Fine Art at the Lakes - New Event! Friday - July 31 Saturday - August 1 Walled Lake, Michigan 100 artists Deadline: June 15 Nestled in the lakes area of affluent Oakland County, the 1st Annual Fine Art at the Lakes Art Festival will be held on the grounds of Walled Lake Central High School in Walled Lake, MI. Don't miss this opportunity to participate in this new juried addition to the summer fine art show calendar which will feature some of the finest local and national artisans exhibiting their work in finely crafted art pieces. You will be pleasantly surprised by the level of organization of this new art festival and the attention given to every detail. The committee is chaired by an experienced artist with years of art fair experience and extensive knowledge of the needs of the artists and what it takes to host a first-class art festival.
The Walled Lake Central Marching Band is hosting this event and is supported by the Walled Lake School District with a Art Fair Calendar.compopulation of over 15,000 students and families. An intensive ad and publicity campaign will be held to promote the event throughout the region, including advertising in local and major newspapers, radio and television promotions, local cable stations, e-mail blasts throughout the school district, direct mail, and outdoor media. What to expect: * Lots of free entertainment highlighting a wide variety of musical talent * Free art tent for children and their families * Food court featuring local restaurants Our hospitality committee will assist artists by providing: * Friendly volunteers to help load and unload vehicles * Volunteers to booth sit throughout the event * Security throughout the event and on Friday evening * Plenty of free parking * Artist hospitality booth including hand-delivered lunches, booth signs, and much more. For more information: 1. visit the website at
www.wlcbands.com 2. contact the
Fine Art at the Lakes hotline at 248-956-4981 3. and apply on line at
www.zapplication.orgRead more…
Here's a little background from the local TV channel:
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - More than $2.5 million in original art is expected to be sold this weekend at the Uptown Art Fair.
With about 375,000 visitors, attendance at the event is second only to the Minnesota State Fair.
Hundreds of artists will be selling sculptures, paintings, photos' woodcarvings, glasswork, jewelry and more. Attendance is free at the event held at the corner of Lake Street and Hennepin Avenue and running down a nearby pedestrian mall.
My husband, Norm Darwish, and I did Uptown many years, often breaking into the five figures in sales, selling his photography to a lovely group of people in Minneapolis and having a great time in the Uptown neighborhood. But the year the booth fees went up, we were asked for a separate fee to have the same space that we'd had for years, we were "requested" to contribute to the auction and they put a food booth that grilled brats all day long with the smoke blowing into our space we decided to say good bye to metro Minneapolis.
In subsequent years we listened closely to the show reports from our friends and were not enticed to return. Read a review by Nels Johnson on Ellen Marshall's take on this years fair.
It is the Big Art Weekend in Minneapolis though and everyone has their own story. Here are some I found:
An excellent overview at the StarTribune: The Newbie (Andy Juelich) and the Veteran (Renee & Douglas Sigwarth) that includes an excellent video of the Sigwarth's working in their art glass studio.
Artist Dolan Geiman always has a unique point of view about the events where he shows his work, visit his Daily Dolan Geiman blog to hear his tornado report from Uptown.
Read more…
Last week I received the following email blast from the
Ann Arbor Street Art Fair. They need financial support. When you think of how much so many artists have depended on their annual income from one or another of the Ann Arbor art fairs, they have to be grateful to this event that started it all. Not only do the artists have much to be thankful for, but the art fair patrons who have flocked by the millions to Ann Arbor for the past 50 years for this vibrant rite of summer are also indebted for the enrichment and pleasure the fair has brought them. I am asking each and every one of you to heed this call from the Street Art Fair and show your thanks and your support to keep it going. I know you will.
$50 for 50th Campaign The Ann Arbor Street Art Fair, the Original Needs Your Support!For 50 years, The Ann Arbor Street Art Fair has been connecting a carefully selected group of artists with an appreciative audience from Ann Arbor and across the country. During this half century, the Fair has won many awards, been a national leader in operational and program development, provided substantial economic benefit to the local business community, and often been recognized as the brand of Ann Arbor.
