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I've been doing this show for many years. Its a show that many of us midwest artists want to succeed. Why? Because its the first show of the season for many of us in these parts. Its indoors, so weather is not a factor. Its in a great venue and its easy to do. By this time of the year a lot of us artists are running on empty. We need some money to pay the next batch of booth fees and an early April show that can pay some of the bills is very welcome.

It turned out that way for me, but, unfortunately, not for everyone. In a casual audit of artists around me, it seemed that about half did well, or OK, and the other half were disappointed. I sold a bunch of artwork, and also came away with best of show ($400 plus a free $400 booth for nest year). And I really needed a good show after two bad ones in a row at the end of my Florida stint. I've also got a crew renovating my new gallery space in Douglas, Michigan (opening on May 6) and, darn it, they want to get paid. So, I came home, relieved, with a nice paycheck.

The show takes place in the Suburban Collection Showplace, a big convention center in Novi, Michigan (near Detroit). Yes, its an odd name for a convention center, but its a big place and its growing. There's a big hotel attached, and this year, there was a circus happening in another part of the Center. Some exhibitors were surprised to see elephants and horses going in and out of the building.

Setup was scheduled for all day on Thursday. There were no set times for each artist, but the place is big, so we were able to drive our vans or trailers right into the center to unload right at our booth. A 10-foot deep by 12-foot wide booth costs $400, but a double booth is only another $200, so I took advantage of that discount and had a space 10-feet deep by 24-feet wide. There is an 8-foot tall black curtain separating the rows and there was a lot of space in back of the curtain for storage. I unloaded my van and parked in the free parking right outside the doors. I took my time setting up, and I needed it. I never use a double booth and I really don't have enough propanels to fill up that space, so it took some creative arranging to make the space work. It always takes me a long time to set up. Normally five hours will do it, but this one took me eight hours. Marcia stayed home, so I was on my own on this one... one of the reasons it took so long. 

The show opened at 1pm on Friday so many artists set up on Friday morning. The only problem with Friday setup is that vehicles are not allowed in the building on Friday, so artists had to dolly in. In the center of the show the convention center had a full bar and a food concession. Soups, sandwich wraps and a nice salad bar were available. The show ran until 8pm on Friday. As usual (for Friday) the turnout wasn't very big, but lots of people were walking around with wine or mixed drinks in their hands. I just made my booth fee on Friday and hoped for better results Saturday.

For patrons, parking was free but there was a $7 entry fee for each day. I did have one buyer who saw my work on Saturday, then talked her way back in on Sunday for free just to buy my work. The staff here is good that way... flexible and responsive.

Saturday was a good day for me. The show went from 10-6 and I sold lots of stuff, including three large canvas prints (I'm a digital artist showing surrealistic imagery on environmental themes on canvas and paper). There was a free artist's dinner and cocktail party right after closing on Saturday evening. It was well attended and exhibitors had good things to say about the food and drinks (I didn't stay for the party).

Sunday was open from 11-5. I had a nice surprise when I arrived when I heard that I had won best of show. I kicked myself for missing the Saturday party, but happily accepted the award. Sales were OK on Sunday but not great. Looking at past years, my sales for this show have gone up every year for the past three years. In 2015 sales were $2100. 2016 sales were $3600. This year sales were $4800, making me glad that I've stuck with this show.

I'm not sure if this show is for everyone. Like I mentioned earlier, some artists were disappointed. But the show can produce results, and it can sure use more fine artists. Like all shows, if there is good art, the people will come, but its a chicken and egg kind of thing. The artists won't come if the people aren't there. But, anyway, I recommend this show to artists looking for an early spring paycheck. No guarantees, but I think its a risk worth taking. And the staff and management here are terrific!

This past weekend my husband, our daughter and I had a booth at Vintage Market Days (VMD) in Brandon, MS, near Jackson.  This was our first ever VMD event.  I had applied to the one in southeast Louisiana but was wait listed due to my category being full.

VMD is a franchise based promoter that has been doing shows around 5 years.  They started off in middle America, Oklahoma I think.  Promoters buy a franchise or a given area to run a bi-annual show, spring and fall.

The show is Friday-Sunday.  Friday and Saturday hours run 10-5 with Sunday running 10-4.  The venue is some sort of equestrian and cattle facility.  Don't let that fact scare you off.  There was absolutely no animal smell of any kind nor were any cow (or horse) pies found on the grounds.  We were all under cover in this arena style venue.  There were two buildings used for booths and they were connected so if rain is an issue you can remain under cover to get from one building to the next.

