So you wanna do an art show, GREAT!! / by John Sabatier

Sorry folks I must apologize for the absence from my blog. No, I did not drop off the face of the earth, although sometimes I wish it were that easy. No, I’ve been working on getting ready for my first art show up here in South Carolina. Let me tell you it’s a lot more difficult than the Miami show back in March. Back in March it was easy, I’d just go over to the folks at Work of Art Gallery and tell them which images I wanted printed and matted and which ones to print big. If you ever want really good customer service in a print shop you need to check out Marta and her crew. Well, when you are a one man show, you now become the printer and framer. It was tired some but rewarding all rolled into one. For weeks I had my printer chugging along and I had almost every square in of my apartment filled with prints, drying. I spent a few days cutting the mats and backing boards to mount these prints then framing and the rest would go into plastic sleeves to sell. 

Now onto the big show. The dates were set for October 13-14 at the very historic Magnolia Plantation. Set up was on Friday. My plan was to drop off and build the tent and walls then head back to pick up my art, I did tell you that I’m a one man show, right? Well that took a long time and after a few trips to Walmart and Home Depot I got my tent up and running. Man, was I beat! 

Here’s the tent and walls set up along with the art work hung up. Man, is that a lot of art or what? 

Here’s the tent and walls set up along with the art work hung up. Man, is that a lot of art or what? 

Well let’s get to the showing right? Saturday Malena and I headed for the show and the folks were started to trickle in. We had a great spot right by the entrance to the plantation. Right off the bat I sold one of my barn wood frames. Oh boy did that feel great!!! People kept coming in and checking us out praising the artwork and purchasing a few other prints and frames. Then 3:00 rolled around, and the crowds just weren’t there. So at 5:00 we zipped her up and headed for the local sports bar to celebrate our first successful day of the show. 

Sunday came around and my poor wife had some aching feet so I told her rest up and come on by later. So off to the show I went, and let me tell you I was scared. It was 10:00 A.M. before anyone came by and bought a print. I guess it’s because folks around here go to church and have brunch on Sundays. But the crowds came around and sold a few prints. All in all I think it was a successful show, 1)   My art was seen by the people of South Carolina and of the many tourist that visited the plantation and 2) I set out to do this show with limited resources and lots of heart. I’m now looking at other shows around the area to do and showcase my work. So why did I title this “So you wanna do an art show? Well simple, if you believe that your artwork, regardless of median, is good enough to show case then do it!! It will do one of two things, 1) it’ll boost your moral and push you to be a better artist and 2) if the show didn’t succeed then figure out what didn’t work and fix it for the next one. Like that old saying goes, “if you fall off the bike, get back on and keep riding” I hoping not to go on along hiatus from blogging and I hope you continue to follow along and enjoy the ride.