How Much Does it Cost to Put on This Free Event? While most events of this caliber are run on budgets well exceeding one million dollars, The Ann Arbor Street Art Fair has managed to grow and flourish with
an annual budget of just $350,000. As a non-profit organization, the Fair has relied on artist fees, souvenir sales and national corporate support to meet these budgetary requirements and operate as a
free public event.
Why We Need Your Support Due to a combination of factors (poor economic conditions, reduction of revenue producing space due to construction, and general corporate pull out from the state of Michigan) the income generated from these key sources is no longer expected to cover the Fair’s annual production costs. Individual contributions could help offset the expected $65,000 shortfall facing the Original Fair. Donations will go directly to supporting our world class programs, including projects like the Zero Waste Initiative, the New Art New Artists series, the Art Zone/Imagination Station’s free art activities, art demonstrations, and the Townie Street Party.
How YOU Can Help Become a supporter of the Ann Arbor Street Art Fair today! We’re asking for a
“Fifty for Fifty” commitment: $50 to celebrate our 50th Anniversary. But don’t worry if that’s not in your budget this year – your gift will be appreciated no matter what the size. If each of our 500,000 visitors donated even $5, we would have enough to run the fair for over seven years! You can
donate online by visiting our website, or you can send a check to our office at: Ann Arbor Street Art Fair, the Original P.O. Box 1352 Ann Arbor, MI48106 Thank you for considering a donation to the Ann Arbor Street Art Fair. If you have any questions, please contact us by email (
kdelhey@artfair.org) or phone: (734) 994-5260. The Ann Arbor Street Art Fair, the Original is a 501c(3) non-profit corporation.Your donation is tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.
A Few Reasons to Donate Today: **More than
$78 million is spent locally in Ann Arbor hotels, stores, and restaurants by the estimated
500,000 patrons who visit during fair week ** The
Townie Street Party, a special free kick-off event for the community to celebrate the Art Fairs, is hosted annually by the Street Art Fair on Ingalls Mall and North University
**The Kid’s Art Fair gives young artists the opportunity to exhibit and sell their work and the
New Artist Program allows University level artists to experience what it’s like to participate in the Street Art Fair. **The Street Art Fair’s
Zero Waste Program was initiated two years ago with a goal of minimal environmental impact. This program was one of three invited to present at the MFEA Conference this year.
Read more…
Posted by Moira Coon on September 13, 2009 at 1:58pm
I’m officially registered for exhibit space at the art shows at both WindyCon and Midwest Furfest.Now I just need to buckle down and produce some work! *laughs*
Read more…
Posted by Ginny Herzog on April 21, 2009 at 2:00pm
I did MSFW eight and nine years ago - the years are fresh in my mind as my first year was when the tornado swept Main St. only days before the event and they moved the event to the Cultural Center, but returned to Main St. the following year. I had a miserable experience back then. It wasn't my crowd of art lovers and buyers, but rather, young, drunks with stacking empty beer cups, chomping on turkey legs. With a booth spot near the Karaoke stage of awful singers and only one big sale, it felt like the longest show of my life. I did not reapply until this year after setting my sights on TX, instead of FL. For me, doing the TX shows is an attempt to establish a new market for my work. Only a handful of people here are familiar with my architectural collage on panels. Although I feel my work has been well received here, sales for me were slow. I had one large sale and a couple of smaller ones with the possibility of a couple of big commissions. Talking with other artists in all medias, most returnees said sales were down from previous years but better than they thought they would be in this recession. Smaller works sold better but some were able to move a few larger ones, as well. As Mark Zurek reported, they delivered a huge crowd on Sat. and Sun. and we were told that Thursday was record breaking, as well. We were grateful that the torrential rains came only in the morning on Friday and they quit by noon. Jay Downey did an admirable job of directing this event, which was very well organized and promoted. His staff and the block captains were great and we felt there were always ears to hear of any issue we may have had during the show. In addition he had artist advisors circulating the show to get feedback from the artists about any suggestions or issues. At the artist reception on the eve of setup day, Jay made sure that he greeted each and everyone of the exhibitors at our tables, welcoming us to the show. I feel that this is very important as it is becoming increasingly rare to have any interaction with show directors during the show, anymore. If the show directors are unable to meet the artists, at least the artist relations chair, should. I