Caleb smith on wed 22 oct 08
Kathy=2C
Most analysts agree that the consumer market is only beginning to see t=
he effects of a month of market insanity and general deterioration. Althou=
gh certainly some people are already being affected=2C the real squeeze pro=
bably won't be truly felt until the Christmas season or even after. Exhibi=
tions and the contests will likely follow suit with fewer planned this quar=
ter than normal. Likely you won't see quite as many calls for entries in t=
he spring and summer of '09. =20
Ironically=2C although it's likely be a long and impoverished winter fo=
r many a ceramicist=2C hunkering down and making more work in the studio wi=
ll only exacerbate problems. Increasing supply while demand wanes is bad f=
or business. =20
Of course=2C maybe I'm just trying to justify going skiing more this wi=
nter.
Golden leaves are settling through the Tahoe sunshine=2C
Best
Caleb
> Date: Wed=2C 22 Oct 2008 11:59:50 -0700
> From: claybike73@SBCGLOBAL.NET
> Subject: Juried Exhibitions and the Economy
> To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
>=20
> I'm curious how clayarters feel the economy is affecting juried all
> clay/ceramic exhibitions. Is support from ceramic suppliers the same or
> down. Are the number of juried exhibitions down in numbers? Are clay
> organizations who sponsor juried exhibitions skeptical about the financia=
l
> commitment involved? How has the poor economy and economic future affect=
ed
> these juried exhibitions? Any input would be appreciated.
>=20
>=20
>=20
> Kathy
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Kathy White on wed 22 oct 08
I'm curious how clayarters feel the economy is affecting juried all
clay/ceramic exhibitions. Is support from ceramic suppliers the same or
down. Are the number of juried exhibitions down in numbers? Are clay
organizations who sponsor juried exhibitions skeptical about the financial
commitment involved? How has the poor economy and economic future affected
these juried exhibitions? Any input would be appreciated.
Kathy
dwain on thu 23 oct 08
On Thu, Oct 23, 2008 at 5:17 PM, Richard Aerni wrote:
> I have always looked upon hard times as the perfect time to
> buckle down and get some real work done. For starters, it keeps you from
> fixating on all the bleak thoughts the media keep throwing at you, and also
> can result in real progress in your work. Then, when times start to
> improve, you've got a lot of work available with which to catch the wave.
i agree, a true artist creates supply regardless of demand.
cheers,
dwain alford
--
"Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little
temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." Benjamin
Franklin
dwain on thu 23 oct 08
On Wed, Oct 22, 2008 at 10:11 PM, Caleb smith wrote:
> Kathy,
> Most analysts agree that the consumer market is only beginning to see the effects of a month of market insanity and general deterioration. Although certainly some people are already being affected, the real squeeze probably won't be truly felt until the Christmas season or even after. Exhibitions and the contests will likely follow suit with fewer planned this quarter than normal. Likely you won't see quite as many calls for entries in the spring and summer of '09.
> Ironically, although it's likely be a long and impoverished winter for many a ceramicist, hunkering down and making more work in the studio will only exacerbate problems. Increasing supply while demand wanes is bad for business.
> Of course, maybe I'm just trying to justify going skiing more this winter.
a friend of mine gave me a t-shirt that stated that "a true artist
creates supply regardless of demand". i think that this is true.
whether there are more calls or not for exhibitions is not a good
reason to make your art.
my $0.02,
dwain
--
"Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little
temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." Benjamin
Franklin
John Rodgers on thu 23 oct 08
Kathy,
I think Caleb is right on target. All aspects of our economy have come
to rely more and more on easier and easier credit - which results in
inflation, and there always comes a time for reset. We have a
combination of extraordinary conditions at present and this is going to
result in a reset of extraordinary proportions - and people are going to
suffer from it. This may drag along for quite a long time. However,
there can be a bright side.
