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SHOW RANKINGS BY CATEGORY

In our continuing efforts to assemble and communicate information about artists and the shows in which they participate we have completed the tabulation on the 1998 Artists Survey. This was the first year we sent the survey to only NAIA members. Even though the number of surveys sent out was smaller than in previous years, we received the largest number of returned surveys. It is hoped that the reason for this is that NAIA efforts are beginning to have an impact and that artists see their input as necessary for these efforts. The results show that although our members participate in art festivals and craft shows, the majority also show their work in galleries and museum and/or university shows, the more conventional routes for fine work.

In addition, the respondents voiced concerns about the art festival industry. As in a previous survey, a large number mentioned the greatest threat to the industry as too many mediocre and low quality shows diluting the business. Beyond this, deceptive practices and the inability of shows to deal effectively with them were of paramount concern. The major suggestions to remedy the situation were (1) Photo ID at check-in and (2) for shows to have a trained committee to check artists booths against their slides on a daily basis. A large majority of respondents was willing to report to the show staff or committee, but some mentioned that since there was no standardized way of addressing these problems reporting was frequently futile.

The category of rule enforcement was the ranking most frequently left blank. It is hard to tell unless the problem and the shows enforcement mechanism (or lack thereof) are close enough to be observed. However, we have included the tabulation of the scores in this category because it is such an important issue at this time As to the improvements that artists have seen in the past five years, the most frequently mentioned was that shows are beginning to pay attention to the needs and advice of artists, largely because of NAIA efforts. Artists also frequently mention that show organizers are increasingly treating artists as professionals and that competition to get into good shows has resulted in higher quality exhibitors.

This year, as in previous years, the most frequently mentioned issue that artists would like the NAIA to address is that of booth fees due upon acceptance rather than to have them sent with the application. Other issues noted as important for our organization to address were: the problems of production studios or manufactured work vs. that made by an individual artist; originals vs. reproductions; and artists reps. As in last years survey, the shows that scored highest in both quality of exhibition and sales are American Craft Expo, Ann Arbor Street Art Fair, Cherry Creek, Smithsonian Craft, Philadelphia Craft Show, and St. Louis Art Fair. These shows have all the ingredients necessary to produce an outstanding event; good location, strong community base of support, good jury procedures and outstanding promotional efforts.

QUALITY OF EXHIBITION
How good was the work overall?		 PROMOTION
How much?
  1. American Craft Expo 9.83
  2. Philadelphia Craft 9.64
  3. Smithsonian Craft 9.43
  4. Milwaukee Lakefront 9.12
  5. Ann Arbor Street Art Fair 9.11
  6. Cherry Creek 9.05
  7. St. Louis Art Fair 8.97
  8. Washington Craft Show 8.89
  9. Winter Park 8.75
  10. Paradise City Fall Northampton 8.7
  11. St. Paul ACE 8.5
  12. Portland Art Fair 8.44
  13. Kansas City Plaza 8.27
  14. Sausalito 8.06
  15. Naples Festival of Art FL 8.0
