The Business of Art (Festivals)

"Faith, noun - sending $500 entry fee to an art show taking place half way across the country in unknown weather conditions in 5-7 months, where you will be trying to sell artwork you haven't yet created in an economy which may implode anytime between now and then." - Stephen Bach, landscape artist

The above quote was posted by Mr Bach on an internet forum for all things related to art festivals. And it is exactly true. I spent a great deal of time recently, working on my potential schedule for 2015. I say potential, because so far I have no idea if I will actually be exhibiting at any of these events...

The way art festivals work is that you submit photographs of your work, and your booth, for judging. The industry term is *jurying* but make no mistake...it's judging. Judging whether or not you will fit in some very narrow parameters. And the people who are judging you? They have about 30 seconds to make the decision(s) that will affect your abiltiy to exhibit. Because if the jury doesn't give you a high score, you're not allowed to show up and play. Or (sometimes) worse, you're placed in limbo...the art festival Wait List.*

And how tough is the competition? One of the shows states: 

"145 artists are slected from a jury pool of approx. 1300 applicants". 

Y'know what that works out to? An 11 percent chance of being accepted. About ten people have to be rejected for me to make it...and my odds aren't even that good, because the jewelry category has more competition than the rest. So a good number of those applicants will be applying for MY category...which means more of them will have to be told "no" for me to get the chance to exhbiti at this festival. 

And, we artisans pay for the privilege of having our work juried. Most festivals charge a "jury fee" of anywhere from $25 to $55. That's just to have 'em look at you. Non-refundable, of course. These add up to hundreds and even thousands for artists who will apply to many festivals, often some overlapping on the same weekend, just to hope that they can get invited to one of them. Some of my spots on the calendar above have three post-its on them, because I'm applying to three events. 

If we are fortunate enough to get accepted, we then pay a space or booth fee to the festival. This ranges, from $200 on the low end (though many of those are now $300) to $1000 at the high. And that's with no guarantee of a return on your investment, of course. You pays your money and you takes your chances...

The most I've ever paid for a festival booth? $775. That's a big commitment with no guarantee of return. I think the odds may be better in Vegas. :) 

Often, exhibiting at arts festivals means traveling, which means that even a $300 booth fee (plus that $35 jury fee) isn't the only expenditure. There are hotel stays, food, gas, and any other necessary expenses. If the show hours extend late and you want electricity (assuming the festival provides it)? That's another charge. Most out of town events will require at least a two night stay, and that's assuming you can arrive on Friday night, set up EARLY Saturday morning, and leave Sunday evening...but a lot of festivals have scheduled set up hours. And some only allow you to set up the day *before* the event. Which means an additional hotel night...and more meals to buy. 

And I'm not even going to get into what happens if you make it to a festival and the weather is uncooperative...we all just hope for the best, all the time. There's no eternal optimist like an artist. :) 

I'm not saying any of this is good. Or bad. It's just what is. The art festival life is a game of chance, and like any other gamble, sometimes it pays off, and sometimes it doesn't. 

So. The next time you take yourself to an art festival, you might pause for a moment and consider what the artists have gone through to get themselves in front of YOU. Support them, if you can, if you like the work, if you have a budget for some handmade jewelry, ceramics, paintings...it's not necessary, of course, if you can't. 

But know that they're not their for the great fun of it all...though festivals can be great fun!!...they're there because they love what they do. They love it so much they are willing to live an often very uncertain existence, with no regular income, a life that is subject to a LOT of rejection, sometimes, to continue to put goodness and art and beauty into the world. And they (we), hope...that you will love it too. :)

Now I'm off to actually make some jewelry. For those future festivals... :) 


* Wait Lists are the artisan version of Hell. Because you don't know IF or WHEN you might get called off of the wait list...so you can't *really* plan around it. You either have to assume you won't be exhibiting at that festival,....but you are always hoping (eternal optimist!) that you'll get an email or a call saying that a space has opened for you. And to be called off the wait list means that someone else had to cancel. So...it's bad news for someone else, good news for you. A bit of Schadenfreude, that. Sometimes an outright rejection is actually easier because it's like ripping off a band-aid. Wait list status is like you're hoping the band-aid will come off at some point...but not ever knowing if it will. 

