Emerging Artisan and Art Walk Program
Purpose
The purpose of the Artisans Hand Emerging Artisan and Art Walk Program is to help artists early in their career expand on their art business skills, contributing to a more robust network of craftspeople in Vermont. Vermont is known for being incredibly creative. Artisans Hand aims to support emerging artists in maintaining Vermont’s reputation as a vibrant, creative state.
Art Walk is an event that provides artisans with the opportunity to meet other artisans, community members, and staff at Artisans Hand. We encourage applicants to use this event as a networking opportunity. Although selling work is always desirable, this event is more about building professional connections.
Why Apply?
Applying for the Artisans Hand Emerging Artisan and Art Walk Program offers you a chance to be one of our featured artists during Montpelier’s Art Walk. The event happens on the first Friday of every other month. Included is the opportunity to stock a small display at Artisans Hand for one month following Art Walk and benefit from our promotion of your work. This is a good opportunity for craftspeople early in their practice to gain exposure and experience selling in a gallery. There will also be opportunity to receive feedback during that month. Participating in Art Walk can make art accessible to more people, educate, and foster new relationships and connections. It can help to build an artisan’s support system and provide an opportunity for feedback and discussion of work. It can also be a great opportunity to promote new work or upcoming classes or events.
Terms
Must be 18 years old and a resident of Vermont.
Application is free and there is no fee to participate.
A consignment rate of 40% will apply to any sales made through the gallery. The Artisan will receive 60%.
How to Apply
Please send a short personal bio and description of your work along with pictures to ahmanager2@gmail.com. We would like to see at least five examples of your current work. Please also tell us how this opportunity relates to your long-term goals for your craft practice.
Who is this for?
Artists and craftspeople early in their career, or with an existing practice ready to expand their experience to selling work in galleries. We encourage you to be prepared to restock any work that sells.
We are open to any medium, although we do not accept one-of-a-kind, 2-dimensional work (i.e. original paintings, pastels, monoprints, etc.)
What we do to promote you
You will be mentioned in our email newsletter, event calendar listings throughout the state, print ad in The Bridge (if the timing works), social media posts (Instagram, Facebook, and Google), event calendar listing on our website, and we submit your information to the Center for Arts and Learning for the Art Walk Guide, which distributes to numerous locations in Montpelier prior to the event.
How to Promote Yourself
Mention the event in your newsletter if you have one, social media posts, and website/blog - but best of all is telling people first hand and inviting your personal contacts.
What do we look for?
We are looking for emerging artists that have enough completed work within their desired medium(s) to stock a small display for the time frame of one month. We seek high quality craftsmanship, originality of design, creative use of medium, compatibility with the work of other exhibitors, appropriate pricing for our area. We acknowledge that artists early in their careers may not meet all of these expectations. If this opportunity sparks your interest and you are ready to grow toward your goals, we encourage you to apply. If not accepted initially, we are happy to offer feedback and welcome you to reapply for future review.
If accepted to the program, we will provide the Emerging Artist Consignment Terms with more details. If your work shows promise, but does not seem compatible with the work of our other exhibitors and/or the expectations of our customer base, we will be happy to offer ideas for other galleries that might fit your style better.
Reach out with any questions
Please feel free to reach out with any questions: ahmanager2@gmail.com - we look forward to talking with you!