The 26th Annual Shadyside Arts Festival

The Shadyside Arts Festival is a long running Pittsburgh Art Fair and I used to go to it all the time when I was younger, so I was excited that this was the first year I was able to participate in it (and it was also the first art fair I’ve ever taken part in).

I had no tent and no walls to hang my art so I had to invest a lot in this one and do it all from scratch. I bought a nice looking EZ Up at Walmart and then proceeded to design and create my own walls from scratch (the usual panels that people often use are prohibitively expensive for someone who has never done this before and has no concept of potential sales revenue). I spent about 50-60 hours creating the walls and they turned out brilliantly.

I also had help from Josh and PGH Print Ship who takes care of my printing needs as he gave me advice and put me in touch with local artists who also do these things and were able to help me out.

The event itself was a huge success, it was a beautiful day and Howard Alan Events (who run the show) put on a great display and everything ran efficiently. I met a lot of great people, got a few compliments, sold some prints, and even sold the Monkey with a Red Balloon - my biggest sale to date! And it’s going to live forevermore in a beautiful home with someone who really loves it!