  16. Bruce Museum Fine Art 8.0
  17. Atlanta ACE 8.0
  18. Coconut Grove 7.95
  19. Old Town – Chicago 7.91
  20. Cain Park 7.89
  21. Baltimore ACE 7.82
  22. Gasparilla – Tampa 7.71
  23. Festival of Masters – Disney 7.71
  24. Boston Mills 7.64
  25. Laumeier – St. Louis 7.6
  26. Long’s Park 7.56
  27. Armonk NY 7.5
  28. Des Moines Art Festival 7.42
  29. Port Clinton – Highland Pk 7.38
  30. TACA Nashville 7.33
  31. N. VA Fine Arts Fest – Reston 7.12
  32. Oklahoma City – Spring 7.08
  33. Magic City – Birmingham AL 7.08
  34. Columbus – Summer 7.08
  35. Greater Gulf Coast Pensacola 7.07
  36. Arts & Apples – Rochester 7.07
  37. Memphis Art Festival 6.86
  38. Mt. Dora FL 6.82
  39. Beaux Art 6.77
  40. Scottsdale AZ Art Festival 6.75
  41. Ann Arbor State Street 6.69
  42. Sun Valley 6.67
  43. State College – Penn State 6.67
  44. 57th Street – Chicago 6.64
  45. Main St. Ft. Worth 6.38
  46. Boca Raton -Crocker Center 6.35
  47. Park City UT 6.33
  48. B’ham MI Art in the Park -May 6.24
  49. Jazz Fest – New Orleans 6.17
  50. Ann Arbor Summer – Mich. Guild 6.1
  51. Winterfair – Columbus ODC 6
  52. Madison – On the Square 5.95
  53. Virginia Beach Boardwalk 5.88
  54. Brookside – Kansas City 5.88
  55. Laguna Gloria Fiesta 5.86
  56. Artigras – W. Palm Beach 5.67
  57. Pacific NW Arts Fair (Nov) 5.57
  58. Las Olas Museum 5.55
  59. Uptown MN 5.42
  60. Dallas Artfest 5.29
  61. Bayou City Houston Fall 4.9
  62. St. James Ct. Louisville 4.5
  63. Sugarloaf – Gaithersberg MD 4.22
  1. Cherry Creek 9.84
  2. Philadelphia Craft 9.73
  3. St. Louis Art Fair 9.29
  4. Smithsonian Craft 9.29
  5. Paradise City Fall N’Hampton 9.2
  6. Ann Arbor Summer – Mich. Guild 9.0
  7. American Craft Expo 8.83
  8. Portland Art Fair 8.75
  9. Ann Arbor Street Art Fair 8.75
  10. Coconut Grove 8.64
  11. Winter Park 8.6
  12. Oklahoma City – Spring 8.58
  13. Milwaukee Lakefront 8.5
  14. Des Moines Art Festival 8.39
  15. Jazz Fest – New Orleans 8.33
  16. Baltimore ACE 8.27
  17. Port Clinton – Highland Pk 8.19
  18. Sausalito 8.18
  19. Kansas City Plaza 8.07
  20. Sugarloaf – Gaitherberg MD 8
  21. State College – Penn State 7.83
  22. Greater Gulf Coast Pensacola 7.83
  23. Columbus – Summer 7.8
  24. Ann Arbor State Street 7.75
  25. Arts & Apples – Rochester 7.64
  26. Pacific NW Arts Fair (Nov) 7.57
  27. St. Paul ACE 7.56
  28. Main St. Ft. Worth 7.5
  29. Washington Craft Show 7.33
  30. Boston Mills 7.24
  31. Festival of Masters – Disney 7.19
  32. Cain Park 7.18
  33. Virginia Beach Boardwalk 7.17
  34. Park City UT 7.17
  35. Naples Festival of Art FL 7.14
  36. No. VA Fine Arts Fest – Reston 7.07
  37. Magic City – Birmingham AL 7.0
  38. Atlanta ACE 7.0
  39. Artigras – W. Palm Beach 6.82
  40. Mt. Dora FL 6.73
  41. Madison – On the Square 6.72
  42. B’ham MI Art in the Park -May 6.7
  43. Long’s Park 6.69
  44. Old Town – Chicago 6.65
  45. Uptown MN 6.61
  46. Sun Valley 6.6
  47. Winterfair – Columbus ODC 6.43
  48. Gasparilla – Tampa 6.43
  49. St. James Ct. Louisville 6.31
  50. Scottsdale AZ Art Festival 6.3
  51. Beaux Art 6.15
  52. Memphis Art Festival 6.14
  53. TACA Nashville 6
  54. Bayou City Houston Fall 6
  55. Armonk NY 6
  56. Laumeier – St. Louis 5.9
  57. Bruce Museum Fine Art 5.8
  58. Laguna Gloria Fiesta 5.71
  59. Dallas Artfest 5.57
  60. Las Olas Museum 5.55
  61. 57th Street – Chicago 5.41
  62. Brookside – Kansas City 4.63
  63. Boca Raton -Crocker Center 4.15
HOSPITALITY
Lots of friendly volunteers?
Artist’s rest areas? Amenities?
Good party?		 SECURITY
Was it evident before and after show hours?
Was your van secure?
