Crafts New York (formerly American Crafts Festival at Lincoln Center) Reviews..

A NEW PROMOTER HAS TAKEN OVER THIS SHOW AND DID IT FOR THE FIRST TIME IN JUNE 2018. I PARTICIPATED IN THE SHOW AND WAS IMPRESSED WITH THE CHANGES. NO BUY SELL NO JUNK. ALL HIGH QUALITY, CURATED WELL. IF YOU'VE DONE THE SHOW IN PREVIOUS YEARS AND LEFT DISCOURAGED PLEASE GIVE IT ANOTHER CHANCE.

THERE WILL BE TWO SHOWS IN JUNE 2019.

Posted by: Sharon Rosenthal | 08/20/2018 at 09:44 AM

Show Name: American Crafts Festival at Lincoln Center
City and State: New York, New York
Your Medium: Fiber
Year you most recently exhibited at this Show: 2013
Your Estimated Sales at this Show: $2001-$5000
Number of Years You have Exhibited in this Show: 1st time
Attendance: (1 is poor, 5 is great) 5 (great)
Location: 5 (great)
Facilities: 3
Ease of Participating: 3
Sales: 2
Overall: 2
Booth Fee vs. Your Sales Ratio: Poor
Estimated Attendance: 501-10,000 people

Good Things about this Art Fair: Lincoln Center in NYC, fabulous location.. well educated audience and a well attended show...some really nice work. It didn't rain! the vendors were so nice, the shoppers were so nice....

Bad Things about this Art Fair Show staff was not friendly. Nightmare to unload (at least for me) .. there was work with a sign that said handmade in Columbia right in the booth! ( the title of this show is American crafts... I guess Columbia is America.. just add SOUTH to the front of it...and there were other imports as well. This is a very expensive show to do and then there is a 6% surcharge on your gross sales..! The bathrooms were closed on Sunday, and the port a pots were out of paper by Sunday morning. great...the audience, mostly new yorkers, all know where to "shop for bargains", that is not a crowd that wants to "pay full price" for anything! Although fortunately there were enough folks who were "willing" to forgo their bargain hunting spirit and pay full price for something they loved to keep me from going into the hole on this show, but it was not a financial success for me either...The day started with the parking staff yelling at me because i did not want to scratch the double parked van with the open door and they would not guide me thru while the taxi coming in the opposite direction was sitting in the middle of the one lane.. it stressed me out and was not a good way to start my show.. why couldn't someone have just said come on you can fit, I'll watch that side of your van.. so I parked where it was illegal and fortunately did not get a ticket! I wouldn't recommend this show nor would I do it again..but I know it was different for everybody, I'm sure some did very well, there certainly was a crowd.. oh and the hours are 10 AM until 9 PM then they tell you not to leave before 8:30 PM, and the shoppers were gone at 7:30 PM, so what's that about???

Advice to Other Artists Considering this Show: think hard and talk to people in your medium and price point who have done this show. I understand it has changed a lot over the years, I know it used to be a very hard show to get into, highly juried, now, as many shows are, it seems, if you have the money you have a spot...

Posted by: Liza Norman | 06/24/2013 at 09:15 PM

I am seriously suspect of the jurying process. I saw a booth there doing dichroic rings, earrings, pendants etc.
They literally stuck a blob of glue on a finding, then put the glass in the blob of glue.
There was no attempt at all to clean it up, it looked horrible, 1/4" thick glue showing all around the glass. How this work got by a jurying process is beyond me.

Posted by: herb | 06/21/2013 at 12:06 PM

Show Name: ACAC - American Crafts at Linclon Center
City and State: New York City, New York
Your Medium: Jewelry
Year you most recently exhibited at this Show: 2012
Your Estimated Sales at this Show: $5001-$10,000
Number of Years You have Exhibited in this Show: 3-5 times
Attendance: (1 is poor, 5 is great) 4
Location: 4
Facilities: 4
Ease of Participating: 4
Sales: 4
Overall: 4
Booth Fee vs. Your Sales Ratio: Okay
Estimated Attendance: Not really sure.

Good Things about this Art Fair: Beautiful location in a great city environment. Off the street in the beautiful and famous Lincoln Center. The attendees are there not only to see the artists but also to attend the world famous ballet and opera companies that perform there during the summer and fall season.
This brings a high caliber of educated art buyers. The staff and directors bend over backwards to accommodate.

Bad Things about this Art Fair: Accommodations are expensive.

Advice to Other Artists Considering this Show:If you can afford it, stay for the two weekends when first starting out at this show, then decide which weekend works best for you. It takes about three years to build a clientele here if you're going to, so give it that long. Go to AirB&B for apartment rentals on the upper west side, near central part west. Good deals in great little apartments. Park your van for the weekend and take a cab!

Posted by: Elaine Rader | 03/24/2013 at 04:33 PM

Show Name: Crafts Festival at Lincoln Center
City and State: New York,NY
Your Medium: Jewelry
Year you most recently exhibited at this Show: 2012
Your Estimated Sales at this Show: Rather not say
Number of Years You have Exhibited in this Show: 5-10 times
Attendance: (1 is poor, 5 is great) 4
Location: 5 (great)
Facilities: 4
Ease of Participating: 3
Sales: 4
Overall: 4
Booth Fee vs. Your Sales Ratio: Good
Estimated Attendance: 501-10,000 people

Good Things about this Art Fair: The venue places your work in front of an ideal demographic, affluent New Yorkers as well as visitors to the epicenter of NYC culture. I've developed a local clientele and have sent work home with visitors to NYC from various parts of the world. ACAC offers help with load and unloading for setup and break down.

Bad Things about this Art Fair: It's New York, so prepare to deal with the traffic coming in. Parking can be challenging and expensive but if you have a smart phone then download the app; Best Parking. It gives you local garage rates and a link where you can call and confirm the rate.

Posted by: Britt Anderson | 03/17/2013 at 07:36 AM

No Prints? No Reproductions? Ha.
Don't bring fine art.
The jewelers and people making scarves make money.

The producers say you can only bring original work - but the person next to me had clothing that was MANUFACTURED overseas, behind me an entire BOOTH of prints and greeting cards - and the obligatory Israeli art - a booth full of embellished giclees.

No one pays attention to the staggered move in, it is very difficult [physically] to make this work.

It is open too late - supposedly for the theatre crowd, but they're on their way to a show, not shopping.

Posted by: ester | 06/12/2012 at 09:13 AM

I had a wonderful show again this year. It is always a difficult show for set up and tear down. I suggest anyone with physical limitations go on craigs list and hire a worker. Unfortunately this year mine did not show up!
I have some limitations so Paul and Raya, the show producers, came to my rescue and had their staff help me until I was able to hire someone. I find this show a solid financial success. I would have liked signage to be done in a more visible way, even just in front of the Center.
But New York being the quirky place it is--maybe then the folks wouldnt have moseyed in!!!
It seems the same people plan to come every year and do--otherwise the folks all said-i didnt know this was going on.
Quality was good, many less photographers than i am used to seeing and less jewelry per capita. It is definitely a build -a- clientele show.

Posted by: nancy wasserman | 07/01/2011 at 11:26 PM

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