Southwest Indian Art Fair 2013

February 23 & 24 on the Museum's Front Lawn

Artist FAQ

The 2014 Southwest Indian Art Fair is set for February 22 and 23! Artist information will be available in the summer. Information for visitors will begin to be updated later this year.

Why are there booth fees?

For 2012, the cost of producing this event was around $150,000. Costs increase each year. At the same time, artist revenues have grown each year. Artist sales have consistently hovered at a total of $1.5 million since 2007. The museum takes no percentage of artist sales. Event costs must be met through other means. Underwriting, fundraising, and gate fees cover about two thirds of the total expenses. The remaining third comes from booth fees. Our booth fees and gate fees are evaluated each year to be at or below any comparable event in the region.

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Why charge admission to visitors?

The cost for producing and operating an event on this scale cannot be paid for by booth fees alone. Booth fees would have to more than triple in order for that to be the case. We are committed to keeping artist fees as low as possible. Studies have shown that an admission fee adds a perception of value to those attending. SWIAF's modest admission fee, which includes museum admission and performances, helps us meet the event's costs. We strive to provide the highest return for visitors in terms of top-quality, authentic, educational experiences at established market rates.

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Where do you get your judges?

Judges are selected from two sources:

• Native American artists who have established records of exhibition, who have a solid history of sales, who are recommended by their peers, and who are considered leaders in their medium.
• Non-artist judges are those closely associated with the Southwest Indian art market in one of three ways: scholarly or curatorial expertise, business acumen, marketing savvy that might assist artists.

We welcome artist recommendations for future judges.

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Why can’t you have more categories for judging?

Arizona State Museum staff work year round to encourage private businesses and individuals to contribute cash awards for the competition. We do this to help build community interest and support for the artists. Monies that are awarded meet specific goals for the museum and the donors. We respect the wishes of the donors and define our categories and awards accordingly. Each year we review our awards and try to seek out additional donors for categories that we believe are under-represented.

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Why can’t you (a) expand the times that you accept entries for the juried competition or (b) allow entries to be mailed in?

• As the number of entries increase, so does the time required to view them. Noon on Friday before the event is the latest we can accept entries in order to allow enough time to reasonably and carefully jury them all. Time is also needed to create the award list, create the award ceremony program, print the program, and set up object displays for the award ceremony which occurs that afternoon at 6:30 p.m.
• Mailed entries require storage space which, unfortunately, the museum does not have. Mailed entries also add an additional layer of insurance burden which the museum is unable to accept.

We review this issue every year, looking for ways to make it easier for more artists to participate.

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Why are there traders and Mexican artists at the fair?

Arizona State Museum is the institutional sponsor of SWIAF. Its mission and educational goals are what brought the event into being. ASM is committed to celebrating all of the Native cultures of Arizona, the American Southwest, and northern Mexico. The histories of the Zapotec, Mayo, Mixe, Seri, Huichol, and Tarahumara are as much a part of the history of this region as those of the Native nations of the southwestern United States.

Because it is especially difficult, often impossible, for Mexican Indian artists to attend SWIAF due to immigration red tape, visa-related expenses, and vehicular impediments, our museum store invites reputable traders to show and sell objects from the Mexico-based Native communities. The traders agree to donate half of their total revenues back to the museum. We do not ask this kind of support of American Indian artists who pay booth fees.

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Are there ways to keep non-Indian made goods out of the fair?

Arizona State Museum is committed to eliminating this type of unfair competition during SWIAF. We adhere to the Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990.

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What kind of feedback do you get from artists and visitors?

We survey both artists and visitors each year to get feedback. The following year we make changes to address issues and concerns brought up in the surveys.

Please see also selected Visitor and Artist Comments.

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