  1. Cain Park 9.56
  2. Cherry Creek 9.51
  3. St. Louis Art Fair 9.23
  4. Philadelphia Craft 9.09
  5. Portland Art Fair 9
  6. Long’s Park 8.94
  7. Des Moines Art Festival 8.77
  8. Magic City – Birmingham AL 8.67
  9. Bruce Museum Fine Art 8.5
  10. Paradise City Fall N’Hampton 8.5
  11. Milwaukee Lakefront 8.38
  12. Smithsonian Craft 8.29
  13. Oklahoma City – Spring 8.25
  14. TACA Nashville 8.25
  15. Atlanta ACE 8
  16. Sausalito 7.94
  17. Winter Park 7.69
  18. Coconut Grove 7.56
  19. Port Clinton – Highland Pk 7.5
  20. Ann Arbor Street Art Fair 7.47
  21. American Craft Expo 7.33
  22. Jazz Fest – New Orleans 7.33
  23. Kansas City Plaza 7.31
  24. No. VA Fine Arts Fest – Reston 7.24
  25. Main St. Ft. Worth 7.13
  26. Columbus – Summer 7.12
  27. State College – Penn State 7
  28. Gasparilla – Tampa 6.95
  29. Beaux Art 6.92
  30. Greater Gulf Coast Pensacola 6.92
  31. Washington Craft Show 6.89
  32. Arts & Apples – Rochester 6.86
  33. Laguna Gloria Fiesta 6.86
  34. B’ham MI Art in the Park -May 6.76
  35. Old Town – Chicago 6.61
  36. Memphis Art Festival 6.57
  37. Festival of Masters – Disney 6.53
  38. Boston Mills 6.44
  39. Scottsdale AZ Art Festival 6.42
  40. St. Paul ACE 6.4
  41. Ann Arbor State Street 6.34
  42. Madison – On the Square 6.25
  43. Las Olas Museum 6.18
  44. Sun Valley 6.17
  45. Park City UT 5.83
  46. Artigras – W. Palm Beach 5.75
  47. Mt. Dora FL 5.73
  48. St. James Ct. Louisville 5.71
  49. Winterfair – Columbus ODC 5.57
  50. Armonk NY 5.5
  51. Bayou City Houston Fall 5.5
  52. Virginia Beach Boardwalk 5.5
  53. 57th Street – Chicago 5.47
  54. Laumeier – St. Louis 5.3
  55. Baltimore ACE 5.27
  56. Naples Festival of Art FL 5.27
  57. Uptown MN 5.16
  58. Ann Arbor Summer – Mich. Guild 5.11
  59. Brookside – Kansas City 5
  60. Sugarloaf – Gaitherberg MD 4.89
  61. Boca Raton -Crocker Center 4.5
  62. Pacific NW Arts Fair (Nov) 4.29
  63. Dallas Artfest 2.43
  1. Smithsonian Craft 9.86
  2. American Craft Expo 9.67
  3. Festival of Masters – Disney 9.31
  4. St. Paul ACE 9.3
  5. Philadelphia Craft 9.18
  6. Boston Mills 9.04
  7. Armonk NY 9
  8. Atlanta ACE 9
  9. Cain Park 9
  10. Cherry Creek 9
  11. Paradise City Fall N’Hampton 9
  12. Sausalito 8.94
  13. Baltimore ACE 8.91
  14. Winterfair – Columbus ODC 8.86
  15. St. Louis Art Fair 8.84
  16. Long’s Park 8.75
  17. Milwaukee Lakefront 8.73
  18. Arts & Apples – Rochester 8.71
  19. Laguna Gloria Fiesta 8.71
  20. Bruce Museum Fine Art 8.67
  21. Portland Art Fair 8.38
  22. Oklahoma City – Spring 8.33
  23. Des Moines Art Festival 8.28
  24. TACA Nashville 8.17
  25. Sugarloaf – Gaitherberg MD 8.11
  26. Laumeier – St. Louis 8.1
  27. Winter Park 8.06
  28. Jazz Fest – New Orleans 8
  29. Kansas City Plaza 8
  30. Washington Craft Show 8
  31. Port Clinton – Highland Pk 7.96
  32. Greater Gulf Coast Pensacola 7.85
  33. Artigras – W. Palm Beach 7.73
  34. Memphis Art Festival 7.71
  35. Gasparilla – Tampa 7.5