feel that MSFW is a show headed in the right direction in TX. This year I did not notice a single stack of empty beer cups. I've been told that Jay did away with these a couple of years ago. Instead they are selling cans, which are much more difficult to balance in the heavy crowds. :- ) The karaoke stage is gone, and NOT missed. Music, for the most part was at a more comfortable decible level than the past with a more appropriate music genres for art browsing. Load in went very well, except for artists needing to cram their booths into the skimpy tents, which saved us in the heavy rain and ever present gusts. Artists need to be advised to bring their tent tops, in addition to the sides. My biggest issue with the show was about tear down. The plan was to close the artists booths and stages at the N. end of Main at 6 to funnel the crowds to the Main stage at the S. end of the show, so the artists could tear down. Music at the S. stage did not end until 8. Therefore, the crowds seemed unaware that the art festival was over and continued to walk in the streets and sidewalks until after 8. This did NOT WORK at all - at least from my vantage point in the 700 block. I heard that the closing of the art fair was reported in the paper to be at 8, instead of 6. Many of us were parked 4-7 blocks from our booths and with gusty winds, it is near impossible to hand carry large paintings and panels for any great distance. We also risked having our dolly loads attacked by winds, as well. The crowds of families with strollers and toddlers scurrying around were oblivious to the danger they were putting themselves in as we were dismantling our booths. My normal two hour takedown, instead, took four and I was exhausted. If MSFW makes just one improvement of this event, I hope it will be the load out plan. End all of the concessions and entertainment at the 6 pm closing time. Thank the crowd for coming and ask them to leave Main St. so that the artists may load up. At LEAST get them off the street where we are trying to dismantle and load.Particularly, when Main St. has the prevalent gusty winds that can cause unexpected and dangerous situations when your booth is least stable. Kudos to Downey and staff and the friendly people of Dallas and Fort Worth.
Hello, My name it Teressa and I have been building a website for my jewelry that I have hosted from fatcow.com and I need some feed back on it. Can you let me know if it looks professional and if there is something that should be added or changed?Thanks,Teressawww.stylingwithbeadscrystalsandsilver.com
Read more…
CALLING ALL ARTISTS: the 2010 Arthritis Introspective Gathering Committee is calling all artists for Cover Art, Brochure Art, and the like. This years Gathering is in Tempe, Arizona on April 9-12, with the Theme: "El Festival de Amistad : The ...Festival of Friendship". Please submit rough draft artistic representations digitally to Pete Fischer at pjfischer@hotmail.com by September 15th, 2009.Some info can be found on their website - www.arthritisintrospective.org/2010gathering.htm and/or www.arthritisintrospective.org/ to learn more about the organization. I do recommend contact Pete for more info.Pete is a friend of mine and does a lot of work for Arthritis foundations and is an architect by profession. If you find you might not be able to help do cover art, at least pass this info on to friends or others whom you may think would be interested. Thanks a bunch - Michelle
Read more…
Bar Codes by Robert Robert Carriveau(I want to pass this on as I got this email this morning). Thought it would be appropriate to pass on in this forum especially those looking to have a "leg up" on the whole "Made in China" stuff.)Very good info! I'm not buying anything else Made in China . We had 2 foreign exchange students from China living with us & they always checked bar codes. They would put some things down and say 'no good - not same as in China ' When we asked them about that later, they said China sends the inferior things to the U.S.A. , for what its worth.Bar Codes Identify Country of Origin - Be Sure to Check ThemThe whole world is scared of China-made 'black hearted goods'. Can you differentiate which one is made in the USA ,Philippines , Taiwan or China ?For example, the first 3 digits of the bar code reflect the country code where the product was made.All bar codes that start with 690, 691, 692, thru 695 are MADE IN CHINA.Bar code items starting with 471 are Made in Taiwan.Chinese businessmen know that American consumers don't prefer products 'Made in China ', so they don't show from which country it originates any longer.However, you may now refer to the barcode. Remember if the first 3 digits are in the range 690-695, then it is Made in China .00 ~ 13 USA & CANADA30 ~ 37 FRANCE40 ~ 44 GERMANY49 ~ JAPAN50 ~ UK57 ~ Denmark64 ~ Finland76 ~ Switzerland & Lienchtenstein471 ~ Taiwan480 ~ Philippines628 ~ Saudi Arabia629 ~ UAE ( United Arab Emirates )740-745 ~ Central AmericaPlease inform your family and friends.It is our human right to know, but its not the government's job to educate the public, just to rake in the taxes.Therefore, we have to protect ourselves & make everyone aware.
