Art Career Experts » artist paycheck

Checklist for Outdoor and Indoor Art Shows-Stop forgetting!

ace — Sat, 25 Aug 2012 02:14:17 +0000

Setting up your tent at an art show as the wind starts to pick up is not a good time to realize that you forgot to bring the weights and tie downs. Feeling the sweat roll down your back while you slow bake over the asphalt at an outdoor art fair in Florida is not a good time to realize that you forgot the sunblock or your hat or the cooler. Discovering that the artists must all park 30 blocks from the show is not a good time to realize that you left the hand cart in the studio!

I could go on and on but you get the picture. Make a list. Make it detailed and make it thorough. Use ours as a beginning guide (all art forms are different) and life as an artist on the road will be easier, calmer and far less stressful when you know that you checked everything off on your list!

ART SHOW CHECKLIST coutesy of www.ArtCareerExperts.com
Use our list and add to it as needed for your partciular situation/art product. Make as detailed a checklist as necessary to make it easier to zip through your list for each show. For multiple day shows, have an idea of what you will wear each day and make sure that you bring those items.
Your personal list may be separate but it too should be itemized to prevent hyperventilating situations!

The following is divided into Outdoor and Indoor shows.

OUTDOOR Set up Tent or Canopy (Always know if your tent is UV protected and what winds/rain it can withstand. Be prepared!) All art shows tents should be 10′ x 10′. Booth display designs are built to accomodate that size.

One day or multi day shows

Tent

Weights and Stakes and ratchet tie downs

Carpet or Mat (RV Patio Mat or Indoor/Outdoor Carpet)

Hand truck / luggage cart (can be critical)

Rope and bungee cords

Cable ties

Booth SIGN

Display

Display Walls

Wall covers and hardware

Hooks and Hangers, velcro

Display Cases

Display Stands

Print Rack/prints

Table (4, 6 or 8 ft)

Table cloth/cover

Business Signs

Plastic drop cloths or tarps

Artwork!

Prints or Cards

Price tags / labels

Stool or chair

Extension cords

1 or 2 fans

Easels

Any art supplies needed if demonstrating on site

bungee cords

Tools

Hammer
Pliers
Screwdrivers
Cable/electrical ties
Duct tape
Spring clamps
Glass Cleaner
Paper towels
Towel

Office/Sales Supplies

Calculator
Money
Money box/fanny pack
Sales/receipt book
Pens/Pencil/Marker
Scissors
Stapler and staples
Price tags/labels
Credit card signs/logos
Square credit card processor/your cell phone
Boxes and/or Bags
Promotional items
Business Cards
Business Card Holders
Guest Book
Guest book pages
Portfolio of past work
Post Cards
Brochures
Name tag

Personal

Cooler / thermos
Paper towels
Sunscreen
Hat (optional)
Sweater
Insect Repellant
Towel
Breath mints/gum
Baby wipes
Hand sanitizer
Comfortable shoes

Medicines

aspirin/tylenol/ibuprofen
anti-nausea anti-diarrheal
hayfever/allergy

Cooler
Bottled Water
ice/drinks
Coffee
Food – sandwiches/ snacks

Not to do!
NO READING BOOKS
NO CELL PHONE CONVERSATIONS
NO WEB BROWSING/EMAIL CHECKING
NO NEWSPAPERS
NO FAMILY REUNIONS OR NEIGHBORHOOD GET TOGETHERS
__________________________________________________________
ART SHOW CHECKLIST ArtCareerExperts.com
INDOOR Set up (No tent)

With the exception of no tent, everything stays the same EXCEPT yo will need many lights. ALWAYS have lights in an indoor booth. Put up more than you think you need! Using the energy efficient bulbs will keep your booth cool and not blow electrical circuits!

Lights LOTS of LIGHTS for indoor shows!

Extension Cords
Power Strip
Extra Light bulbs/energy savings bulbs (to not blow circuits)
Carpet or Mat RV Patio Mat or Indoor/Outdoor Carpet or Foam tiles, gel mats
Stool or chair
electrical ties-lots of them

Follow the list above from this point on for the outdoor shows. You may not need sunscreen but you may need a sweater. Be prepared!

