Foggy day at the Market

It was a cold, foggy day at the Market today. I had some visits from regular customers, but the tourists were cold and rushing to warmth elsewhere. The apricot card was a hit and I was able to trade it for many wonderful fruits and vegetables at the Farmers Market at the Ferry Building. The golden beets from StoneFree Farms were just beautiful! They may be my next painting, if I don't eat them tonight.
It's days like this that make you wonder why you are a street artist. It's cold, it's wet, it's still dark. You are lifting heavy things, setting up your booth, wondering what the day will bring, wondering when the fog will clear..(it never did). It's usually 10am before the market traffic picks up. Locals are on their way back from the Ferry Building and tourists are starting to rally. It was a slow, slow market day. While not being financially lucrative, it had some very rich points. I had the time to talk at length with a young Asian woman who told me of her love/hate relationship with watercolor. She's local, I hope I get to paint with her. One of my students came by with her mother to return some books I loaned her. I was also visited by a patron of mine who brought visiting out of towners and as she was going through my card rack kept bringing out cards and showing them to her friends saying "I own this". She looked at others, pulled them out and said this friend had this, and that friend had that, etc. I had kind of lost track of how many of my paintings she had purchased, and was rather amazed not only at how many SHE had bought, but also by the realization of how many paintings I have sold in my short career as a painter. Being a street vendor is a marketing tool. I can't stress that enough. It's not about the money you will make there, it is about the direct connection you can have with your customers. I get feedback every week that benefits me. People tell me what they like about things, what they would like to see that I don't have, or a different approach to a subject. I always learn something. I always meet someone meaningful. I always get inspired. That's why I continue to stand on the street in the cold and sell my little watercolors.

View my work at heidiwyckoff.com