Reading/Berks Chapter Show in Reading, PA

This weekend (Nov. 3-4) I will be selling my work at the annual Holiday Show run by the Reading/Berks Guild of Craftsmen. This chapter of the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen has a great reputation and I am looking forward to being a part of it for the first time. Held at the Berks Campus of Penn State University, it’s hours are from 9-5 Sat., and 9-4 Sun.

Here is a link to their web page with a discount coupon:

http://www.rbcrafts.org/events/holiday.htm

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Sugarloaf Craft Festival – Garden State Exhibit Ctr

This weekend is the Sugarloaf Craft Festival at the Garden State Exhibit Center in Somerset, NJ. I set up my space this morning and will put finishing touches on the booth tomorrow morning before the show begins. The show runs tomorrow , Saturday and Sunday. Information and a discount coupon may be found here – http://www.sugarloafcrafts.com/.

Set up for these shows is a zoo. We receive assigned times and actually drive into the center. The challenge is in trying not to park on someone’s space and hoping to get back out again after unloading. I’ve done these shows for a while now and have a strategy, but it’s always stressful. Today went well enough and I actually got home in time to mow the lawn.

My space number for this weekend is 704. Centrally located near food and restrooms, very good. I don’t know if this would be considered an omen, but this morning on the way to set up in Somerset, I stopped for coffee and received a 1906 Liberty Head nickel as change. It’s not worth much, but it’s unusual. My daughter likes it anyway.

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Busy Bee Between Shows

I knew this would be a rough week cause I’m between two long weekend shows. I set up this Thursday at the Garden State Exhibit Center in Somerset, NJ for the fall Sugarloaf Festival. This is a very big indoor show that many in these parts attended when also at the Fort Washington Expo Center in Montgomery Co., PA.

So I have three days to prepare for this weekend. In reality, I’m preparing for the weekend following primarily, trying to stay one show ahead. I’ve also been communicating with a couple magazine editors today and preparing packages for shipping from this past weekend’s PA Guild show at Tyler. I’m going to have to let the grass grow another week. It’s multi-tasking to an extreme.

Dialing the XM Radio to Audio Visions keeps me chilled and a well timed mug of joe keeps me moving.

Here’s a peaceful image from work I did last week at Longwood Gardens. A bit of meditation would do me good maybe.

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Show Life

The Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen’s State Show at Tyler State Park was a great success. Despite some tough weather Friday during the show and especially that night, the attendance overall seemed very good. I was pleased to have pieces go to both new and repeat collectors of my work. The show results represented a personal best for a 3-day show, which was very exciting. The weather was still rather warm for mid-October, but no complaints. It was sunny both Saturday and Sunday and otherwise very pleasant.

One of the goals of this blog is to give a feeling for what goes into actively offering and selling art works at shows. Outdoor shows are especially involved and demanding, both physically and emotionally. Not having control of the weather of course means trying to take precautions in case of wind and rain. I remove my art works each night, others do not.

The physical task of setting up a solid canopy and all of the other display that would normally be at an indoor show, is a lot of work. It requires an organized routine and some physical conditioning. There is some significant weight involved and a lot of bending. I always appreciate being able to set up the canopy and display the day before a show starts. This way, I can come in early the first show day, put up my work and be set to greet the first customer with my eyes open and in a state of some reasonable appearance.

Tear-down is a different story. At a show like Tyler, I will have been on my feet for three days and break down can be tough. At Tyler we had the added challenge of early darkness. I rolled up my ground cover with the aid of a neighbor craftsmen holding a flashlight for me.

I leave Tyler with my work to go home each night to my own bed. Others will spend their nights in trailers or camping, living the whole show right on site. For them especially, these shows are a way of life. I get to be a part of that in part and while there are struggles, it can also be a lot of fun.

This show at Tyler was the last the Guild will hold there as it will no longer serve as headquarters next year. The show will move to the Bucks County Community College in ‘08 and a new tradition will begin.

The Mad Bluebird has a new companion in my Wicked Wren, a print that found a few new owners this past weekend at Tyler State Park.

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PA State Guild Show This Weekend (Oct. 19-21)

This is a big weekend! The Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen will be holding their State Show at Tyler State Park near Newtown, PA. This big outdoor show is a long time favorite in the area and well attended. I will be set up in space 168 (corner of first row).

With so much work to do preparing for my fall show schedule, it was a real thrill to get out today and create some new images. Fall is nowhere near showing any real color, but I found motivation while on a trip today to Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, PA. My friend Jim and I spend several hours exploring early fall transitions and wildflowers. It was good to be outdoors. What was really hard to think about was Spring, but I was reminded of it when passing Longwood Gardens staff placing tulip bulbs for next year.

This is an image I made today at Longwood Gardens. Late season asters growing near a huge pine tree made for some nice serendipity. My mind is always conscious of color contrasts.

