dolly/cart distance was manageable.
Topeka is a pleasant medium sized town with reasonable resaurants and motels.
Surprisingly knowledgeable buyers.
June 2010: I repeated this show from last year (local show for me and a nice break from travels). This was a good solid show for me, grossed 3.5k (surprising results for a small show in the eastern suburbs of Cleveland). Weather was spotty, rain intermittently on Sat and Sun. Strong buyers came out Saturday morning and I sold in all my price points $55 - $500. Got to meet RC Fulwiler, who seemed to be having a decent show himself. This show is well managed, though with a little hiccup at the Saturday pizza dinner ... they tried to repeat the miracle of the fish and loaves only with four large pizzas and 150 artists... oops...good the free beer kept flowing. Cheers!
June 2009: Art by the Fall, Chagrin Falls: OK, here's a small peek into last weekend's Art by the Falls in Chagrin Falls, OH. I had been on the road for the last four weekends, so I decided to do a local show before heading out for the Boardwalk at Virginia Beach. Chagrin Falls is an affluent little community on the eastern side of Cleveland. Being relatively new to Northeastern Ohio, I had never visited before and I was impressed. Very picturesque little community with means. The show, Art by the Falls, has been in existence for about 26 years and it is a well oiled machine sponsored by the Valley Art Center in the community.
About 120 artists participated this year and the quality of work was generally good, though I find it capricious to see a hammer dulcimer player selling CDs at a fine art show. Unfortunately, there were far too many photographers at the show, I counted 19 -- 6 of the photographers in close proximity.
The weather was gorgeous and the community came out in strong numbers to walk the show, but not many came to buy. When all was done, I grossed 2K, though my net was OK since this was a local show with minimum expenses. I wouldn't recommend driving too far for this show, but it's OK for a local show. A few of the artists had an outstanding show. An acrylic painter directly across from me did marvelous (maybe 10k). Her work was traditional, pretty landscape of vibrant colors... and at the end of the show she was riding on cloud 9, good for her! On the other extreme, a photographer also across from me, did about $600 for the two days.
I do think the organizers did an outstanding job, bravo! The show has some nice amenities: Saturday dinner of pizza and beer, booth sitters, muffins and coffee each morning and a place to drop your trailer. Artist parking is some distance from the show and requires a shuttle service to and from.
Cheers,
Leo
This was my first year attending this art fair. My medium in Photography. I'll always try for art fairs on any of our Great Lakes. 100 artists participated in what appeared to me to be a well judged event. No schlep artists in the bunch. Wonderful artwork in all mediums and nicely balanced. Returning Artists from all over the midwest (WI, IL, MN, IA) and one each from Florida and Arizona participated.
The Organization - $15 jury fee and $200 show fee. All entry forms and images are submitted on paper via USPS. When checking out this art fair, I had a difficult time finding information about it, although it is billed as one of Wisconsin's oldest and most respected art events. Show runs from 10 to 5 on Saturday and 10 to 4 on Sunday. Setup went easily on Friday night with some setting up on Saturday morning. Drive up to covered area for both set up and tear down. Artist parking provided but there is a parking ramp right across the street we took advantage of for $1.50 per day. Friday evening during setup artists gathered in the "Artist Center" for tons of pizza, fruit, drinks & goodies. This was great as we finished setting up around 6 and I was starving. All volunteers were great, checking in frequently for breaks etc. Each artist was provided with "Gift Drawing" coupons. Any patron purchasing an item was entered in a drawing (3 per day) and the winner was awarded with a fine art piece. Great idea. Both Saturday and Sunday the "Artist Center" was open for water, Racine Kringle etc. An entertainment area hosted a wonderful guitarist that could be heard throughout the show.
The layout - Located on the water in lovely Festival Park. The majority of the booths are either under permanent "car port" type of structures or a huge commercial tent. I was inside the tent along the back row. While it was not what I would normally consider a favorable location, all booths are laid out for a comfortable patron flow and there was no doubt in my mind that the crowd filtered through each area equally. The artists are limited to a 10x10 space with other artists tightly along the back and each side. No overflow or storage space. As I was under the large commercial tent, I did not put up my personal tent. Glad I brought my lights as the overcast day combined with being under the large tent structure made lights necessary. Electricity provided for all.
The weather - Wind was no problem but overcast skies gave way to showers on Saturday. Many wore jackets most of Saturday. Overcast again on Sunday, but the rain held off until 3:30
The crowd - Not having attended before, I'm not sure if the crowd was typical for this show. I found it thin. Perhaps many were attending the Blue Angels program at the Milwaukee Lakefront both days. I did notice there were many area graduation parties. This area has a few well developed condos that are filled with folks from all over the states. There were quite a few attendees from other areas (Madison, Kenosha, Milwaukee, Arizona, Iowa, Ohio, Michigan etc) and the sailing crowd appeared on Sunday.
Methinks there needs to be an award for BEST PATRON. Our great friend Geri Wenger drove up from Illinois again to check it all out. Geri, I was thrilled to see you again. You are the best ever. I'd be interested in your comments of the artists present.
