Preparing for the Season
Photo courtesy of Ray Zovar
Artists, Promoters Share Plans
How artists and promoters are approaching the 2022 show circuit varies. But what they have in common is a hope for a more ordinary year after the challenges they faced in the last two years.
“If anything, I feel like 2022 is a bit of a return to normal for us,” said Sarah Moore, director of the 4 Bridges Art Festival.
When the Association for Visual Arts held last April’s event in Chattanooga, Tennessee, it reduced the number of participants, adjusted the event’s layout, and increased the hygiene and safety requirements. “This year, we should be able to return to our standard number of participating artists (around 145) and have a more ‘normal’ feeling event weekend now that vaccination rates here are finally cracking 50%,” Moore said.
The association may make a few tweaks, though. She said this includes increased funding for marketing outside the local area, thanks to a grant from its tourism board. “We have plans to market in (the) Nashville, Atlanta, Birmingham, and Knoxville regions in particular,” Moore said.
Integrating the Emerging Artists into the main layout of booths is also planned, she said. “Traditionally, we have put all of our Emerging Artist (EA) booths together in one area of our pavilion, but I noticed this last year that it was a bit of a dead corner, so I’d like to try integrating them throughout the standard booth layout in the pavilion and give each some additional flashy signage to draw attention to their EA status,” Moore said. “What fun is participating in your first show if you get shunted off to a place where no one sees you?”
They have an idea for that former EA space. “We’re looking at activating it with a combination of children’s art activities and booth space for our local nonprofit art partners who might like to get some additional visibility from our large audience that weekend,” she said.
Moving Forward in 2022
Under consideration for the Loring Park Art Festival, in Minneapolis, is bringing back a few family activities that were postponed in 2021. Pat Parnow also said they applied for a grant that would provide additional opportunities for the festival.
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