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Pumpkins and Belly Dancers

If there was any doubt that photography is a life style, this weekend put that to rest. Yesterday I was able to make images both in a pumpkin patch and a Moroccan restaurant. It was actually a beautiful day yesterday and so a local pumpkin festival here in Bucks County, PA was the place to be to pick a wheel barrel of pumpkins. And so we did. My wife, daughter and I walked through the pumpkin fields to find and pull from the ground, pumpkins both large and small. This also gave the opportunity to photograph the field with a sunny, blue sky. The contrast between the orange pumpkins and blue sky was wonderful. With the help of a polarizer, the color all came through.

That evening we all went to a Moroccan restaurant to take in a feast and some belly dancing. My sister-in-law is part of the troupe and they put on a great show. The place was packed and the music and dancing were brilliant. Of course this too gave me an opportunity to do some image making quite different than my norm. I went prepared for low light and a bit of action. Working with a digital SLR allowed me to see how I was doing and try different approaches. It was a lot of fun and I expect I will try it again.

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Temporary Calm

After finishing 2 of my 8 shows scheduled for this fall, I actually have no event to attend this weekend. I am though preparing for the remaining 6 shows – all of which are in a row. I do plan to find a perfect pumpkin with my daughter this weekend, and I’m looking forward to a special dinner out and some belly-dancing (more on that later).

This is a relative calm period in an otherwise rather heavy schedule. I am still calling people who made special framing orders at the past two shows and printing pieces to replace those that sold. Next week is a short week as I will be setting up for the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen State Show at Tyler Park in Newtown, Bucks Co., PA.

With this show schedule, I work well into the evening so that if weather permits, I can also get out into the fields and woods near my home to create new autumn images. The colors are beginning to show up, but I also see a lot of dried leaves and suspect that I will need to look at the landscape in isolated sections more than grand vistas. I enjoy making images that are really vignettes or as often termed – intimate landscapes.

This is a fleeting period of relative calm for me, soon things will begin to happen at a fast pace. For the time being, I’ll try to enjoy the time and prepare for the craziness.

This image below was made the last morning of our recent trip to the Outer Banks, NC. It was the calmest of the 8 days we were there, most of which were very windy with a raging surf. It’s the image that I can associate with this brief respite.

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Skippack Days – this Weekend

This weekend – Oct. 6-7 – is the 34th Annual Skippack Days arts and crafts festival in Skippack Village, Montgomery County, PA. I will be set up on the premises of Justin’s Carriage House restaurant right on Skippack Pike.

The weather forecast looks great!

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Community Television and the Holiday Show

As part of the promotion of the Reading-Berks Holiday Show this year, the Reading-Berks Guild of Craftsmen did a one hour live television show featuring artists/craftsmen. I was asked to participate as this is my first year at the Holiday Show. The television show was broadcast live from the Berks Community Television station in Reading last night from 9:00-10:00pm on channel 99 Comcast Reading and other local Comcast channels.

I thought this show went very well with great enthusiasm and interesting discussion. This was actually my third appearance on Berks Community Television, the other times in association with the Spring Show at Kutztown University. I’ve enjoyed all the appearances, but this one was the most fun (maybe because I am less nervous each time).

Local TV is a great concept and this station does a nice job of it. I support their efforts as well with a yearly donation of art work to be auctioned off. If you were in the area of broadcasting and saw the show, let me know! You can check out their web site at www.bctv.org.

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Deer Me

The Hawk Mountain Wildlife Art Show was held at Cabelas in Pennsylvania this past weekend (Sept. 29-30). This was the show’s 10th year and in some respects most unusual. The show consisted of 13 invited artists including myself. This is a show that I have participated in for all 10 years, but only at Cabela’s for the second year.

I don’t know how many people came specifically for the art show in  Deer Country – Cabela’s special room displaying a diorama of deer and many mounted busts with famous antler racks - but I suspect it was very few. Instead we were seen mostly by people who happened to be at Cabela’s this weekend. For some, our artwork on display and sale was a welcome surprise. For others, I’m afraid we were just a hindrance to seeing the deer busts and wall plaques describing the antlers. The picture above shows how the set-up was arranged.

As it turns out, being in this new venue space was not a bad thing. People who may ordinarily not have come to a show were able to see some fine art works. Personally, I met many people that either made a selection from my matted prints or who showed real interest in seeing me at a future event. Cabela’s draws from over a hundred miles away. In addition, many folk who are just passing through the area will stop by for some outdoors merchandise. As a result, I made sales to two different couples heading back to Virginia. These are not people I would likely have seen at any other show I do.

Cabela’s and Hawk Mountain will need to work out what they want to do next year, but whatever they decide, I’ll want to be a part of it.

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