Exhibitors/Demonstrators Chair

What is the Purpose

The Exhibitors Chair is responsible for the process that invites, judges, and selects the Indian artists who will be the exhibitors and demonstrators at the Guild’s annual Indian Fair & Market.

Who is Involved

The Exhibitors Chair is appointed by the Indian Fair & Market Chair. The Exhibitor then selects a co-chair or shadow. Because there are between 750 and 900 hours of work involved, The Exhibitor Chair must have a co-chair or shadow who will take over the Chair position the following year. The Chair also selects an Area Chair to supervise the set up and monitoring of the demonstrator an non-profit booths during the Fair. In addition, a committee of experienced volunteers is selected to assist during the Fair.

What are the Tasks

Prepare and submit a line item budget to the Chair of the Indian Fair & Market.

Prepare and mail invitations and applications to the artists using the previous year’s mailing list.

Artists who won ribbons at the previous Fair are invited to the next Fair.
Artists recommended by the Museum Curators or Shop staff may be invited.
Other artists are asked to submit applications with images (photos, slides, CD’s) of their artwork to be judged.
A $50 late fee is imposed if applications are not received by an established deadline. • The returned applications are used to update the mailing list.

Update the mailing list and the files that are kept on each artist.

Materials in the artists’ folders are updated as new material is received from the artists.
Materials removed from the files are given to the library.
Files are classified by artistic category, i.e., jewelry, pottery, baskets, weaving, etc.
Images are grouped into media for showing to judges, i.e., slide projector, power point.

Recruit panels of judges to evaluate and score the artwork in the submitted images.

Eight artistic categories are judged.
Professional artists, collectors, gallery owners, and curators are used as judges.
Three judges are recruited for each category (should include Museum staff members).

Select those allowed to exhibit at the Fair based upon the judges scores.

Artists with the highest scores in each category will be invited to exhibit.
Artists with the medium scores are placed on a wait list.
Artists with the lower scores are rejected.
To achieve a balanced representation of all the artistic categories, score selection levels vary by category. For example, because there are a large number of jewelry entries, it takes a higher score to be juried in. Because there are a small number of basket entries, a lower score can qualify.

Send second mailing to all applicants notifying them of the judging results.

Artists invited to exhibit will be sent a contract to sign.
Artists on the wait list and those rejected are advised of their status.

Select demonstrators.

Demonstrators are selected by the Exhibitor Chair.
Selection is a judgment call based upon past experience or the artist’s reputation.
Because of limited space, only 15-20 artists are asked to demonstrate.
An artist may demonstrate for only two years (any exceptions are determined by the Exhibitor Chair).
(Note: The Exhibitor Chair selects an Area Chair to handle the demonstrator and non-profit booths. The Area Chair sets up the demonstrator exhibit area on Saturday morning, provides them with their information packets, and assists them with any issues during the Fair.)

Receive the contracts and fees from the selected exhibitors.

If the artist requests a 6' x 6' booth, the fee is $300.00.
If the artist requests a 10' x 10' booth, the fee is $500.00.
If the booth is shared with other artists, there is a $50.00 charge for each added artist.
A $50 late fee is imposed if contracts are not received by an established deadline.
If the contract is not received or returned extremely late, the booth will be awarded to an artist on the wait list. The original exhibitor moves to the wait list.

Respond to the many phone queries from artists seeking information and/or explanations.

Submit monies received to the Guild Treasurer for deposit.

Record, in the computer Access program, the transaction status of each artist, i.e, application received, contract received, booth size, shared booth, fees received, etc.

Assign exhibitors to booths.

Send third mailing telling exhibitors their booth placement, a map showing booth location, licensing information from the City of Phoenix, juried competition information, drink tickets, etc.

Select a committee of volunteers to assist during the Fair.

Attend the General Fair meetings with Division and Area Chairs.

Provide a list of exhibitors and their tent locations to the Guild web master for placement on the Guild website and to the Museum’s Director of Marketing for the preparation of the printed program.

Consult with Fair Chair, Staging Chair, and Signage Chair about booth location and signs.

Confirm volunteers commitment and verify their schedules.

Submit the list of volunteers to the Volunteer Placement Chair for badges to be made.

Prepare information packets to be taped to the artists’ tables.

Set up the Exhibitor booth on Friday prior to the Fair and clean out the booth at the end of the Fair on Sunday.

Oversee the team of volunteers as the check in artists, tape information packets to tables, monitor booths, etc. during the Fair.

Submit expense vouchers (with receipts) to the Guild Treasurer for payment.

Acknowledge, by thank you notes or other means, appreciation for the work done by the volunteers.

Prepare and submit four copies of the annual Exhibitors Chair Report to the Indian Fair & Market Chair using the Sample Committee Report Format as a guide. These reports will be distributed to the incoming Indian Fair & Market Chair; Exhibitor Chair; and President. One copy will be filed in the Museum’s Library and Archives.

What is the Suggested Time Line

April

Meet with the curators to determine the list of invited artists.

May

Prepare the invitation and application mailing.

May/June

Mail the invitations and applications.
Begin recruiting judges.

June/August

Update the mailing list.
Organize and update artists’ files.
Prepare artwork images for judging.
Prepare and submit line item budget to Indian Fair & Market Chair.

September

Judge the artwork.
Select artists based on judges scores.

October

Send second mailing with judges results and contracts.
Begin inviting demonstrators.

October through December

Receive contracts and fees.
Respond to phone queries.
Assign booths.

November

Attend the General Fair meeting.
Select committee of volunteers.

January

Attend the General Fair meeting
Provide list of exhibitors and locations to the Guild web master for placement on the Guild website.

February

Consult with Fair Chair, Staging Chair, Signage Chair about booth and sign needs.
Confirm volunteers commitment and verify their schedules.
Submit list of volunteers to the Volunteer Placement Chair for badges to be made.
Prepare information packets to be taped to artists’ tables.

March

Provide list of exhibitors and locations to the Museum’s Director of Marketing for preparation of the printed program.
Provide the following additional lists:

alphabetical list of artists, by categories, for the website.
list of artists, by categories, for the printing program.
alphabetical list of artists, by categories, for Juried Competition.
alphabetical list of artists, by categories, for the Help Desk.
alphabetical list of artists for the Monitors Report.
alphabetical list of artists, by categories, for artist check in at Best of Show.
alphabetical list of artists, by categories, (larger spacing) for early morning check in.
complete list of artists that are accepted, wait-listed, or not accepted for use on Fair days.
send list of artists and their addresses to AZ State Gov.(e-mail) when requested.
send list of artists and their addresses to City of Phoenix (e-mail) when requested.

Set up booth.
Oversee volunteer activities at the Fair.
Submit expense vouchers to the Guild Treasurer.
Thank the volunteers.
Prepare and submit a written report to the Indian Fair & Market Chair.