Booth Artisan Guidelines

Our 2024 Guidelines:

Welcome
Thank you for your interest in the 2024 Anacortes Arts Festival (AAF). AAF is a non-profit organization that promotes and funds arts, artists and art education to create a vibrant arts community. The Festival is in its 63rd year, typically hosts more than 230 artisans, averages around 80,000 visitors and produces a highly acclaimed fine art show.

Location
For information about Anacortes and getting to the Festival, see Information. Anacortes is located on breathtaking Fidalgo Island at the front of the San Juan Islands, in Northwest Washington. As a beautiful Puget Sound destination, the Anacortes community graciously hosts events throughout the year and the Festival is the largest of those events. There is a dynamic art community in this small town and the support of the Festival is evident with the more than 250 volunteers, who donate their gift of time to make our guests and booth artisans feel welcome. Last year, our total booth artisan sales were more than $1.5 million over the course of the three days.

Anacortes is known for its warm, small-town hospitality, and we work hard to maintain a supportive environment for artists. This exciting Festival is a free event to the public and includes three stages of free entertainment daily, a beer garden, a wine bar and a youth area which is dedicated space for kids and family activities.

The Anacortes Arts Festival is committed to inclusion of people of all races, ethnicities, abilities, gender identities, and sexual orientation. The Festival believes that art should be accessible to everyone and representative of all.

Application Process
All applications for the 2024 Anacortes Arts Festival are to be completed through Eventeny.  Applications for the 2024 Festival will be open January 9 through March 7.

There is a $35 application fee. During the online application process, you will be required to submit five photographs, four of your product and one booth image. It is important that you submit photos which show the full range of products represented in your booth; some high and low price points included. Your works are evaluated by a jury for originality, quality, and marketability. Therefore, high quality, clear photographic representations can determine if you are accepted into our show. Booth photo is a key part of the jury process and weighed equally with the images of your work.

*Commercial agents, dealers, or manufacturers are not eligible to apply.

The festival selects new jurors each year to allow for all artists, both new and returning, to have a fair review process. Each application will be digitally reviewed by a panel of four paid art professionals, including two peer booth artisans, at least one working artist, and other professionals who are experts in the field of fine art and craft. Our process allows jurors to reflect on choosing a balance of artists that they believe will do well with our patrons, thus ensuring a more successful experience for our booth artisans at the Anacortes Arts Festival.

Categories
Ceramics – Clay and porcelain work, other than jewelry
Crafts for the Senses – Handmade candles, soap, and music
Fiber – All work crafted from fibers including basketry & embroidery (non wearables)
Food – All handmade edible food products
Glass – Art using glass as primary medium; except jewelry or garden art
Jewelry – All jewelry regardless of materials used
Metal, Sculpture, Garden Art – All metal work, sculpture, and garden art including mixed media garden art
Painting, Drawing, 2D Mixed Media – All 2D art except Photography
Photography – Art made from original negatives or from digital images
Wearables, Leather – All wearables and leather products including clothes, scarves, hats, bags, belts, shoes
Wood, Gourds, Furniture – All Furniture; art using wood as primary medium, including musical instruments

*We will accept and evaluate only one Category of Primary Media per application. If you would like to be evaluated under multiple categories, you will need to provide multiple applications.

Applicant Notification
Booth Artisan notifications will be made via email on March 28, 2024. You will not receive a physical letter, so please check your Eventeny account (emails can sometimes get caught in junk mail folders) on the notification date shown above.

Fees and Commission
Booth fees are $375 for each 10′ x 10′ space plus 10% of all sales, including pre-orders taken at the Festival. Commission due at the close of the Festival on August 4 from 5-8pm. Booth Fees for accepted Booth Artisans due by April 25, 2024. No refunds on booth fees after May 16, 2024 and we apologize in advance that we cannot make exceptions to this policy. Refunds are minus credit card fees when applicable.

Should government mandated restrictions on mass gatherings put forth by the city, county, state or federal government agencies or any safety concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic, result in the cancellation of an in-person event, all booth fees (minus credit card fees when applicable) will be refundable.

Booth Fees to be collected after artist notification on March 28, 2024 through April 25, 2024. Payment can be made via credit card on Eventeny or by mailing a check to our office at 505 'O' Avenue, Anacortes, WA, 98221.

A limited number of double booths are available and requests will be considered on a case by case basis. Please call the office upon acceptance if you would like to request a double booth. Decisions will be made based on available space, previous sales, medium, booth display and special needs.

Waitlist Policy
AAF does not assign a Wait List number to artists. We do however, maintain a Wait List of high jury-scoring booth artisans and continue to extend invitations all the way until the day before festival set-up. If a booth becomes available, an artisan from the Wait List will be selected based on jury score, medium, booth size and set-up needs. Artists will be contacted as soon as possible when space becomes available.

Refund Policy
There are no refunds on booth fees after May 16, 2024. We apologize in advance that we cannot make exceptions to this policy. All refunds will be minus credit card fees when applicable.

COVID-19
Should government mandated restrictions on mass gatherings put forth by the city, county, state or federal government agencies or any safety concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic, result in the cancellation of an in-person event, all booth fees (minus credit card fees when applicable) will be refundable.

Booth Assignment
Booth location assignments are made at the discretion of the Director and every effort is made to satisfy the artists’ request. Booth spaces are assigned in the following order of priority.
1) AAF award winners and pre-invited artists
2) Returning AAF artists wanting similar/close to same space as 2023
3) Returning AAF artists from 2023 wanting to move
4) New and returning artists that did not show in the 2023 AAF
5) Artists admitted off of the wait list
* Artists whose payments are late will lose priority

Awards & Artist Amenities
Booth Vendor Awards – A total of $2 ,000 in awards will be given for:
1. Best of Show $1,000
2. Creativity Award $500
3. Fine Art Award $500
Award winners will be notified late in the day on Friday. Their names will be announced Saturday morning, then posted to our website and on a sign located in the Information Booth at 5th & Commercial. Award jurors are a different group of individuals from the booth artisan selection jury.

