Here are some photos of the Granville Art Affair this past weekend. Given the constant threat of thunderstorms, attendance was decent. I had help putting up and taking down the tent. I will really need to practice to be able to put the tent up by myself in a decent amount of time. I did use tent stakes, dog tie 0utstakes with cambuckles (thanks Mona, so much for your helpful Squido lens regarding art fair essentials). My tent weathered a horrible storm Saturday night overnight when all the artist were in bed sleeping. Though I did not see the aftermath when I arrived Sunday morning, I was told that 12 of the 103 artists in attendance lost their tents. There were some not so well weighted tents, though I think many of them survived. This makes me very sad. I did survive intact, even leaving my art hanging overnight (security was very, very good). Thanks again, Mona, and thank you, Trimline/Flourish Canopy, Inc!
I only had a few print and card sales. Artists around me did better, but none seemed to be extremely thrilled with the sales as a whole. I got quite a few promises of commissions, as well as promises about recontacting me about the eagle as an original -- which could make all the difference if they come through. It is a newer show and I am sure it will grow with time.
There was a wine festival and polo along with art festival. You probably are not able to make out the polo in the distance in the shot above. The festival is the grounds of Bryn Du Mansion, now owned by the city of Granville, Ohio.
There was a wine festival and polo along with art festival. You probably are not able to make out the polo in the distance in the shot above. The festival is the grounds of Bryn Du Mansion, now owned by the city of Granville, Ohio.
You can probably see the mansion in the distance in the photo above.
Also, though I did not feel my booth looked particularly unfull when I was there, I think it does look that way when I look at the photos and would look much better with alot more work.
Also, though I did not feel my booth looked particularly unfull when I was there, I think it does look that way when I look at the photos and would look much better with alot more work.
I enjoyed talking with and getting to know the artists in two of the booths across from me. One of them, a jeweler, is just starting out this year, but she applied to alot of shows and was accepted, my hat is off to her in her how hard she has been working in her first year with applying, getting in and booth decoration. I got some helpful hints and venue leads to follow up on from her, too. The other booth across from me was being booth attended by the partner of the artist. When I saw the work in the booth, gothic/punk/fantasy style oil paintings, I imagined that the artist/booth attendant would consider me to be a "dabbling, medicore old lady". Well, the booth attender, Eddie, came over to vist me several times. He has done some colored pencil work and has his own artistic aspirations, he was quite encouraging and curious about my work. Given my initial thoughts especially, his interest and encouragement was quite uplifting and motivating to me. The warmth and motivation I got from Eddie's interest and encouragement is probably the most valuable thing I got from being at this show.
New Year's goals aside, I really have not worked as hard as I shoulda- coulda and in reflection, that ole "fear" probably has something to do with it. Living, learning and kicking myself in the butt -- "nothing ventured, nothing gained". You gotta work a whole lot harder, girl!!!!
I did get a lot of work done on my demo foal piece, I will post a WIP next time. Thanks for stopping by!
I actually thought you looked like you had quite a collection there! Well done! It must take quite a while to build up a collection like that, especially when you have other commitments as well.
ReplyDeleteWow, I can really comprehend the size of the Eagle painting now! It's beautiful!
Have you done art fairs like this before?
Sorry the sales weren't quite what you hoped for, but well done for getting out there! It must be quite nerve wracking. I'm thinking of looking into some art fairs for next year, but I really need to get a collection of work together first.
Thank you for all of your comments on my blog recently Angela, you have been so encouraging :)
This is only my second art fair, with a couple of pet expos also. I am kicking myself for missing so many deadlines for some shows. It seems that some people from the UK talk about fairs on the net, but many say they are difficult to find there.
ReplyDeleteThank you Linda for all of your comments on my blog - you have been very encouraging to me, as well.
Yeah, I did a preliminary search on the net and it seems a lot of art fairs here are actually for galleries rather than individuals. The key word here seems to be "market". I found more opportunities for individuals when I searched for "art and craft market", some very local too. I shall have to go and have a browse round and see what they're like.
ReplyDeleteI second Undaunted's Well done! And your booth looks very nice.
ReplyDeleteI am amazed at how much space they have allowed between booths. Nice! Most events I do (even those in spacious parks) have us packed together like sardines.
Bummer the sales weren't up to snuff but if the commissions come through then your golden. Glad my lens were helpful. And thanks for the plug. :)
Good luck with your search, Linda. Could be a good venue for you.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Mona. When they advertised, they said there would be 10 feet between boooths. There was maybe a little too much space between rows or a need to block off somehow the rows running behind the booths. Many artists were complaining that the traffic was getting lost behind booths. As I was out in the last row, it didn't matter so much. It was great to be able to park my vehicle behind my tent. It was a bit of a hike to the front of the fair where the music and food were. There were pota potties behind me, thank goodness not just in the front.