Wednesday, July'2-0, 1977.

MCHIGAN DAILY

Page Nine',


TWednesd....y. uys0 97 ,.HIA AIYPgeNn

Ghosts of glitter kitties
prewe Fair memories
By JEFFREY SELBST
Everything looks better from a disance. Now,
istt't that smg? Isn't that portentous? Isn't that
true?
Everything does lok beter from a distance,
and these and other sucth tres philosophical
throoghts flitted throbgt y mind the other day
as I contemplated last year's Art Fair. I thought
about what a sonderful time I had (which. in-
cidentally, is nt)t true) and about all the beatitiful
objects d'art I encountered on one of many
oll throagh our little town that week.
But this is hogwash. The sad fact of the Art
Fair was that eighty-eight per cent of it was
first-class, a-one, bonafide tripe.
Perhaps this sounds like a harsh judgement.
Perhaps it is. Come with me, then, if you will, as
we take a trip down (no, I won't say it--oh, God
help me I must-Memory Lane. Let us relive the
fair.
I started my investigations on Maynard Street
(since that is the closest to the Daily). Beneath
the benign cover of the parking structure behind
Jacobson's, the Fair began. Such as it was. The
first sight that greeted my eyes was velvet. Black
velvet. Little cute kitties and great big ships paint-
ed with this old-based mixture of slick and annoy-
ing texture onto black velvet stretched across
canvas board.
I leaned over the rack to where stood a woman
who managed that stall. She was a potato-like
creature, scooped into some sort of flour sack
dress; the fat hung in ripply waves on her thick
arms.
"How much," I inquired mildly, "is this ador-
able portrait?"
"Big ones ninety, little ones sixty-five," she
grunted without moving from her chair. "Glitter
glue extra." She was referring to the sparkly stuff
that is squeezed out of a tube.
"How-how much extra?" I really didn't care
to know.
"Depends on the pitcher," she said.
"The pitcher?" I asked, peering at her over my
glasses.
"That's right," she maintained stoutly (little
pun there), "it's always more on the pitchers of
the kitties." Her polyester sleeveless blouse was
sticking to her stomach rolls as she spoke. A very
warm day, it was,
"Well, this is a kitty picture," I returned,
"Let me see," she said. "Is it the one of the two
kitties playing with the ball of yarn? No? Well-
here, hold it up so I can see. Then I'll tell you."
"Never mind," I said. "I'm -____M___"____
sure someone else-"
"No, no!" she protested hotly.
"My kitties are top quality! Just
le me get out of this chair and
See MEORY, aN il2

Artists are offering a multitude of works at this summer's fai rincluding macrame hangings,
paintings, wall plaques and glass work shown he re.
Fair perks Up local business

By SUE WARNER
As artists a r r i v e in town
anxious to sell well-to-do cus-
tomers by their original pieces,
area businessmen are also hop-
ing to clean up during the
booming.Art Fair trade.
"The Art Fair is a terrific
boon for merchants, also hotels
and restaurants," commented
Jim Frenza, President of the
Ann Arbor Chamber of Com-
merce. "All the merchants look
forward to it."
During the Art Fair local busi-
ness establishments s p o n s o r
"Bargain Days," an event which
runs concurrently with the fair.
Merchants display sale items

throughout their stores and also
outside at sidewalk sales.
According to Frenza, the Art
Fair was originally brought in
to promote Bargain Days about
18 years ago. "Of course now
it's the other way around," he
says.
The obvious advantage of the
Art Fair for local business is
the tremendous influx of arts
and crafts shoppers who will
hopefully meander from artists
booths into city shops.
However, increased Art Fair
business also offers other pleas-
ant side effects for local mer-
chants.
"We're very busy during the
Art Fair," said Cynthia Shevel,

owner of Middle Earth on South
University. "But, people from
out-of-town will come in, like
the store, and come back at
Christmas time. We gain a lot
of new customers during the
Art Fair."
Ann Arbor hotels seem to en-
joy the most lucrative Art Fair
business of all. "I don't think
there's a room to be found,"
Frenza comments.
"We're completely booked for
the Art Fair," says Howard
Furry, front desk manager at
the Campus Inn. "It's nice to
have the Art Fair because July
is usually our slowest month
See FAIR, Page 19

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