Dispatches from Elsewhere
Thoughts and feelings from midwayish* through our season
*Hopefully we’re not actually midway through our 2026 season. We may have a couple more to tack onto our schedule, but the jury is literally still out on that one.
We’re four shows deep and the consensus is… yeah, it’s rough out there. I mean for almost everyone, artists and art patrons alike. But we all know this, so why rehash it? A musician I follow just sent out a newsletter brimming with optimism:
People are fucking awesome in general. When I go out in the world, it’s easy to see this. People are generous. They’re hilarious. They’re beautiful to be around. Everyone just wants to have a good time, hug somebody, have a bbq and a cocktail in the sun. — Brett Newski
Despite a gnarly case of global existential dread, that right there is the real truth. When sales are down, gas prices are up, morale is jittery, and tomorrow is never promised, the folks we see at our shows are always the lift we need to get through these deeper ebbs.
And hopefully we can do our own part to pay if forward. While we made our way through the DFW area for a couple Texas festivals, we cheered on two solo acts and two bands (shoutout: Blake Robert, John Hames, Brit Stop, and Driveway Dive where I may or may not have moshed to their cover of Rage’s “Killing in the Name”). Art fest travel can be grueling at times, so listening to good tunes and dancing off the demons gave us a good dose of bliss.
Anyway, if you’re new here and you’ve stopped inside our humble 10x10 tent, even if you couldn’t purchase something, you’ve got our sincerest gratitude! We’ll get through this thing one way or another.
The Good Things
1. Printer-gate is finally over.
If you’re just joining us, since Thanksgiving of last year, we’ve set up and tested not one, not two, not three, but seven different printers in every attempt to find one that works. It was a long, long road, but as of this past Tuesday, the madness is finally over. The good people of Canon (lookin’ at you, Cheryl!) acknowledged the hellscape and went above and beyond to make things right. In even better news, the less expensive Canon pro printer is what ended up working. A silver lining in this co$tly world we’re living in!
2. 100 Years of Route 66
In between shows, we’re working on a special, limited edition idea to commemorate the Route 66 Centennial in our own little way. Watch this space for progress, but here’s your hint:
3. Another big milestone
This summer also marks our own 15th anniversary doing art shows (not counting the minor hiccup that was 2020). In 2011, we decided to build our own booth out of pegboard and PVC pipes and give this art fair thing a go. (Truth be told, the smell of Home Depot still reminds me of building that thing.) Our very first show was a single Sunday in a Kenosha WI park:
We sold everything from the night photography you know and love to Holga shots of Googie signs and screen-printed tshirts of Polaroid cameras. It was all very hipster, birth-of-Instagram, early twenty-tweens. We made $366 and spent a healthy portion of it celebrating with Long Islands at the Boat House. In today’s dollars and tumultuous economy, $366 for a single day at an art fair is a windfall! We’ve done worse, kids!
The following month, we did our second show at the Mitchell Park Domes in Milwaukee. We threw some black paint on the pegboard to complement our PVC-pipe monstrosity that took three hours to put together. Those shutters really tied the room together.
We’ve come a very long way since those pegboard days. But 15 years really isn’t all that long. Our friends have children older than that! But a small business nowadays (especially an art business!)… man, to keep that going during the turmoil we’ve faced since 2011? We really do have to pause a minute and acknowledge all those sunbaked days and highway miles. Stay tuned for a more official, virtual celebration later this summer. If you don’t pause to pat yourself on the back and celebrate with the folks who supported you through it… especially when times are tough… what’s this all for?
Until then, here’s a question for you:
Whether you’re an artist or artisan yourself, or you’ve simply stopped by an art festival for an inspirational feast for the senses, what’s your biggest “Good Thing” of the year so far? Comment over at Substack or just hit “reply” and let us know. We need all the goodness we can get!