Page Ebgnteeri
HE MI CHIGAN DAILY
Page Eigriteer: IHEMICt-$IGAN UAILY
Wednesday, July 20, 1977
Businesses perk up
from influx
Cutaoninute front Page 9'
sice the University doesn't
hate many seminars then."
"Fifty per cent of the bookings
come a year in advance, pre-
sumably by people who come to
the presiorm scar's Art Fair,"
Furry adds happily. lovever,
he sos 'he Art Fair isn't like a
fosthati game, "where you get
baokings two or three years in
adratce."
Furry sls tays taCampus Inn's
faO and beverage business, in-
creases phenominally during the
fair. "All those people have to
eat somewhere you know," he
noted.
As far as special Art Fair
promotion Farry says the Inn
doesn't make any special effort.
"Wjy should we," he said,
"wb'll have a full house any-
way.
However, other businesses are
planning s p e c i a l Art Fair
events. Janine Meadows, part-
owner of Complete Cuisine Ltd.
says her store will provide free
concerts featuring flute and
harp music. She has also ar-
ranged to have artists work
right within the store during the
fair.
"It will be good for them (the
artists) and us (the cash reg-
ister)," Meadows remarked.
Some businesses though, -do
not see a- tremendous advantage
to the Art Fair crowds.
"We get a lot more people
of crowds
standing arotand in the snre',
said Bill Knu tstrUp, bookkees,
at Village Corner, "bait we duen'
do a lot more business'
Food Mart nmanager Tad
Jones agreed, "I think it's a
detriment to oaur busines " i
said. "The fair increases the
bisiness in areas were ta
eqtaipped to handle tan a tae
week basis. It's a tatalty dat-
ferent business than thtetather
5t weeks of the year"
Jones says he has re e
cone under fire fr ci
merchants for not uppang h
prices during the Art Fair
"What it boils down , te
Art Fair is a three or " luay
happening which occutr! n-te a
year and I think some of the
merchants take advantige sal
that. But, our business st ike
that; we can't raise our prices
and antagonize our regular cus
tomers."
Frenza, however, insists An
Arbor merchants do not hike
their prices during the fair.
"I don't believe they do iat,
he stated. "That's a crime, iP
anybody has proof, they shulj
go to the police"
Perhaps the biggest disadvant-
age of the Art Fair for area
businesses is that the fair can
be quite an effort,
"I think it's totally exhatat-
ing," admitted Shevel "We
have to put in 14 hours a day."
These women enjoy the opportunity of discussing the works they are examining with the artist
who created them,
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All regular price LUGGAGE, BRIEFCASES
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HANDBAGS
Choose from over 1200 styles and colors-
every hand bag in stock:
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BILLFOLDS SIDEWALK
A huge selection of name brand TBE
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U U
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(Continued from Page 2)
"'That isn't passible for this year at all," PhIits replied
matter-of-factly.
"Well, why not?" I asked rather sarcastically. The question
came out sounding a bit more facetiously than I had intended.
Phylis continued. "Entry is contingent upon early registra.
tion," she informed me. And registration for this summer's
Art Fair closed back when snow still covered the Diag. The 5W(
available spaces have long been filled.
I asked if I cotld have my name placed in waitin' ; the
event that number 489 suffered a sudden stoppage of baeathitg
due to the rapid injection of a powerfu muscle relaxant.
"We have a very long waiting list," Phylis said. She toldt ae
I could probably get squeezed in "in a few years."
"Exactly how long is this waiting list?" I was anticip ati. ta
worst.
"Oh, 800 or so."
'"But," I began in my first effort to catch her off gad and
put her on the defensive. "Isn't the Art Fair fort U of a tU'
dents?"
Phylis wasn't ruffled. "It's for U of M students anal Gii
members," she corrected. The guild, she told me, sponstrs t
Summer Arts Festival.
Then she told me that I, as a student, did get prioril a
anon-student Guild members. However that rule did not apt cc
of the lateness Surhmer Arts Festival students no locger
priority."
I thanked Phylis for her patience with me and was 'raked at
turn to come visit their second-floor office in the fall.
But back to deciphering the information to which atty th
most persistent are privy. To put it all in a nutshell, the t afl
Artists and Craftsmen Guild sponsors and coordinates the Sun
mer Arts Festival, a parallel (or alternative, for lack of
better word to the Ann Arbor Art Fairs with their cut thrua
competition for space. The Summer Arts Festival is fr Stu
dents and Guild members, and while not reserved exelusiret
to students, students have priority, unless of course tie sty
dent happens to apply sometime before the Fair. Of tours
the student's priority wouldn't do any good considering the fac
that it would mean opting for priority to get on the waititn
list.
And, oh yes, the waiting list.
"800 or so" as Phylis put it.
"800 or so" artists and craftsmen clawing their way' Tp th
list year by year to get into this Fair designed to (ha!) get ama
from the severe competition for space in the more professional
Arbor Street Art Fair.
This year ,one would-be-Whistler will be enjoying the F
only as an observer, maybe stopping occasionally to barter f
some esthetically appealing clay ashtray or pot.
Maybe I'll be on the other side of one of those exhibitai Ih
year after the year after the year after the next.
Let's see, right now, I should be about number 801 asad cli
ing. See you in 1984 ...