Read more…
Posted by Connie Mettler on September 11, 2009 at 3:37pm
It is a beautiful fall weekend and here is where you should be right now:
1. Atlanta Arts Festival, September 12-13, beautiful Piedmont Park, 200 artists Lots more info here from the
Atlanta Journal-Constitution online Here's
even more info for you about the art. Competing with Atlanta for the top artists in the country is the very prestigious
2. St. Louis Art Fair, September 11-13, downtown Clayton, MO, 160 artists New show director, Cindy Lerick, steps up to the plate to hit a home run on this one (that's my bet anyway). Get more details at the
St. Louis Post-Dispatch and another story from the
Belleville News-Democrat with more tantalizing info.
3. A Fair in the Park, Pittsburgh, PA, September 11-13, Mellon Park, 100 artists This luscious park hosts one of Pittsburgh's most popular events. More info at
PittsburghGalleries.com4. West End Art Fair, LaGrange, IL, September 12 & 13, Burlington Ave in front of the Stone Ave. train station, 125 artists This 14th annual fair presented by the LaGrange Business Assn., learn more at
LaGrange Today.
5. Westport Art Fair, Kansas City, MO, September 11-13, in Historic Westport, 120 artists The opening of the fall art fair season in KC is this event, held specifically to showcase local Kansas City artists.
Learn more. The last time I did one of these wrap ups of the weekend's art fairs I had some wrong dates. My challenge to you: are these correct? Are you going to be there? If you are participating will you let us know about it afterward? Which one would you most like to be participating in? Comment below.
Read more…
It's your turn.
"Have you ever wondered how to go from being a “struggling, emerging or even semi-established artist to selling a complete show for $198 million?” Bravo says they might be able to help you with their new artist-based reality competition to win a “gallery show, a cash prize and a sponsored national tour,” whatever that means." This is a for-real deal being produced by Bravo and Sarah Jessica Parker's production company. Do check it out. They are looking for thirteen artists: "We want contemporary artists. Your medium could be one of many (or several of many) – painting, sculpture, installation, video, photography, mixed-media – we want voices that believe in their art and want the world to know," says Bravo. Casting calls going on very soon in Los Angeles, Miami, Chicago and New York. Read all about it here:
http://www.bravofan.com/bravo-now-casting-for-untitled-art-project/ and here:
http://www.bravotv.com/casting and here:
http://animalnewyork.com/2009/06/bravo-casting-for-sarah-jessica-parkers-art-reality-show/Read more…
I was a craft artist at the Seafood Festival this weekend. Here's some thoughts from my own personal experience as well as from neighbors and other craft friends. 1. I can't say it enough - It was HOOOTTT! 92+ degrees with 100% humidity. In order to do this fair you need a fan. Although it is set in a park right on the water, there isn't enough breeze to keep cool. Hot, Humid, and Haze with not much wind makes for a miserable experience. During pack up, just like last year there was a major thunderstorm - I survived it! And to be honest - the rain felt soooo good. Nothing got damaged. 2. Security was an issue. I am one of the lucky ones not affected by some early visitors who went on a shop lifting spree. The way I was told is the two adults (parents) would distract the artist and the kids would steal the products. Jewelry artists got hit harder, but it was 1-2 things from each booth - a total of about 10 booths I think were hit. There wasn't any security that I saw and if the stealing wasn't enough to set some off, it was the drunk people. One artist left 1 day early as a drunk, at the end of the day, fell into their display and damaged some of their merchandise. 3. Sales for me were better than last year, however I only made a few extra dollars of profit over my booth expenses, gas and food. Last year I was a few dollars short of making my booth - $100. This could be that I had a different booth location, newer booth set up, products that people were looking for - I don't know, but nice to know it was better than last year. Of course it isn't anything to jump up and down over, making a profit that makes it worth my while is key and helps me determine whether I should return or not. 4. Customers/attendance. I thought the attendance was good. Not too many great quality customers - those who aren't picky about prices of art or craft. But some there were a few - as long as husbands weren't keeping an eye on wives and their spending. I had a LOT of people taking my business cards as some even fessed they don't have the money now, but want to keep me in mind for Christmas presents. 