In our building we have some live music played by one or two musicians at a time.  Three different sets of musicians in all.  It was more like background music than entertainment that was there to draw a crowd.  Their stage took up a minor part of the venue.

We drove up on Thursday morning for a 2 PM check in and set up at the venue.  All sellers were scheduled to prevent mayhem.  I don't know how the morning was but when we arrived, we were early (about 1:00 PM) and were  just going to walk around and scope things out.  However there was no line at all for check in's.  We were offered the opportunity to go with the promoter to find our booth and begin set up. Yay!  Early check in!

We were able to drive our vehicle right up to our booth (10x10) and begin setting up.  It was an uneventful set up, but different for us because we had more of my chalk painted goods and about 1/2 the normal coaster sets I bring.  We are in a transition in our booth.  We are slowly redoing it to give it a fresh look and to change with what we are not offering.

When we got through we drove to the hotel and got checked in.  The promoter had arranged a special rate at the nearest La Quinta which is about 1.5 miles from the venue.  It seemed clean, offered free breakfast with some hot items, all self service with an employee working the breakfast area each morning.

After getting settled in with our stuff we headed out to find some dinner.  We had had a pretty big lunch at Cracker Barrel on the way up since we had time.  We opted for something lighter.  Chick fil a was in the area so we went there.  John and I had the southwest salad ... first time we had it and we loved it.  Will have that again.  Dd got a sandwich combo.

We rested well that night and were ready to go the next morning.  I had a few things that needed pricing.  I don't know how that escaped me when setting up but it did.  I had time though because we got there about an hour before the show opened.  We always have a tweak or two in the morning.

People were lined up out front to enter at opening.  There were plenty of people looking on Friday, not as many buyers.  :(  We sold a little but like most areas, many people work on Friday and not every one is at a point to buy extras like what is found at shows.  I would say that Friday was a little less than typical for us on Friday.  We were told though, by one of the ladies assisting the promoter pretty much to "Be ready!  Saturday will be a killer."   {ahem, clears throat}  Every show is different, every locale is different.  What happens at one VMD does not always translate to all the others.

Saturday we were all geared up for a gang buster day.  In reality, not so much.  We had our worst Saturday on record.  Don't get me wrong, we had sales.  However we went the longest of any Saturday before even having our first sale of the day ... hours!  Talk about frustrated, angry, disappointed, and confused!!!  I was in a bad state of mind by the end of the day, to say the least.

We did not know what to expect about Sunday.  Sundays are usually a slow day, reminiscent of Friday.  Sunday morning had more foot traffic than most Sundays I remember.  Many people are sleeping in, going to church, running errands ... just life.  We were pleasantly surprised at the early foot traffic.  The people kept rolling in, not in thick heavy crowds but very steady streams of families and couples.  I believe we ended up having our best Sunday ever.

Food was offered for sale in the form of food trucks.  I believe there were four in all, each offering something different.  They generally were unhappy with their location.  They were in the second building, the one we were in.  They were at the opposite end of where customers came into our building.  They were very visible when people came in so it was not a problem for customers to find them.

We were very disappointed to find as much buy/sell there as we did.  There was a guy selling some things that looked like window casings from church that had the glass popped out an metal decoration put in.  He said his wife designed it and they had someone make it.  I was suspicious of that but didn't want to automatically jump to judgment.  In walking around that weekend, dh found 2 other booths selling the EXACT same thing.  I wanted to feign shock and go tell the guy "Someone stole your wife's design, her intellectual property!!!  Oh no!"  Of course I didn't.  This was not the only b/s we saw there, it abounded.

As much as I dislike doing shows with it so prolific, this helped me become more resolute in something.  I am more determined to raise my skills in what I do and have a better than ever booth.  Instead of concentrating on what others are not doing -- as far as having buy/sell and being deliberate cheaters -- I am going to concentrate on myself and make my art/craft better.  It will be a struggle as I make this turn but I'll be much better off in the long run.

Tear down began at 4:00 PM.  It was a routine tear down that was uneventful.  When dh needed a hand with our Astroturf floor covering he got a helping hand from one of our neighbor's husband.  Break down took about 1.5 hours, as usual.  We found an Arby's for supper before heading home.  We had rain, sometimes very heavy, all the way home.

I almost forgot that we were given a phone number to call if we needed help or someone to watch our booth for a short break.  There was a hospitality room and bathroom just for the sellers.  However it was difficult to get to.  They offered bottled water that was on ice in ice chests, and individually wrapped snacks such as protein bars and granola bars.  Friday evening there was a dinner (buffet) for all the sellers.  It was well attended and a good meal ... fried chicken tenders, red beans and rice, mac and cheese, and plenty of other stuff that I cannot remember.  Everyone went away well filled.  There was no program or awards but were all thanked for being there that weekend.  I was kind of relieved there was no program so we didn't have to stay longer than we wanted to.