I lived in Alaska for 30 years, and lived through numerous recessions
there, some unique to Alaska, which relies heavily on Government
spending, Big Oil, and a combination of other things - fish, timber, &
mining. Fluctuations in these resulted in many economic downturns over
the years, but we found in my shop that during the hard times, people
tended to purchase fewer items, but shifted somewhat to bigger ticket
items, as if to make a statement -"Times are hard and I am going to get
something that cost more to make me feel better about myself" sort of
statement.
We found that we had to be sure our inventories were full, and we had to
advertise harder. I always was amazed that many places of business
always tried to cut their advertising, and reduce their inventories
right when they needed to be pushing the hardest. It is difficult to
sell when your stocks look like they have been picked through, and you
don't tell the world about what you have to offer.When there are fewer
moneyfish in the barrel, you simply must fish harder. The trick is to
get more creative. If shows diminish in number or size, then perhaps you
need to look really hard at alternative means and methods.
One thing I firmly believe - for crafters, the internet is going to
carry the day when it comes to selling during this economic slowdown.
I'm not sure everyone piling onto a super-sized virtual mall like Etsy
or some others is the answer - it's hard to stand out in a crowd - I
mean who is going to sit and sift though 1500 or more images of ceramics
when looking for a gift - except maybe another ceramist - there are
other means. In my eyes, the best use of the internet and web sites is
as a secondary tool. That is, put up a website, but advertise that web
site in strategic places. Don't try to rely on people searching you out
using the search engines searching for a product. Advertise elsewhere
with your website being the destination for the product that you are
advertising. Web sites used as referral points are far more effective
than those that are not.
My $0.02 this morning.
Regards,
John Rodgers
Chelsea, AL
Kathy White wrote:
> I'm curious how clayarters feel the economy is affecting juried all
> clay/ceramic exhibitions. Is support from ceramic suppliers the same or
> down. Are the number of juried exhibitions down in numbers? Are clay
> organizations who sponsor juried exhibitions skeptical about the financial
> commitment involved? How has the poor economy and economic future affected
> these juried exhibitions? Any input would be appreciated.
>
>
>
> Kathy
>
>
>
Dannon Rhudy on thu 23 oct 08
I haven't noted any real diminution of the
number of juried exhibits being posted to
CM or other places. On the other hand,
short of getting in touch with the coordinators
of annual or bi-annual exhibits to find out if
entries are down, it would be difficult to
find out if shows are having problems.
Same regarding sponsors - have to ask the
folks in charge if the sponsors are dropping out.
regards
Dannon Rhudy.
Richard Aerni on thu 23 oct 08
I wouldn't imagine we are seeing any effect at the moment. Most exhibitions
are planned far in advance, and most people apply long in advance as well.
Perhaps next year at this time there will be some relevant data to examine,
but then you would also have to poll a large number of the said exhibitions
and get the year's data and compare to their historical data. A large
task... And, I suspect, the real pain of this current situation will not
have trickled down to affect the majority of artists til sometime after the
new year.
That being said, I have always looked upon hard times as the perfect time to
buckle down and get some real work done. For starters, it keeps you from
fixating on all the bleak thoughts the media keep throwing at you, and also
can result in real progress in your work. Then, when times start to
improve, you've got a lot of work available with which to catch the wave.
Just my thoughts,
Richard
Richard Aerni
http://blog.richardaerni.com
http://www.richardaerni.com
http://richardaernipottery.etsy.com
Studio
1115 East Main St. Suite 106
Rochester, NY 14609
585-429-0211
John Rodgers on thu 23 oct 08
Dannon,
You can get a sense of a show by how many people you can count carrying
"treasures" around during and upon departing from the show. It's not
absolute, but it can give you a sense of the show's performance.
Regards,
John Rodgers
Chelsea, AL
Dannon Rhudy wrote:
> I haven't noted any real diminution of the
> number of juried exhibits being posted to
> CM or other places. On the other hand,
> short of getting in touch with the coordinators
> of annual or bi-annual exhibits to find out if
> entries are down, it would be difficult to
> find out if shows are having problems.
> Same regarding sponsors - have to ask the
> folks in charge if the sponsors are dropping out.
>
> regards
>
> Dannon Rhudy.
>
>
>
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