Assuming you are a competent fine artist or fine crafter, and that you create your art with an intention to communicate to others, art shows may be a way you can actually quit your day job and make a living as an artist.

Many people consider traveling around from city to city selling artwork at art festivals the ideal life for an artist. You pay your bills, support your family and you get to travel and see new places while doing what you like best – creating art. A sort of modern gypsy.

But don’t get carried away. It really is hard work. Traveling can take its toll and setting up a tent and display and tearing it down after the show is just plain slave labor. The trick is to make enough money to pay the bills, buy new art materials, pay for the shows and expenses of the road and still have time in between shows to create your art.

In this series of articles we will explore how to get started without spending a fortune on displays and show fees, and how to find some shows to enter to see if you really do want to follow this route.

If you know an artist who makes a living doing shows, apprentice yourself to him or her. That’s the easiest way to start. Propose to help that artist set up and sell and take down in exchange for showing you the ropes. You’ll learn that it is a business – you keep records and pay sales tax and get licenses, etc. You’ll get a feel for everything involved.

If you do not know an artist you can apprentice with, visit some art shows, talk to the artists who are doing the show and gather information from them. Most artists are very friendly and willing to talk to someone who is just beginning. And that way you can also see what kinds of artwork is selling and get the feel what an art show is like. Are you willing to stay outside for 2, 3 or 4 days in a crowd of people?

Compare what is selling at the art shows you attend to the art you create. Will the public who attend art shows be the right public for your art? Can you sell your artwork for a price that people at art shows will pay? Three or four years ago people were buying original art for a thousand or more dollars, but during the current recession, that is rare. Do you produce any prints or jewelry or whatever you create that could sell for $20 or less? Can you produce enough of them to sell a quantity that will make an art show profitable?

Read some magazines about art shows and check out information online. There are several different magazines that cater to art show artists – Sunshine Artist and Where It’s At come to mind, but there are some others. Www.zapplication.org lists hundreds of art shows and provides a way to apply to art shows online. If you know of art shows in your local area, look them up on the web and read all you can about them.

These things are your first step – get the feel of what it’s like to do art shows. The next step will be to choose an art show near where you live, apply and get accepted and thereby launch your career. But we will explore that in a future article.

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