Friday – A prelude to a deluge
Clouds make for fantastic elements in photographs, but in this case, with rain on the forecast, I was not happy.
A growing art show, Liberty Arts Squared located in Liberty Missouri, is the subject of this update because it had the unfortunate bearing of being a show that had to deal with winds and rain showers that hit for about 1/3 of the show’s run time.
Many people out there have heard me talk in past updates about how one of the worst things to have to endure is the weather when you do outdoor shows. It becomes a combination study of attempting to be an engineer, a religious person, a scientist, part time inventor, and a gambler.
The engineer/scientist angles comes in for me because I don’t care what, when, how, or where, because of my backgrounds in scouts, reenactments, and being a survivalist enthusiast, if I have any part to play in making a structure, I want it to be waterproof, sturdy against wind and falling objects, and able to be left unattended if necessary without incident. Not all tents are created equal, and not all areas of setting one up play in one’s favor. In the world of street and park fairs, the more weights, tie downs, and perhaps gridwalls you can get attached to your tent frame, the more sturdy and defiant against the elements it will be. BUT, you have to figure the factors of that in fuel and travel cost, lugging all of that extra stuff to your tent’s 10×10 foot area, wherever that might be in the art fair lineup. Almost every artist you will talk to at an art fair has stories to tell, advice to give, and knows how fickle and odd weather can be. It’s amazing how you almost become a member of the Mythbusters when you try to eliminate all the bad possibilities.
I’m not the most religious man but you better believe that if it’s not an analysis of what wrongs you might have brought onto your neighbor that earned you that 90 mile an hour, hail laden storm front fresh from Mordor, then you quickly develop an idea that God may have a joke in store and you just might be the punchline. Over the years, I’ve gotten more used to the idea of having most everything I need to withstand storms or other things that mar an event experience, but I try to keep a good, clear, and positive approach to even the most daunting outlooks, especially with weather. And yeah, I might say a prayer. ;D Or two.
Now the inventor part comes in because in some artist’s experiences, trial and error lead to some tent and art display combinations that could give Fort Knox a run for it’s money. The best I’ve ever seen is actually a fellow with a wooden club house on a trailer sort of tent that he brings to his shows. It’s massive, almost obelisk like in it’s construction, made of wood, and portable. It’s literally the Trojan Horse at the door of Mother Nature’s castle.
But you know what? All of the above doesn’t amount to a hill of beans if you don’t possess one thing. A distinct love of gambling against the odds, no matter how variable they might be.
It was about 6pm on Friday at this point, and people were still out and about, but the sky was ever darkening.
When I speak to many people that attend outdoor art fairs, many believe that when rain is forecast, all the artists just pack up and go home. Friday by 9 o’ clock seemed to be very much the calm before the storm, and I know that everyone was hoping that the storm would just pass by, because no one wants to really throw in the towel, especially after all the effort of setting up.
Not all artists are local. Some have traveled in a ways, most rely on this as a means of partial if not whole income, and all of us dread a bad show, because of the time, monetary, and emotional investments that accompany each set up at a show.
Storms on the eve of dawn.
Driving in to Liberty the rain was darn near monsoon like. It’s a deep seated bit of dread on multiple levels for me, for any and every artist that sees unruly weather happening because 1) you know the show will have low attendance, 2) your tent might have flipped, blown open, crashed into another tent, caved in, or 3) something far worse than you can imagine has happened.
But the thing is that in 99% of weather outlooks, the show must still go on. It’s just one of the things you have to plan for, the best you can.
You can't tell from the photos, but rain was still a crazy fast drizzle at this point.
Thankfully, by the time I saw the first row of tents, it was just a steady downpour of rain, which most tents are designed to be able to handle.
If you have one of the basic pop up tents with no walls, the standard action is to just lower the tent down over whatever you left onsite.
Upon entering the tent, it’s become habit to first make sure there are no leaks, that all is in place and that the water is passing underneath and into the tent unimpeded (which sounds like an odd thing to say, but this is par for the course), and then check weight tie downs and zipper and velcro area for stress points. I was always glad as youth that I had learned many helpful knots in Boy Scouts, because believe me, if you don’t know any and plan on doing this for a living, it’s best to start learning now.
The tent that I use and favor is an eight seam caravan tent, which allows for a better and stronger pitch to the roof for rain run off. On the lower end pop up tents with just four seams, you’ll get heavy drop down accumulation pools of water on the top of the tent.
The walls are by ProPanel and have (upper left corner) adjustable height raised leg points that help with allowing water to pass through the tent which is a big plus on street fair grounds that are asphalt. (center image) The tent is a Caravan Pro tent, which is constructed of a durable steel and aluminum frame topped with a 500 Denier Polyester canopy which can withstand quite a lot of abuse and is fairly easy to repair when the need arises. (right image) These weights are made using quik-crete that is poured into a length of heavy pvc pipe with eye hole screws installed for attaching various straps and bungie cords to the tent itself.
I was not the least big surprised when I first got there to see one fellow that was actually part of the farmer's market out, not even caring one bit it that it was raining, as he smoked a cigarette and kept on selling.
Finally the rain abated, and the sun came out. With it, some gusty winds that made displays out in the open a bit of a challenge to keep standing, but it was worth it because the crowds finally came out almost immediately right after the rain left.
Aside from the varied artists in attendance at this show, there are a lot of interesting places to take in while walking around the Historic Liberty Square, including the Clay County Museum.
At more than a few of the shows, the chalk van often makes an appearance for kids of all ages to doodle on.
Clay County History Museum
As you all know, I am a sucker for any museums, because I never get tired of doing research for my many hobbies and stories I work on. I actually didn’t think that the Clay County Museum would be filled with much, but boy was I in for a surprise. What follows are just some of the really cool things you can see at this museum. The collection is really varied and so eclectic in nature, but that was the big draw for me.
The items on display range from this impressive Spanish cannon...
to a Boy Scout uniform and Civil War regalia. Arrowheads to evening gowns,...
to fantastic, steampunk reference worthy, turn of the century technology.
It almost seemed that a whole other building could have been outfitted with the layers of items that were on hand to display.
I hope this small write up gives a bit of a glimpse into some of the things that go on behind the scenes at just one art show, of which, in many parts of the country, plays out over and over. It costs money to do shows, from being juried in, to paying for one’s booth or tent fee, to just getting out to the site (travel expenses, food, repairs, etc.).
At the end of every art show, there is always an almost frenzied sort of run to get transport vehicles and trailers as close as possible to where you had your tent set up, just for ease of packing up.
So until next time, support your local artists, be kind to your fellow beings, and I’ll see you next time! – Mario, the Artisan Rogue