Working with the wholesale market

ace — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 15:39:02 +0000

Depending on what your art product is, the ability to find wholesale outlets can be a challenge. Partnering with active organizations or having an arts council that can do that is, as they say, a “win win” situation for all concerned. The critical point is that this organizations “gets it.” There is always more impetus to create art when there is a buyers market. Although this is Kentucky-long a crafters market and with a long term understanding and clearer vision than many states of what attracts visitors to the state, there is a lot of good information here that should get the brain cells perking! It is continued in the link.

Arts Council Announces Kentucky Crafted Retailer Designations

Nineteen businesses in three states have been designated Kentucky Crafted Retailers by the Kentucky Arts Council, the agency announced today.

Each of the businesses – 17 from Kentucky and one each from Ohio and Indiana – met specific qualifications to be part of the initiative, a new endeavor of the arts council. The retailers are listed online in the Kentucky Arts Council Web directory.

“We had an excellent response to the call for participation in this program,” said Lori Meadows, arts council executive director. “We are excited to form new partnerships with businesses that work daily to strengthen the bonds between art and economic development in their communities. Kentucky Crafted Retailers have proven they have the capacity to promote the state as a leading producer of high-quality art and craft.”

http://surfky.com/index.php/news/kentucky/15656-arts-council-announces-kentucky-crafted-retailer-designations

Should I announce that I am raising my art prices?

ace — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 14:07:38 +0000

A question on our forum:

“I want to raise my prices on my art. Should I announce this in my newsletter? “

This is one of those good questions that we have seen before and where there are as many opinionated answers as there are repliers! Since we pay every bill with the sales of our art, Steve and I think carefully about such changes and the possible repercussions in any decision concerning prices.

We DO have something to lose by following the wrong advice, well meant as it may be….but conjecture without facts can be foolish.

So, in our opinion and in practice with our art business, when we raise prices, we do so quietly, without advance notice.

Our increases are always small but certainly manageable so we see no reason, especially in challenging times, to possibly give our prospects one more reason to put off a decision

After all, art is a want, not a need. Remember that!

There are good, sound marketing reasons why manufacturers and distributors have not said a word about the shrinking of their product packaging while the prices increase (ie:consumables such as coffee, tea bags, 1 lb bags, etc.)

This is not new. As a kid I remember 36 birthday candles in a consumer box. Then watched it drop to 24, then 18 and now I think it’s 12? LOL-tampons used to be 12 in a small box now it’s down to 8, and the number of sticks in a package of gum has certainly dropped…etc. Unless you use a product regularly (coffee comes to mind) you do not notice some of the small changes.

And NO one announces these changes by the way…they usually come through some expose’ in an afternoon TV show

Having commented on the shrinking product, Steve did the identical thing when he kept his well known $100 price tag for one group of his popular oils by decreasing the size of what that amount purchased. Same quality, same price, smaller package.

There will always be that school of thought that says announcing an increase in prices will result in a flurry of sales “before the increase”. Our experience has proven that it is not quite that cut and dry.

If you study marketing and do your own due diligence, you will see that with “end of year” sales, inventory sales, etc, etc, there is a pattern that all the businesses use and imitate. You would do well to follow the patterns of successful businesses and see what the trends are (they all have invested big bucks into market analysis) before randomly deciding to increase or decrease something as complex as pricing.

If you go back through the newsletters you will see an article I wrote for our Art Career Experts and shared with other online magazines/blogs about pricing art. (Help me Sell my Art)

I repeat a key point here-it is NOT some magic number that will help you sell your art-it is your whole package. Having the “perfect price” will not sell your art. Perfecting your image and your art package will

Taking a lesson from a pro entrepreneur

theresa — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 22:32:27 +0000

Taking a lesson from a pro entrepreneur

Think that living your dream and becoming an artist is about how talented you are? It’s not about the talent, it’s about sticking with it! So what a great story about determination and perseverance! And hey, throw in a little revenge…..:-) Read this excerpt from the article about Barbara Corcoran (SHARK TANK!) and see if it does not inspire you to read the rest of the story!