Will I do it again?  Not sure, still in the decision phase.  If a show does 2 shows a year I usually like to do both before making a final decision.  However for the Mississippi show I have something scheduled already.  I may try the one in Amite, LA which is closer to home.  I am not posting this review to Facebook in the event that I want to apply again.  I posted a report on my personal blog but it was a "cleaned up" version.

For those who could still have any curiosity in VMD, just click here.

The Indian Wells Art Festival (IWAF) is held at the Indian Wells Tennis Gardens at the corner of Washington Street and Miles Avenue in Indian Wells, CA. The venue is superb, very upscale.

The artwork at the festival is among the best of the best. Large scale stone sculptures, monumental steel sculptures, and fine art paintings are the "standard" at IWAF.

There are approximately 200 artists from all over the world who come to this show.

Load in is on a Thursday (it is a three day show). Load in is staggered into 3 groups, 11:00 to 1:00, 1:00 to 3:30, 3:30 to 6:00.

This year at 3:00 pm on setup day (Thursday) the wind began to come up, and by 6:00 pm it was pushing 50 mph. Some artists, I heard, lost some work when their tent buckled and died. If you are planning on doing a desert show, you'd better know how to secure your booth - desert weather is ALWAYS unpredictable. The tennis stadium deflects a lot of the wind from the show, IF you are in the "right" part of the venue - I was.

I set up on Thursday at 3:30 and am very happy that I don't use a tent. I put in eight 18" long stakes made from 3/8" rebar. I set up my propanels and cinched them down. No problem with wind now.

The show opened on Friday at 10 am and it was immediately busy with art buyers. At 10:05 I sold one of my large "Peace Bells" to a couple who had come to the show specifically looking for bells. That was a quick $800. The buying did not stop there. I was busy ALL DAY Friday. Saturday was even busier but not better sales wise. Sunday was the slowest of the weekend. I'm not saying it is like this at every IWAF, just this one. My first year doing this festival (2011) I sold four large metal sculptures on Sunday afternoon (go figure) but nothing on Friday or Saturday worth mentioning. My buyers at that show had to think about it before then came back and bought.

Advertising is done very well to promote the show with TV spots, magazine articles, blurbs in local guides, podcasts and more. I was actually interviewed for a podcast - fun!

Dianne Funk Enterprises produces the show and she runs a tight ship - thank goodness. All sales are conducted by the artists and every sale is written in a 'supplied' sales book. Four copies; one for you, one for the buyer to hand to the gate as they take out the artwork, one for the client to take home, and the last for the festival to tally up your sales and take their 12%.

At close of the festival you can get your van / car / trailer and await entry so you can pack up and go. You can get in at 5:30 (or so) and drive up and pack up. When you are ready to leave, you take your sales book(s) to IWAF accounting and they scan you out. Then you are given an EXIT PASS. Without your exit pass, you don't get to leave. Even if you sold nothing, you still need to give your books back to accounting.

The festival charges $14 to patrons for entry and offers free plentiful parking.

This is the last "Fine Art" festival that I know of in the California desert regions - the weather is beginning to heat up and the snowbirds are headed home. 60% of my clients were from the area and the remainder were either from LA, San Diego, or from Canada (snowbirds).

I would recommend the IWAF to any artist with high end fine art that goes with the desert scene, along with mid-century modern look and feel. Me? well I make Native American inspired Spirit Shamans that hang on the wall, and they are the perfect fit for many of the homes in the area with a south west theme. 1/4 of my Shamans fly to their new homes in their client's checked bags.

Not sure how others did at the show, but I saw at least four very large paintings walking out. The exceptional sale was to my neighbor who paints desert scenes from the area using only a palette knife. He went home very happy.

Good luck out there.

Oh, and Nels, very nice shoes showed up.

This was the 22nd year for the Garage Sale Art Fair.  I love coming to this show.  There is something for everyone here.  This show is held the last Saturday of February.  Winter can be rough in Kalamazoo and by the end of February people are ready to get out and shop.

The show is put on by Bonnie Blandford and Michael Kifer of Road Wife Productions LLC.  The show is held in the Kalamazoo County Expo Center in Kalamazoo, Michigan.  It is a one day show and this year was held on February 25th.  

