Springing into the Arts Festival Season

In Columbus, the arts season kicks off with the Unitarian-Universalist Church’s one day Spring Arts Festival.

It’s held inside the church’s enormous circular sanctuary—and other building additions—so weather is no issue. There is a small admission, but it’s (no doubt) going to a good cause. I pay, thank a volunteer, get a list of the artists, and enter.

For artists, this is a “trial run”. They have one day to “jump start” the mind-set of actively selling their wares and seeing whether their “Things to Bring” checklist is complete.

They’ve been working all winter to create new ideas and build their inventories. The Unitarian show is a “first of the season” opportunity to test their marketing strategy. There aren’t the huge crowds that summer brings, and it’s a rather intimate setting where they can talk to potential customers and get some civilized reactions (it’s a church, after all). They can also commune with others of their ilk—fellow artisans.

As you walk into a booth, you notice that the artists take an unusual interest to see which pieces attract your attention, which go unnoticed. Do they have too much inventory on display? If so it might suggest that they are desperate to sell. Too little inventory? That may leave the impression of “exclusivity” and a “limited run,” suggesting that the pieces are too pricey for the customer.

As to the first situation, I once saw a display table so crammed with Jade jewelry that I thought it must be fake or of low quality. As I took the time to look closer, I realized that there were some beautiful pieces in the collection, but they got lost in the clutter.

As to the second, Fong Choo re-designed the booth displaying his miniature teapots. He features different designs of the pots, each in a lighted recess in a series of neutral “wall panels.” It works! Each design is highlighted and it leaves the impression that his work is special and unique. And actually Fong’s failure rate for pieces is so high that the pieces that survive are “select.”

For me, the Unitarian art show is a chance to polish off my “boilerplate.” But even before I get to that, I raise the question “How’re sales?”

I quickly need to dispel the notion that I’m there to buy. I used to start off with “I shoot artists for a living. and I wonder whether . . . .” This year that may not be the best approach, given Home Land Security and the recent events at Virginia Tech.

I might try “I produce the Artists in Residence video series and . . . .” which would probably get me in less trouble.

The Unitarian event gives me the opportunity to try, yet again, to persuade the woman who makes the incredible batiks; and the guy who creates the intricately inlaid wood boxes, to allow me to shoot them. Year after year goes by and both continually refuse. Camera-shy.

And I get the chance to re-new contact with Jane and Jeff. Sometimes Tom and Gary and others in this close knit fraternity of folks who have taken the unlikely decision to make their livings by using their wits, their skill, and their creativity.

Hopefully this year, I’ll get a chance to meet some new converts to this unique life style.

Happy Spring, Chris