Art Marketing Minute with Kelly Smith Cassidy
Applying to Art Fairs
In the early days of art fairs, my parents did not have many resources to help them with the in’s and out’s of art fairs. Typically at that time, the way that the artists found out about other shows was through the solicitation of show organizers who would come to the shows and hand out registration and jury forms and gather mailing addresses from the artists who were interested, or from other artists who would tell them about a show. I remember my dad gathering all his written forms together with photo slides and a SASE envelope.
Well folks, times have changed. With the advent of the internet and email, the process of finding a show to jury into and for show organizers to reach out to potential showing artists has become not only easier, but incredibly prolific in their reach. Today, we have the availability to see what shows are going on where, the organizers names, the other participating artists and ways to jury into shows from the comfort of your home computer. There are more art shows and festivals going on now than every before.
 Q: WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN AN ART SHOW AND AN ART FESTIVAL?
            A: Typically speaking, an art show can be a gallery show or a street show. These are usually just a place to showcase art and will not have food or entertainment. An art festival is typically a larger event with the addition of entertainment and sometimes food and wine vendors.
 Having seen my parents and I myself gone having through the process so many times over the years, I have gained a few “rules” that I adhere to when jurying into a show and being at art shows and festivals which you may find useful when taking your own steps into going into the art fair/show circuit.
  1. HAVE GOOD PHOTOS TAKEN OF YOUR WORK AND LEARN TO USE PHOTOSHOP! This is a good rule altogether when presenting yourself as a reputable and professional artist. Think about it, the jury will see your photos first thing and make a very quick judgment based on what they see. Having seen it happen first hand, I can tell you that for the larger show, no more than 30 seconds pass when the jury says “yes” or “no” when deciding on an artists work.
  2. DO NOT TAKE THINGS PERSONALLY. ~This is a generally good rule to follow as an artist. We have all heard the stories of writers who submit their work only to have it rejected time and time again. But they keep going. The jury of shows typically is not the same every time. And if it is, they are show organizers who do several shows a season. Those who do one big yearly show (think Sausalito, CA), will generally speaking have a different jury every year. So, KEEP TRYING!
  3. THE PHOTO SELECTION ARRAGEMENT ON JURY SITES IS IMPORTANT. ~Jury sites such as Zapplication.org allows you to arrange your photos in order. I always put my best two pieces in the first and last placement areas. The first one because that will be the first impression and the last one because that will be the one they want to go back to on a second look.
  4. IF THE DEADLINE HAS PASSED ON JURYING INTO A SHOW, GO AHEAD AND GIVE THEM A CALL. ~After all, it can’t hurt to ask!
  5. CREATE A GOOD RELATIONSHIP WITH THE OTHER ARTISTS AND THE ORGANIZERS. ~ This seems to go without saying, but it is always more pleasant when you create a happy and engaging environment around you. The organizers will take notice. When I receive my  “welcome packet” in the mail, I actually read it several times. Every show will have specific directions and I always make sure that I follow them correctly. I once knew of an artist who was kicked out of ever being in a certain organizers shows for being disingenuous and rude to those around him, even though his work was very good.
  6. BE IN YOUR BOOTH!!! ~ It seems so simple, doesn’t it? But so many times I have seen an artist lose a sale because they were not in their booth. If it came down to it and you had to leave, put a sign with your phone number in your booth saying you will be back soon AND tell your neighbor’s. And speaking of neighbor’s, if they happen to make or lead into a sale, I like to pass them a small portion (perhaps 5% or so) of the sale. It keeps the morale up.
  7. TAKE SOME TIME IN THINKING ABOUT YOUR BOOTH DISPLAY ~ In my workshop this May, we will be spending a good part of one day creating booth displays. There will actually be a contest in fact for two teams to create the best display possible. So, how would YOU create your display if you were in a contest to create the best display possible? It is amazing what a table to can, for example in a booth that only has wall panels. Or panels in a booth that only has tables or pedestals. What other elements can you think of to improve the appearance of your booth. And before you say that appearance doesn't matter, that it is the art that counts, think again. You want your booth to be as inviting and pleasant looking as possible to create a warm and welcoming space for your visitors.
  8. CREATE AN INTEREST FORM ~Not only will an interest form allow you to gather emails and contacts from potential clients, but it will help you in engaging your client in further discussion about what they would like. For example, if I see that a client likes a piece of art, but she is not sure about the size for her needs, I ask her to fill out the form with her email and tell her that I will send to her photos of other pieces that would fit her needs. From here, I can send her info about myself and what I can create for her, including a fully customized piece. If you want to find out more about what kind of interest form I use, you can come to my workshop where I will be giving out the form to all of the students. 
And don’t forget! I am working with The Tahoe Art League to present two Art Marketing Workshops June 28th (10am-5pm) & 29th (3-8pm).  These workshops will be chock full of useful marketing and art business info that you can start using RIGHT AWAY!!
Have something to ask about art marketing? I would be happy to answer any questions you might have for free. Just email me at: KellySmithCassidy@yahoo.com
 ~Kelly Cassidy
President - Tahoe Art League