Andrew update and adventures in art shows...

On his way to a different kind of art show this morning

I think the last time I gave a real "Andrew update" was like four years ago, right after he quit his 5 Buck Pizza job. So it's time!

Andrew is a busy guy! He's been working for his current company for almost a year and a half, and he's doing well there. He's always got side projects going on at home, so when he gets home from programming, he usually goes right back to programming. He's got some gorgeous pics he recently scanned that are in the works, but he hasn't edited them yet.

And yesterday, today, and tomorrow, he is in SLC for "Art and Soup" -- a charity art event. He has his photos on display and a percentage of what he makes goes to the charity -- the money helps people who have health problems who don't have the means to pay.

Since we only have one car, I won't be able to go there and hang out like I normally do at art shows. It's like my favorite thing ever! -- the possibility of selling his prints is so exciting to me. But this one isn't really kid friendly. It's at the Sheraton Hotel in SLC, and everyone's dressed up. The entrance fee of $15 lets you try a bunch of soups, breads, and desserts from local restaurants. Sounds delish, but also probably not great for losing weight!

Andrew said that as far as art shows go, it's art show heaven. No booth fee (just the cut), he didn't have to bring his tent and wall panels (they provide a place to hang pics), it's only 7 hours a day, with a huge break, and they bring yummy food around to the artists! A far cry from Aspen, CO (pictured below) or pretty much any other art show...

The guy without the shirt offered to help Andrew, which was great because set up is torture, but then we realized he was probably looking for money in exchange...woops. Fresh out of money.

See those wooden crates Andrew's got on the cart? Well, inside are his pictures. I can't tell you how much we hate those crates. They are HEAVY (they actually broke the cart during that show), and they serve up splinters like you wouldn't believe. Try moving those around all over the place and opening them up (so many screws!) in time for the show. We were almost always the last ones set up, and the last ones to go home at the end of the show.

Loading up to go to Moab, May 2011

I didn't really blog about any of the art shows -- probably mostly because last summer was really hard/stressful. Below is our car, after the brakes failed on a steep hill...in Aspen...RIGHT as the art show began. That was one of the most depressing weeks we've ever spent. Luckily, Andrew's mom drove hours to rescue us and haul us and the trailer back to Utah. Otherwise, we might STILL be in Aspen.

The good news is -- we have a better way now. Because of the above, said accident, we had to buy a new car. We chose one that was better equipped to haul a trailer (for art shows) and that could get Andrew to better places to photograph. Sorry for the photograph, Andrew...this is one of the few pics that actually shows "Cliff" -- our 2001 Nissan Pathfinder. Kate named him -- the name seemed appropriate, as Andrew likes to take us up in the mountains a lot.

Here we are on West Mountain eating Cafe Rio -- just

enjoying a nice view before we noticed we were

surrounded by ridiculously large and scary spiders! EVERYWHERE!

This is another thing Cliff is useful for -- getting a higher/better perspective!

So the "better" way, now that we have Cliff, is to remove all the prints from the crates and put them ever so gently in the back of Cliff. Amazingly, they all fit! So that's what he did for the "Art and Soup" show. Didn't even have to get a trailer. Sweet.

A typical outdoor art show costs $400+ for a booth space, 5+ grueling hours to set up, and then it runs about 10-12 hours in the hot sun for multiple days with no way to get food or go to the bathroom except to leave your booth unattended (if no one is there to help). It's one of the most exhausting things I've experienced, and I didn't even have to be the one talking to people and selling to them all day. It's all very costly, and it causes stress knowing you have to sell so many prints to recoup your money -- not to mention trying to make a profit.

Andrew said the show in SLC this week is also better because the crowd is very different -- they're more educated art buyers. He said he didn't get any of the usual questions -- one of his favorites is, "Did you go to all these places?" After they knew he was the photographer! Hello! (This is asked by a lot of people!)

Plus, for some reason he is almost always set up next to the crazy of the art show -- the kind that, upon first meeting, proceeds to tell you how much they hate photographers... Nice to meet you, too...

It's his first full day at the show, and he's already sold a 30x40 "A Tangerine Blue." Yay!!

Anyway, as hard as the shows were/are, he learned a lot about what kind of photos people want to buy -- which is very useful information...and people loved his photographs and booth (he tried hard to make it different and feel as much like a gallery as he could) -- he was always the talk of the show, among artists and attendees. I was very proud of him.

Andrew at the Logan, UT show, 2011

The SLC show may be the only show he decides to do this year, as he is busy with other things and wants to get some different pictures before he does more. Plus he just got really burned out last year. It was SO much work. Andrew is one of the few people I know who takes work off, so he can go work some more. He's one of the hardest working people I've ever met. We're going to try to fit in an actual vacation this year!