Time Flies...on a Private, Supersonic Jet

I look at the date of my last post, May 20th, and realize today is June 18th. Nearly a month has passed. In some ways, only a month. And yet...in some ways, my last post feels like it was written last year.

For days, days, days on end, my schedule has been to get up, eat breakfast, work.....fourteen hour days (or more). And then go to bed, get up, and do it all again. There have been a couple of weekend days where I didn't work - I really try not to, when I'm not at a festival - but overall it's been exhausting. I headed to Michigan (a ten hour drive) last Thursday, not exactly feeling on top of my game.

And surprise, surprise...I'm NOT on top of my game. I went to the doctor today and got diagnosed with a UTI (bladder infection). Sorry if that's TMI for ya, but it iz what it iz. Far as I can tell, it started Thursday when I left...but there was nothing I could do since I knew I wouldn't be able to see the doctor until today. So I'm a little more run down and tired than normal.

And yet. I feel like I can't rest because there's so much buzzing around in my head. Now I'm going to have some time (my next festival isn't until September) to try to put in place the things I've been trying to put in place for a long time. I've got a list. I've got motivation. I've got...to start working it ASAP, because there is truly no time like the present...and I'm already behind. ~wry smile~ Does *every* small business owner feel this way rather often?

So let me distract myself a bit - because I can't do anything about it tonight - and tell you about Michigan. :)

First, the show is a long way away. And because my husband came with me, we added an extra day as he visited a client on Monday. So it was five hotels in six nights. By the time we were in the fourth hotel, I could barely remember what floor we were on or what our room number was. A lot of shuffling and moving things around.

It's not a big show. It doesn't have a ton of foot traffic - at least, not what I'm used to in some of the bigger festivals in, say, Arizona, or even in Georgia. But sometimes a smaller show can truly be a gem (no pun intended). I exhibited at this festival for the first time last year, and it was, if not exactly solid...well, it seemed to have potential. So I came back this year, a little (only a little!) better prepped with inventory, a little more familiar with the town, a little lighter on my feet because I had help from my husband. Those of you who have never done a festival, from setup to tear down, don't understand how much help it is to have someone with you, to share the load. Especially someone who knows *your* business pretty well. And to help with the (literally) heavy liftting. It made things much easier in some ways.

And the people...oh, you lovely people! The thing I really like about Michiganders is that they're direct. They're not brusque, but they're blunt and to the point, just the way I like my conversation. :)  Nice people who don't bother with any of the "bless your heart"-ish talk that you sometimes hear in the South. They'll tell you how they feel. People recommended other festivals, they were fascinated and interested that we were up "all the way" from Atlanta, and this crowd LOVES gems as much as I do. I sold several special designs that I wasn't quite ready to part with, but I know they went to good homes and will be well loved. I've never seen a group of people so interested in the details about my gems. What fun to talk to a fairly jewelry-educated crowd!

This was the first piece sold on Saturday morning. Brand spankin' new...she loved it and wore it out of the booth. :)

The weather was a *little* warm...but honestly about as perfect as it could be.

So we left town in very good spirits; I've got my list of to-do's to put in place, and all the show crapola is stored away for a little while. I'm looking forward to some long (but not fourteen hour!) days in the studio to build, to push, to stretch my dreams and make them into some fabulous jewelry. "Watch this space", as they used to say, to see what happens next...

Summer's officially here in three days. Let's make it a really, really good one. :)

Broad Ripple Festival Report

I just got home yesterday from the Broad Ripple Art Fair, in Indianapolis. And now I'm prepping for the Decatur Arts Festival this coming weekend. I have two (2.5, if I really push it) days to make some new pieces...

Fortunately I'm sharing a booth in Decatur and won't have a full display to fill (because as usual, I'm low on inventory). So I'm not feeling too pressured, but still....you know me, I like to have a lot of options available,even if they're not all on display at once. :)

So how was Broad Ripple? I KNOW you are wondering, right?? Well, results are mixed.

It was an easy show to do (aside from 8+ hours driving either way). I loved my space - which normally, since this is usually a warm-weather event - would be nicely shaded. It was still shaded this year, of course, but with weather in the 50s, I could have used a bit more sun. Sales were solid on Saturday and virtually nonexistent on Sunday. So I am divided on the shoppers. Those who did stop, chat, and purchase, seemed very knowledgeable about jewelry and other arts, maybe because we showed on the grounds of the Indinapolis Arts Center, which offers arts classes.

