Last month, I had the joy of sharing my work at a live, in-person art fair for the first time. Not just any art fair, but Art-a-Whirl, the big one held in Northeast Minneapolis each summer.
It was an ambitious undertaking to be sure, and not without its ups and downs. After years of building up a portfolio and sharing work solely online, it was a thrill—and deeply validating—to experience live reactions to my work for three days straight! I can’t wait to go again.
For those interested, I thought I’d walk through how everything went, the process, lessons learned, and my vision for next time.
Why sell work at an art fair?
Honestly, I was getting tired of friends saying “you should sell your work!” and thought I’d finally put an end to that. Joking, of course. Encouragement from my friends and fans did signal that I had something on my hands that was worth sharing with the world—and that actively taking the steps to put it out there might actually pay off.
Secondly, it was something that’d been on my mind for some time. For too long I’d been relying on people stumbling across my work to get in touch. And that worked to an extent. But considering that one of my goals this year is to illustrate another book, getting my name out there has become essential. A desire to meet fellow artists and art appreciators was a strong motivator for me to put myself out there.
What went into the prep?
The first step was actually creating art to sell. For me, this took the form of several hundred prints that I worked with local print shops to acquire. I debated for a long time between that and getting a printer to make my own prints, but the print shops were exceptionally friendly and the economics worked out in their favor.
Secondly, I had to make it known that I would be selling art at Art-a-Whirl, especially to the friends, family, and fans who weren’t immediately aware of my hell-bentness. While pre-packaging prints, I made this little video to herald my bursting onto the scene.
In the couple weeks leading up to Art-a-Whirl, I practiced my setup and surveyed friends for their feedback. During the discourse, one of my pals brought up that many people feel this awkward pressure to buy or say something while they’re browsing. Me too! Now, of course, I like making a sale, but I also wanted to create a comfortable shopping experience that got across my feeling of “I’m happy enough that you’re here.”
I workshopped some ice breakers and came up with the idea to have a “wish-making station”—a suggestion box of sorts that would allow people to participate with me in a way that would feel “enough” even if they didn’t buy anything—an outlet for appreciation, if you will. The wishing lamp idea ended up being a huge hit with most everyone that stopped by.
I go into more detail on my setup below.
What are some set up essentials?
If you’re interested in selling your own work, what your setup looks like will of course depend on what best serves your offerings and style. Based on my research and prep leading up to Art-a-Whirl, below is what I’d say are the bare minimum for a shop set outdoors, along with recommendations:
- Tent
- 10′ x 10′ tent from ABCCanopy
- Table
- 6′ folding table from Lifetime Commercial
- Chairs
- Your recommendations are as good as mine here
- Lighting
- Solar string lights off Facebook Marketplace
- 2-pack ED Solar Lamps from Target
- Display Fixtures (stands, racks, cases, frames, etc.)
- Display stand from MEEDEN or similar
- Sales Equipment
- Square NFC Reader or similar
- Packaging
- Artist Statement
- Printed out, slipped into a sleeve or binder with portfolio items
- Business Cards and/or banners, placards
- Some method of showcasing who you are and what you do
- Portable charger for your phone and things
- You don’t want your phone dying on you mid-sale
- Cooler with things to keep yourself fed and hydrated
- It helps to have friends you can tag out with too
While trying to decide what my tent layout would look like, I started thinking about all the interior design and marketing psychology that goes into the layout at department stores like Target, for example. It matters! It was fun for me to imagine and create a shopping experience for people that would help them find their way in, and their level of comfort.
How’d it go?
First day: set up was smooth. My neighbors and hosts at the site were super friendly (shoutout to Nick and Sergey). Conditions were a bit breezy, but bright and sunny. And traffic was steady…until the unexpected showers at the end of the day. I had to withdraw to the inner quartile of my tent. Despite the drizzle, I made my first sales.
Day two: what I’d call gangbusters. A steady stream of customers! I barely had a chance to sit down! I was finally cruising full sail: sending work to new homes, meeting people, getting requests. Boom times.
That was a total 180 from how the day started: overnight winds whipped many of our tents out of place—a disheartening sight to arrive to that morning.
Fortunately nothing irreversible. I thought leaving the flaps open for the wind to pass through along with the leg weights would suffice to keep everything in place. Hah, not so. Many of my neighbors underestimated what the wind could do too. We all helped each other set back up and were back on the high seas together soon thereafter.
Saturday at Art-a-Whirl was a dream come true. Smiling faces, live music, an abundance of art—the effort was more than worthwhile.
Day three: Goldilocks. Steady but mellow, like Minnehaha Creek. Comfortable. Bliss. Each person that stopped by helped me see my own art in a different way. If you were there and reading—thank you!
See for yourself!
What I learned
It was a mad rush the past few months. My takeaways?
1) Don’t underestimate the need for heavily weighted tent legs. Even the weight I had initially proved not to be enough. I brought in reinforcements the third day, and that 40 lbs/leg will be standard now.
2) Small sells! Most people aren’t looking to buy a huge, expensive art piece. The smaller prints I ordered did very well.
3) It doesn’t end here. Even though I’ve been making art for over a decade, in many ways it feels like I’ve only just begun.
Next time
Next time, I’ll have brand new art, more art from the heart, and more prints of the popular stuff. I also plan to have more pre-framed work. My first art fair not only brought in my first sales, but was an incredibly validating and valuable opportunity to learn what works and what doesn’t. I treasured being able to meet all the amazing people I did. If you’re considering pushing out with your own setup, I highly recommend making the investment and taking the plunge.
I can’t wait to see you next time. Until then, see my latest work here!
That’s a wrap—for now.
Ishmam Ahmed 