RAW Artists: The First Exhibition of many.
March 2019, several months after visiting New York City, the motivation and momentum running strong.
I planned on transferring from MassArt to Parsons. I felt as if MassArt was holding me back and not fulfilling my needs. I missed New York everyday and the acceptance to be who you are unapologetically. I missed it so much that I went to Parsons to meet with the head illustration department to show off my portfolio. To improve my portfolio by April 1st in order to be accepted into the fall semester. I didn’t have a lot of support in my endeavors to live in New York. But after some rationalizations, I came to the conclusion that it may not be the right time for me to be doing something so financially drastic. To this day, I am glad I had come to that conclusion, aware, though disappointed. There is a time and place for all dreams a person has residing within themselves. It is only a matter of time.
Coming to that decision was a hard pill to swallow, however a new door of opportunity opened before me. Casually scrolling through FaceBook on a Sunday in early March, I ran across an Ad called RAW Artists. They were having an art show in Malden Massachusetts in April and looking for vendors. Not much to lose, I applied to put myself out there and say that I tried. Not even a day later, I received an email notifying me that I was accepted amongst 50 other artists from all different backgrounds and talent levels.
If you’re not familiar with RAW Artists, It is an independent organization for artists by artists. To give creators tools, exposure to thrive and to showcase their works for hundreds to see. As an artist that fully went through with this and gathered my own experiences with the agency, it is not for everyone. There is a catch, all artists need to sell about 20 tickets that are priced at $15-20 each. This is to pay for your 6x6 spot crammed next to other artists. If you can’t sell them, then you have to buy all tickets yourself, and not everyone has the means for it, which can make artists discouraged and feel like they were sold short of their achievements. As mentioned, it is not for everyone, but nonetheless, still an experience. I am grateful I was able to sell tickets supported by friends and family. Would I do it again, no, but I am still grateful for the experience provided and the friends that I made.
Getting accepted on March 6th, I had about 5-6 weeks to create a plethora of new materials to showcase and make revenue.
I decided to create the following before the show in April:
2 hand painted jackets
1 pair of hand-painted jeans
Custom acrylic on wood pieces
Prints ranging in 5x7 and 8x10 size
one 18x24 original skeleton piece
and stickers.
April 2019. My RAW Artists vendor table set up.
As April came, I hit grind mode, on top of staying caught up in all my 5 studio/elective courses. It was not easy with obstacles of being scolded for not completing assignments in the proper order that professors preferred. One professor thought me having an art show was an “excuse” to not get things done on time, while others were happy and rooting for my success. I just had to roll with the punches at the end of the day. April 18, 2019, I had went to my first morning class, skipped my night class, but my professor still counted me present, saying; “you weren’t skipping, you were doing something passionate and for your future”. I wish there were more professors like her around because that is the type of attitude students need in order to believe in themselves to succeed.
When setting up, you were provided with your own grid, but bring your own table, lights, hangers, pins, needles, business cards, and any other means to make your visuals eye-catching. We had about 2-3 hours to set up, which, sounded like a lot of time, but it went by quickly. One issue I came across were some materials couldn’t be supported by pins and needed extra support. The other vendors around me were selfless and asked if I needed their assistance in setting up visuals. When we had a moment of downtime before doors opened, we all asked one another about our dreams, experiences, and mediums as artists. Passing our business cards around to keep in contact for networking opportunities. I was so excited but so nervous at the same time, I put in the effort, now let’s see the results unfold.
At 6pm, the exhibition is initiated. People began to flood the empty floors and we all soon realized, there was little to no space to move around and we were all packed up like sardines. That was probably my only complaint of the entire show since I ended up getting very sick afterwards. But the ending results of the night were spectacular. I had friends, family come out to show their support. Some of my friends stayed by me to help pass out business cards and even buy some of my art. A lot of my pieces were bought right before my eyes and by 11pm, the show ended and we all took a group photo to mark the end of a great night.
While taking down my set up, I began to reflect all things that went successfully and what needed improvement. Some things that were successful were the custom hand painted materials, the wooden customs, stickers were sold out and botanical pieces. Some things that needed improvement on were my business card designs and creating my own banner to indicate what my product and services provided as a creator.
Feeling whole after a wonderful night and first out of many events, I became inspired. I hoped to apply for other art shows in the near future. The next show ahead, StART on the Street in Worcester MA, the city next to my hometown.