………But you want to know, when I had the courage to end that partnership, he gave me the best gift of my life. He said to me, ‘You’ll never succeed without me.’ And I knew, right then and there that moment, I thought, ‘Oh yeah? I’d rather die than let you see me not succeed.’ And you know what? That was an insurance policy for success. Every time I was thinking of failing or giving up, I would think of one more thing, just because I didn’t want them laughing at me! Maybe not the best motivation but whatever, it worked for me.
http://smallbusiness.aol.com/2011/06/02/my-first-million-barbara-corcoran-the-corcoran-group/

Getting Ready for the Summer Art Shows

ace — Sat, 12 Mar 2011 12:49:48 +0000

Getting Ready for the Summer Art Shows by M Theresa Brown

If you are like us, by the end of February, beginning of March, you are interested in the arrival of Spring. Mother Nature may yet throw a curve ball at us and dump a few last winter storms but we remain, in North Carolina, hopeful that all the signs around us point to spring at last! However, we know for a fact, having driven clear across the US two years ago to art shows in California, that winter is not over in many parts of our country. In fact on our beginning journey at the end of March to that series of shows, we left a rainy but moderate NC. But enroute, we encountered such extreme weather as tornadoes, torrential rain storms, blizzards (that shut down part of I-40 in Texas) high winds and more snow before finally reaching our destination of Palm Springs. On our subsequent return mid April, we encountered more snow in Albuqueque, New Mexico. It was almost depressing . Although surprised at the weather extremes, we were prepared!

It takes preparation to participate in an outdoor art show (juried and non-juried) anywhere-near or far! We had applied to this show the previous fall. Some art shows send out their applications and information only a few months beforehand. But most have been around long enough to need your entries at least 8 months prior to the event.

Preparations for your show season should take place long before your first show! One promoter with Sunshine Artists Magazine, came up with their list for getting ready for the summer show season and we have taken and added to it to come up with 10 basic things to do ahead of time:

1. Finish up and finalize any show registrations and payments you may have. Many promoters are now accepting credit cards and payment plans. Something they never used to do!

2. Put your show schedule on your website, Facebook and blog.

3. Do you have enough business cards? Read our article on what you need on your business card!

4. Get your email blasts ready to go prior to each show. Let people know where you will be! Don’t rely just on email. CALL them (yes the telephone) and send postcards via USPS mail!

5. Make sure that your vehicle is road ready.

6. Keep making your art! Bring new art to shows if you are a seasoned show artist. Leave your older work for an “end of the year” show. Make sure you have enough.

7. Your tents, panels, signs, displays all need to look fresh and ready to go. Make any repairs or upgrades ahead of time.

8. Plan your route and hotels wisely

9. Make a “to bring” list (and get it ready long before the first show!) for all the small, easy to forget things such as portfolios, guest book, pens, scissors, price tags, tape, shopping bags, aspirin, etc.

10. Review your pricing. Now more than ever is the time to have work in 2 or 3 price levels so that everyone can find something at a price they are comfortable with.

An outdoor show is hard work and can be very rewarding financially if you have taken the time to prepare like a professional should. Our long list has saved us more than once. More importantly, it has helped us focus on what we should be doing at a show and why we are there-helping our clients invest in the art that we are creating!

Playing around with Photobucket

ace — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 23:41:09 +0000

There is nothing more mind bending than wondering how something is done on the computer and going after the answer yourself. I decided that it cannot be done unless you have a fair amount of time to devote to “the cause.” Which is about where I found myself after spending too much time on Photobucket making collages of my art. The collages themselves were easy and actually fun..editing them turned out to be a major pain!

So on another rainy morning..which, despite the stunning amount of rain and has now turned into an amazingly gorgeous fall day, I went about trying to edit the collage…no such luck. How to change the writing? Replace just 1 photo? I finally started over…then decided what the heck, I’ll post our newest upcoming workshop on Craigslist as it is!

http://raleigh.craigslist.org/ats/1983950629.html

Oh well, I’ll tackle it some other rainy morning. Time to go to the studio and get ready for tomorrow’s Studio Tour!

Rainy Days…….and the artist life

ace — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 13:14:26 +0000

Rainy days and ……

It has rained steadily for two days. I’m not complaining. September in NC has been hot and dry. So the first day of rain saw us standing on the front porch with the wind blowing the rain in our faces and we enjoyed it to the max! Of course on this, the following day, the perspective changes a bit. I am now preparing to go outside and re-dig the trench from behind the ponies shed so that the water run off does not pool and run into their dry space. The goats are very unhappy. They do not like rain.