Lunch – AAF provides a box lunch to each booth vendor on Friday of the Festival.  This is a complimentary service. Lunch will be delivered by volunteers to your booth.
 
If you would like to order an additional lunch for booth assistants, they can be purchased in advance for $12 each, and will be delivered to your booth along with your free artist lunch on Friday. Lunch for Saturday and Sunday can be purchased in advance to be delivered to your booth for the same cost. Meal will be a fixed item each day.

Please contact us at the Festival office before July 16th to make these purchases. Additional lunches must be paid in advance. Unfortunately, we will not be able to process any additional lunch purchases after this date as they are supplied by a third party.

Coffee Service – Each morning prior to opening, complimentary coffee service will come through the Festival to serve our artisans.

Booth Sitters – Volunteers will provide up to two 15 minute breaks each day of the festival. A booth sitter will stop by a few times a day starting after 11am. (We do not have a specific time sign-up.)

Block Ambassador – An AAF Board Member/Key Volunteer will be assigned to each block of artisans to help answer questions and provide service throughout the weekend, should you need assistance.

Restrooms – Port-a-Potties can be found on side streets throughout the Festival and a unit intended for booth artisans and volunteers is located behind the Arts Festival Office.

Canopies, Tables & Chairs – These items to be supplied by booth artisans or can be rented through Diamond Rentals 360-679-6626 or Pacific Party Canopies at 360-707-2115.

Accommodations – Local hotels, motels and RV parks sell out early for Festival weekend. Please visit Anacortes.org for more information on where to stay and plan ahead.

Tax Reporting
Collection and reporting of Washington State Sales Tax are your responsibility. UBI (tax identification) is required by Washington State. If your business is located out of state, you can obtain a temporary tax ID number. Booth Fees cannot be accepted without a UBI number. For more information, call 800-647-7706 or visit the web site.

A temporary WA State tax ID number can be issued, but is only good for two shows within the state per year. If you intend to do more than two shows, you will need to apply for a standard WA state UBI number.

Insurance
The Anacortes Arts Festival expects booth artisans to carry their own insurance in the amount of $1,000,000. You do not need to send us a copy of your policy. AAF, its employees, volunteers, directors, security or insurance company are not financially liable for losses or damages of any kind. Booth artisans should make arrangements with their own insurance companies for proper coverage. AAF will not be held responsible for any theft or damage to artists work or other personal property.

Food Products Category
Food categories must obtain necessary food/food handling permits through the WSDA, USDA, FDA or the Skagit County Health Department. We must have a copy of your license before you can set up. For complete information contact www.skagitcounty.net/health or call (360) 336-9380 ext 1548. If you offer food sampling in your booth, please fill out the sampling permit form with the Skagit County Health Department.

Festival Hours
Thursday, August 3       6:00pm – 9:00pm Set-up
Friday, August 4            10:00am – 6:00pm Festival
Saturday, August 5        10:00am – 6:00pm Festival
Sunday, August 6          10:00am- 5:00pm Festival

Commission 
Our commission format is 10% of all sales, including pre-orders taken at the Festival. You can use daily tally sheet totals, or we will also allow the use of square or cash registers for recording sales. Commissions are due at the close of the Festival, August 4 between 5pm and 8pm.  It is expected that booth artisans accurately report their commission and any known violations may result in future exclusion from the Festival.

Booth Appearance
Your booth must be designed to withstand wind and inclement weather. Exhibitors should maintain sufficient quantities of merchandise throughout the weekend. All booth spaces should be covered by a canopy. 

Booth Artists will be assigned a location and cannot extend beyond their assigned footprint. We understand that many artists like to flow into any unoccupied space, but the spaces left open throughout the Festival are for pedestrian traffic and businesses on the street. Artists may not extend into crosswalks at any time.

 All booths will be viewed during the weekend to ensure that screening standards have been upheld. Sorry, no pets are allowed. Please do not bring animals.

Exhibited Artwork
Only approved artists and the artistic style that you submit in your application may be displayed at the Festival. Work in your booth must be consistent with the images submitted and no work outside of your identified category will be allowed. Booth should be consistent with the image that was submitted in application.

Work displayed must be the original design of the exhibiting artist. An artist may not sell or exhibit work of another artist. The Anacortes Arts Festival strives to provide quality artisan work at a variety of price points that appeal to all of our festival goers.

Security
The Festival maintains good security; however, we are not responsible for loss or damage. We hire security to walk the Festival grounds on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights and early morning hours. Due to the Festival size and open public access, we recommend removing your product from your booth each evening. 

As we all know, crime can happen anywhere, even in a small town such as Anacortes. We ask that all booth artists be vigilant with their product as well as money and personal effects. It is important that we do not set ourselves up for crimes of opportunity to take place. If you have concerns about someone in your area who looks out of place, please contact the office for assistance. If you have concerns about your physical safety or the safety of others, please call 911. 

If a booth artisan would like to hire their own private security, the Festival office has a list of recommended vendors we can provide.

Inclement Weather
AAF is a “rain or shine” event. Booth Artisans agree to be available during Festival hours, regardless of weather. In preparation for possible inclement weather, AAF suggests that all canopies are secured with a minimum of 40 pounds of weight on each corner. Although August typically has nice weather, being prepared for any type of condition is important in the Northwest.