  36. Scottsdale AZ Art Festival 7.5
  37. Sun Valley 7.5
  38. Bayou City Houston Fall 7.5
  39. St. James Ct. Louisville 7.46
  40. B’ham MI Art in the Park -May 7.42
  41. Magic City – Birmingham AL 7.36
  42. Naples Festival of Art FL 7.14
  43. Madison – On the Square 7.11
  44. Mt. Dora FL 7.09
  45. No. VA Fine Arts Fest – Reston 7.06
  46. Ann Arbor Street Art Fair 6.98
  47. Coconut Grove 6.93
  48. Las Olas Museum 6.9
  49. Columbus – Summer 6.88
  50. Main St. Ft. Worth 6.88
  51. Brookside – Kansas City 6.86
  52. Ann Arbor Summer – Mich. Guild 6.8
  53. Dallas Artfest 6.57
  54. Boca Raton -Crocker Center 6.55
  55. Pacific NW Arts Fair (Nov) 6.43
  56. 57th Street – Chicago 6
  57. Ann Arbor State Street 5.93
  58. Old Town – Chicago 5.86
  59. Beaux Art 5.67
  60. Park City UT 5.6
  61. State College – Penn State 5.5
  62. Uptown MN 4.77
  63. Virginia Beach Boardwalk 3.25
ENFORCEMENT OF RULES
Did the show do a good job
enforcing their rules?		 COMMUNICATION
Consider the prospectus?
Other info?
  1. Atlanta ACE 9
  2. Ann Arbor Summer – Mich. Guild 8.7
  3. Festival of Masters – Disney 8.5
  4. St. Louis Art Fair 8.5
  5. Milwaukee Lakefront 8.45
  6. Ann Arbor Street Art Fair 8.38
  7. Winter Park 8.24
  8. Paradise City Fall Northampton 8.17
  9. Smithsonian Craft 8.14
  10. Cherry Creek 8.11
  11. TACA Nashville 8
  12. Cain Park 7.94
  13. Oklahoma City – Spring 7.91
  14. Philadelphia Craft 7.9
  15. Washington Craft Show 7.88
  16. Portland Art Fair 7.75
  17. Armonk NY 7.67
  18. Bruce Museum Fine Art 7.6
  19. Old Town – Chicago 7.52
  20. Des Moines Art Festival 7.5
  21. St. Paul ACE 7.5
  22. Port Clinton – Highland Pk 7.39
  23. Boston Mills 7.36
  24. Long’s Park 7.36
  25. Kansas City Plaza 7.13
  26. State College – Penn State 7.08
  27. B’ham MI Art in the Park -May 6.93
  28. Arts & Apples – Rochester 6.86
  29. Jazz Fest – New Orleans 6.83
  30. Baltimore ACE 6.82
  31. Winterfair – Columbus ODC 6.8
  32. Magic City – Birmingham AL 6.78
  33. Naples Festival of Art FL 6.77
  34. American Craft Expo 6.67
  35. Scottsdale AZ Art Festival 6.67
  36. Virginia Beach Boardwalk 6.63
  37. Sausalito 6.57
  38. Memphis Art Festival 6.5
  39. Coconut Grove 6.49
  40. N. VA Fine Arts Fest – Reston 6.43
  41. Columbus – Summer 6.42
  42. 57th Street – Chicago 6.25
  43. Gasparilla – Tampa 6.18
  44. Ann Arbor State Street 6.12
  45. Madison – On the Square 6.05
  46. Laumeier – St. Louis 6
  47. Las Olas Museum 5.8
  48. Laguna Gloria Fiesta 5.71
  49. Beaux Art 5.7
  50. Sun Valley 5.67
  51. Mt. Dora FL 5.64
  52. Brookside – Kansas City 5.57
  53. Main St. Ft. Worth 5.57
  54. Artigras – W. Palm Beach 5.4
  55. Park City UT 5.2
  56. Sugarloaf – Gaitherberg MD 5
  57. Boca Raton -Crocker Center 4.89
  58. St. James Ct. Louisville 4.85
  59. Greater Gulf Coast Pensacola 4.67
  60. Pacific NW Arts Fair (Nov) 4.67
  61. Uptown MN 4.58
  62. Dallas Artfest 4.5
  63. Bayou City Houston Fall 3.89
  1. Philadelphia Craft 9.45
