Bayou City Art Festival Memorial Park Spring Show Reviews..

Your Medium: Digital Art
Year you most recently exhibited at this Show: 2017
Your Estimated Sales at this Show: $5,000 - $10,000
Price Range of your Work: $475 - $4,500
Number of Years You have Exhibited in this Show:
5-10 times
Number of Years You have been doing Art Fairs overall: Forever...
Attendance: (1 is poor, 5 is great) 3
Location: 4
Facilities: 3
Ease of Participating: 4
Sales: 5 (great)
Overall: 4
Booth Fee vs. Your Sales Ratio: Great
Estimated Attendance: 10,001 - 50,000 people

Good Things about this Art Fair:
I know a lot of things have been said about the show and the decisions the past few years, but they are back to 300 artists and the crowd that comes still buys art.

What could this Art Fair have done better?:
I keep thinking that the show could be really huge with amazing attendance ( 200,000 ? ) if the show could be moved to a place where people do not have to be bused in. I am amazed that so many people agree to it.

Advice to Other Artists Considering this Show:
Still a very good show worth doing.

Posted by: Approved Reviewer, name withheld by request | 05/19/2018 at 04:36 PM

Medium: 2D mixed media
Year you most recently exhibited at this Show: 2016
Your Estimated Sales at this Show: < $500
Price Range of your Work: $1,200 - $6,000
Number of Years You have Exhibited in this Show:
3-5 times
Number of Years You have been doing Art Fairs overall: Forever...
Attendance: (1 is poor, 5 is great) 1
Location: 3
Facilities: 1
Ease of Participating: 1
Sales: 1
Overall: 1
Booth Fee vs. Your Sales Ratio: Poor
Estimated Attendance: 501 - 10,000 people

Good Things about this Art Fair:
Hard to say.

Bad Things about this Art Fair:
Let's call this constructive criticism.
The management of this show is making many mistakes. This year they rescheduled the show because the NCAA basketball finals was the same weekend, thousands of visitors looking for things to do with money, and good weather.

Their reason? The artist would have a hard time finding lodging. Result, bad weather, 50 or more artist cancellations, poor attendance, bad sales. There were not even enough volunteers to have a second artist hospitality area open.

They charge for everything, at the gate, parking, shuttles...this is ruining the show for the public and the artists.

Advice to Other Artists Considering this Show:
Sadly, this show is going downhill. Quality is sliding, sales are sliding, attendance is sliding.

The URL of your profile on ArtFairInsiders.com. http://www.artfairinsiders.com/profile/MichaelProtiva

Posted by: Michael Protiva | 04/15/2017 at 09:57 PM

The dates of this year's spring show were moved to the later date because the Colony decided that the artists would have a hard time finding lodging because the NCAA basketball finals were being held on the weekend the show is normally held. Thousands of visitors with money to spend and looking for some thing to do during the days. Good weather as well. Artists are resourceful nd can figure out lodging. The weather the weekend of the show was predicted to be extreme leading to 50 or more cancellations by artists. Charging to get into the show, to park, to take a shuttle is outrageous and killing the show. Sadly, this is a show going downhill faster than a speeding Ferrari, all due to poor management.

Posted by: Michael Protiva | 10/21/2016 at 03:27 PM

Medium: Photography
Year you most recently exhibited at this Show:
2015
Your Estimated Sales at this Show: $501-$2000
Price Range of your Work: $25 - $400
Number of Years You have Exhibited in this Show:
1st time
Number of Years You have been doing Art Fairs overall: Forever...
Attendance: (1 is poor, 5 is great) 3
Location: 5
Facilities: 4
Ease of Participating: 5
Sales: 1
Overall: 3
Booth Fee vs. Your Sales Ratio: Poor
Estimated Attendance: 501-10,000 people

Good Things about this Art Fair:
Park setting is nice, there is a lot of shade but few places to sit throughout the park.

Bad Things about this Art Fair:
Attendance didn't seem exceptional. Apparently people were turning away as lines to get in were too long, didn't want to wait. They charge patrons for everything, shuttle, parking, gate, etc. Good way to kill a show!

Narrow one way lanes led to a load-out disaster when people drove off the high curbs at the show and blocked egress (not egrets!) Some booths had fall off behind their booths others had plenty of storage space.

Advice to Other Artists Considering this Show:
Caveat emptor!

Additional Commentary on this Show:
Last year they allowed 150 more artists in after the cut off date. This is a big park and it can accommodate the numbers but it is a big park and people were getting tired of walking all day through the park, there should be more rest/shade stations.

Some of the promised amenities did not materialize, a second artist's amenities location, music area, etc.

See my blog on ArtFairInsiders.com for additional commentary on this Show:
http://www.artfairinsiders.com/profiles/blogs/buy-bye-bayou?xg_source=activity

Posted by: Brian Berkun | 05/14/2015 at 02:37 PM

Good Things about this Art Fair:
Park setting is nice, there is a lot of shade but few places to sit throughout the park.

