Monday, May 18, 2009
White Rock East Garden and Artist Show: A Review
We could not have asked for better weather. It was a perfect Sunday for strolling through the neighborhood, admiring the gardens. Artists, including silent G imagery, were set up in a few of the yards. The ones selling outdoor/yard art seemed to fair well, however, we only did so-so. People's focus is definitely on the outdoors and gathering ideas for their own gardens, photography probably wasn't the best fit. But, we were at a gorgeous home, in a beautiful yard, with lovely weather, had perfectly nice homeowners, and sold a few pieces, so all in all a fairly successful event. The organizers should probably try to narrow the scope to just yard art, in the interest of both the tour and the artists, next year. I do have to say, that it was nice to see the community come together. I'll keep this post somewhat short, as I'm blogging from my phone and in jury duty. Cross your fingers that I'm not selected!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Its great that the community came together! This sounds like a fantastic event!
ReplyDeletePs. Naughty, naughty blogging during Jury Duty! :)
The sellers were not just those selling yard-related art; they had very affordable prices. Touristas didn't have to think twice before swooping in and picking up an inexpensive item.
ReplyDeleteBut the crux of the problem was that the artists were not given as much fanfare as deserved. The official publication went to great lengths to discuss the gardens and the plant sale, with just an "oh by the way" single line mentioning the artists. No wonder people toured through with little focus (or purchase intent) on the art; they did not expect it, many of them not realizing the items were actually for sale.
The artists in charge are doing an "artopsy" to see what could be improved next year. For starters, I'd suggest not editing out the artists' statement, especially if you do not have a command of the English language. I was probably as unhappy about the misrepresentation of our art (humorous photography? Where did that come from?) as I was on the lack of representation of the artists.
I will likely not exhibit next year, I don't think we were a good fit, despite that all we featured were nature-related themes. As a photographer-artist I certainly am accustomed to not making landslide profits, but I am also adverse to spending over 8 hours to reap little income.
As much as a non-joiner as I am, I will be on next year's planning committee (with all my grousing I'm surprised they still want me). The intent is straightforward: helping artists gain more parity in this event. And if I can assist in other ways (graphics, writing, etc.), I can certainly help in these areas. Its such a delightful idea; with a little tweaking it can be realized into a delightful event as well for the artisans.