Sunday, November 25, 2012

I love your work..... thank you

 I love your work... thank you..... your work is so beautiful..... thank you...... I love your work..... thank you.... your work is so unique..... yes it is..... these are my favorite pieces in the show..... thank you..... I love your work..... thank you..... your work is beautiful.... thank you.....
and then a strange little woman walked into my booth here's how it went: I will refer to her as D.A. or dumbass, whichever you prefer

DA-"Is this an outhouse?"
 ( reference house photo on right as I tell you this story)
ME- noooooo
DA- "What's it for?"
ME- it is a completely unnecessary item to set around somewhere in your house to look at. ( I said this because I was about to smash her head)
DA-(as she picks this piece up by the door knob, reference photo #2, thank goodness the glue held)
 "why is it got this here doorknob on the top?"
ME- I have no idea
DA- "Is the key so you remember where you put it?"
ME- No, this piece is a metaphorical representation of my childhood memories growing up in my grandmother's house and the happy times I spent there, unlike the unhappy times I spent in my real house and this house makes me smile when I look at it, because it represents a gentle part of my childhood......
DA- "It looks like an outhouse"
ME- No it doesn't, please excuse me while I bash your head in


I can tell you that today was a better day than yesterday. I sold a small house and one star, grand total of $60, topping yesterday's total of $48.
Today me and the little white houses want to part ways and I never want to do another fucking craft show as long as I live. I may feel better after Christmas.

Thanks to all of the incredible artists that were at the CDCG, if not for you I would have run from the building screaming. You made me laugh a lot and kept me company and sympathized and you all brought amazing art for me to enjoy as I paced the floor. Thanks also to the very few that bought something, the ones that bought something last year and came by with a bright smile to tell me that you still love your barn, and all of you with your kind comments and zipped up wallets, I understand, really I do. I have no money either, because you didn't buy anything! Today I heard on the radio that 39 billion dollars has been spent in the past four shopping days, and I got $300 of that. As you know I don't do math, what is that, like one tenth of one hundreth of a millionth of a percent or something?

Nell Chandler, you are an amazing jeweler and God bless you for bringing me a Corona this afternoon! I am so glad you were in the booth beside me for this torture session, xoxo!!

I'm fine ya'll, really I am. The sun will be out tomorrow, I will unpack my car, set up my studio and get ready for round two. But after Christmas me and clay are in for a long separation while we work things out.

15 comments:

Susan Wells said...

Lord a mercy girl. I feel for ya. Thank goodness you've got Gerry, Wesley, your loom and heaps of forward movement. Onward! Tally ho! ho! ho!

imagine said...

Welcome to "gallery world" Tracey.
Just imagine having to put up with this crap everyday.


Then of course there is the gift shop two doors away that only sells mass produced crap but it has the word "GALLERY" hanging above its door, which leads to me being asked "why are your things SO expensive, when that other gallery is much cheaper"?

Trying to sell beauty to idiots is no fun at all, but thank god people like you still try to do it.
Because of course there are days when nice people
purchase something handmade and beautiful, simply because they can't live without it. Not because they have lots of money [which they usually don't have] but because they are moved by what they see.

So just focus your thoughts on the nice people, the others are just a waste of your time and energy and drain you of the will to live.

Dennis Allen said...

Every show I do makes me happy, mostly when they end.

Michèle Hastings said...

The studio tour will lift your spirits and you and your little white houses will make amends.

Lori Buff said...

My first thought was that DA has no imagination and cannot understand art that doesn't have a function. Then I imagined she'd walk into my booth and say "What's this for?"
"It's a coffee mug"
"Can you use it for tea? How about water?"

Forget her and move on to the studio tour.
Hugs.

Laura Farrow said...

it's ok to put clay to bed for a little while, or longer... so many other cool mediums to explore! whoop. whoop!! xo

Hollis Engley said...

I love John's quote that "trying to sell beauty to idiots is no fun at all." We should all have that on t-shirts ... or tattooed on our chests. Or somewhere ...
Believe me, Tracey, I completely understand. Which is why most of my craft show application deadlines will pass this year without me sending them in, along with the application money, the booth money ... also the f-ing town board permit money for which you get f-ing BUPKUS FROM THE TOWN!!!
But, of course, I'm over all of that.

Vicki said...

Oh, I shudder and am horrified that your beautiful, soulful work was treated so by that stupid woman!
She should stick to the mass produced aisles in Target.

Wash the "ill grease" from the last few days out of your hair and know that the studio tour will bring people who will truly appreciate what you do and the heart that goes into each and every piece.

Yes, the christmas holidays will be a restorative time to spend with the ones you love, and gentle meditative reflection on your wonderful new loom in your special sanctuary :)

Ron said...

Tracey, It was wonderful to see you this weekend and get to hear you rant and roll and smile and laugh. It was a tough show for me too. I have the post show blues today but it's the last one of the year for me thank goodness. I really did try and eat my booth fee in sushi during the gala but I decided it was pointless and I'd probably make myself sick in the process. If only they'd have had a liquor bar, we could have had done some damage. Okay, here's to a new week ahead.

Amy said...

the woman's comments say much about her- her lack of respect for starters. And you have more shows this calendar year? Hope you'll post when and where and I'll do my best to come meet you. this post reminds me just how hard it is to make pottery for a living because there are days when I want to do just that!

Sandy Miller said...

I am dragging my feet...... No make that my ass out the door to a four day show Thursday morning. Every show this year has been pretty much like the one you just experienced. I really like it when you drive 10 or thirteen hours to get there, set up and someone walks in your booth and asks if you make kits..... Excuse me? Kits?
Yeah, been a year and I think we all have the scar tissue to prove it.
Next year, garden, family time, chickens, studio sales...... Stay'n home!
Would be fun for us all to sit around the campfire with a beer like a bunch of old war horses, telling war stories :)

pincupottery said...

You are not alone, Tracey. Thank you for sharing. Your post said to me, "you are not alone, Elise." I am grateful.

Anonymous said...

hi tracey, good to hear some good ranting. it's funny how they both say ridiculous things and haphazardly paw the piece at the same time. i've got a sale this friday/sat which will probably have something similar happen. but you have to admit that that 108.00 will go a long way with the household bills. i was having lunch with friends this weekend and the woman eating with us starting asking specifics about the process and when i said that something took about 4 hours, she interrupted me and said "how much do you sell that for?" and i told her and as i continued on she interrupted me again and said... "wait a minute, the math just isn't adding up in my head. i told her that when you decide to be a potter, you have to try very hard not to figure out your hourly wage. and then there's those lime green coffee mugs at the grocery store for $1.00 apiece. so there's 1 dollar for that cup and 28 for a hand made one. oh well, starting to ramble.

smartcat said...

Years ago, when P. was still alive, a group of us used to get together and trade retail stories. One guy described it best when he said that there are perfectly nice people who lock their brains in the trunks of their cars before entering a shop.

the crazy questions never stop. one year we kept a record of them and at the end of the sale voted on the weirdest! Sometimes it takes a little cynical irony to muddle through.

smartcat said...

P.S. You'll have a happier time when people come to your studio.