Bad Things about this Art Fair:
Attendance didn't seem exceptional. Apparently people were turning away as lines to get in were too long, didn't want to wait.

They charge patrons for everything, shuttle, parking, gate, etc. Good way to kill a show!

Narrow one way lanes led to a load-out disaster when people drove off the high curbs at the show and blocked egress (not egrets!)

Some booths had fall off behind their booths others had plenty of storage space.

Advice to Other Artists Considering this Show:
Caveat emptor!

Some of the promised amenities did not materialize, a second artists amenities location, music area, etc.

See my blog on ArtFairInsiders.com for additional commentary on this Show:
http://www.artfairinsiders.com/profiles/blogs/buy-bye-bayou?xg_source=activity

Posted by: Brian Berkun | 05/13/2015 at 11:46 PM

Medium: Jewelry
Year you most recently exhibited at this Show:
2015
Your Estimated Sales at this Show: $2001-$5000
Price Range of your Work: $30 -$1100
Number of Years You have Exhibited in this Show:
1st time
Number of Years You have been doing Art Fairs overall: Forever...
Attendance: (1 is poor, 5 is great) 3
Location: 3
Facilities: 3
Ease of Participating: 3
Sales: 4
Overall: 3
Booth Fee vs. Your Sales Ratio: Good
Estimated Attendance: Not really sure

Good Things about this Art Fair:
Beautiful park, people who came out seemed interested and ready to buy.

Bad Things about this Art Fair:
would have liked to see more volunteers to help find spot for set up and generally point first timers like me in the right direction.

Advice to Other Artists Considering this Show:
Bring mosquito spray!

Posted by: sabine Chadborn | 05/06/2015 at 11:55 PM

Show Name: Bayou City Art Festival Memorial Park Spring Show
City and State: Houston, TX
Your Medium: Photography
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) 3
Location: 4
Facilities: 3
Ease of Participating: 3
Sales: 2
Overall: 3
Booth Fee vs. Your Sales Ratio: Okay
Estimated Attendance: 10,001-50,000 people

Good Things about this Art Fair: Crowd seemed knowledgeable and interested in art

Bad Things about this Art Fair: Seems they raised the entrance fee this year by a lot, reducing the crowd by more than a lot!

Posted by: X Nuez | 04/06/2013 at 02:13 PM

Show Name: Bayou Art Festival
City and State: Houston, Texas
Your Medium: Painting
Year you most recently exhibited at this Show: 2013
Your Estimated Sales at this Show: $5001-$10,000
Number of Years You have Exhibited in this Show: 1st time
Attendance: (1 is poor, 5 is great) 2
Location: 3
Facilities: 3
Ease of Participating: 4
Sales: 3
Overall: 3
Booth Fee vs. Your Sales Ratio: Good
Estimated Attendance: 501-10,000 people

Good Things about this Art Fair: Easy parking whixh close to show. Great early set up starting 2 days before show. There us money walking around and did see patrons with art in hand. Even though the show was off in attendence I had big enough sales and interest to try it again

Bad Things about this Art Fair: The public never really came our to the show. Sunday was the most traffic but even that had slow energy.

Advice to Other Artists Considering this Show: Good overall quality and with bigger crowds could be super awesome in sales

Posted by: Daniel Lager | 04/06/2013 at 02:07 PM

Show Name: Bayou City
City and State: Houston, TX
Your Medium: Digital Art
Year you most recently exhibited at this Show: 2012
Your Estimated Sales at this Show: $10,000+
Number of Years You have Exhibited in this Show: 5-10 times
Attendance: (1 is poor, 5 is great) 5 (great)
Location: 5 (great)
Facilities: 4
Ease of Participating: 4
Sales: 5 (great)
Overall: 5 (great)
Booth Fee vs. Your Sales Ratio: Great
Estimated Attendance: 50,001+ people

Good Things about this Art Fair: Amazing attendance for this show every year, especially when they have to park miles from the show, be shuttled to the show and pay an entrance fee. Great support for show, usually 100,000-150,000+ and great sales. 2d, like with most shows, sells best. as difficult as load-in/load-out looks, it almost always runs smoothly.

Bad Things about this Art Fair: Some locations are dark due to trees. It pays, even with the price for electricity, to buy it. too dark and you are in a cave. the one year that I did not do this and was in a dark spot, my sales were half.

Advice to Other Artists Considering this Show: Priceline or Hotwire a room in the galleria area. Close and nice area.