The $$$$ - I did just okay and a bit less than the smaller Montisori School Lakefront Art Fair in the same area on May 1st. Made my expenses by noon on Saturday and the rest was a trickle all weekend. No high end sales were made, altho great interest and may get some after show sales from that - happens frequently for me with the sailing crowds. Not sure how others did but those around me did about the same except for one stained glass guy - he was selling quite well both days.
Food - other than the above for the artists, food vendors included Uncle Ed's BBQ, Uncle Harry's Ice Cream/Frozen Custard, Chippy's Kettle Corn and JC's Dough Jo.....
I also had the pleasure of briefly meeting another artfairinsider artist from Madison - Lisa Berry. We only talked briefly on Sunday as we needed to pack up a little early for the upcoming storm. What a sweetie and very talented artist.
We spent the better half of the day wandering around from booth to booth. Much to my surprise, out of maybe 70 booths we poked around in, and perhaps 40 that we actually spent significant time in, only 2 artists took the time to come and speak to us. ONLY 2!!!! Simply shocking....
She clearly loves the arts and artists and even buys art at the fairs...
In addition she notes the lack of websites among the artists that she was particularly interested in.
Last month I attended the East Lansing Art Fair with Chris Ritke, the man who developed EntryThingy.com, a digital uploading system. As we walked the show you would hear people asking artists if they had websites and the invariable, "no, I do all my selling at the art fairs". After a while Chris was shaking his head and asking me why a person wouldn't take advantage of any way they could to let people find them, if not now, at least for another look at the art.
Me, I can understand about wanting all selling to be done at the shows so other things can be done when you aren't there. BUT -- some day you may not want to do that particular show, you may be incapacitated and unable to do art fairs, you may need supplementary income...someone who loves what you do and has never met you may stumble upon your website and come to find you at an art fair. I don't know about you, but a website can also be a sort of insurance policy.
My husband, photographer Norm Darwish, stopped doing photography and art fairs altogether in 2006, yet we keep his website online because phone calls and emails do come in from time to time that result in sales.
First of all the show was technically in Flossmore.....and at a nice venue......near downtown at Sterling Road and Flossmore Avenue. And next to the Flossmore train station....so trains arrived every hour or so...the trains were quiet and very zippy...the old style Train station was on a small hill behind the art fair....very cool.
This was the second year at this venue.....formerly the fair was at Irwin Park but when it rained, artists and the public all got muddy hoofies. This one was on the street with great drainage because of the nice slope.
Many houses nearby were decidedly upscale.....there were also some condo's, apartments and solid middle class. And the downtown where the show was held was storybook and cutsey wootsey and bricky with a lot of character.
There were 48 artists...quality stuff.....but a lot of painters, photographers and jewelers (so what else is new...lol)..with a $125 entry fee....no jury fee.....Id have to rate attendance as low.....but the people who came bought stuff and I did very well.....
There were several quick downpours and we all had to do the flaps down fire drill about 5 times.....but the Chamber who ran the show kept us informed when cells were approaching. And one time someone said, "Warning, Warning, Will Robinson"; and it really help me .....and my prints (paper) did not get real wet.....just a few naughty rouge drops on the plastic envelopes of the prints.
The chamber was also helpful and several of the people from the Chamber and their children helped with unloading and loading.....and you could drive your car/truck right up to your booth before and right after the show.....
I paint pictures.....sold lots of prints of sports art....and some landscapes too.
I d give this show 3 (out of 5) DAVEY's. By the way, I sign all my art, DAVEY....in case you wonder how I came up with the DAVEY rating system.....lol......I know, I know....you dont care how I came up with the rating system.....but hey, you get the idea.
We are looking for Artists and Photographers who want to show and sell their art work to this community and surrounding towns. We have room for 50 Artists (10ft x 10ft max Tents you provide) and a one day fee of $100 to rent the space.
We will have an aggressive marketing campaign in this town as well as surrounding towns in county.
We will also have music, wine and cheese tasting as well.
Please email me at mark@markedwardphoto.com for an application.
Info:
Date: Sat. October 2nd 2010
Location. 200 Center Road
Easton, Connecticut 06612
Fee: $100.00
Space size: 10 x 10 pop tent
Thanks,
Mark Smith
Nutshell: A storied art fair, knowledgeable attendees, my 2nd year there, love the people, sales just okay.
Load in is Saturday morning (I hate that), a bit hectic and parking is tight. But it is the city. Once you check in with the organizers, you really don't see them again. But it is efficient. There is a nice breakfast each day and indoor bathrooms for one and all. Rained a bit on Saturday but that really didn't keep the crowd away. This is a walking/public transit community so rain doesn't scare them. And it was great to talk to people who know and like art. And they come year after year. Sales were just okay for most of who that I talked to. Load-out was a bit frantic, since it was during a downpour.
Nutshell: High-end community, 1st year show, good crowd but mostly lookers (at least for my aisle) heat, heat, heat.
