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Summary of Event

2010 Francisco’s Farm Arts Festival at Midway College
June 26 and 27 – 10am to 6pm Saturday & 10am to 5pm Sunday

Awards:
From statewide honors (‘Honorable Mention’ from the Kentucky Tourism Council), to regional (Southeast Tourism Society’s ‘Top 20 Events for June’) to national (AmericanStyle Magazine’s ‘Top Ten Art Fairs & Festivals – fourth year), the event continues to receive accolades and benefits from the recognition. Nearly 8,000 visitors attended - a decrease we are attributing to the extremely hot weather.

Artists:
More than 260 artists applied to exhibit this year. Combined with the fact that over 75 additional artists inquired about exhibiting after the application deadline had passed and you have an indication of how the reputation of this festival is growing among artists. There were 145 exhibitors from 14 states, 52% of them Kentucky artists. 83% of exhibitors returned their surveys. Despite the decrease in visitors, the average revenue per artist was just under $1,743.00, a 10% increase over last year.

Survey respondents agreed the quality of work on display this year was of high caliber and showed great variety.  The balance of media representation was excellent.  Scheduled art and craft demonstrations drew visitor interest and provided an educational component.

Sponsors:
The Festival continues to develop unique relationships with our corporate sponsors, matching support opportunities with individual sponsor interests and striving to provide the most valuable exposure in recognition of their generosity. The current economic climate leaves us especially grateful to our sponsors.

  • PNC Bank (previously National City), has supported the Festival since its inception. PNC and Francisco’s Farm share common passions – to community, to education, and to the environment. Our title sponsor was pleased with our commitment to expanding the ways we promote environmental responsibility and impressed with the overall quality of the event.

  • Woodford Reserve again sponsored Francisco’s Gallery – ‘Art Goes Green’ - and set up a beautiful display in the Anne Hart Raymond Center complete with eye-catching graphics and fresh flowers. Woodford Reserve’s sponsorship of the gallery continued their historic support of the Festival as they are also an inaugural sponsor.

  • Toyota joined our family of sponsors this year as our ‘Transportation Sponsor’. Toyota helped support the expense of providing shuttle services for our visitors. The shuttles carried signs promoting our shared values of commitment to community, the environment, education, and the arts – encouraging visitors to participate in our public art projects.
  • Nancy Barron & Associates has supported the event since 2004, and this year continued her support by sponsoring the Artist Awards. (See ‘Artist Awards’, below, for a list of the winners)
  • Holly Hill Inn sponsored the highly regarded Artists Reception Dinner. Chef Ouita Michel, one of the festival founders, has supported the event from the first year. 

  • Bluegrass Community Hospital joined our family of sponsors this year, supporting our Public Art Project. The project was conducted by citizensCREATE!, a non-profit arts organization based in Lexington that encourages ‘we the people’ to create art.

  • This year’s Music Stages were sponsored by a special group of Friends of the Festival, including Dr. Barry Shaffer, Damselfly Gallery, Equus Run Vineyards, Joel & Joyce Evans. Group CJ – Communication Arts, Sue Harkins and Bill Betz, Dean Langdon, John & Becky Moore, Mike & Linda Nelson, Judy Offutt, The Sewing Machine—Amy Perry, Randy & Pam Thomas, WH Graddy & Associates / Attorneys, and Portofino & Serafini Restaurants—Wayne & Susan Masterman.

  • Ruggles Sign Company of Versailles was this year’s Sign Sponsor, providing professional, high-quality signage to enhance the festival experience for all.
  • The Lexington Herald-Leader, our Newspaper Partner since the beginning, again provided generous print and online advertising for the event and helped us develop a promotional plan for web advertising to reach Central Kentucky, Louisville, and Cincinnati.

  • WLEX-TV, our Television Partner, returned for the third year to provide the production and underwriting of television commercials that reached thousands of potential visitors in the weeks leading up to the event.
  • WUKY-FM, our Radio Partner since 2007, promoted the Festival through donated Public Service Announcements and several opportunities to participate in Nick Lawrence’s ‘Curtains At 8’ radio show, a valuable outreach to the arts-inclined in Central Kentucky.