Those who came on Sunday seemed to be a very different crowd. As in, mostly not interested in art jewelry or art in general, just hanging at the event to entertain themselves. Nothing wrong with that...but if not enough people purchase art, not enough artists come back. And a show starts to die. Or at least slide downhill....that's never good.

Here's a booth shot:

Home away from home for two days. It's dark because of the shade, but I was happy with this setup. I didn't actually have a corner but there were two feet and a median next to me so I made a corner out of it. I like to use the extra space whenever possible.  :)

And this show has a big "gate fee" or entrance fee, of $15. I think that's a tad pricey for Indianapolis. I mean, I live in the Atlanta metro and we only have one art festival that charges (as far as I know), which is the ACC (American Craft Council) show. We're a much bigger city than Indy and though I thought that the art around me was excellent for the most part, I don't know that $15 to get in isn't kind of a turn-off to the customers...

But. I got a lot of love overall, and sold some wonderful one of a kind gem designs to discerning customers with good taste. :)

And there was this bonus:

Lilacs...one of my favorite flowers ever. And we can't really grow them here in Georgia. But there were HUGE bushes of them all around my space at the festival, and they smelled so lovely. Happiness in flower form. :) 

And now, on to the Decatur prep! Hoping to have some new goodies to share later this week!

Slow and Steady (Wins the Race but Tests One's Limits)

I'm currently working on new mosaic pieces which will become my new jury photos. This was last year's goal, which got completely sideswiped by many, many things. I've told you all about them over the course of last year's blog posts, so I'll just tell you today, that progress IS being made. Slow, slow, sloooooow progress, says the instant gratification girl...

This is SO not instant gratification. But also so very worth the time and effort. See why, below...

I am having to force myself to stay on task as I add mosaic after mosaic piece to my designs. I love the mosaic work but not all at once...I'm ready to switch gears a bit and make some more of the Pop Rocks pieces (or something else entirely new....). They're a lot of work too but boy, do they ever come together faster! And I'm itching to design around some yummy gems.

like these DELICIOUS agates I picked up recently...

...but...

Last year was a year of many rejections. Not that I'm surprised by that. The odds are against anyone who applies to art festivals, especially in the jewelry category. I know this. I've lived this. I've sort of come to my own happy place - well, not quite happy. Maybe my own "okay" place, with this situation. But since I currently feel that my own images / designs are not helping me with my goals of being accepted to more suitable events, it's time to update the images. And right now, while I don't really *have* any events, is the time to get the jewelry made, photographed, and submitted.

Which explains why I'm working on so many mosaic pieces all at once. So far, I've made three rings:

Yep. You've seen these before (or variations of). Problem is, some have sold, some are at my galleries; they're not all together for a photo. Now they are...and I'm not listing or selling them until they're professionally photographed!


Now I'm working on necklaces. I've sawn out the circles, textured the backs and stamped them, and now am cutting more mosaic pieces to put on them. There's a ton of work to still be done on these, but I'm putting one foot in front of the other and following the game plan. Once these are done and I have some festivals lined up, I can focus on the other 20,000 things I want to accomplish this year.  :)

In the interim between making the mosaic rings and starting the mosaic necklaces, I slipped in a little side project:

for what will eventually be a charity auction of the handmade chain, showcasing the work of 100 metalsmiths. Or maybe more...people have really gotten on board with this project and the project may go over 100 at this point. It's slated to be editorialized in both Art Jewelry and Lapidary Journal Art Jeweler magazines, there's talk of a book, a tour, a poster...who knows where it will go and when it will end, but ultimately the goal is to auction it off (or the separate links, depending on how big the chain gets) to benefit CERF, which benefits artists in need.

The idea is that your link is a snapshot of your work at this time in your career, and the links range from stunningly simple to fascinatingly complex. They're all amazingly individual, each one beautifully crafted.

If you'd like to see or learn more, check this Facebook page out: A Hundred for One. I'm so happy to be able to contribute to this! My link is mailing today. :)

And next on my agenda is my annual shopping trip to Tucson!! I've got my list made and can't wait to shop for new gems this year and of course to enjoy the winter weather in Arizona. After my last blog post, you know why!

Can't wait to show you my newest gem toys when I return...until then, be creative, productive, and happy!