5. Neighbor crafts people. I had an annoying neighbor who would barge into my booth - when I had customers shopping, in the middle of talking to my husband or another craft friend - and interrupt the conversation to say something that wasn't important. She cost me 3 sales. She also didn't ask for help, she assumed I would help - like, "I need one of you (looking at my husband and I) to help me take down my canopy. " I did the show by myself with my husband joining me for packing up and she (the neighbor) did the same. It was just annoying. 6. How others did. Many didn't make their space, others made out well, it was a wide range of highs and lows among other artists. 7. Final thought... I don't think I can do the show again. Two days of intense heat - and no cooling station or water fountains - plus long hours - 11 - 7 and 11-6 Sat. and Sunday - it just wasn't worth it. I gave the show two tries - hoping it would be better, but when most are there for $6 beers with a 2$ refill and the average food item costing about $8 (and that is not including drinks) it doesn't help with customer spending. Also there is no admission - good but not great - as I saw it opening the doors for a lot of lookie loos. Take my review for whatever you want - like I said some did well, others did not - I did ok. Here's a few other photos - one is of my booth and the other from the park with a view of the Chesapeake Bay...
Sometimes it does the soul good to do a small community event for a change. I found myself with an open weekend and in my desires to get back to Michigan for a week of photo taking, I signed up for a lovely little weekend event. I will say that this is not a typical one for most "seasoned artists". Not one for those with only high price point items. I normally would not have given this one a thought. That being said, this "art show/business expo" was one of the delights of the summer and I would highly recommend to those "newbies" who are searching for a first show to get their feet wet.Keego translates to "Big Fish", thus the name. Keego Harbor is a suburb of Detroit in a recreational area with many lakes. I sent my $50 entry fee to the organizer, John and followed it up with an email asking for places to stay as this particular trip I was bringing my dogs. Only in a small community would the the organizer offer an artist the opportunity to stay at his home - dogs & all. I declined the offer, but was immediately impressed with John and the efforts he has made to carefully grow this event each year. Held on the grounds of the local school, the event is divided nicely. Artists on one side and a business expo tent on the other. Between the two is a row of yummy food vendors. At the far side of the schools parking lot, behind the business tent, is an entertainment stage. Between the entertainment stage and a Detroit radio station playing great tunes all day, I found myself bee boppin to the music all weekend. John - you sure get my award for excellent choice in music for this event!Set up was easy with drive up unloading/loading. Spaces were allotted on a first come/first pick basis. The artist booths were filled with a variety of art and crafts. Two first time show photographers shared a booth and hubby & I spent much of the weekend filling them in on presentations at art shows. I do hope they continue as they have great composition - just in need of better equipment and some art show polish. This is the second show in Michigan (Plymouth the first) where the community actively involves their children in the pursuit of fine art involvement. I was chosen to be a judge for the events art contest held for kids from the age of 4 thru 18 and was only too happy to comply with the request. Another local artist (painter) judge and I were blown away at one 17 year old girls talent and we were thrilled she overwhelmingly took first place. Her talents were far above many adult artists I've seen. The local artist has decided to set her up in his gallery and will be working on a scholarship for her.One of the reasons I find these small community events so delightful is the attention given to the artist. John's assistant in charge of the artists, Charlese (sp?) checked with us nearly hourly. She was absolutely fantastic as were her assistants. Attendance last year was 2,000 but I expect with the cool temps and on/off rain showers that weekend, it was down a tad. I nearly made the mistake of bringing only my lower price point items. I'm glad I brought some of the pricer framed pieces as my overall profit, after expenses, was just under $1200. I must note here that many artist/crafters I spoke with did not do as well - some nothing at all. It has been my belief that artists must carefully consider location of event and how it relates to their art. However, surprisingly this little event supported my week of photo shoots throughout Northern Michigan & the U.P. It did my soul good to not only remind myself of the small events that got me started, but also support this great little community event.As my practice, a You Tube video taken by hubby can be found by clicking LINKHappy Fall Shows Everyone!Linda Andersonhttp:www.andersonphotoworks.comRead more…