The show is held in 2 large rooms.   Artists set up on Friday.  Bonnie and Michael provide refreshments during set up which was very much appreciated.  

Shoppers show up first thing in the morning.  There is usually a large group of them waiting to get it.  I have been there when there was a very long line to get it.  Shoppers can sign up for drawings that take place hourly throughout the day .  If your name is called you win shopper bucks to spend at the show.

Bonnie also makes announcements about special deals all day long.  Artists will occasionally make a special offer to draw people to their booth.  The special deals seem to be very popular in the afternoon towards the end of the day when artists decide they don't want to take some stock back home.

You can find great pieces of art to buy at this show.  Most of art work doesn't have so much as a single flaw. Some pieces are for sale because the artists want to make space for their new show stock.  Plus, you can also find some strange things that artists are trying to get rid of.  I have seen pieces of iron sewer pipe, a microwave, booth lights, an antique photographer's tripod, and much more.  I am always surprised to see the huge variety of things you can buy and sometimes even more surprised that it has disappeared at the end of the day.

Alison Fox, whose booth you can see above, is a stained glass and mixed media artist.  She always stocks her booth with some great pieces of art work.  She also stocks it with all kinds of weird objects that she collects throughout the year for her art work.  Alison will sell everything she brings to the show. I have walked by her booth and watched her get rid of everything by mid afternoon.  She is amazing!

The show goes til 4 pm.  It is not uncommon for some artists to be sold out by 2 pm.  That has to be a great feeling for an artist.  

I'd like to mention the yellow shopping bags.  Shoppers will buy themselves one of those nice yellow Garage Sale shopping bag and fill them up.  By the way, what a great idea to have those shopping bags available.  It is not uncommon for shoppers to get to the show and buy more than they planned on and realize that they didn't bring anything to put all their purchases in.  I have seen so many people walking around with those nice bags which are usually full, too.  The shopping bags help to make more purchases easier to handle.  What a great idea!

This photo was taken in the morning around 10 am.  Shopping is well under way.  The selections are good. There is something for everyone.  People come to this show with the full intention of shopping and buying.  

There are 145 artists at this show.  There is a nice selection.  I didn't think any one category was top heavy.  

I took photos that better showed the crowds but those photos were blurry.  

Below you can see two                                                                                                               

                                    shoppers that are looking intently over
some ceramic pieces.     oh hey, it is Connie       Mettler.  You never know where she will show up.  

This show will be held February  24, 2018.       That gives you almost a year to fit this show into your schedule.  

If this show is out of the question for you there is one in Wisconsin and Ohio that may work out better for you.  We all hold onto stuff we don't need anymore.  This show is a great way to get rid of some of that.

Until next February 24th, oh, I can't wait.                                                                                
                                                                                                      

The La Quinta Arts Festival in La Quinta, CA, one of the nation's top art festivals shares here their 2017 prizewinners. After taking a look at this work you can see why they are at the top.

BEST OF SHOW:
Sculpture – CJ Rench – Hood River, OR 

BEST OF CATEGORY:  
Ceramics – Santiago Gutierrez – Nicaragua   

 

Fiber – Bozenna & Lukasz Bogucki – Los Angeles, CA

 

Glass – Wesley Rasko – Jablonec nad Nisou, Liberec Czech Republic

Jewelry – Harry Roa – Sarasota, FL

 

Frank Strunk III, Best of Category: Mixed Media - St. Petersburg, FL

Signe & Genna Grushovenko, Best of Category: Painting - Greenville, SC

Daryl Thetford, Best of Category: Photography - Chattanooga, TN

AWARDS OF MERIT

Drawing/Pastel/Printmaking – Jennifer Cavan – Santa Fe, NM

Glass – Bob Kliss – Fresno, CA  

 

Jewelry – Adam Neeley – Laguna Beach, CA 

 

Mixed Media – Aileen Frick – Phoenix, AZ  

Painting – James Randle – Phoenix, AZ  

 

Sculpture – Jim Martin – Carpinteria, CA  

 

Wood – Jay McDougall – Otter Tail County, MN  

CITY OF LA QUINTA CIVIC PURCHASE AWARD:

Mixed Media – Christine Hausserman – San Diego, CA 

 
Mixed Media – Ed Myers – Lake Mary, FL 

Learn more about the festival: https://www.lqaf.com/la-quinta-arts-festival-2017-award-winners/

If there was any better show organizer than Bob McFarland at Ridgeland, MS, I would love to hear about him. They had to have broken the mold when they made him! From the time the tired tires of my van hit the show site, he was sitting in a golf cart asking if we needed anything. 

