Everyone Wins: The Shared Benefits of Commission Shows

Commission shows? Yes, please!

My friend Diane Venti at Alki Arts has a beautiful approach to doing business in the context of art that I call "generous math." Her philosophy is that everyone involved in a collaboration should get something out of it. Somehow, she seems not only to create that win for everyone involved but also creates something bigger in the process. I joke that she can make 1+1+1 equal four! 

With that generous math in mind and coming off a weekend where we got to write a nice commission check post-festival, I wanted to reflect on festivals collecting commission vs. the common model of big booth fees up front.

While many artists balk at art festivals and shows that take a percentage of sales, I am a fan of this model. Partly, it just feels good, but there are real business reasons too. 

We just finished up a great weekend at Art in the Park in Richland, WA, and made our commission check out to Allied Arts, which not only puts on the largest art festival in Eastern Washington, but also operates the Gallery at the Park, provides scholarships for local students pursuing the arts, and offers arts education including an outreach program serving youth in detention through "Beads Behind Bars." Next week we'll head to Coupeville, WA, where commission collected from artists benefits the community in the form of community grants and post-high school scholarships that include trades as well as college. I look forward to seeing the Coupeville Festival Association announce those investments every year! 

Commission shows, with their win-win-win model for organizers, artists and the community result in a shared stake in the success of the show and offer a lower risk as the booth fee is substantially lower. Here's how it works:

Successful commission-collecting festivals are invested in the success of the show. They understand that marketing and a great experience for art patrons are key to great sales for artists, which translates to more funds collected to support their mission.

Artists, who are in truth small business owners, must balance financial risk. Putting up a smaller booth fee knowing that we'll pay more in commission if the event is successful, is a lot less risky feeling than paying an enormous booth fee up front. It also makes it more accessible for new artists, which can increase the diversity of artists who apply. 

The third part of the equation is community involvement. In cities like Richland and Coupeville, we've heard time and again that these are events that the community values and looks forward to all year - and it shows in the enthusiasm that volunteers and art patrons bring when the festival opens!

What about that 1+1+1=4 math? Along with supporting investments in the communities we visit (and live in), we love the community-building evident in these events and the remarkable welcome that comes when the whole community comes out to support an event with volunteer hands, cheerful hearts, and enthusiastic support of artists and artisans. Add in the collaboration and leadership development amongst volunteers and you start to see an impact even beyond our local art communities.

Here's to generous math, building community, and creating something that is more than the sum of it's parts!