Posted by: Approved Reviewer, name withheld by request | 10/10/2012 at 12:33 PM

Show Name: Bayou City Art Festival ( Spring - Memorial Park )
City and State: Houston, TX
Your Medium: Photography
Year you most recently exhibited at this Show: 2012
Your Estimated Sales at this Show: $10,000+
Number of Years You have Exhibited in this Show: 5-10 times
Attendance: (1 is poor, 5 is great) 5 (great)
Location: 5 (great)
Facilities: 4
Ease of Participating: 4
Sales: 5 (great)
Overall: 5 (great)
Booth Fee vs. Your Sales Ratio: Great
Estimated Attendance: 50,001+ people

Good Things about this Art Fair: Once again Bayou City, under the new Executive Director, Kelly Kindred( formerly the shows coordinator ) delivered huge crowds, especially on Saturday and Sunday. While I did hear a few artists talk about sales being down on Saturday, most artists who I spoke with had very strong sales. I set a new all time sales record, not just for this show, but for any show ( 12 years of art festivals). Certainly says something about the crowd and the Houston economy. The crowd responds well to 2-d color, but I also spoke to two ceramic artists and a jeweler ( obviously not in the 2-d category) who had exceptional shows. Weather was perfect for the entire weekend.

Bad Things about this Art Fair: The park lost thousands of trees, so the park, despite efforts to take care of it, looked pretty rough this year. There are already plans to replant, so I assume the park will be different next year. Tear down and load-out is pretty tough, since you are required to be completely down and off the road before coming in. This combined with the darkness and mosquitos make it not fun. There is a Monday morning option and for those less compulsive than me, it is probably the right option.

Posted by: Name withheld by request | 04/17/2012 at 12:38 AM

Show Name: Bayou City Art Festival (Spring)
City and State: Hewitt, TX
Your Medium: 3D mixed media
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: 1st time
Attendance: (1 is poor, 5 is great) 5 (great)
Location: 4
Facilities: 4
Ease of Participating: 4
Sales: 5 (great)
Overall: 5 (great)
Booth Fee vs. Your Sales Ratio: Great
Estimated Attendance: 10,001-50,000 people

Good Things about this Art Fair: Nice park, pretty surroundings. Good crowd. Great artist support, lots of help with booth sitting, water and snacks.

Bad Things about this Art Fair: Mosquitos, lots of rain the week before, and Houston is notorious for mosquitos, just not usually in March! Parking situation is pretty bad, but cannot be helped. Load-in was tough due to distance to parking, and narrow loop. Surprised that there was so much haggling?

Advice to Other Artists Considering this Show: Bring sunscreen, due to the drought, many dead trees were cut down on the loop and Texas weather is unpredictible. It can be hot (91 on Sunday with a good amount of humidity). The artist support provides mosquito spray, but, if you don't want to flag them down, bring your own.

Posted by: Kimberly Merck-Moore | 04/17/2012 at 12:32 AM

Show Name: Bayou City Art Festival, Spring
City and State: Houston, Texas
Your Medium: Photography
Year you most recently exhibited at this Show: 2011
Your Estimated Sales at this Show: $10,000+
Number of Years You have Exhibited in this Show: 5-10 times
Attendance: (1 is poor, 5 is great) 5 (great)
Location: 4
Facilities: 4
Ease of Participating: 4
Sales: 4
Overall: 5 (great)
Booth Fee vs. Your Sales Ratio: Great
Estimated Attendance: 50,001+ people

Good Things about this Art Fair:
Kim and Kelly have done a remarkable job with attendance and publicity at this show. My sales, even in this economy, have never been better. Houston now, at least for me, ranks with the top tier shows.

Bad Things about this Art Fair:
-parking
-awards

Advice to Other Artists Considering this Show:
Colorful 2d sells well, very well here.

Posted by: Approved Reviewer; name withheld by request | 08/03/2011 at 01:27 PM

Pottery
Last year was our first year to do Bayou City and we found it delightful. While we didn't do what we would have liked (who does?) we did well enough to aggressively try to do it again.

Posted by: Roy Odom | 03/11/2011 at 08:54 AM

Pastels
The Bayou City Spring show is set in Memorial Park, quite a beautiful setting, with the bucolic scene tempered a little by the challenging access. The show is in a circular paved drive surrounded by tall trees, that protect you from beating sun, but don't block too much light.

Most locations seem to be good, but I wonder about the booths on a spoke that runs from the circle to the food area. This show is very well run with everyone including the director asking if everything is okay. You couldn't ask for a nicer staff and numerous volunteers running around with water and snacks.

My shows in Texas have been among my best, Fort Worth being my best ever. This is my second year here in Memorial Park, and I doubled what I thought was a decent show last year. My neighbors also had good shows, and I am keeping my fingers crossed.

(Read the rest of this review at ArtFairInsiders.com)

Posted by: R. Michael Wommack | 10/28/2010 at 09:46 PM

Photography
It is a solid show with good buying crowds-but it is a predominantly low-end repeatable sale show. They like Europe images, humour and art on the stick--anything welded--the committee treats the artists like gold--great artist breakfeast. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

(See the rest of this review at ArtFairInsiders.com)

Posted by: Nels Johnson | 10/28/2010 at 06:39 PM

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