For those keeping score, the Ridgeland Fine Arts show is an extremely well run, modest show held the first weekend of April. HC Porter (one of our own) was instrumental in organizing the event almost ten years ago and is still active in its implementation.

I don't think you could ask for a nicer crowd than folks that support this event every year. The are truly engaged and interested in the work. The setting is an upscale mall north of Jackson in a rather affluent area the seems to be growing a good pace. While limited in the number of artists, the work is very high quality and as I mentioned the patrons (many of whom are collectors) appreciate it. You can always tell a good show by the low number of first time artist participants. This show is no exception. 

Since the show setting is in a mall, it is an easy set up and easy break down. Sales we generally uniform where everybody got something. Ridgeland tends toward being a 2-D event with jewelry and fiber being less prominent.

A two-day show, Saturday the weather was unbelievable. Folks crammed into booths and the vibe was def. exciting. It was the better of the sales days, with be-backs picking up items they had already scoped out on Sunday. The weather turned on Sunday when 20% chance of rain turned to 100%. Winds picked up and at least one ez up was turned into an oversized metal spider carcass. 

This is where Bob's team really stepped up to the plate. Newsletters were circulated as the weather changed. Updates were being given out every fifteen minutes by his staff. Finally he left it up to the artists as to when they could exercise their options to leave. Absolutely fantastic! We got out dry just as the first drops of rain began to fall at 5:30. (This was the same storm the wiped out many in Austin.)

Again, kudos to the team at Ridgeland for taking care of us!

July 29 & 30

• Hot Works Orchard Lake Fine Art Show is voted top 100 art fairs in the nation, the last 10 years in a row, by Sunshine Artist Magazine
• 160 artists or less. We do not accept artists who are not qualified, simply to fill a space and collect the booth fee.
• Juried by art professionals.
• No stages or pulsating music!  
• Extensive advertising including broadcast TV, radio, print, social media, large banners hung throughout four communities, post cards, and posters
• Professional Artist Awards:

• Focus is on original work; "no buy/sell/import" policy strictly enforced

Deadline to apply is April 3

5th Annual Celebration of Art, Cranes Roost Park
Altamonte Springs, FL - March 25-26, 2017

September 9 & 10
Springfield, Illinois
Washington Park Botanical Gardens
50 Artists
Deadline: March 31

Art Spectacular, a juried fine art fair, ranked #44 in the top 200 art fairs in the U.S.A. by Sunshine Artist, 9/2016. It is small by design - approximately 50 artists in a wide variety of media, where media balance is a significant consideration. Artists are pampered from arrival to departure with volunteer assistance, FREE beverages and time-of-day appropriate snacks both in the VIP Tent and from the Refreshments on Wheels cart that runs through the art fair.

We try to do it all for you: booth sitters, reserved in-park artist parking - or across the street with shuttle whenever needed, overnight security, award dinner on Saturday evening, and $1,300 in awards. 3 professional artists serve as Judges and visit every artist. There is an Inspector to help insure the quality and esteem of the event.

Art Spectacular also features artist demonstrations, Patron Bucks, Patron Preview Sale, music (no speakers!), Kids' Place, Kids' Art Sale, gift basket raffle, silent auction, and food vendors. Art Spectacular is loved by artists and patrons!

The patrons: The IL state capitol, Springfield is an art-loving, art-BUYING community of educators (5 colleges/universities), medical professionals (2 medical centers and a school of medicine), and a major "Lincoln" historic site (including the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum, his home and his tomb); and, of course, a lot of government! The park is adjacent to the most affluent neighborhood in Springfield - filled with art lovers. 

Art Spectacular was founded and is produced by the chair, Barb Walker, and
about 60 fantastic volunteers.

Learn more & apply: http://www.carillon-rees.org

Barb Walker, 217-787-3532, dandbwalker58@gmail.com

May 27, 28 and 29
Danbury, CT
Ives Concert Park
Presented by Friends of the Ives, Inc.
100 Artists
Deadline: March 31

Application Fee: $25;  Booth Fee: $300-350

From Alice Moulton at the Winter Park Sidewalk Art Festival, March 17-19, 2017:

Hi Connie,

I must say, we had a fabulous festival this year.  The weather was a little cooler than normal and wonderful. The artwork was amazing and the artists, judges and attendees kept remarking about the high quality of art they were seeing.

The Best of Show winner, Ken Tutjamnong, was a first time attendee and seemed to be very popular with the other attending artists. This is a $10,000 purchase award.

Best of Show - "Riverwalk", Painting by Ken Tutjamnong, Philadelphia, PA