October 17 & 18 Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda Row: Woodmont Ave., Bethesda Ave. & Elm St. 180 Artists Deadline: May 30Where is Bethesda, MD? This preeminent urban festival attracts art lovers from the metropolitan Washington, DC, region, displaying the works of a select group of highly creative and talented artists in the heart of Bethesda's Arts & Entertainment District. Bethesda Row is a popular dining and gathering place, covering four city blocks and features more than 50 fine shops and restaurants, and a movie theater. Low-rise, retail and office buildings create a very pleasing, human-scale, town-center feel. What makes the event unique is its continuing tradition of free attendance while financially helping kids through NIH Children's Charities in partnership with the Bethesda Chevy Chase Chamber of Commerce.
A bit about the patrons: * This year's show is expected to attract more than Art Fair Calendar.com45,000 visitors * They come from one of the nation's most affluent regions, with 40% of households earning $100,000 and over * The area is ranked 6th in the nation for the number of households attending arts/cultural events with 38% of households attending arts events and purchasing fine arts There are two ways to apply to the Bethesda Row Arts Festival: download an application at:
www.bethesdarowarts.org/application or submit digitally at:
bethesdarowarts.org/app For more information about the festival visit the website at
www.bethesdarowarts.org, or e-mail
info@bethesdarowarts.org, or call 301.637.5715 Have you attended any art fairs in the East? If not, this is a very hospitable event where you can find an audience if you have distinctive and sophisticated art. The date should be attractive to artists from the Midwest whose art fair season has ended. *********** Looking for more art fairs to fill up your schedule for 2009? Visit
ArtFairCalendar.com/callfor entriesRead more…
Our second year at this 4 day fair in Downtown Denver over Memorial day. After the Texas shows (Bayou, Main St. Cottonwood) had my concerns about the economy in Colorado.The show was one of the most efficiently run to date. Jim Delutes is a show circuit alumni that runs the thing from the perspective of the artist. Load in, load out was a breeze with volunteers everwhere to help. The crowds were there, a testiment to Jim's marketing effort, a huge improvement over last year.The weather (rain all four days) and the Nuggets in the playoffs affected sales, but despite these obstacles we did close to our goal of 5K. I can see this one developing to a major show if the economy ever improves (sorry guys, just because it's off the front page and a few Bozo's say things are looking up, this is gonna take more than a wave of Obama's magic wand to fix). The show is in a fabulous location off the 16th St. Mall, Coors field just a stones throw away. It winds thru the Denver Pavilions, a "lifestyle" type shopping district that is a destination for tourists, the bars, eating establishments draw the locals.For us, to sleep in our own beds, cook our own food, was a rare pleasure.The motel life gets old fast. This one stays a keeper on my schedule. Mark Zurek
Read more…
A long-running art fair, the Midwest Salute to the Masters, in Fairview Heights, IL, got done in by politics, reports the Belleville (IL) News Democrat:
FAIRVIEW HEIGHTS -- Mayor Gail Mitchell said Friday that politics played a role in the abrupt cancellation of the 22nd annual Midwest Salute to the Arts scheduled for Aug. 28-30. Salute to the Arts organizers said Friday that they have started to plan for the 2010 event, but city officials are still questioning why the event was canceled this year. Organizers initially cited the economy as the main reason the fair was canceled, but said Friday that they were unable to find a replacement after the arts council's director, Sharon Karraker, resigned June 1. The quick story is that after Karraker was not reappointed by the City Council as head of the planning commission that shortly after that she resigned. From what I can gather the event is totally volunteer run and Karraker was its driving force. Her loss, the fair's loss, the artist's loss. Read the rest of
this story here.
