Sunshine Artist America’s Premier Art and Craft Show Magazine January 2009

By Cameron Meier SA Editor

October 3-5, Maitland Rotary Art Festival, Maitland. Contact: Rob Lesperance, Rotary Club of Maitland, PO Box 1324, Maitland, FL 32794; phone 407-263-5218. E-mail: maitlandrotary@earthlink.net. Web site: www.maitlandrotaryartfestival.com. Application fee: $35. Space fee: $175-$350. Space size: lOx12 to 12x20. 100% outdoors. Exhibitors: 125.

The Maitland Rotary Art Festival had been slipping. City officials admitted that the 80,000 estimated attendance of only a few years ago had dropped to closer to 20,000 at the 2007 show, and many artists said quality had been getting worse too. So show organizers and local government made several bold moves in 2008:

They expanded the show from two to three days, moved the event from late to early October, reduced the number of artists, introduced nighttime hours, and brought in a Saturday-night orchestra and other entertainment. Although sales were mediocre for most artists, the gamble appears to have paid off, paving the way for the Festival to possibly become a major player on the Florida fall show circuit.

The city of Maitland really got behind the 32nd annual show. Advertising was decent, and city officials were a constant presence. Simply strolling the show on Friday evening, I met the vice-mayor, the show promoter and other officials who had worked hard to get Lake Lily Park ready. Most impressive were the electricity hookups throughout the park and the last minute landscaping that gave the park a clean and attractive look. They even got the fountain working again just in time for the Festival. (By the way, those electricity hookups will likely have long-term benefits for Maitland, as other park events will be able to use them in the future.)

Entertainment, which was offered primarily on the stage on the south side of the lake, was a main part of the event but didn't drown out the artists. It added energy to the event without taking too much focus off the art. The nighttime hours on Friday and Saturday - a pretty radical experiment for a typical Florida art show - seemed to work well too. A jeweler ($2,000 total salesj$100 average item sold), said, "Park lighting, fountain [lighting], moon in the sky, music at two sites, wine and beer made the perfect evening to stroll, see and buy art." However, that artist and several others did say that the addition of "Art Under the Stars" made for long, tiring days and, as another jeweler put it, "the headache of getting appropriate lighting set up." But most artists I talked to and received FastAudits from said they would return.

Quality was stronger than it's been for several years here, although the show was weighted heavily toward 2-D work. In addition, a couple of artists complained that glass did not have its own category and was instead lumped in with fine crafts.

Sales were another story.

Although most artists were pleased with the overall event, most had hoped for better business. Still, several were pleasantly surprised that the evening crowds were actually interested in buying, not just in strolling and listening to the Maitland Symphonic Orchestra. -Based upon FastAudits, sales rated

a five (out of 10) while attendance averaged a seven. Comments were allover the place, from a mixed media artist's "not a good experience" to an acrylic artist's "loved the nighttime hours [and] the volume of sales was good." Sales around $3,000-$4,000 _ were not uncommon but neither were totals under $500 - and even some zeroes.

Take a look at this month's Show Shots to get a better sense of the event's picturesque location, and keep an eye on the Festival in the future to see if this interesting experiment in evening art shows can manage to build on its initial success.