International Folk Art Market

For those of you looking for a good excuse to visit the Southwest, the capitol city of Santa Fe has a remarkable, new(ish) Art Market. The Santa Fe International Folk Art Market held its fourth annual event this past weekend on Museum Hill, where four different museums are clustered, including the International Folk Art Museum. Look for the link in the upper right hand corner of my blog for a link.

The goal of the event is to build sustainability for the Market and for the artists, many of whom come from Third World countries with few tourism dollars. The event was amazingly inspirational, with artists dressed in traditional garb, like this woman from Bhutan. In addition to the metal headpieces and jewelry, this booth also featured shibori dyed fabric at unbelievable prices. A piece the size of a fat quarter was only $8! And the full table cloth was only $42! They now live in my home - the fabrics, that is. This is but one of the of the 118 different booths, each filled with art that one would rarely have an opportunity to see, all in the same venue.

The artist's travel costs and shipping for their art are covered by the market sponsors. I heard one story about a woman who earned a $1,600 in 2006 at this event. She used those funds to send both of her daughters to college.

Just another remarkable day in the southwest. The event takes place in mid-July each year. In 2006, 14,000 attended the event, and they expected 20,000 in 2007. I suspect that they met or exceeded that goal.