Read more…
The Mayfaire show has a reputation for being a hot one. Every year the participants desperately hope that the weather will be a little milder for this notoriously hyperthermal happening. This year, however, the two days of the show set all time heat records for their respective dates. Sunday the reported temperature was 96 degrees at the airport. We were very fortunate to find ourselves close to an electrical outlet. Thanks to our two powerful fans the temperature in our tent never got above 98. Crowds were down 35% this year. In an innovative move, the porta potty company charged a little extra to report weights of their rental units at delivery vs their weights at pickup time. This provides data on which the above estimate was based. The judging was done by a recognized prestigious juror. I can't remember his name any more than he probably remembers my work. He did do a thorough job, however. It was reported by the Lakeland Ledger that he walked the whole show at least four times before breezing through the final lap with his dot sticking assistant running three booths behind trying to keep up. If your work sucks, it's best to find out from the finest. In a separate round of jurying photographer Nels Johnson took top honors for the best dressed category. Wasn't even close according to the jurist. The setup starts at eleven on Friday which gives one plenty of time to get organized. Nearby parking on the streets isn't difficult for early birds. Speaking of birds, Lake Morton probably has more birds per gallon than Cambell's chicken noodle soup. Thanks to their byproduct you don't see swimmers in this pond. Once every three years or so the City of Lakeland drains off and sells half the water volume to a nearby fertilizer plant. People with dogs weighing less than four pounds have to hand carry their pets to keep them from getting eaten by the swans and geese. Our neighbor, Rocky Bridges the mixed media legend, showed up and built a small gallery out of plywood and 2 X 4's. He then slapped on a fresh coat of white paint. He wasn't always at his booth, but friends and followers were able to track him down and drag him back to his booth to make an 8K sale on Saturday. On Sunday he came to the back of our booth to borrow a felt tip pen so he could sign a piece he was selling. Then this nice gentleman came in the front of our booth to borrow a pen for writing a check. He told us that he almost bought from us until he saw the work next to us and he wouldn't quite be able to buy from us this year. With neighbors like Rocky you'd better make sure to take notes. You don't often get that kind of opportunity. Our sales? Even if the show went for a couple of more days we would probably have covered expenses. But then again we live here. Three of our photographer friends pulled 1200, 1100, and about a thousand respectively. A popular functional potter did 1500, down from over twice that amount from last year. You can't blame the organizers for the heat and the economy. The Mayfaire show usually draws a nice crowd and if you have what they want, they have the money for it. Unfortunately, none of the artists were selling ice cold fifty cent beers. Miss Ruby was selling tomatoes, but she ran out by the time we earned enough money for a half peck of them. The organizers made sure that we got plenty of cold water and on Saturday we had bagels and goodies delivered right to the tent. Starbucks provided free coffee for the artists both days. I will do this show again. Heat and all. In all fairness to other artists, though, I must point out we live within walking distance. If you're a camel.
Read more…
Here's an update on the Brandywine Arts Festival first reported here on August 18.
It seems as though the second site at St. Anthony in the Hills is NOT going to be the site for the 20,000 visitor event coming up in two weeks, September 12 and 13, reports the Delaware News Journal in its DelawareOnline.com.
Okay, art festivals get cancelled, but the event which advertises 230 exhibitors has cashed all the applicants checks at around a hefty $350 apiece. Just do the math on that! Artists are scratching their heads and holding their collective breath as they await word from the organizers about the location.
As you all know the booth fee isn't the only expense incurred by the artists, most have also bought materials and produced artwork with expectations of earning at the event. A friend recently told me that if she had a $400 booth fee she would have to sell $4000 worth of goods to break even. Food for thought?
Here is the rest of the story: Second Site Brushes Off Art Festival
Do any of you participate in this event or have more information? Please comment below.
Read more…