Amy always runs a tight ship and this was no different. I appreciate that. This show replaces an older June show that ran every year until about a 12 years ago (I am guessing on the number). Many people remembered that show and were happy to see an art fair return. I thought they were mostly checking it out rather than buying but others may have had a different experience. My immediate neighbors shared my experience.
Load in was in two flights on Friday night. If you were on the second shift, you mostly likely had to wait to get in and it was getting dark. I got the tent and walls up and came back in the morning for the remainder. About 140 artists. Nice little party on Saturday with a cash bar. Lots of good places to eat as well. Sunday was hot, hot, hot but people still came out. But it was not a good show sales-wise for me, and it didn't help that I tripped on my toolbox and broke a rib Sunday a.m. OOOUUUU!
Nutshell: Third year for this show, it is growing, improved tremendously over the last two years, organizers are committed to creating a good art show.
Nice show and getting better every year. A committed group of people are running this event. There was good advertising and a steady crowd came through until the heat wave hit on Sunday afternoon. I was satisfied by my sales (not sure you would be because I am local). Easy, drive-in set up on Friday night, nice party on Saturday night for the awards, snacks and water provided and an indoor bathroom. Sunday tear-down was a relative breeze. Anyone who does Erin's shows knows she has things together and it is always a pleasure. This is a historical, conservative community established 18?? by Fred Olmstead, the famous landscape architect. There are Frank Lloyd Wright homes here. About 65 artists on the street on front of the art center and Higgins Glass. The location worked well.
Nutshell: New location, serious organization issues (not necessarily the Art Guild's fault), difficult dolly in the a.m., very low attendance, cold.
The location was in an fenced in park on the grounds of a mansion, now open to the public. Which was the major problem. Weddings were planned for that day, forcing organizers to change the location and layout within the park the morning of the event. And that entrance was closed to art fair patrons for Saturday.
Everyone had to dolly in through the gates of an iron fence. There were just two entrances, so you can imagine the squeeze. The hasty layout left some artists by themselves in the middle of an empty space and others along a back row that was blocked by garbage cans (where I was). We kept moving the cans and someone kept moving them back. Sales and the crowd were very low due to the cold and new location and fuzzy layout. Sunday afternoon, I finally saw some art leaving the park.
I was at the infamous Edina art fair... I have done this show for many years as it is in my hometown... (ie great deals on room and board :-) ) They have made great strides in bringing this show back. There is always bad weather but plenty of shoppers. Having France shut down to traffic makes this a much more comfortable show. Set up and tear down is getting better as well... tear down was actually much less chaotic this year!
I have been invited to the River City Roots festival in Missoula MT... does anyone know anything about this show? I am already doing a lot of traveling this year and need to know if this show is worth all of the travel it would entail. Thanks.
thanks to all that have repled to us all of are works are one of kind we have been doing powwows here in florida but it seem that the powwows is growing in the number of powwows and their are alot of new vendors getting on wagon to sell but they mostly buy and resale not hand make like us so we have thinking about going to art fairs with hope of doing betterthats why iam asking so many questions about are work we are also thinking of go to ebay and try our luck there again thanks for the input best wishes to all
blue deer
event that has had its problems with crowd control -- it is THE big summer event. Back in the 1970's it had over 700 exhibitors (not artists-exhibitors, I'm sure you get the distinction). Today maybe 350? Still a big event.Any of you remember the 1970's? They were wild times, lots of fun and exuberance. Did any of you participate in the show in those days?
Here is the story from the Buffalo News: The riot that transformed Allentown Art Festival.
I read the wonderful, flattering article about me on ArtFairCalendar.com. Makes me sound like an interesting guy. I made my wife read it so she would realize how lucky she is. (Ha!) This morning I received an email from a woman in Cincinnati enquiring about the Benjamin Islands painting that was featured in the article. A couple emails back and forth, and she purchased a print as a gift for her sailor father. Wow! PR like this is valuable and welcome. Thanks, Connie.
Just completed the two above shows the past two weekend. in Chicago Barrington was a new show this year. The city officials went all out to welcome the artists. Local businesses let artists use restrooms without question. Even though temperatures were in the 90's, the people come out and bought. It was good for a first year show and definitely worth considering again. Of course there were those who did well and a few that did not but overall an up and coming show.
Eastside Millenium is held downtown on the north edge of Millenium park just off Michigan Avenue and Randoff Street. Saturday weather was great. Show opened at noon and we had sales by 10:30 am. Large officies all around and workers really came out. Great sales on Friday. Saturday was almost a complete washout. Rain, heavy at times, nearly all day. Severe weather went south of the city so we did not experience the high winds. Sunday started out good but heavy rain about noon, then sunshine, heavy rain at 2:00 pm, then sunshine, and finally rain at 5:45 pm during teardown. Sales down from last year but only had one day total of good weather for a 2 1/2 day show. Definitely worth doing as the crowds really come out when the weather is good.
Ed Schmidt
Wooden Toys