Still, the steady rain the second day has not dampened my spirits….in fact with Fall finally beginning to be felt, it is more that cozy feeling of expectations that always, as a kid, meant that all those glorious activities of the fall months were laid out in a long stretch!

It also means a heightened activity in the studio, with art classes, plenty of commissioned artwork and the general “getting ready for winter” feeling. I love it!

The dogs are a little confused. DaVinci, the Rottweiler, has an insatiable appetite and the dark afternoon has confused him into thinking that 3:30 means dinnertime. I ignore him. So he sits with his big head in my lap while I try to type, slopping a wet kiss on my hand if I put it near his mouth and his big eyes say “Feed me.”

An artist’s life in regards to hours and paychecks is not a real predictable affair. We work when other do not and do not work when others are at work. We get paid sporadically and in terms of income, it can be far more or far less than what someone who is not an artist may make.

It’s a good life in its unpredictability.

Steve on a sunny day!

Looking Good the First Time

ace — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 12:53:09 +0000

LOL-There is nothing to add to this excellent article on making sure what you write is proofed before publishing on your web or blog! So whether you write, paint, sculpt or create sculptural ping pong balls, the point is to present yourself in a good light in all that you do! I have posted the entire article for you to enjoy. -Theresa

Looking Good the First Time

Posted By Eilis Flynn on September 2, 2010

Author Eilis Flynn: The Reality Beyond

If you don’t bother to sepll-cehck, nobody’s going to take you seriously

As a copy editor, the one thing I’ve noticed over the years is that everybody thinks that their spelling and grammar and punctuation are just fine. “Oh, you don’t have to do anything to my work,” they always say, sometimes with a smirk. “My mom’s always said that my writing was so good!”

Well, guess what? Your mom lied. Your work needs editing. It needs to have the spelling double-checked (and no, if you’re an American, you can’t use British spelling, and no, you can’t just randomly capitalize words because you think it looks neat), the grammar double-checked (and since grammar is no longer being taught in schools, double-double-checked), and if you can’t figure out when to use a semicolon and when to use a colon, why would you think they’re interchangeable and everyone else is wrong when they say they’re not?

Anyway, as you might have gathered, I think it’s fair to say that everyone, and I mean everyone, needs to have their work proofed and read by someone else. This needs to happen simply because your work—your writing—is the face by which you want to be known. And if your work is littered with misspellings, poor grammar choices, and illiterate attempts at punctuation, your work doesn’t come off so good. Spell-check, while it is a wonderful stopgap measure, can’t do it all. First of all, remember that the feature was designed by engineers, and engineers are notoriously poor in their spelling, grammar, and punctuation choices. And second, spell-check was designed to make sure that the words being used in the document are real. Whether the words are appropriate in the document, again, that’s not spell-check’s job; it’s yours.

Haven’t you ever looked at a website that’s littered with typos and grammatical errors and winced? Of course you have. Everyone has. And if that website’s a retail site, trying to entice you to buy something, haven’t you had second thoughts about buying? After all, if the website owner can’t be bothered to check for spelling and grammatical mistakes, who knows what else they aren’t bothering to do? That goes for your writing, too.

So do yourself a favor. Read and proofread your work. Learn the grammatical rules and apply them to your own work. Punctuation isn’t just a suggestion, it’s a given. Make your writing the best it can be by making it the easiest to read. Or I’ll hunt you down and I will use my red pen on your work. Don’t think I won’t.

Ordering the workshop audio

theresa — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 12:00:33 +0000

This post came out of our Artist Paycheck yahoo group To join simply sign up!

