Artists Attend Trade Shows!

Inquiring minds want to know, what is a trade show for artists like?

Surtex in NYC
"The SURTEX® exhibitor lineup includes textile designers, graphic artists,
illustrators, fine artists, art publishers, weavers, design studios, photographers,
licensing agents, document studios, educational institutions and more—all interested
in licensing or selling their art & design for product development."

There are as many types of trade shows as there are types of artists. I paint for home decor and fabric, so the two largest shows that benefit my career are Surtex in New York and the International Fabric and Quilt Market held in Houston, Texas in the fall.

There's a myriad of art, craft, scrapbooking, sewing, and other design trade shows throughout the country.

International Fabric and Quilt Market

The shows are for manufacturers, artists, designers, and buyers... from the little mom and pop shops to large chain stores. Since e-mail and file servers have taken the place of face-to-face communication, artists can work for years with a client and never meet them! The shows are a great place to finally talk with the people we have worked with, and some we hope to work with in the future.


International Quilt Market
Most shows have classes that you can attend for an extra fee.

Speaking of computers, Ipads have taken the place of portfolios. They are a wonderful tool to show numerous paintings and designs without carrying bulky cases.

Another benefit to these shows is to keep up with the latest trends and drool over all of the newest fabrics and home decor designs, not to mention the talent that is out there! Trends are predicted and set at these shows.

Pantone's color trend 2014
"Emerald Green" is the 2013 color of the year. It looks like blues will be big in 2014;
maybe Pantone's "Monaco Blue" will be the 2014 color?

Most of these larger shows don't allow the public. However, just type your particular area of interest into your computer search engine (such as "quilt show") and you will find many that are open to the public. It's just the thing to spur creativity!