Art Fair Master Checklist
Notes by Brianna Tosswill for Herself and Other Artists
Some of the advice below is solid and more or less objective, but much of it is DEEPLY subjective and based on 3 years’ worth of semi-successful art fair participation. Copy and paste this page into your favourite word processor once you’ve confirmed your participation in an art fair and fill in the blanks.
Event Dates, Times, and Location
(shockingly easy to forget/lose track of)
Organizer Contacts
(If you’ve corresponded with anyone specifically, note them here. If you need to ask for something, ask them directly. Relationships are key. I tend to include here if someone gave me permission to put up wallpaper or something, so I can reference it later if needed)
Quick Reference Links
(fair portal, ticket comp link, fair website, etc)
Art at different price points
< $150 (new collectors)
$150 - 500 (collectors who are familiar with your practice and want something special)
> $2000 + (collectors who came to spend money and find something special)
Approx total value of art inventory at show:_______
I try to bring at least as much art so that if I sell a third of it, I’ll be happy with the payout. Ex. $30k worth of art might result in $10k sales. This is deeply unpredictable, but how I try to plan. Artists making only OOAK art might bring less inventory and sell a greater percentage.
Also, you’ll notice that I don’t bring work priced between $500 - 2000. I’ve personally found it to be an awkward spot. People who want to spend $450 can’t swing $800, and people who are going to spend over a thousand will typically value your art more if you value it more.
Payment Processing
phone w. POS app (charged)
POS app updated with new products and tax settings (for example, my default is 5% in Alberta, but when I go to Ontario I have to change it to 13%)
POS hardware (charged)
cash float (optional these days)
printed QR code to your website or sales app if that’s the sales route you’re using
Display and Install
storage to hide extra art and misc supplies (I use a wooden chest in Toronto because my art is cozy and timeless, so it all matches. It lives at my parents’ house the rest of the year)
carpet (gives cozy feel and is nice to stand on for many hours)
scissors
tape (pretty tape for wrapping, and packing tape for emergencies)
wrapping paper or bags to pack art that has been purchased
screwdriver or drill (hammers are usually not allowed)
extra screws and hanging hardware like sawtooth hangers or d-rings
a plant for vibes
glue-stick
pencil
eraser
pen (that you can write on your business card with, and multiples if you’ve having people write down their emails of something, one or two will inevitably wander off)
tape-measure
ruler
level
utility knife
step-ladder for install
a garbage bag (like, a little one)
Marketing
2 months before the show: make a list and reach out to people to invite directly and/or connect with while in the city of the show.
1 month before show: give away all of the comp tickets you receive from the show and share your discount code via your email list and/or social media. I try to give a couple of tickets to my most serious collector in the city of the fair: someone who has purchased my art before, as a sort of thank you.
business cards ~600
fishbowl giveaway (vase, paper, pen, prize) to collect email addresses
something for visitors to do in the booth other than look at the art (participation station)
schedule an online launch for the week after the art fair so that people have a reason to follow up with you digitally, but so they still feel urgency to buy at the fair (scarcity)
have art in the booth that looks cool from afar and art that needs a closer look
dress to complement the art (and have pockets)
have stories to tell about the art and questions to ask people to engage them
have a notebook to record notes about people YOU want to follow up with (people giving you their business cards will feel chaotic and will be really hard to remember in the aftermath)
Labels
vinyl label or signage to the fair’s specifications
sticker labels for all individual works
Assistant
Whenever possible, I recommend bringing an assistant. You need help moving in and out, and day-to-day it’s incredibly helpful to have an extra person to complete payments, wrap art, and cover your booth while you use the bathroom or have a snack. Also, they’re great for moral support and companionship.
Assistant Criteria:
someone outgoing/conversational
who knows some things about your art and is realistic about where their gaps in knowledge are
who can take photos
who won’t embarrass you by criticizing someone else’s art, for example
I attended Superfine Art Fair in San Francisco without an assistant, and it was fine. Install took a lot longer, and because I wasn’t processing payments or wrapping up art for people to take with them, I didn’t have many multitasking struggles. Artist Project in Toronto has been typically busier, and there have been several hours-long periods where I didn’t stop talking to people. One of my Edmonton friends hired an assistant through the OCADU job board while we were at Artist Project, which is a good option for folks who come from out of town.
A Note on Scheduling
The year I did The Artist Project for the first time, I scheduled two teaching gigs in the two weeks following the show, and it was way too much. The second year I did it, I gave an artist talk the day after de-install. This was okay, because it was an hour and a half, and at my old arts high school, and relatively low-pressure. If you can swing it, I recommend a whole week of committing to fewer things than usual.
Travelling to an Art Fair
As a printmaker, I have packed my art more compactly than most artists feasibly can. I have rolled 100+ prints into a tube and brought it in my personal item (not even carry-on). I did send four large frames with glass in a cardboard box as an extra checked bag from Edmonton to Toronto, and it arrived safely and intact. Questions you need to answer:
How are you getting to the destination?
How is your art getting to the destination?
Where are you staying?
How are you getting back and forth from your hotel to the venue each day?
What is the transit system in the city you’re travelling to?
Things like step ladders and drills are inconvenient to travel with (if flying). How can you access these tools in the city you’re travelling to?
International Art Fair
I exhibited at Superfine Art Fair for the first time in late Winter 2025. I learned a little bit late in the process, that I couldn’t easily sell work at the fair in a legal way. My workaround was to treat the art fair more like a trade show. I could bring art to show, take orders via my website, and fulfill them when I returned home to Canada.
I found that people were generally willing to engage with my workaround. I sold $5 025 CAD worth of art, but I had $5 788.34 in expenses (booth fee, travel, hotel, food, transit, and boarding my dog), so the fair was initially a loss. However, I collected 65 email addresses and made some connections that feel like they have a high potential to result in significant sales over the next decade (play the long game!)
A few details:
I flew to San Francisco with my art in my luggage. I verbally declared at US customs that I was attending a trade show and showing but not selling my art. All true. I didn’t want to overcomplicate by getting into the details of my plan, but I knew that what I was doing was legal in case I ended up being questioned in more detail. I took orders via my website in SF, brought all my art home, and shipped orders back to SF. One surprising benefit of this system is that I didn’t have to predict which editions would sell more than others. Also, it only worked because my art practice inherently results in multiples that are originals.
Comparatively, while travelling from Alberta to Ontario for The Artist Project, my income has been higher and my expenses lower (initial income around $9 500 - 12 500 CAD and expenses around $4K CAD) because I have a place to stay for free, and the art fair is bigger and more established.