Re: What a Deal! Ordering a copy

It’s easy Catherine! Go here and just order online -you download onto your computer (then you can put it on a disc) or cut and paste http://www.art-career-experts.com/Represent-Yourself-Audio.html

— In ArtistPaycheck@yahoogroups.com, “catherin” wrote:
>
> Pat where do you get a copy from???
>
> catherin
> www.animalarthouse.com
>
> — In ArtistPaycheck@yahoogroups.com, “patmorris123″ patmorris123@ wrote:
> >
> > I ordered your “Representing Yourself” pdf file and audio last week and had not until this morning had the opportunity to listen to the audio. I am gearing up for the beginning of my outdoor show season in a few weeks and you did it again, you gave me fantastic tools…and I do prefer the audio version, it’s like I am there listening to you in person. I have done many outdoor shows and am thrilled that finally someone has some valuable advice for me; I have encountered all of the things you mention. If anyone who does shows has not purchased this, it’s the best $9.95 you can spend! What a deal!
> > Thanks, Theresa and Steve : )
> > Pat

> >

Talking to your clients in public

theresa — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:45:56 +0000

Our March workshop was a blast! We ran out of time, as we seem to always do, but were able to touch on a number of areas that artists needed answers to…most were those irritating questions that we all grouse about but in reality, are usually well meaning! My blog is a review of an immediate “putting into place” conversation the day after! We will have an audio available of our seminar shortly!

________________________________________________________________________

So, here I am, a day after our workshop, in front of the frame shop at the large Mall where I pop in once or twice a week. I am putting the final touches on a pastel portrait of a boy. Now I will tell you that large portraits attract attention. No doubt about it. And as we discussed in the workshop, any question or even comment from a client is an invitation from them to “tell me more.” Only one person, a man, seemed to be astounded (at least outwardly) by my prices. The fact is, that he probably just had no clue..he wants a portrait but is learning that they are not free or cheap.
This is how the conversation USED to go when someone seemed amazed and said so loudly (as in front of several onlookers) The scenario is that he has just seen me, he has his 7 year old daughter with him and he steps into the small group of 5 ladies
Before I knew how to reply:
Man : Is this some kind of chalk? It’s really nice. How much is something like this?
ME: Uh, this is $950.00 (in a semi apologetic tone)
HIM: WOW! (that’s all he said-I took it to mean it was too expensive)
ME: Well I have a cheaper portrait available too. This small pastel is only $300.00
Him: What’s the difference? Aren’t they the same size? (obviously not)
Me: No one is bigger than the other

By that time, most people, except a real diehard, would have wandered on…even those interested would have caught my tone….even a flash of irritation at the man’s dumb questions (I mean couldn’t he SEE they were two different sizes?) so unless I was really cheap…. they had already been attracted by the portrait itself, and for several ladies it was an idea that had been in their minds awhile…going back in time to when their children were smaller.

How I replied after learning the right way to respond:
Man : Is this some kind of chalk? It’s really nice. How much is something like this?

Me: This is a Pastel portrait which I’m creating, are you thinking of a portrait with more than one child?

Man: I have just one daughter, so how much would that be?

Me: A pastel portrait similar to this is a $950.00 investment.

Him: WOW!

Me: Yes, you’d invest $950.00 (said confidently and clearly) for a pastel portrait like this with a single subject. Over here, is a large pastel portrait which is a $2500.00 investment…(hand gestures) and over here is a smaller cameo pastel which is a $300.00 investment.

Him: But why is this one more? It looks like the same size?

Me: Perhaps from a distance it does but they are two different sizes (I pick up smaller to compare and show..now by this time I have already been talking to several women in a group before he arrived and do not want to lose them as he is controlling the situation with his questions…)
Now, I know how you feel, others have felt the same way but you you know what they found? They found that over the years my portraits became one of the most emotionally valuable possessions they owned. All my collectors tell me that if a fire broke out in their home, the portraits that I created for them are being carried out right with the children and pets!
(that puts “valuable” into context)
Now because I had several “hot ones” I hand him a business card and let him digest what I have just said- in a friendly tone of course and turn back to the ladies. I am back in control.

Now I also could have said:
Yes it is indeed $950.00. My portraits are not for everyone but for those many collectors who have invested my work, my portraits have and will continue to bring them many years of enjoyment!

Now Steve, with his sense of humor, when I relayed the story to him later that day said that HIS reply after the WOW would have been
“Yes they ARE inexpensive aren’t they? My collectors LOVE my work and recognize the value in my art!

And that too is not a bad reply if the person has not commented on a high cost! I have had them say “wow that’s a great price”, or “wow that’s high!” but rarely just “wow!” I wasn’t quick enough actually to catch the other nuance of that one word!

So practice!!!!!