Something like this . . .
I don't mind spending money on art–as long as it's useful.
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17 thoughts on “Overheard at art festival”
Very interesting…I think that a painting that captures a treasured moment can be very useful…to my mental well-being. :o)
My favorite – “Honey, we only want to buy stuff that people wouldn’t want to steal.” Huh?
Ahahaha! hmmm, jewelry is useful.
Another example of the lack of art education that is showing up in our society. We are losing the soul of our culture due to poor or no art education or art exposure. Very sad.
I just want to comment that I’ve been hearing at the Outdoor art fairs that people want to see something different. They comment that they see the same images and subject matter at every fair. I’m wondering is the public looking for something different? My work is way different then what it out there to some respect and I have to end up educating them about it so they understand it better. But funny that the public we wish to purchase our art is not interested in art like they use to be. The value of a piece of art has fallen just like so many other things. Sad. When I create my piece I feel that I’m creating for the newer generation then the older, I was reading in the decor magazine about how the baby boomer have stopped buying art and it’s the new X and Y Generation that is purchasing art and how are then doing it. On line mostly. Makings me wonder, well got off track here, just voicing an thought. ~v~Laura
My all time favs “I can’t even draw a stick figure.” “Do people really pay you that much money for this? How much time did it take you.” PS The answer is …It took a lifetime
If one thinks about it… everything is useful to someone.
Interesting, because it could have been me on a certain kind of art. I am looking for more pottery that is “working” pottery I can actually use for serving,etc. I have tons of pottery and vases that are not for working purposes. I love it, but it’s time to make it all work for me too. On the other hand, I just purchased a gorgeous 30×40 multi media piece from Gabriel Shaffer from Asheville. This piece only “works” because it makes me happy to view it! That works for me. Marilyn
I’ve had folks at art fairs say they like my ceramics because it is different than other stuff they have seen and looks handmade, some of it is functional and some is decorative, but the decorative stuff isn’t just vases. I also think many appreciate art, but many do not, due to, as a previous poster stated, lack of art education and perhaps lack of exposure to art. with the economy being slow, I have found folks feeling they can justify functional items, but purely artistic items are hard to justify in their budget. I also heard a comment that even in hard times, people will spend money on jewelry – is it because it makes them feel good?
I have a ton of these. My favorite is a comment from the exasperated husband to his wife, “Honey, how do you expect to see the whole fair if you keep stopping to LOOK at EVERY booth???” Hahahaha – people! Ya gotta love ’em.
Oh I love it when I hear a line like that in my booth. It’s a great conversation starter. I use that to open the person up to discussing what he/she deems “useful”, which leads to “value”, and “collectibility”. “Useful” isn’t a bad thing at all, it allows you the opportunity to find out what that person really likes. With my “canvas” being rather unique, I get a different set of too-often heard lines at shows, like: “Are those eagle feathers? Don’t you know that’s illegal?” “Do you have to sneak up on them and pull them out?” “You must have a lot of naked peacocks running around..” etc. My all-time favourite has to be: “How do you get the peacock to hold still while you paint those?” 😀
Laura: Yes! Everyone is looking for “the next new thing.” But do the people who want “different” really walk through local art festivals? Robin: I think that when people ask you how long something takes that they are just opening up a conversation. The time it took isn’t really that interesting to them. They just don’t know what else to ask. Maybe use it as an opener rather than answering them and stopping the conversation. BlueStarr: Haven’t heard that about jewelry. I’d love to know more about that. Julie: That last line cracks me up! Thanks for starting my day off right.
My all time favorite….
“Will this be more valuable when you’re dead?”
Susan: Oh, my. That’s hysterical! Someone actually said that to you? How did you answer that?
I agree with Patricia that everything can be “useful,” because it depends on how you define the word and on personal preferences. Buying art is a luxury for most people and I think it is very common to try to justify why you have to buy it, to yourself and especially to the person that lives with you. I think we should take the initiative to explain things to people about our work. It may all seem obvious to you, but to them it’s as if you drink some magical potion every morning. Don’t take offense, help them out. Give them a piece of what seems like a mystery to them. Help them be confident about their taste in art. Imagine that, a confident consumer who buys art because he/she LIKES it.
p.s. Funny comment made to me long ago: “Do you have to be high to come up with this stuff?” And when I first started showing my work I overheard someone say: “That’s too cheap, it can’t be any good.”
Alyson,
I think I said something about the fact that I would be dead, I couldn’t possibly know the answer. I was more worried about the fact that I was showing literally on the street,(facing the sidewalk) with cars whizzing by my booth in the back,,,,I hoped she didn’t have a big RV and was planning to run me down.
Hello, I’m a pen and ink artist. People generally don’t understand how time intensive pen and ink is. Several years back I started creating Zodiac pieces, which take between 2-4 months to complete as they are 18″x 18″ in size. I only get one completed a year, amid doing shows and other art pieces. A person in my booth last show was looking for Scorpio. It is one of the two not finished yet, in fact Scorpio is not even started. I said Sagittarius, which is on my drawing table at home, would be completed next; and Scorpio would not be done until I finished it. She said “will you have it tomorrow?”