My Tent

Here it is! My first tent at a fair. This turned out to be a great introduction to the outdoor art fair. First of all, it wasn't an art fair... it was a science fair. There were several artists there, mostly in my row. Given that it was a science fair aimed at kids, I made sure to have a kids' activity at my booth. I drew up six line drawings of local wildlife and put out several copies of each at a little table with crayons. It was a huge hit.

Second, the booth fee was completely reasonable and included the tent. Two of the main reasons I have never entered an art fair are the high entry fees and needing to have my own tent. They even had tables to use for a modest extra fee, which I took advantage of because I don't have a folding table.

The fair was only four hours long, instead of a full day. I wasn't expecting to sell much, but I did make back the booth and table fees and then some, and also gave out many business cards and commissions fliers, so overall it was a success. I set up my tabletop easel and started a new drawing while I was there (shown below, in-progress). Lots of people liked watching me work for a bit, so that was also a nice thing to have.

So now for the big question: will I ever do it again? I don't know. I don't think I could do more than one per year, so I would need to rent a tent. I think I would also need more of the lower-priced items. (I am so glad I only brought three originals - people looked but didn't seem interested at all.) It was good exposure and a great experience, but it will be a while before I do it again.