  2. Cherry Creek 9.31
  3. St. Louis Art Fair 9.26
  4. Baltimore ACE 9.09
  5. Smithsonian Craft 9
  6. Cain Park 9
  7. Atlanta ACE 9
  8. American Craft Expo 9
  9. TACA Nashville 8.92
  10. Portland Art Fair 8.67
  11. Milwaukee Lakefront 8.54
  12. Winter Park 8.31
  13. Ann Arbor Street Art Fair 8.3
  14. Festival of Masters – Disney 8.29
  15. Long’s Park 8.25
  16. Oklahoma City – Spring 8.17
  17. Des Moines Art Festival 8.13
  18. Washington Craft Show 8.11
  19. St. Paul ACE 8.1
  20. Paradise City Fall N’Hampton 8.1
  21. Ann Arbor Summer – Mich. Guild 8.1
  22. State College – Penn State 8
  23. Arts & Apples – Rochester 8
  24. Coconut Grove 7.96
  25. N. VA Fine Arts Fest – Reston 7.94
  26. Columbus – Summer 7.8
  27. Port Clinton – Highland Pk 7.77
  28. Winterfair – Columbus ODC 7.71
  29. Bruce Museum Fine Art 7.67
  30. Kansas City Plaza 7.64
  31. Boston Mills 7.56
  32. Jazz Fest – New Orleans 7.33
  33. Armonk NY 7.33
  34. Greater Gulf Coast Pensacola 7.29
  35. Ann Arbor State Street 7.24
  36. Beaux Art 7.15
  37. Sun Valley 7
  38. Laumeier – St. Louis 7
  39. Gasparilla – Tampa 7
  40. Old Town – Chicago 6.95
  41. B’ham MI Art in the Park -May 6.95
  42. Scottsdale AZ Art Festival 6.92
  43. Magic City – Birmingham AL 6.92
  44. Bayou City Houston Fall 6.9
  45. Main St. Ft. Worth 6.88
  46. Artigras – W. Palm Beach 6.83
  47. Sausalito 6.78
  48. Madison – On the Square 6.65
  49. Naples Festival of Art FL 6.6
  50. Memphis Art Festival 6.57
  51. Laguna Gloria Fiesta 6.57
  52. Sugarloaf – Gaitherberg MD 6.33
  53. Mt. Dora FL 6.18
  54. Boca Raton -Crocker Center 6.05
  55. Las Olas Museum 6
  56. St. James Ct. Louisville 5.57
  57. Uptown MN 5.52
  58. Virginia Beach Boardwalk 5.5
  59. Park City UT 5.5
  60. 57th Street – Chicago 5.44
  61. Brookside – Kansas City 5.13
  62. Pacific NW Arts Fair (Nov) 5
  63. Dallas Artfest 4.14
FOOD
Who might it attract? Was it good?
Upscale? Easy to get?		 ACCESS
Load-in, load-out, parking, early setup?
  1. Jazz Fest – New Orleans 9.83
  2. St. Louis Art Fair 8.97
  3. Cherry Creek 8.72
  4. Oklahoma City – Spring 8.5
  5. Paradise City Fall N’Hampton 8.4
  6. Cain Park 8.11
  7. Philadelphia Craft 7.91
  8. Memphis Art Festival 7.86
  9. Long’s Park 7.67
  10. Coconut Grove 7.6
  11. Kansas City Plaza 7.36
  12. Des Moines Art Festival 6.87
  13. Portland Art Fair 6.83
  14. Sausalito 6.82
  15. Columbus – Summer 6.79
  16. Sugarloaf – Gaitherberg MD 6.78
  17. N. VA Fine Arts Fest – Reston 6.73
  18. Ann Arbor Summer – Mich. Guild 6.71
  19. Ann Arbor Street Art Fair 6.7
  20. Beaux Art 6.6
  21. Winter Park 6.5
  22. Arts & Apples – Rochester 6.43
  23. Gasparilla – Tampa 6.41
  24. Port Clinton – Highland Pk 6.28
  25. American Craft Expo 6
  26. Milwaukee Lakefront 6
  27. Mt. Dora FL 5.91
  28. Washington Craft Show 5.89
  29. Laguna Gloria Fiesta 5.86
  30. Park City UT 5.83
  31. Smithsonian Craft 5.83
  32. State College – Penn State 5.82