Location: Midway is charming and a geographically well-centered location for this fine art show.  Midway College campus provides a beautiful venue, with a tree-shaded campus and an atmosphere of prestige.

Facilities: Having both indoor and outdoor display areas is one of many components that set this event apart from other art shows. The provision of indoor restrooms, air-conditioned respite areas, and the ability to move people inside during inclement weather is a feature appreciated by exhibitors and visitors alike. The College’s generous provision of reasonably priced lodging further elevates the festival’s appeal among artists.

Advance publicity & information: Publicity was extensive in central Kentucky, with television commercials fully underwritten by WLEX-TV, frequent Public Service Announcements donated by WUKY-FM, and a generous allowance for print advertising contributed by the Lexington Herald-Leader. Paid advertising in print, web, and radio expanded our reach to the Louisville and Cincinnati media markets, state-wide, and nationally. See Media Report for details.

Layout / Accessibility of Booths: Although the layout was highly rated by visitors, artists, and volunteers, quite a few suggested improvements for better traffic flow and consistent accessibility to all exhibitors. The most successful layout will provide a seamless flow to all booths, an obvious walking pattern for visitors, and no large gaps between exhibitors.

Food Service: Artists, volunteers, and visitors appreciated the opportunity to dine inside the cafeteria. This year the College agreed to allow two select outdoor food vendors to meet visitor expectations of a greater variety of food at multiple locations. In addition to indoor dining, the College staffed a Coca-Cola wagon and an outdoor grill. Outside vendors included Repicci’s Italian Water Ice and Jake’s Crabcakes.

Hospitality of Volunteer Workers: Artists are not accustomed to being treated this well elsewhere, with assistance readily available from set-up to tear-down.  The community takes great pride in this distinction, and maintains the highest standards each year. The visitors also appreciated the friendliness of the volunteers, with high ratings on surveys.
           
Traffic management & parking:  This year’s plan incorporated a new entrance. All vehicles entered through the College’s ‘farm gate’, which was decorated with colorful banners and signage expressing our gratitude to our sponsors. Andy Frain Security again directed visitor parking, and the arrangement worked well for the most part. During peak arrival times, parking time significantly increased. Visitors did appreciate the shuttle rides from the parking areas by our friendly volunteers, and the shuttle service allowed us to deliver visitors to all sections of the festival. Exhibitors expressed appreciation for their parking locations behind the campus, as it allowed easy access to their vehicles to retrieve additional inventory during the weekend.

Special Exhibits / Events:

  • Francisco’s Gallery – Our 2010 theme was ‘Art Goes Green’ – a showcase of artists who create using recycled, repurposed or reclaimed materials and found objects.  The exhibit featured artists present at the Festival as well as several guest artists. Volunteer docents greeted visitors and provided an enhanced appreciation of the exhibit.
  • Kentucky Music Stages –This year we provided music at two locations on Saturday and at three locations on Sunday. Performances in the amphitheater and on the library porch provided a variety of musical genres. Kyle Meadows played hammered dulcimer on Sunday near Pinkerton Hall. We are grateful to our music sponsor friends named above, and especially to Billy Hill, Midway musician and Francisco’s Farm Stage Manager for coordinating all aspects of this successful presentation.
  • Public Art Project – In an effort to promote participation in public art projects, the Festival again invited citizensCREATE! of Lexington to guide the project. Participants created 100% passer-by created artwork by painting two horse profiles. All materials and supplies were provided by citizensCREATE!
  • Children’s Art Projects – On Saturday, UK Students in Arts in Education guided children in the creation of paper hats and artworks from found objects. On Sunday, Lexington’s Living Arts & Science Center coordinated the project, assisting children to create mobiles using found objects. BluegrassMoms (an online component of the Lexington Herald-Leader) was the sponsor of the Children’s Art Project.
  • University of Kentucky Student Artists Exhibit – Francisco’s Farm again sponsored an exhibition opportunity for students in the UK College of Fine Art. Dr. Benjamin Withers, Professor and Chair of the Department of Art, expressed his appreciation of this opportunity for the young emerging artists to obtain real-world experience in marketing, merchandising, and selling their artwork.
  • Artists Awards – Providing recognition and cash awards elevates a festival’s reputation among artists.  Nancy Atcher, retired Arts Administrator from the Kentucky Arts Council, and Dr. Benjamin Withers, director of the UK College of Fine Arts, served as our jurors this year, spending all day Saturday reviewing the exhibitor booths. They were impressed with the overall quality of the artwork presented, and selected the following artists for recognition –
    • First Place – Rhanna Nyman, fabric – Asheville, NC
    • Second Place – Donna Doane, jeweler – Louisville, KY
    • Third Place – Allen Quandee, wood – Jasper, GA
    • Honorable Mentions – Dan Neil Barnes, glass – Lexington, KY; Ray Papka, mixed media – Midway, KY; Joan Rasmussen, mixed media – Roswell, GA
  • Larkspur Press – Since the first year, Gray Zeitz has set up his antique letter press to demonstrate for visitors, and offered a selection of hand-made books and cards. Larkspur Press was located inside the Student Center again this year and drew many admirers.
  • Artique’s ‘Going Green’ Art Gallery – As an echo of the Festival’s promotion of our initiatives to ‘Go Green’, Artique also presented a collection of artwork inside the Student Center featuring artists who re-use and adapt recyclable materials to create their works.
  • Saturday Night in Midway – Partnering with the Midway Business Association, the Festival promoted Saturday evening as a continuation of the event, encouraging artists, volunteers, and visitors to move downtown at the close of the day. Shops and restaurants stayed open late, and reported a significant increase in shoppers and diners.  The Thoroughbred Theatre hosted a concert by Mitch Barrett, who had performed at the Festival in the afternoon.

           
Pre-Festival Events:
We produced a number of events designed to increase awareness of the Festival and ‘start the buzz’ months before the weekend - Francisco’s Farm Arts Night at WUKY Fall and Spring Fund Drives, and a month-long gallery exhibit at PNC Bank in Versailles. See Media Report for details.

Special Friends of Francisco’s Farm:
A summary of the event would be incomplete without recognition of several local businesses and organizations that always step forward and ask, “What can we do to help support and promote the Festival?”

  • The Midway Woman’s Club shares our calls for volunteers with their membership, provides organization and staffing of the Artists Hospitality Suite along with home-baked goods for the artists’ enjoyment, and promotes the Festival at every opportunity.
  • Thoroughbred Community Theater partners with Midway Renaissance to promote the Festival in many ways, including hosting events, often at no cost to the festival. Jim McDaniel provides guidance in fundraising and promotion, and John McDaniel provides photography services to the Festival and to the artists.
  • Damselfly Gallery provides a promotional venue, the loan of artwork for exhibitions, and a shipping destination for artwork and supplies.
  • Wallace Station provides a promotional venue, loan of equipment, and the location and support for our annual Volunteer Appreciation Picnic following the event.

A New Partnership:
In support of their Community Scholars, the Kentucky Folklife Program loans equipment to enhance the visitor experience at select festivals throughout the Commonwealth. Our festival was a beneficiary of their generosity this year. Our signage was cohesive and attractive displayed on the ‘Big Green Sign-holders’ loaned to the festival, and Francisco’s Gallery received a full set of display walls. Future plans call for adding a Kentucky Folklife component to Francisco’s Farm Arts Festival.

WHY FRANCISCO’S FARM?

John Francisco was the original owner of the property on which Midway stands. In 1835, Francisco sold a farm
“consisting of two hundred and sixteen acres, one rood and twenty poles of land” to the Lexington and Ohio Railroad Company. The L&O planned and built Midway, Kentucky’s first railroad town, so named because it is halfway between Lexington and Frankfort, the state capital.

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Francisco's Farm Arts Festival is a not-for-profit production of Midway, Renaissance, Inc.
Generously hosted by Midway College, the Festival has become a favorite of artists and visitors alike.