Art Festival Fitness 101

Do artists need to be in good physical condition?

For the festival season ahead of this girl the short answer is...hell yes.

Is this for real? YUP.

What follows is a true and humorous explanation of why a festival artist needs to be fit based on what I have learned in my adventures as a festival artist...

Let's see...

From May to October I have approximately 50 outdoor festivals ahead of me (yes, I am crazy) and yes, that is EVERY single weekend. 

What does that mean exactly?

Well, for starters, producing a ton of original paintings and prints during my weekdays (I already have an impressive start on this), then carrying a ton of stuff around, up and down every weekend and then setting up and pitching my tent 50 times in various weather conditions, locations and challenging situations all over the New England landscape on good, bad and ugly terrain. It means meeting thousands of people, hundreds of fellow artists, talking to all of them about my artwork and the why behind its creation (always with a pleasant smile and a calm, understanding demeanor even when facing the most outrageous individuals) and finally - having a marvelous time doing it.

Being physically and mentally fit is an absolute necessity (in this humble person's opinion) to be a successful festival artist.

Because truly...why on earth would I do it if I didn't love it?

So why do I need to be in shape?

• I am just one person and have to set up and take down my whole display by myself in a very short time in the same day (except for on the rare 3-day festival)
• My tent alone weighs 60 lbs
• I have 3 mesh side walls and a half a dozen support bars (where I hang my paintings) each wall weighing about 25 lbs each
• My painting totes, tables, festival supplies are all stored in many shaped and sized boxes weighing anywhere from 10-20 lbs each
• The weather at outdoor festivals can be pouring rain, gusty wind and sometimes extreme heat and humidity - meaning I need to be able to handle being out in such conditions for 10-12 hours
• At each festival I have approximately 1 hour to set up my entire display (tent, 3 sidewalls, hang all the painting, set up 2 display tables, hide all my storage stuff and be ready to business). I may have a great location I can pull my car up next to and unload or on other more tragic days, I may be 2-3 blocks away from my space and have to carry or cart everything there in a short 10 minutes. You gotta be fast and strong to get this done in a reasonable time
• Oh, and did I mention I live on a second floor without an elevator and have to cart this stuff up and down the stairs every weekend. Yeah, that too...

Thus, one must approach such an ambitious festival season like an athlete on the verge of greatness - with a program and a sparkling positive attitude,

So what's my pre-festival program?

Mental Program:
Watching re-runs of  "I Love Lucy" to stay witty, clever and positive.
Staying above negative energy and away from negative people (I highly recommend this for people in any profession).

Physical program:
Last year I relied on the Beachbody Insanity program to get into shape for my summer season and it worked wonders for my endurance and strength. This year I am doing a hybrid program of Taekwon-Do and weight-lifting. For inspiration and a truly kick-ass routine, I rely on the genius of former American Gladiator Beth Horn. I have an autographed copy of her brilliant book "The Natural Way" and it's awesome. I cannot quite recall how I acquired it but it has a personal dedication to me saying "Tracy, Train hard and follow your dreams and goals. Wishing you love, good health and happiness. Love, Beth Horn (with a heart drawing). Beth's book is a great way to gain strength FAST - a perfect fit lifting all the heavy stuff I will be lifting all summer so I don't get hurt. It's good stuff.

So, that's it for now. 

This artist is getting ready for a fantastic festival season in the great outdoors!

3 weeks and counting and the fun begins. Hope to see you out there :)

For my full festival season, visit http://www.tracylevesque.us/page/exhibitions