  33. Las Olas Museum 5.78
  34. Madison – On the Square 5.74
  35. Old Town – Chicago 5.74
  36. Bruce Museum Fine Art 5.67
  37. Greater Gulf Coast Pensacola 5.64
  38. TACA Nashville 5.5
  39. B’ham MI Art in the Park -May 5.48
  40. Main St. Ft. Worth 5.38
  41. Festival of Masters – Disney 5.33
  42. Scottsdale AZ Art Festival 5.33
  43. Boca Raton -Crocker Center 5.31
  44. Ann Arbor State Street 5.19
  45. Virginia Beach Boardwalk 5.14
  46. Uptown MN 5.03
  47. Atlanta ACE 5
  48. Magic City – Birmingham AL 4.88
  49. 57th Street – Chicago 4.82
  50. Artigras – W. Palm Beach 4.82
  51. St. James Ct. Louisville 4.69
  52. Naples Festival of Art FL 4.67
  53. Armonk NY 4.6
  54. Laumeier – St. Louis 4.56
  55. Boston Mills 4.38
  56. Pacific NW Arts Fair (Nov) 4.29
  57. Winterfair – Columbus ODC 4.29
  58. Bayou City Houston Fall 4.25
  59. St. Paul ACE 4.2
  60. Sun Valley 4
  61. Baltimore ACE 3.55
  62. Brookside – Kansas City 3.14
  63. Dallas Artfest 2.14
  1. Milwaukee Lakefront 9.42
  2. Cherry Creek 9.27
  3. TACA Nashville 9.08
  4. Long’s Park 8.81
  5. Cain Park 8.72
  6. Des Moines Art Festival 8.63
  7. St. Louis Art Fair 8.35
  8. N. VA Fine Arts Fest – Reston 8.35
  9. Smithsonian Craft 8.29
  10. Arts & Apples – Rochester 8.29
  11. Portland Art Fair 8.22
  12. Philadelphia Craft 8.09
  13. Atlanta ACE 8
  14. Washington Craft Show 7.89
  15. State College – Penn State 7.83
  16. Armonk NY 7.83
  17. Baltimore ACE 7.82
  18. Coconut Grove 7.69
  19. Oklahoma City – Spring 7.67
  20. St. Paul ACE 7.6
  21. Gasparilla – Tampa 7.57
  22. Sun Valley 7.5
  23. Bruce Museum Fine Art 7.5
  24. Kansas City Plaza 7.46
  25. Dallas Artfest 7.43
  26. Ann Arbor Street Art Fair 7.41
  27. Birmingham MI Art in the Park -May 7.19
  28. Jazz Fest – New Orleans 7.17
  29. Paradise City Fall N’Hampton 7.1
  30. Ann Arbor State Street 7.03
  31. Winter Park 6.97
  32. American Craft Expo 6.83
  33. Boca Raton -Crocker Center 6.75
  34. Laumeier – St. Louis 6.6
  35. Artigras – W. Palm Beach 6.58
  36. Columbus – Summer 6.44
  37. Ann Arbor Summer – Mich. Guild 6.4
  38. Beaux Art 6.38
  39. Naples Festival of Art FL 6.27
  40. Bayou City Houston Fall 6.2
  41. Greater Gulf Coast Pensacola 6.14
  42. Sugarloaf – Gaitherberg MD 6
  43. 57th Street – Chicago 5.89
  44. Mt. Dora FL 5.82
  45. Madison – On the Square 5.7
  46. Sausalito 5.61
  47. Las Olas Museum 5.55
  48. Scottsdale AZ Art Festival 5.5
  49. Pacific NW Arts Fair (Nov) 5.29
  50. Winterfair – Columbus ODC 5.14
  51. Laguna Gloria Fiesta 5.14
  52. Port Clinton – Highland Pk 5.12
  53. Uptown MN 5
  54. Memphis Art Festival 5
  55. Brookside – Kansas City 5
  56. Old Town – Chicago 4.89
  57. Festival of Masters – Disney 4.53
  58. St. James Ct. Louisville 4.36
  59. Magic City – Birmingham AL 4.33
  60. Boston Mills 4.32
  61. Main St. Ft. Worth 4.25
  62. Park City UT 4
  63. Virginia Beach Boardwalk 3.88

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