As 2016 draws to a close, and the prospects for reflecting back on past events is too dismal to consider, it’s time to look ahead to 2017. After preparing for a year, it’s time for me to start entering shows and art fairs. Living here in greater Chicagoland, there’s no lack of opportunities. In fact, there is a local company that specializes in setting up and running art fairs – Amdur Productions. They run 31 events, though not all are suitable for me as a painter, especially as this is my first time showing. Besides Amdur, Joe and Kathleen Isacson of xculturearts.com run a few shows, and I plan on being in two of them (already juried in for their Affair of the Arts show in Spring Grove in March). Additionally, there are two independent fairs I plan on submitting to – Art at the Dole run by the Lakeside Legacy Foundation in Crystal Lake, and Art in the Barn in Barrington. All together I hope to participate in eight shows throughout the year.
I’ve been thinking about this for some time. It is frankly a bit scary. I am not a natural sales person at all. I’d much prefer if my art spoke for itself at some high end gallery in the big city, but that’s not going to happen all by itself. Before it does, there’s a lot of preparation that has to be done. One obvious preliminary for outdoor shows is the purchase of a tent, and for indoor shows, some kind of portable walls are needed. For these I’ve already purchased metal grid panels from ULine.com, four wall sections of 2′ x 7′, and a freestanding triangular tower 2′ x 6.5′ high. They are simple enough to assemble, and broken down each piece is light enough to carry easily, but it will be 7 trips to the car to get them all inside. However, they will show a good amount of art.
A tent is another matter. I’m looking at a TrimLine canopy tent, a solid standard at art shows. With all the accoutrements I’m interested in, like mesh walls for hanging artwork on directly, I expect to spend about two grand. This is a substantial outlay of capitol, and I can only justify it by hoping I can sell enough artwork to pay it back. That’s a risky proposition. In addition, between jury fees and space fees, I’ll be spending more than for the tent and walls combined. So there is significant risk in this venture. But it’s a necessity in the attempt to fufil my dream.
