Where to Find Artist Alley & Vendoring Opportunities
One of the things I wished I knew when I was starting was "where are all these artists finding these events to be a vendor at?".
I'm sure there's a lot of other ways to find events to be a vendor at, but the tools listed below are ones that have been working for me so far that I hope will be useful to everyone too.
1. Facebook.
I find a lot of the art shows and conventions that I go to through basic searches on Facebook. What I love about doing it on Facebook is that I can type a keyword like "craft" in the search bar and click on the 'events' tab to show me events that are craft related. And most of the time, those kinds of events will be looking for arts & crafts vendors. What's even better is that Facebook will also recommend you events that are similar to the ones you're looking at.
Popular keywords to search for is arts, craft, vendor, artist alley, con, fair, etc.
Some of these keywords will give you broader searches but should point you in the right direction. It will also show you events that may not be anime or superhero , so it's up for you to decide whether or not your artworks will be sell-able at those events.
2. Google.
As simple as this may sound, Google is beneficial for what we want. Using this also will give you more chances of finding an event to be a vendor at. Sadly in 2019, not every organization are making Facebook event pages for their events. Even ones that have hundreds of attendees. And like with Facebook, you can use the same keywords here too.
3. Get Conned! (http://www.getconned.com/ )
Get Conned is something I see a lot of artist alley artists recommend for finding events to be a vendor at. It's a big database of convention and art events local to which city you're searching in. You put in what states/cities and what niche you want and search! It's a vast resource and includes many events I have never heard of with dates of when applications for big events are out. Great resource but not perfect because new events are created all the time, and I can imagine the difficulty of being able to list every new event. Huge applause though to everyone who made that database!
Following People who Does Artist Alleys or Exhibitions.
In this modern world, I assume that everybody is following at least one prominent artist that is super active on their social medias. How you can use this to your advantage is seeing where they've been a vendor at and look up where you can apply to be at the next event date.
4. Artist Friends.
Becoming friends with other art vendors is a very beneficial thing because they are already doing the same thing as you. You can ask them what other events they'll be at, and there's a lead for another event you can apply to. You also don't have to be a vendor to ask this either, be friendly when you ask. Most of the time, the vendors will be glad to help you with your questions.
This was just a quick list that I made to name every all the search tools I use to find every event I've been vendor at. If you have any suggestions of your own, please leave a comment below stating other search tools that can help other artists too!
If you liked this and want more in the future, feel free to support me and my business by following us on social media or through merch purchases~ <3
If you like this and want more: "How to Get into Artist Alleys & What to Expect"
-Johnson Do (Creator of JDoArts)
