The Gallery is being run as a co-op of Orange County Fine Arts Association (OCFA) and is open only to members of OCFA. Laguna Beach is pricey real estate. Gallery fees are what pay for the rent and utilities. The 25% is what will pay for future publicity and the OCFA scholarship program for high school art students. OCFA is completely non-profit. Standard gallery fee in Laguna (provided you can even get in...) are 50% of sales, and you're out ASAP if you don't produce.
The person who is pulling out has been a member of OCFA for 10 years, and she couldn't get her deposit back when she left before her one-year contract. As a new member, I couldn't expect to negotiate a better deal than anyone.
From time to time, people ask me about hostess parties, but no one ever comes through. Restaurants don't have that kind of free space. I've contacted office buildings et al and no one wants to do/allow anything. And my goal is to have LESS shlepping, not more. I've already done the rinky dink bazaars and PTA sales, and it's not worth my time.
I live in a suburban cul-de-sac with very limited parking. No one drives by except my next-door-neighbors. Homeowners' association would have a royal sh** fit if it seemed that I was using the house for commercial purposes. We can't even have more than 4 garage sales per year (per house) -- not that I'd want to.
I gave beading lessons at the library and sold a fair amount of supplies, but that's not my end-goal. However, I passed the word among my supply customers at Hollywood that they should talk to their local libraries and community centers to sponsor me. We'll see. With the economy being hard, they might not even be able to afford my fees.
When I used the word POTENTIAL about this gallery -- it's the old saw, "location, location, location." Laguna Beach is considered prime location for artists. Tourists come to this town because of its reputation as an art center. Do I expect fame and fortune? Hardly. But I think that success in this gallery would open up other doors -- NOT doors where I'd have to dolly 500 lbs. on 17 trips from the parking lot.
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