Tuesday, December 14, 2004

YOU'RE TOO KIND...

This is an especially unkind sketch of a woman who was overheard making several idiotic comments at the artists' market this past weekend. I had never tried to sell anything at a group market type setting like this so I was a little apprehensive about the whole experience to begin with. What I was totally unprepared for were some of the comments that were being made by some of the people browsing at the market. This woman was by far the worst. By the look of her, she was in her late forties--but desperate to look twenty-two. If that weren't sad enough, she was dressed in this outfit that would have looked strange on a transvestite. Her make-up was ghoulish as was her hair which had been teased and dyed and God-knows-what-else so that it had the appearance of having been glued in clumps to her skull. In addition, she had her large-ish feet stuffed into tall leather boots with five-inch heels. This made her walk like a stroke victim or someone with palsy of the lower extremities. She and her toadies loped from booth to booth while she dissed everything in site. She was pretty kind to me actually. While looking at my work, she managed a lipstick-smeared sneer--which was far better than she gave anyone else. As she left, and without ever once looking me in the face, she hissed through her collagen plumped lips this one, solitary word: "Cute."

The market was fun although I only sold two small pieces. The promotional cards I had with me, however, were quickly snatched up. I also had a couple of inquiries about commissions--one about a caricature of the family dog. The kids were the ones that really responded to my work, which was really the best compliment I could have recieved.

1 comment:

Ward Jenkins said...

That's so funny about that woman. It's funny and it's not. There should be some sort of "artistic bouncer" at these markets. Nobody without an inkling of artistic merit should be allowed in. Sorry about the lack of sales, but at least you did it. Andrea has learned so much from doing markets like that one and seeing what sells and what does not. Knowing your audience is a key element. It's important, yet very elusive at times. You never know until you do it. Best of luck on your potentials.